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1a. Details of proposal
Title: Modelling the geospatial dynamics of the mountainous tropical-temperate forest zone in Southeast Asia since the Cenozoic era (66 Ma).
1b. Details of applicant
Name: Linde Berbers Gender: Ο Male ● Female
E-mail: Lindeberbers@gmail.com Date of birth: 31/07/1996
1c. Applying for: MSc project (6 months) 2. Composition of the research group
Name and title Specialization Institution Involvement
Dhr. Dr. K.F. (Kenneth) Rijsdijk
Dynamics of abiotic processes that shape the earth's surface and affect biota.
Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, Universiteit van Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Thesis supervisor Dhr. dr. A.C. (Harry)
Seijmonsbergen
Understand the functioning of geoecosystems, and their response to changing environmental conditions
Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, Universiteit van Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Second assessor Dhr. S.J. (Sietze)
Norder
Island biogeography Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem
Dynamics, Universiteit van Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Advisor
Dhr. dr. J.Y. (Jun Ying) Lim
Macroevolution, biogeography, island biology
Post-Doctoral Researcher Nanyang Technological University Singapore, Singapore
Advisor
Prof. Robert Hall Field-based research into geology of SE Asia and the western Pacific; island arc origin & evolution; plate tectonic reconstructions; seismic tomography, mantle processes & tectonics of the region; tropical sedimentation & links to provenance, climate & tectonics; implications of plate tectonics for the biogeography of SE Asia.
Southeast Asia Research Group & Department of Earth Sciences, Proffessor at Royal Holloway, University of London, United Kingdom
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3a. Scientific summary
Mountains exhibit sharp climatic gradients over short distances in elevation, allowing them to support numerous ecosystems within a small radius. As a result, mountains can host exceptionally high species richness and levels of endemism. Southeast Asian mountains provide the habitats to world’s most biodiverse assembly of species, despite their extraordinarily tectonically active past, present and future. They also experience a present and an undeniable detrimental humanly impacted future. In Southeast Asia, mountains have migrated over many millions of years due to plate tectonics. Reconstructing the geospatial dynamics of these mountains will gain insight into the adaptive capacity of large groups of plant and animal species. New types of digital data on species distribution patterns are becoming more readily available which is allowing for new approaches to analyse adaptive systems of evolution and biodiversity. This study develops and implements a novel approach to research the steppingstones of species evolution, by producing a historical, spatially explicit model of the mountainous Southeast Asian tropical-temperate forest zone distribution. By reconstructing the presence, duration and extent of the temperate forest zone in mountainous Southeast Asia over the past 66 Ma, this study will be increasing understanding of the geospatial dynamics underlying species evolution and distribution.
3b. Summary for the general public
Titel: In kaart brengen van de gematigde boszone in Zuidoost-Azië over de laatste 66 miljoen jaar. Als je een berg omhoogloopt, wordt het steeds kouder. Daardoor gaan er ook andere soorten planten en dieren leven. Zo ontstaan er als het waren vegetatie banden op een hoge berg, en binnen die verschillende banden wonen verschillende dieren en groeien verschillende planten. In Zuidoost-Azië zijn hoge bergen door middel van platen tektoniek veel verschoven over vele
miljoenen jaren. Als we weten waar bepaalde vegetatiebanden ooit zijn geweest, dan krijgen we inzicht in de aanpassing capaciteit van belangrijke plant en diersoorten. Deze studie ontwikkelt en implementeert een nieuwe benadering om de stapstenen van de evolutie van soorten te
onderzoeken, doormiddel van het produceren van een historisch, ruimtelijk expliciet model van de bergachtige Zuidoost-Aziatische tropisch-gematigde boszone. Door de aanwezigheid, duur en omvang van de Zuidoost-Aziatische gematigde boszone over de afgelopen 66 miljoen jaar te reconstrueren, zal deze studie het begrip van de geospatiale dynamiek die ten grondslag ligt aan de evolutie en verspreiding van soorten, vergroten. Dit zal helpen om te kunnen voorspellen hoe belangrijke plant en diersoorten zullen reageren in de toekomst op veranderingen van klimaat en hun leefgebied.
