The National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS), located in downtown Santa Barbara, is a research center of the University of California, Santa Barbara. NCEAS supports cross-disciplinary research that uses existing data to address major fundamental issues in ecology and allied fields, and their application to management and policy. NCEAS is a unique institution with an explicit mission to foster synthesis and analysis, turn information into understanding and, through effective collaboration, alter how science is conducted. Multiple measures evidence the impact of NCEAS.

The mission of NCEAS is to:

• Advance the state of ecological knowledge through the search for general patterns and principles in existing data
• Organize and synthesize ecological information in a manner useful to researchers, resource managers, and policy makers addressing important environmental issues
• Influence the way ecological research is conducted and promote a culture of synthesis, collaboration, and data sharing
  

The Center facilitates integrative research aimed at synthesizing existing data and information, and subsequently making these data and inferences widely available . NCEAS fosters new techniques in mathematical and geospatial modeling, dynamic simulation, and visualization of ecological systems.

NCEAS activities are typically selected through an open Call for Proposals and, accordingly, span highly diverse fundamental issues in ecology and allied disciplines and their application to management and policy. Proposals are evaluated by the NCEAS Science Advisory Board. Several recent research activities are described in Research Highlights.

NCEAS offers:

• an intellectually stimulating environment
• exceptional scientific support and facilities
• excellent linkages to a wide array of institutions and organizations dealing with similar issues
• access to UCSB's large pool of expertise in the ecological and environmental sciences
  

Center Activities

NCEAS activities funded through our Call for Proposals can be conducted separately or in synchrony to address important ecological issues.

• Working Groups collaborate at the Center through periodic meetings.
• Sabbatical Fellows are appointed for periods of three to twelve months.
• Postdoctoral Associates are appointed for up to two years.
• Distributed Graduate Seminars allow students and faculty from nationally or globally distributed universities to collaborate remotely in a research project and convene at NCEAS for a synthesis at the project's end.
  

Flexibility in the NCEAS approach has been a key component of our success, and we are open to inquiries and suggestions regarding the design of potential or current projects.

Education and Outreach

NCEAS' education and outreach vision is integral to all of its activities. NCEAS scientists and staff members participate in dozens of meetings around the world to promote synthesis, analysis, and ecoinformatics, and to assist in the development of other synthesis activities and centers.

Training is offered at all levels of sophistication, from elementary school through graduate training and continuing education of professionals.

NCEAS is committed to increasing the public understanding of science, fostering interest in ecology and technology professions, particularly among underrepresented groups, and contributing to the local community. The Center offers education and outreach resources and activities to scientists and the public to meet these goals.

Center Programs

Twice yearly Calls for Proposals allow NCEAS to support widely varying fundamental and applied research driven by the needs and interests of the scientific community; projects funded through these open Calls for Proposals form our Core Ecology program. The special NCEAS programs in Ecoinformatics and Conservation and Resource Management address specific research needs of partners and sponsors, and may sometimes issue requests for proposals.

Funding

Core funding for NCEAS is provided by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the State of California, and University of California, Santa Barbara. NCEAS seeks additional funds from collaborators, agency and corporate partners, and private donors. Many, but not all, of these projects are part of our Conservation and Resource Management Program or Ecoinformatics Program.

Our twice yearly (January and July) Call for Proposal is used to disperse funds primarily from our NSF grant. Additional calls for proposals in specific topic areas are sporadically made to disperse funding from other sponsors and collaborators.

More on NCEAS

Funders' Roles in the NCEAS Process
Evidence of the Impact of NCEAS
NCEAS Facilities