Western Carolina University

The Board of Trustees at Western Carolina University approved establishment of a new center that will serve as a regional resource for environmental education, research and service focused on the unique mountain ecosystems of Western North Carolina and surrounding areas.

The Southern Appalachian Biodiversity and Ecology Center will be developed in conjunction with the nearby Highlands Biological Station, an interinstitutional center of the University of North Carolina system located in Highlands, about 30 miles south of Cullowhee.

Unanimous approval of SABEC came during the board’s quarterly meeting Friday, June 1.

“Our university is the perfect location for this new center and for a renewed emphasis in the study of the mountain environment,” said Jeanette Hyde, board member. “The University of North Carolina at Wilmington has earned national recognition for its marine biology program, which takes advantage of the ocean located right in its backyard. We at Western Carolina have an opportunity to do similar work by taking advantage of the learning and research opportunities we have with these wonderful mountains in our own backyard.”

In addition to serving as a catalyst for collaborative research projects on the Southern Appalachian environment by scientists and university students, the center will be a resource for secondary schools by promoting inquiry-based mathematics and science education, and assisting in the development of biodiversity lesson planning consistent with N.C. public school standards, said Malcolm Powell, head of the WCU biology department.

“The biodiversity of the Southern Appalachians, combined with the region’s social tradition, make this area fertile ground for teaching and learning,” Powell said. “The region’s beauty, combined with national population trends and proximity to Atlanta, contribute to an increasing need for research and education on the effect of population growth on ecology and biodiversity of mountain ecosystems. Western is situated ideally to be the necessary catalyst and resource center for that research and education.”

SABEC will be housed in the WCU biology department. It will be directed by Beverly Collins, WCU associate professor of biology, with assistance from an advisory committee composed of WCU faculty, representatives of the biological station, federal and state land management agencies, and land trusts.

Current activities and future plans include development of a summer mountain biodiversity course for middle- and high-school science teachers, increased partnerships between the university and state and federal natural resource management agencies, and creation of a Highlands Biodiversity Scholarship to enable WCU student participation in the Carolina Environmental Program at the biological station.

For more information about the Southern Appalachian Biodiversity and Ecology Center, contact Beverly Collins at (828) 227-7246 or via e-mail at collinsb@email.wcu.edu.