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4. Description of the proposed research 4.1 Introduction
Mountains are hotspots for biodiversity because they can support a high diversity of ecosystems and species habitats over short distances in elevation (Körner, 2004). Even though mountains shape the terrestrial surface of the Earth, they accommodate a much larger share of global biodiversity compared to their total surface area (Körner et al., 2011). A good scientific understanding of the dynamics and various complex processes related to the functioning of these ecosystems is required in order to best inform environmental managers, planners, policy makers, stakeholders and local and national governments. Mountains are able to provide habitats for such a high and diverse species richness because mountain forming processes (orogeny) produce
environmental settings which accommodate in situ diversification and speciation (Hoorn, 2013). Because mountains exhibit sharp environmental gradients across slight distances, they demonstrate ‘natural experiments’ and allow for the testing of theories and questions of ecology and evolution (Körner, 2004). Only recently are digital data on species’ distribution patterns and legacies becoming more readily available (Spehn & Körner, 2009). This is permitting species distribution to be linked to systems of geographical information on environmental characteristics such as geology, relief and climate (Spehn & Körner, 2009). These digital databases allow for novel approaches to analyze adaptive systems of evolution and biodiversity.
Covering only 4% of Earth’s land masses, Southeast Asia is home to 25% of all global animal and plant species and is one of the most important biodiversity hotpots on Earth (figure 1; Myers et al., 2000; Woodruff, 2010; Settele et al., 2010). Specifically, comparison between figure 1 and 2 demonstrates that most of this biodiversity is concentrated in the mountains of Southeast Asia. Unfortunately, Southeast Asia’s biodiversity is severely threatened by the human impacts of palm oil plantations and global climate change (figure 2). Malaysia and Indonesia alone account for 85% of the global palm oil production, and Papua New Guinea is the third largest exporter. Palm-oil
plantations have a detrimental impact on the environment by causing widespread deforestation and biodiversity loss (Colchester, 2011). Montane forests are predicted to decrease or even cease to exist as the climate is getting warmer (Woodruff, 2010). Another key element which threatens Southeast Asia’s biodiversity is its vast majority of islands. Islands account for just 5.3% of the Earth’s terrestrial surface yet maintain 17% of all flowering plants found on Earth. Insular species are
disproportionally endangered compared to continental species (Whittaker & Fernández-Palacios, 2007). Currently, 37% island species are endangered and 61% are already extinct (Tershy et al., 2016). Insight into the historical geospatial dynamics of montane forest species assemblies is key to their response behavior to future changes in their climate and habitat (Cannon, 2012). This proposal aims to increase understanding into the evolutionary steppingstones of mountainous species in Southeast Asia, by gaining insight into the underlying geospatial dynamics of the mountainous temperate forest zone distribution of Southeast Asia.
Olson et al., (2001) explain how the scarcity of resources and the speed at which the global climate is changing, is forcing conservation strategies to focus their activities on stemming
biodiversity loss. This approach can be judged pragmatic, considering the unevenly balanced species and risk distribution over the world (Mace et al., 2000; Myers et al., 2000). Regrettably, the
capability to strategically concentrate conservation efforts is interfered by the lack of a worldwide biodiversity map with enough biogeographical preciseness to correctly reflect the intricate
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distribution patterns of all the natural communities found on Earth. Bereft of such a map, numerous ecological communities remain underrecognized (Olson et al., 2001). This research will therefore add much needed knowledge of an understudied, highly biodiverse, geologically intricate and
mountainous region by implementing a novel approach to research the steppingstones of species evolution.
