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Examining human relationships to the environment with interactive tools from the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s EnviroAtlas
Citation:
Hartley, J. Examining human relationships to the environment with interactive tools from the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s EnviroAtlas. International Symposium for Society & Resource Management (ISSRM), Cairns, N/A, AUSTRALIA, June 22 - 26, 2020.
Impact/Purpose:
Presentation of EnviroAtlas tools and resources at International Symposium for Society & Resource Management (ISSRM)
Description:
As the globe celebrates the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also marks 50 years of protecting human health and the environment. As part of these efforts, US EPA researchers seek to empower citizens to be wise environmental decision-makers via tools like EnviroAtlas. EnviroAtlas, a free, web-based suite of interactive tools, allows users to explore human-environment relationships and can help inform decision-making by allowing users to easily view, manipulate, and download geospatial data. Much of the EnviroAtlas technology is transferable to other nations. Two flagship tools, the Interactive Map and Eco-Health Relationship Browser, put a wealth of data at user’s fingertips. The Browser is simple to manipulate but behind its front-facing simplicity are robust data from over 700 peer-reviewed scientific journal articles on the relationships between ecosystem benefits and human health. Few fields of inquiry so clearly rely on interdisciplinary science as exploring the human-environment connection; the Browser merges research, technology, and communications. The Interactive Map, housing over 500 data layers, provides landscape environmental data that can be used to explore topics ranging from human dimensions of wildlife to resource conservation. Join us in an interactive session as we conduct a hands-on activity that highlights how protecting ecosystems is about more than conservation; it can also result in improving an array of human health outcomes, from multiple cancer types to better mental health. Learn how to use a freely available, ready-made activity that can help you investigate and communicate the important relationships between ecosystems and human health. As one activity participant said, “I didn’t realize that protecting the environment meant protecting the people that I love.” This abstract has been reviewed and approved by the US EPA. Its contents do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Agency.