Sustainability and Solidarity: Using Indigenous Knowledge to Advance Sustainable Agricultural Practices and Build Climate Resilience

Douglas Moody, Senior Lecturer in Spanish and Portuguese Languages and Literatures; Theresa Ong, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies; Mario Machado, Lecturer in Latin American, Latino & Caribbean Studies;  Jami Powell, Associate Director for Curatorial Affairs and Curator of Indigenous Art at the Hood Museum of Art, Senior lecturer in Native American and Indigenous Studies; Brinker Ferguson, Lecturing Professor in Native American and Indigenous Studies 

This project brings together multiple partners to explore sustainable and traditional agricultural practices by integrating Indigenous knowledge and promoting Native farming techniques at the Dartmouth Organic Farm, the Native American House, and Crossroad Farm. Over the growing season, students will learn from guest speakers, plant and cultivate heirloom crops, participate in community meals, and celebrate the harvest. The project will also establish a seed library and archive recordings of Indigenous knowledge keepers on a Dartmouth website to support ongoing collaboration and learning.

Climate-Resilient Cancer Care in Cold-Climate Communities: A Dartmouth Living Lab for Winter Hazard Alerts & Telehealth Conversion

Katie Litcher, Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology and Applied Sciences at Geisel; Timothy Burdick, Associate Chief Research Officer for Informatics at DHMC, Associate Professor and Vice Chair for Research in Community and Family Medicine; Troi Perkins, Research Project Manager, Northern New England Cooperative of Practice and Community-Based Research Network; Jonathan Chipman, Director, Dartmouth College Geographic Information Systems Laboratory; Heather Carlos, Catchment Area Data Specialist, Community Outreach and Engagement Team at Dartmouth Cancer Center

Extreme weather events—including snow and ice storms, flooding, heat, wildfire smoke, and power outages—are increasingly disrupting cancer care in northern New England. This project pilots a climate-hazard alert and telehealth conversion system using real-time data, geospatial mapping, and patient co-design to identify vulnerable patients, reduce missed visits, and create a scalable model for climate-resilient cancer care.

Assessing the reliability of the Dartmouth Campus drainage system under climate change: Open-source data, models, and teaching modules

Klaus Keller, Hodgson Distinguished Professor of Engineering; Vikrant Vaze, Stata Family Career Development Associate Professor of Engineering; Fatmata Seasay '27

How reliable are drainage systems given climate change, land-use changes, and changing infrastructures? Communities around the world are asking this question, given the increasing frequency of flooding events. This project examines the reliability of drainage systems under climate change, land-use shifts, and infrastructure changes. Using Dartmouth’s campus drainage network as a case study, the team will analyze data, evaluate future system failure risks, and identify opportunities to improve climate resilience.

Maple sugaring as resilience: Place-based adaptation and social inclusivity on a changing planet

Maron Greenleaf, Assistant Professor of Anthropology; Emily Sigman, EEEs Graduate Student; Robert Cooper, Lecturer in Quantitative Social Science; Celia Chen, Research Professor of Biology

Maple sugaring is a place-based practice that offers insights into relationships among trees, soils, climate, and people in New England. This interdisciplinary project will combine qualitative and quantitative methods, using Dartmouth Farm data and community partnerships to study sugaring and resilience, including in areas affected by heavy metal and PFAS contamination. The project will also develop Dartmouth course modules and interactive materials to share findings and broaden access to sugaring traditions.

Dart-TEMPS: Tick-borne Emerging Microbial Pathogen Surveillance on Dartmouth Lands

Matthew Hayden, Assistant Professor of Dermatology; Jonathan Winter, Associate Professor of Geography; Li Song, Assistant Professor of Biomedical Data Science; Isabella Martin, Associate Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine; William Landesman, Associate Professor of Natural Sciences at Vermont State University

Outdoor recreation on Dartmouth lands carries risks of exposure to ticks and tick-borne diseases, which are influenced by climate and land-use change. This multidisciplinary project will conduct tick surveillance and develop ecological and statistical models to predict tick abundance and disease risk under current and future climate scenarios. The results will help guide mitigation strategies for Dartmouth Lands.