Considering Southeast Asia’s unparalleled biodiversity, Morely et al., (2018) describe that natural biological processes and mechanisms must be present to have allowed species endure a long history shaped by tectonic turmoil and biogeographic processes. As such, Southeast Asian mountains make for a perfect ‘laboratory’ to study evolutionary dynamics of montane species distribution and development (Whittaker & Fernández-Palacios, 2007; Whittaker et al., 2017). The current geologic architecture of Southeast Asia is the result of both current and past tectonic, geologic and erosive processes during the Cenozoic era 66 million years ago (Ma) (Hall, 2009). The Cenozoic era also marked the start of the diversification and modernization of flowering plants into those observed today (Collinson, 2000). This research seeks to understand the paleogeography of the mountainous tropical-temperate forest zone by examining the geospatial dynamics in Southeast Asia since the Cenozoic era.
This study aims to do so by firstly identifying and collecting data on the past and present tectonic, geologic and erosive regimes which have led to the current formation of mountains in Southeast Asia accommodating the temperate forest zone. Present-day relationships between mountain forming processes and specific mountain elevation range which forms the habitat of a temperate forest zone, will be established. This relationship will then be applied to paleo-reconstructions of the study area in order toidentify when and where over the past 66 Ma
temperate forest zones occurred, how extensive they were and for how long they existed. This will result in insights into the geospatial paleo-dynamics of the mountainous Southeast Asian tropical-temperate forest zone.
Figure 1. Adapted from Settele et al., (2010). World map of species richness of vascular plants (Barthlott et al., 2005; Mutke & Barthlott, 2005). The map is based on species richness figures for c. 1,400 geographical units word-wide.
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4.2 Research area
The study area for this proposed research is Southeast Asia, delimited from 10°S to 20°N and from 90°E to 150°E (figure 3) to specifically focus on temperate forest zones within the tropics (Ohsawa, 1993). This includes part of Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, the Philippines and Papua New Guinea.
The study area is more than 5000 km wide, closely located near the junction of macro and micro tectonic plates and covered by thousands of islands. On all sides except the northern side, the area is fringed by rapid subduction of the Pacific Ocean and the tectonic Indian Plate which forms volcanic island arcs and induces powerful seismic activity and extreme volcanism (Hall, 2017). The main tectonic plate is the Sunda Plate. The orogenic belts of Malaysia, Myanmar and Thailand belong to the Alpide belt, the Phillipine islands belong to the Pacific Ring of Fire which converge and collide in Indonesia (Lee & Lawver, 1995). Island arcs collide with each other or with continental plates or tectonic plate fragments, generating vast mountains and causing the development of deep oceanic basins. The current geological architecture of the study area results from both current tectonic processes and past tectonic processes during the Cenozoic era (66 Ma) (Hall, 2009). The temperate forest zone also is the remnant of processes taking place during this era, as vegetation stared to resemble modern vegetation after the mass extinction which marked the start of the Cenozoic era (Theokrithoff, 1994; Collinson, 2000). In order to examine the geospatial dynamics of the mountainous temperate forest zone, this research will reconstruct distribution patterns of the Southeast Asian mountain ranges that hosted the temperate forest zone since the Cenozoic era until the present day.
Figure 2. Adapted from Bickford et al., (2010). ‘Predictions for climate change impact across Southeast Asia. Map a shows simplified model of predicted areas of impact on Southeast Asian species; Map b shows elevation above sea level.’
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4.3 Theoretical framework
During the Paleozoic era (252-541 Ma) series of orogenetic cycles, each having an initiatory, lengthy geosynclinal stage, were succeeded by reduced periods of decisive orogeny and post-orogeny phenomena. These post-orogenetic processes were commonly carried towards the geosynclinal stage of the next orogenetic cycle (Domeier & Torsvik, 2014). These orogenetic cycles still act in the same manner as those observed today. Therefore, by considering that also from a vegetation perspective, present geophysical, physiological and geological conditions are the same during the Cenozoic era as they are now, the Principle of Actualism (Lyell & Deshayes, 1830) permits the use of contemporary tectonic, erosive and geologic processes and conditions as the key to reconstructing the past 66 million years.
