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-  Eastern Ecological Science Center 

#           Welcome Message from the Center Director      

      By Eastern Ecological Science Center

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Welcome to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Eastern Ecological Science Center, formerly Patuxent Wildlife Research Center (PWRC) and Leetown Science Center (LSC).

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Our vision is to be recognized as a world leader in fish, wildlife and associated ecosystem science through scientific excellence and responsiveness to society’s needs.  As a newly combined center, our goals are to align our scientific capabilities with the most pressing conservation and management challenges in the U.S., establish a engaged workforce that places emphasis on behaviors which foster a high relationship trust with its employees, colleagues, partners and general public, and be widely recognized as a ‘go to’ organization for delivering actionable science to support managers responsible for conserving our nation’s natural resources for the enjoyment of generations today and tomorrow. 

Our center’s scientific expertise that can address a wide range of aquatic and terrestrial species and their associated ecosystems is organized into four science capability teams.  These teams will be responsible for aligning the center’s scientific investments with the priorities of the U.S. Department of Interior and other federal, state, local and international organizations who share in the stewardship responsibility of our nation’s natural resources. 

The capability teams for our joint center are:
                            - Quantitative Methods and Decision Science
                            - Species Population Dynamics and Surveillance
                            - Animal Health Diagnostics and Surveillance
                            - Ecological Patterns and Processes

A unique attribute of our newly emerged center’s organization is the establishment of integrated science teams.  These teams will focus on delivering actional science to address the partner priorities that requires integration of multiple scientific disciplines.  Scientific expertise to support these teams will come from the center’s four science capability teams as well as other USGS science centers and external partners.

As fish and wildlife managers find it increasingly challenging to conserve our nation’s natural resources using traditional management tools for single species and habitats, our center is well positioned to provide integrated ecosystem and climate science, innovative monitoring and assessment methods, novel data visualization tools, and structured decision-making frameworks to address increasingly complex natural resource management challenges.

I stand honored and ready to lead this newly merged PWRC and LSC.  Stay tuned for a new and upcoming combined website and follow our social media accounts to learn about our science and community events.  Please send a message to me, or any member of our combined PWRC/LSC center, if we can provide additional information. 

 

**Thomas J. O’Connell**

*Center Director*