Western Geographic Science Center
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The Western Geographic Science Center (WGSC) conducts geographic research on the environmental and societal consequences of a changing landscape. Our tools and models help decision makers better use complex scientific information to understand their alternative options. Our work links natural science and social science to analyze human/environmental interactions both spatially and temporally.
Anne Wein Wins Bay Area Metro Award!
Congratulations to Dr. Anne Wein, Operations Research Analyst at WGSC, who received a 2019 Bay Area Metro Award for her work as lead researcher for the HayWired earthquake scenario!
Learn moreVegetation recovery science in the News!
“Understanding the factors that encourage successful re-vegetation is critical for resource managers to make informed decisions about this region of economic and ecological importance.” Miguel Villarreal
Read press releaseProjects and teams at WGSC
Just a few examples of WGSC projects and science teams.
Global Food Security-Support Analysis Data at 30 m (GFSAD30)
Hazards Societal Consequences and Risk Communication
Land-Use and Climate Change Team (LUCC)
Applied Landscape Ecology and Remote Sensing
Patterns in the Landscape – Analyses of Cause and Effect (PLACE)
News
Anne Wein Wins Prestigious 2019 Bay Area Metro Award
Congratulations to Dr. Anne Wein, Operations Research Analyst at WGSC, who received a 2019 Bay Area Metro Award from the Association of Bay Area Governments and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission for her work as lead researcher for the HayWired earthquake scenario.
WGSC Scientists tour a restoration project
Laura Norman's Aridland Water Harvesting Study helps lead a tour of a restoration and monitoring project at the Boy Scouts of America, Heard Scout Pueblo (HSP) in Phoenix, Arizona.
The GFSAD30 project accomplished their goal!
The global croplands mapping project has succesfully mapped croplands across the entire planet in order to understand the security of food world wide. Below are many press anouncments and interviews with the project leader Prasad Thenkabail.
Publications
Integrating stream gage data and Landsat imagery to complete time-series of surface water extents in Central Valley, California
Accurate monitoring of surface water location and extent is critical for the management of diverse water resource phenomena. The multi-decadal archive of Landsat satellite imagery is punctuated by missing data due to cloud cover during acquisition times, hindering the assembly of a continuous time series of inundation dynamics. This study...
Walker, Jessica J.; Soulard, Christopher E.; Petrakis, Roy E. Scenarios of climate adaptation potential on protected working lands from management of soils
Management of protected lands may enhance ecosystem services that conservation programs were designed to protect. Practices that build soil organic matter (SOM) on agricultural lands also increase soil water holding capacity, potentially reducing climatic water deficit (CWD), increasing actual evapotranspiration (AET) and increasing groundwater...
Byrd, Kristin B.; Alvarez, P.; Sleeter, Benjamin; Flint, Lorraine E.; Cameron, D. Richard; Creque, J. Case study: Thomas Fire
No abstract available.
Kreitler, Jason R.; East, Amy E.; Sankey, Joel B.; Tague, Christina (Naomi)