Sustainable Spanish

Roberto Rey Agudo, Research Assistant Professor in Spanish and Portuguese; Kianny Antigua, Senior Lecturer of Spanish; Paloma Asensio, Senior Lecturer of Spanish; Paul Carranza, Senior Lecturer of Spanish; Samuel Carter, Lecturer in Spanish and Portuguese; Jim Citron, Lecturer in Spanish and Portuguese; María Clara de Greiff, Administrative Associate in Spanish and Portuguese; Rosa Matorras, Senior Lecturer of Spanish; Gema Mayo-Prada, Senior Lecturer of Spanish; Natalia Monetti, Senior Lecturer of Spanish; Douglas Moody, Senior Lecturer in Spanish and Portuguese; Irasema Saucedo, Senior Lecturer of Spanish

Sustainable Spanish is a curricular initiative to redesign the first- and second-year Spanish language sequence around sustainability and climate, with strong connections to the Dartmouth and local community. Using task- and content-based learning and UNESCO’s Education for Sustainable Development framework, faculty will develop modules on topics such as sustainable consumption, food systems, arts, and climate migration. The project will serve as seed funding for long-term curricular redesign and the creation of community-oriented open educational resources.

Installing a Motus Wildlife Tracking System at the Dartmouth Organic Farm

Matt Ayres, Professor of Biological Sciences; Jess Trout-Haney, Research Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences; Craig Layne, Experiential Learning Facilitator in Biological Sciences; Ryan Calsbeek, Professor of Biological Sciences; Doug Bolger, Professor of Environmental Studies; Laura Braasch, Assistant Director for Experiential Learning, Dartmouth Sustainability Office

Migratory songbirds are key indicators of global environmental change, and new Motus tracking technology allows researchers to study migration with unprecedented detail. This project will install a Motus receiving tower at the Dartmouth Organic Farm to collect real-time data on tagged birds, bats, and insects. The tower will support Dartmouth teaching and research while strengthening community partnerships and outreach.

Dartmouth Subsurface Sediments: A Record of Past Climate and Landscape Change

Meredith Kelly, Professor of Earth Sciences; Justin Stroup, Research Associate of Earth Sciences

This project will recover and analyze a sediment core beneath Dartmouth as part of the Dartmouth campus Decarbonization Project to study Hanover’s climate and landscape history since the last ice age. Focusing on annual varve layers from Glacial Lake Hitchcock, students will investigate past climate conditions and ice sheet dynamics. The project will produce publications, involve students in research, enhance course content, and support community outreach.

Think Globally, Act Locally: Promoting Clean Energy Choices in a Local Field Experiment

Jason Barabas, Director, Rockefeller Center for Public Policy and the Social Sciences; Jennfier Jerit, Douglas A. Donahue, Jr. 1973 Distinguished Professor, Department of Government

For climate change mitigation efforts to be successful, ordinary people must engage in pro-environmental “green” climate-friendly actions in their daily lives.This project uses the Dartmouth campus as a laboratory to develop and test “warm glow” messages that encourage climate-friendly behaviors. Building on national survey experiments showing that recalling past sustainability efforts boosts future green actions, the team will collaborate with local sustainability groups and clean energy providers to implement and evaluate interventions in a randomized field experiment.

Hanover Underground: Recording Subsurface Sediments and Bedrock Across Dartmouth’s Campus

Meredith Kelly, Professor of Earth Sciences; Brenhin Keller, Assistant Professor of Earth Sciences; Edward Meyer, Research Scientist in Earth Sciences; Justin Strauss, Associate Professor of Earth Sciences; Justin Stroup, Research Associate in Earth Sciences

The Dartmouth Decarbonization Project provides a unique opportunity to study Hanover’s subsurface geology through hundreds of geo-exchange wells. This project will train undergraduate students to collect, log, and analyze drill cuttings to create an accurate geologic map, archive samples for future research, and inform optimal well placement. Findings will also support campus and community outreach on local geology.

Establishing a Network to Study Winter Climate Change and its Effects Across Dartmouth Woodlands

Caitlin Hicks Pries, Associate Professor of Biological Sciences; Joanna Ridgeway, Postdoctoral Researcher in Biological Sciences

Climate change is progressing faster in winter than during the growing season, especially in the northeastern U.S. By using the natural winter‑climate gradient of the Dartmouth Woodlands, we will connect winter weather patterns to key soil biogeochemical processes while embedding site installation, data collection, and analysis into Dartmouth ecology courses. This work will launch the Dartmouth Winter Climate Change Network, a long-term platform for student-led research, and establish a world-class winter-climate teaching and research program at Dartmouth to improve understanding of how changing winters will reshape ecosystem services. 