The geospatial dynamics of mountains over the last 66 Ma in the study area will be derived from paleogeographic reconstructions by created by Robert Hall (2012, 2017). The temperate forest zone in Southeast Asia is only present on highly elevated mountains. By analyzing the present-day mountain forming processes which lead to the formation of mountains which accommodate the temperate forest zone, tectonic, geologic and erosive pre-conditions will be identified. On the grounds of the actualism principle, this research argues that if these pre-conditions were met in the paleo-setting of the Cenozoic era, temperate forest zones can be identified. This allows for the reconstruction of the presence, extent and duration of the Southeast Asian mountainous temperate forest zone over the past 66.
Figure 3. A) Adapted from Hall, (2009); “Geography of Southeast Asia & surrounding regions showing present-day tectonic boundaries and volcanic activity. Bathymetric contours at 200 m and 5000 m. Heavy arrows show plate convergence vectors for the Indian Plate (IND-EUR), and the Philippine Sea Plate (PSP-EUR) relative to Eurasia, and the Australian Plate relative to the Pacific Plate (AUS-PAC). There is little thrusting at the Timor Trough. The Seram Trough (ST) and Flores-Wetar Thrusts are the sites of active thrusting.” The green line marks the demarcation of the study area.
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4.4 Innovative aspects
This study proposes to fill a research gap by implementing a novel approach to research the steppingstones of species evolution. By producing a historical, spatially explicit model of the
mountainous Southeast Asian tropical-temperate forest zone distribution, and quantifying the presence, distance change and area change for the Southeast Asian mountain ranges since 66 Ma, this research will be increasing understanding of the geospatial dynamics of the temperate forest zone in Southeast Asia throughout the Cenozoic era (66 Ma).
4.5 Research questions & objectives
The primary objective of the proposed research is:
● To increase understanding into the geospatial dynamics of the mountainous tropical-temperate forest zone in Southeast Asia since the Cenozoic era (66 Ma).
Secondary objectives:
1. To establish a present-day relationship between mountain forming processes and minimal mountain elevation required for the presence of the Southeast Asian temperate forest zone. 2. To model where and when in Southeast Asia mountains formed which accommodated
temperate forest zones during the past 66 million.
3. To model the extent and duration of the mountainous temperate forest zones in Southeast Asia over the past 66 million years.
4. To identify elevational, spatial and temporal accuracy of the paleo-reconstructions and the identified mountainous temperate forest zone occurrence over the past 66 million years. In order to fulfill the above objectives, the following research questions will be considered. Main research question
● How did the geospatial configuration of the mountainous tropical-temperate forest zone shift in Southeast Asia since the Cenozoic era (66 Ma)?
Sub-questions
1. What are the current tectonic, geologic and erosive processes and conditions in Southeast Asia which have led to the formation of mountain ranges accommodating a temperate forest zone?
2. When and where did mountains form in Southeast Asia which accommodated temperate forest zones over the past 66 million years?
3. What was the extent and duration of the mountainous temperate forest zones in Southeast Asia over the past 66 million years?
4. What is the elevational, spatial and temporal accuracy of the paleo-reconstructions and the identified mountainous temperate forest zone occurrence over the past 66 million years?
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4.6 Methodology
In order to understand the geospatial dynamics of the temperate forest zone within the mountain ranges of Southeast Asia over the timespan of 66 Ma and to identify their present-day relationship to tectonic, geologic and erosive processes and conditions, several types of data will have to be obtained and pre-processed (figure 4). Pre-processing data is vital because if data has not been screened and carefully selected before applying and analyzing, difficulties and inaccuracies can occur in later stages of the research (García et all., 2015). First, the mountain elevation needs to be identified which allows for the presence of temperate forests in the subtropical realm of Southeast Asia. Within current research however, there is no consensus regarding this, neither from a spatial perspective nor from a vegetative perspective (table 1). A database will be composed containing lower limit elevational boundary data for the occurrence of a mountainous temperate forest zone within the study area, based on an extensive literature study. From this database a minimal mountain elevation will be established. This will focus the compilation and identification of mountain forming processes to those which are of influence on the establishment of mountains having at least this elevation.
