TRACK: Environment, Ecology, and Energy TITLE: Biosphere Monitoring and Ecosystem Forecasts: Sensing the Pulse of the Planet DATE: Friday, February 17, 2006 TIME: 8:30 AM - 11:30 AM ORGANIZERS: Stan Wullschleger, Oak Ridge National Laboratory; Thomas Wilbanks, Oak Ridge National Laboratory   PARTICIPANTS:   * = invited, not yet confirmed. Ruth DeFries (Speaker), University of Maryland, College Park Conditions and Trends in Ecosystems: What Should and Could We Measure? Edward M. Rubin (Speaker), U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute Scott M. Gallager (Speaker), Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Sensors and Sensor Networks to Observe Ecological Processes in Aquatic Systems Bruce Hayden (Speaker), University of Virginia A National Ecological Observatory Network Woody Turner (Speaker), National Aeronautics and Space Administration Ecological Forecasts in a Changing World Thomas Wilbanks (Discussant), Oak Ridge National Laboratory AVAILABLE ABSTRACTS: No available abstracts. SYNOPSIS: Although change is inevitable, individuals and societies are often poorly prepared to address its consequences. The consequences of global climate change involve high stakes: clean and plentiful water, affordable food and fiber, and the air we breathe. Efforts are under way to establish an integrated network of earth observing systems to monitor the pulse of the planet and forecast ecological change. Land- and ocean-based observation systems will measure change from molecular to global scales. Sophisticated models and analysis techniques will integrate information from these and other sources. The results will quantify the rate and direction of change in the environment, the scale at which it is occurring, and the fundamental mechanisms responsible. This cross-cutting effort requires a new generation of scientists with skills transcending disciplinary boundaries. Speakers at this symposium will highlight some of the advanced sensing technologies, biosphere monitoring platforms, and ecosystem forecast models that are potential tools for predicting the impacts of climate change. The session will address the need for biological, physical, and social scientists and engineers to collaborate in using these technologies and models to increase our understanding of ecological processes and natural/human systems, and in communicating results effectively so that the forecasts will be useful for public decision-making processes.