ARCHIVED CONTENT: In December 2020, the CZO program was succeeded by the Critical Zone Collaborative Network (CZ Net) ×

Educational Resources

2017 CZO Webinar Series: Critical Zone and Society

Screenshot from a video showing several drainages in cultivated fields.  Screenshot is from a webinar titled 'Blue Revolution: Water scarcity in a changing world'
Screenshot from a video showing several drainages in cultivated fields. Screenshot is from a webinar titled "Blue Revolution: Water scarcity in a changing world"
Watch six science lectures that highlight the importance of the Critical Zone on society and environmental sustainability. Many topics are discussed including soil degradation, drought resilience, water security, flooding, landslides, wildfire, ecosystem services, public policy, and more.

Grades 13 - Professional
All Disciplines
Video


Educational Objectives

Viewers will be able to discuss the aspects of the CZ vulnerable to the presence of humanity, and how they may be altered due to global climate and land-use change. 

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Audience
Higher Education
Research Community


Observatory: National CZO • Catalina-Jemez CZO • IML CZO • Shale Hills CZO • Sierra CZO

Author(s): Susan Brantley (PSU), David Breshears (UoA), Jason Field (UoA, Praveen Kumar (UIllinois), Roger Bales (UC-Merced), Jon Pelletier (UoA) and Steve Banwart (ULeeds)


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Details for this Resource

Webinar Series Description:

The Critical Zone (CZ) is the uppermost layer of Earth’s continents that provides all of the terrestrially based resources and services required for sustaining healthy and functioning natural environments and human communities. CZ science provides the framework for a holistic systems approach to Earth surface and environmental science by considering the complex interactions between rock, soil, water, air and terrestrial organisms that influence Earth as a habitable system.

A primary tenet of this webinar series is that to achieve environmental sustainability, society must first understand the CZ system and the coupled physical, chemical, and biological processes and services of the CZ. Understanding how such processes operate, especially those that are of value to society, with and without the presence of humanity, and how they may be altered due to global climate and land-use change, is essential for developing environmental management protocols and sustainable resource-consuming practices.

2017 CZO Webinar Series

  1. The Most Critical CZ Problems — Susan Brantley, Penn State University
  2. Critical Zone Services — David Breshears & Jason Field, University of Arizona
  3. Blue Revolution: Water scarcity in a changing world — Praveen Kumar, University of Illinois
  4. Drought resilience and water security — Roger Bales, University of California-Merced
  5. Forecasting of Earth surface processes  — Jon Pelletier, University of Arizona
  6. Policy Relevance of Critical Zone Science — Steve Banwart, University of Leeds