Table 1. A collection of definitions and demarcations of the temperate forest zone put forward by a considerable number of authors. What can be observed is the ambiguity in terms of terminology and elevational boundaries.
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Mountain elevation the net product of two counteracting processes: uplift and denudation. The tectonic processes and conditions which can influence mountain height are for example but not limited to: tectonic plate type, tectonic plate boundary type, direction of colliding tectonic plates, colliding tectonic plate velocity, subduction rate, accretion rate and convergence rate (table 2). At convergent plate boundaries, contraction of the tectonic crust leads to surface uplift, as the then heavier crust is compensated due to isostacy (Willet et al., 2001). Plate tectonics do not only cause uplift but can also remove material from active tectonic plate boundaries in the form of subduction erosion (Clift & Vannucchi, 2004). Tectonic erosion erosion is more common when the rate of convergence is greater than 6 cm yr-1. Substantial amounts of continental crust will subduct at erosive as well as accretionary tectonic plate margins. To maintain the same volume at continental crusts, the mean productivity of magma production at arcs should be more than 90 km3 m.y.-1. The stability of oceanic arcs is dependent on a crust thickness of no more than 36 km (Clift & Vannucchi, 2004). For volcanogenic mountains, the presence of hotspot and the locations of the plate margins relative to the hotspot are of importance (Lamb, 2006). Erosive processes and conditions are primarily influenced by climatic factors such as annual precipitation and temperature and geologic factors such as rock type (Godard et al., 2004). The dominant erosive factor which can reduce topographic relief is mechanical erosion, which is strongest in mountainous areas. Chemically induced erosion depends primarily on runoff and precipitation (Harrison, 1994). Geologic setting conditions which can influence mountain elevation are but not limited to: seafloor age, tectonic plate margin age and tectonic plate age. Age is significant because erosive processes have had more time to operate and because indications for uplift can be confirmed from elevation of stones of known age, which were formed underneath or at sea level (Summerfield, 2014). Elevation can also induce orographic precipitation and increase mechanical erosion rates (Harrison, 1994; Willet et al., 2001).
Table 2 is the start of the collection and quantification on the specific data of mountain forming processes which influence mountain elevation. This inventory will be elaborated upon, along with past tectonic, geologic and erosive factors influencing elevation, which together have led to the current presence of mountains which have the minimal elevation for the mountainous temperate forest zone to occur. This inventory is based on an extensive literature study and geospatial data.
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One of the key objectives in research which couples tectonic, erosive and climatic processes is to document reliable correlations between the observed variables of the processes on mountain range scales (Grujic et al., 2006). By running correlation analyses between mountain elevation and the collected data influencing mountain elevation, the variables which influence mountain elevation the most are identified and selected. A present-day relationship between these variables and mountain elevation required for a temperate forest zone in the study area will be established then. This relationship will be visualized in the GIS (geographic information system) environment of ArcGIS Pro from ESRI, which is specifically designed for working with geographic information and maps to store, capture, manage, analyze and present geographic and spatial data (Esri, 2018). Correlation analyses will be performed R software, an environment specifically designed for statistical computing (R, 2013).
In the modelling phase paleo-reconstructions will be made based on reconstructive maps of Southeast Asia created by Robert Hall (2012, 2017). These maps go back 160 million years, in timesteps of 5 million years, and only show the geologic change of land formation and deformation in the study area. When a distinct correlation is found between mountain height and accretion rate, it is arguable to identify paleo-elevations when the paleo-accretion rate is known. By collecting paleogeographic data on the identified tectonic, erosive and geologic processes and conditions, it can be deduced when and on which of the landmasses identified by Hall (2012, 2017) the temperate forest zone occurred, what their extent was and how long there were present over the past 66 Ma. Additionally, it can be showed to what extent mountain ranges become connected or split off from each other. This will be quantified by calculating the distance of a mountain range from the Asian mainland over time. Such graphs are the ultimate deliverable of this research.
