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   Western Region Geography conducts science projects that provide information and analyses that help people and policymakers make informed decisions about issues that have roots in the interactions people have with their environment.

   As geographers, we analyze these issues spatially and at appropriate scales. Our work is collaborative, involving many partners and relying on multiple disciplines like economics, physical sciences, biology, and information science.

   We rely on spatial data from The National Map and other sources to develop better understanding of human-environment interactions, assessments of current conditions and past trends, and decision-support tools that people can use to assess potential impacts of policy choices. Find out more about our science by following the links on the green bar above.

The Pulse of our Planet: The USA National Phenology Network

On April 21, 2008, WGSC hosted Dr. Jake Weltzin, executive director of the USGS-sponsored National Phenology Network in a discussion of phenology: an emerging integrative science for assessing impacts of global change, and for increasing citizen awareness and participation in understanding environmental impacts of human activities.

The USA National Phenology Network (USA-NPN) is an emerging and exciting partnership between federal agencies, the academic community, and the general public to monitor and understand the influence of seasonal cycles on the Nation’s biological resources. The goal of the USA-NPN (www.usanpn.org) is to establish a wall-to-wall science and monitoring initiative focused on phenology, the seasonal pulse of the biosphere and thus the gateway to climatic effects on ecosystems and ecosystem services.

New Dasymetric Mapping Methods report posted: see In The News