Miss Hilary F. Smith, Lecturer in the Urban and Regional Planning Division, Faculty of the Built Environment has copped sponsorship from the US based MacArthur Foundation for Urban and Regional Planning and Land Surveying students (Academic Year 2012/2013). This provided for all expenses paid four days of training in wildlife survey techniques in the Cockpit Country, Trelawny. The students were enrolled in the spatial development planning and environmental impact assessment courses taught by Miss Smith. A past student of CAST and UTech, Miss Smith was able to pursue graduate studies following the receipt of an Organization of American States (OAS) scholarship which facilitated research on the Cockpit Country. The resultant thesis was entitled, “Stakeholder involvement in the decision-making for the sustainable development of the Cockpit Country, Jamaica,” and explored the environment and development nexus, among other things. The training for the students was provided by the Windsor Research Centre, a stakeholder group working for the conservation and sustainable development within the Cockpit Country. Impact of the research During the training exercises and workshop, it was discovered that a particular species of North American birds travel to a specific location of the study area every year. By using geographic information technology the students were able to determine migratory history of particular wildlife (birds) by comparing data over the past five (5) years with the current findings from the field work conducted during the training. The findings were significant as it validates the need to evaluate the natural resources, specifically ecosystems services in order to trace the real impact of development on the environment. The research data is timely and valuable to the current series of public consultations being done across the island on the boundary of the Cockpit Country. Students pursing the Bachelor of Science in Surveying and Geographic Information Science in the Faculty of the Built Environment, UTech included Rowan Watson, Salina Solomon, Tami Palmer and Anna-Kaye Patterson.
Posted on: Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:38:35 +0000
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