The final phase of the research involves an accuracy assessment of the model and the parameters, as in paleo-tectonic reconstructions there will always be a degree of inaccuracy and uncertainty. Three types of required accuracy assessments are identified: elevational accuracy, spatial accuracy, and temporal accuracy. The elevational inaccuracy regards the lower elevational boundary of the temperate forest zone. Inaccuracy will be accounted for based on a statistical analysis of the dataset. This statistical analysis will be performed in Excel using the Analysis and Descriptive Statistics Toolpak. The spatial inaccuracy concerns the reconstructions used. The thickness of the line drawn decides the resolution of the accuracy. For example, if a map is drawn with a scale of 1:26.000, with a pencil of ½mm wide, each line on the map signifies a width of 13 meter. The actual location of the line is someplace within the 13 meter wide line which it represents. The precise spatial inaccuracy will be calculated based on the scale of the maps by Hall (2012, 2017) when spatially used in the Arc GIS Pro environment. Hall (2012, 2017) does not mention a decrease in spatial accuracy when going back in time. When applying the present-day relationship between mountain elevation and mountain forming processes on the past, it is expected that there will be less data available moving backwards in time. The temporal accuracy will be based on the number of parameters available and the accuracy identified in the scientific literature.
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Paleo-reconstructions can be made accurately and efficiently in PaleoGIS, an ArcGIS extension from ESRI specifically created for tectonic reconstructions allowing for the integration of (geo)physical and geological data (Esri, 2018). Built in ArcGIS tools can additionally be used for quantitative analysis of the paleo-reconstructions such as area. The most suitable GIS data structure for the reconstruction of landscapes is a raster format, which easily allows combining more than one geospatial dataset (Leverington et al., 2002). Mostly geodata will be used, which contains
information concerning geographic locations such as Digital Elevation Models (DEM), topographical maps, topology maps, lithology maps, geologic maps and climatic maps (Esri, 2018) (table 3). Present-day global topographical datasets in a
raster format are publicly available. Well-established datasets are for example GLOBE (Hastings & Dunbar, 1993), GTOPO30
(Danielson & Gesch, 2011) and ETOPO5 (NGDC, 1998). These databases are specifically
appropriate to model areas with dimensions of more than 1000km, because the resolution is satisfactorily fine to make useful
reconstructions of the study area and is also suitably coarse to keep the size of the databases controllable (Leverington et al., 2002).
Figure 4. Visualization of workflow.
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4.8 Conclusion
Southeast Asian mountains provide habitats to world’s most biodiverse assembly of species, despite their extraordinarily tectonically active past, present and future. But human impacts are causing rapid change and destruction of these habitats. In an increasingly complex and changing global climate, it is vital to gain understanding into the way mountainous Southeast Asian species have evolved and adapted to their environment over time in order to inform future conservation efforts. By implementing a novel approach to understand the geospatial dynamics underlying the steppingstones of temperate mountainous Southeast Asian species evolution, this research will gain understanding into their evolutionary and adaptive capacities. This novel approach will produce a paleo-reconstructive model of the mountainous Southeast Asian tropical-temperate forest zone distribution, in which the presence, duration, extent and duration of the temperate forest zone is quantified throughout the Cenozoic era.
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5. Timetable of the project
Table 4 shows the timetable of the proposed project. Noticeable is the overlap between the writing of the research proposal and writing of the thesis. The reasoning is that the development of the workflow of the research is part of the research itself. The writing of the thesis will be done throughout the project. After handing in the first version of the written project at the end of June, there will be a month time for revising and it will be handed in on July 31st, 2020.