Enhancing Carbon Sequestration at the Organic Farm

Carl Renshaw, Professor of Earth Sciences; Emily Lacroix, Assistant Professor of Earth Sciences; Joshua Landis, Senior Research Scientist in Earth Sciences

We will test iron‑furnace slag, a byproduct of steel production, as a soil amendment to boost carbon sequestration on the Organic Farm. While crushed silicate rocks enable enhanced rock weathering (ERW), recent work shows that ERW’s efficiency rises when mineral‑associated organic matter (MAOM) forms. We hypothesize that slag’s high iron content will both accelerate ERW and stimulate MAOM, amplifying carbon capture. Field trials will track soil‑carbon dynamics, supported by controlled lab experiments. Anticipated benefits include large‑scale CO₂ removal, improved soil fertility, a productive reuse of industrial waste, and embed climate‑focused research into Dartmouth courses.

From Theory to Field: Snowpack Investigations with the Ice Fluid Dynamics Lab

Colin Meyer, Associate Professor of Engineering; Anna Valentine, Graduate Student of Engineering

Snow reflects solar energy, insulates the ground, stores winter water, and sustains ecosystems—functions now threatened by erratic climate patterns. Dartmouth’s relatively undisturbed woodland provides a natural laboratory for observing these processes. We propose a pilot program that combines field‑based snow measurements in the woods with student involvement, feeding data into the Ice Fluid Dynamics lab and supporting ongoing research. This will give students hands‑on climate‑science experience beyond the traditional lab and deepen their understanding of climate‑change impacts.

Evaluating Hybrid Strategies for Thermal Load Balancing in the Athletics Geothermal Borefield

Carl Renshaw, Professor of Earth Sciences; Marisa Palucis, Associate Professor of Earth Sciences; Bob Hawley, Professor of Earth Sciences

Monitoring subsurface temperatures in Dartmouth’s geothermal borefields is essential because long‑term temperature imbalances can erode system efficiency. The expected cooling of these borefields creates a chance to test hybrid configurations for thermal load balancing. Using drilling‑log data and continuous temperature monitoring, we will build a 3D heat‑ and groundwater‑flow model to evaluate performance‑optimizing strategies, including replacing supplemental renewable‑diesel heating with solar‑thermal storage. Model outputs and data will be woven into at least five courses and displayed on real‑time monitors in high‑traffic campus locations to raise awareness of the geo‑exchange project.

A lake sediment record from the Second College Grant: establishing a regional history of land use, climate variability, and anthropogenic impacts

Joshua Landis, Senior Research Scientist in Earth Sciences; Justin Stroup, Research Associate of Earth Sciences; Vivien Taylor, Research Associate Professor in Earth Sciences; Meredith Kelly, Professor of Earth Sciences

Lake sediments archive climate shifts, landscape changes, and human‑derived pollutants such as lead and mercury. We propose coring Hell Gate Pond in the Second College Grant, a remote site with little existing data, to fill this gap. The core should pinpoint pond formation (likely deglaciation), reveal millennial‑scale climate variability (e.g., storm patterns), and establish a pre‑anthropogenic baseline for Pb and Hg. These records will contextualize more recent environmental changes from pre‑settlement through the Industrial Revolution. The project will amplify the PIs’ work on ponds, wetlands, and streams while involving Dartmouth students and community members in locally focused research with broader, global relevance.

Indigenous Remediation at Rennie Farm

Matt Hooley, Assistant Professor of Native American and Indigenous Studies; Lydia Jennings, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies

This pilot project centers remediation as a critical component of sustainability and climate research in the sciences and humanities, emphasizing Indigenous approaches that reshape core questions, methods, and outcomes. In the 2025‑2026 academic year, together with the Dartmouth Undergraduate Traditional Ecological Knowledge Society, we will run four interconnected workshops that examine interdisciplinary Indigenous remediation on Dartmouth’s Rennie Farm woodlands, using the site as a living laboratory. The effort will generate an archival resource that positions Dartmouth as a leading institution in Indigenous remediation research.