Find Research Outputs Supported by Your Field Station

We know that field stations are hugely important to researchers when they are planning projects and collecting data. Field stations cultivate ecologies of place, or “the landscapes surrounding field stations often are intensively studied ecosystems in which the steady accumulation of site-specific knowledge becomes a powerful platform for future research” (Billick et al. 2011).

However, when researchers move away from the station in space and time, there is little or no acknowledgment of the station in downstream outputs like papers and datasets. This makes it difficult for field stations to create a comprehensive catalog of work from which to build future place-based research.

There are a variety of ways field stations find downstream research outputs:

  1. Searching Google Scholar for the field station name.
  2. Searching researcher names and reviewing all publications to identify if work was done at the field station.
  3. Emailing researchers directly to ask for outputs.
  4. Requiring annual reporting that includes a field for publications.
  5. Harvesting outputs from project metadata records that update when researchers cite their projects.

Field stations need to provide a standard approach for acknowledging outputs. Consider adding text to your website along these lines:

Publications should be shared immediately with [the field station] and [ROR].

The use of [field station] facilities shall be acknowledged in each publication. Additionally, any financial support received through the field station should be acknowledged.

Field Station Action Steps:

  1. Do you provide instructions for acknowledging the station?
    • Yes, they are given when projects are accepted.
    • Yes, we remind researchers after they leave the station.
    • No, we don’t have a structured approach.

In total, field stations, if acknowledged, can create a catalog of resources for future researchers, thus demonstrating their value.  

References:

Billick, I., Kingsland, S. E., Price, M. V., Armitage, K. B., Estes, J. A., Feinsinger, P., Grant, B. R., Grant, P. R., Hubbell, S. P., & Jones, C. G. (2011). The Ecology of Place: Contributions of Place-Based Research to Ecological Understanding