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6. Scientific embedding of the proposed research
This research is developed as a component of the MSc Earth Sciences Environmental
Management Degree program of the University of Amsterdam (UvA), The Netherlands. The research is embedded within the research group Biogeography & Macroecology (BIOMAC), part of the department of Theoretical and Computational Ecology (TCE) within in the Institute for Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED) at the Faculty of Sciences of the UvA. IBED aims to integrate research concerning the Earth’s environment, it’s biodiversity and ecosystems, making use of the practices of chemistry, physical geography and biology. Consequently, these types of research form the foundation of the Faculty of Science Research Cluster Global Ecology governed by the IBED, alongside the contributions of each of the research departments within IBED. Additionally, IBED focuses on the significance of the wellbeing of biodiversity by participating in the Faculty of Science Research Cluster Green Life Sciences and the University Priority Programme Systems Biology, each working closely together with Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences. Present affiliations of
advisors associated with this research are the International Biogeographical Society, the Dutch Royal Society of Mining and Geology, Dutch Royal Society of Geography, Quaternary Research Association and the Society for Professionals in Physical Geography. Moreover, the author of this research is closely connected to the Global Forest Coalition, a coalition over a 100 local, national and
international NGOs and Indigenous Peoples’ Organizations, supporting and advocating for effective forest conservation policy. Moreover, this research will greatly assist towards achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goal 15.4, which sets out that ‘by 2030, ensure the conservation of
mountain ecosystems, including their biodiversity, in order to enhance their capacity to provide benefits that are essential for sustainable development’ (UN, 2015).
7. Knowledge utilization a. Beneficiaries identified
There are multiple scientific disciplines and stakeholders which could benefit from the results of the proposed research. Firstly, this is an interdisciplinary study, because it uses insights, methods and practices from the multiple established scientific disciplines of earth sciences, (bio)geography, (macro)ecology, biology. With a changing climate, there is more need than ever to be able to see the Earth’s processes as a whole, instead of apart. Therefore, this research can be beneficial and
educational for future research institutes which aim to understand the Earth’s natural processes in order to focus future conservation and management efforts. In fact, a recent article in Nature (one of the world’s most recognized scientific journals) calls upon the immediate need for educated and interdisciplinary thinking in decision making concerning the state of future forests in Southeast Asia (Estoque et al., 2019).
b. Education
There are a multitude of ways in which the researcher applied for this project can refresh, deepen or learn any skills that the research may require. Firstly, as this research is produced within the learning environment of the UvA, there are several senior researchers who are more than willing to share their wide array of significant knowledge. Also, free course texts on multiple subjects are open to use within the university institute. Lastly, the researcher applied for in this project has a diverse background, and therefore a multitude of tools available to adequately perform this research.
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c. Outreach method identified
Firstly, the research will be catalogued in the database of the UvA itself. This UvA Scripties database is a service by which the UvA facilitates global digital access to the masters and bachelor theses. Secondly, to disseminate the methods and results of this research for the benefit of stakeholders and the general public, the datasets, tools and scripts for data analysis will be added to the products page on the open, free website of the BIOMAC research group. Thirdly, journals such as Global Ecology and Biogeography; Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics and the Journal of Biogeography are proposed for possible publication.
d. Outreach time schedule and budget
The timeframe in which a research could get published is two to ten months. The first requirement would be the endorsement of the primary and secondary supervisor of this research. This could take up to 2 months after the research is finished at the end of June 2020, considering the summer holidays of both supervisors. If the research is deemed publishable by both supervisors, it will be revised and sent to several scientific papers mentioned in the previous sections. Once accepted, which could take 2-3 months, the revision period could take a couple of months as well. All things considered, it could take from two to ten months for this research to published. The average of publishing an article is around €3500,- (Morris, 2005). This would be paid for by the University of Amsterdam.
e. Data management
The types of data used in this study will be mostly data from literature studies and geodata, as explained in the methodology section. Data-management will follow the FAIR principles set out by Wilkinson et al., (2016); (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable). The literature study will be performed on a personal laptop, and an UvA based personal computer. In order to make sure that the data is always Findable during the research, each day’s progress will be sent to a Gmail account, which is Accessible from both the personal laptop and the personal computer on the university. The geodata will be processed on both the same personal laptop and another UvA based personal computer, the latter specifically designed to run ArcGIS Pro much faster than the laptop can. As ArcGIS Pro is able to integrate a lot of different types of data, and also allows the use from databases or spreadsheets together with public data, the geodata is Interoperable. The geodata will be saved and accessed each time through a personal hard drive. The geodata will be obtained from publicly available sources such as the ArcGIS Open Data Hub, which allows each stakeholder to obtain the same data sources, permitting replication of the research and making it Reusable.
f. Data distribution or integration
All the required tools needed to replicate, verify or modify the research will be posted on GitHub, Inc., an open source software which facilitates a place for software, codes and other data to be freely accessible to everyone. Additionally, all tools will be deposited in the Esri Open Data Hub, where data both by topic and location can be downloaded in various GIS formats.
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8. Budget
Table 5 shows the composition of the research budget. Firstly the student is required to spend in total 840 hours on this research. This is calculated based on amount of credits (30) received after finalizing the project, times the amount of hours designated to receiving one credit (6). Therefore, the student will spend 42 hours per week on the research. The salary is based on a PhD salary. The Thesis Supervisor is estimated to spend two hours per week on the project. The salary is based on a mean for professor salaries at the UvA. The same goes for the Second Assessor with the same credentials, who is estimated to spend two hours per month on the research. Lastly the ArcGIS Pro subscription is required to process the geospatial data.
Table 5. Composition research budget.
Personnel (in research months)
March April May June July Total
Salary – PhD student ~ €18,50/hr1 €18,50- * 42hr/week * 4 weeks = €18,50- * 42hr/week * 4 weeks = €18,50- * 42hr/week * 4 weeks = €18,50- * 42hr/week * 4 weeks = €18,50- * 42hr/week * 4 weeks = €3.108,- * 5 months = Total €3.108,- €3.108,- €3.108,- €3.108,- €3.108,- €15.540,-Salary – Supervising Professor ~ €43,06/hr2 €43,06 * 2hr/week * 4 weeks = €43,06 * 2hr/week * 4 weeks = €43,06 * 2hr/week * 4 weeks = €43,06 * 2hr/week * 4 weeks = €43,06 * 2hr/week * 4 weeks = €6.889,60 * 5 months = Total €344,48 €344,48 €344,48 €344,48 €344,48 €1.722,40 Salary – Second Assessor ~ €43,06/hr3 €43,06 * 0,5hr/week * 4 weeks = €43,06 * 0,25hr/week * 4 weeks = €43,06 * 0,25hr/week * 4 weeks = €43,06 * 0,25hr/week * 4 weeks = €43,06 * 0,25hr/week * 4 weeks = €86,12 * 5 months = Total €86,12 €86,12 €86,12 €86,12 €86,12 €430,60 ArcGIS Pro subscription4 €700,- - - - - €700,- Total 4238,6 3538,6 3538,6 3538,6 3538,6 €18.393,-
9. Statements by the applicant
YES/NO I endorse and follow the Code Openness Animal Experiments (if applicable).
YES/NO I endorse and follow the Code Biosecurity (if applicable).
YES/NO By submitting this document I declare that I satisfy the nationally and internationally accepted standards for scientific conduct as stated in the Netherlands Code of Conduct for Scientific Practice 2012 (Association of Universities in the Netherlands (VSNU)).
YES/NO I have completed this form truthfully.
YOUR DETAILS:
Names: Linde Lidwien Berbers Place: Amsterdam Date: 26/03/2020 --- 1https://www.glassdoor.nl/Maandloon/University-of-Amsterdam-PhD-Student-Netherlands-Maandloon-EJI_IE296566.0,23_KO24,35_IL.36,47_IN178.htm?countryRedirect=true 2https://www.indeed.nl/cmp/Universiteit-Van-Amsterdam-(uva)/salaries 3https://www.indeed.nl/cmp/Universiteit-Van-Amsterdam-(uva)/salaries 4https://www.esri.com/en-us/arcgis/products/arcgis-pro/buy-now
