{"id":177,"date":"2021-09-08T10:46:00","date_gmt":"2021-09-08T10:46:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stage.wp.nau.edu\/aspirations-campaign\/et-libero-delectus-quaerat-perspiciatis\/"},"modified":"2023-03-28T22:31:33","modified_gmt":"2023-03-28T22:31:33","slug":"living-laboratory-colorado-plateau","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/living-laboratory-colorado-plateau\/","title":{"rendered":"Studying the environment and natural sciences on the Colorado Plateau"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"is-style-leadIn wp-block-paragraph\">At Northern Arizona University\u2019s Flagstaff campus, the Colorado Plateau is literally in our back yard\u2014and as one of the most ecologically diverse natural labs in the world,&nbsp;it offers mountains, rivers, deserts, mesas, canyons, and the largest ponderosa pine forest on Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"is-style-default wp-block-paragraph\">Imagine a university set in one of the most remarkable geographic regions on our planet, where you can step out of the classroom to study everything from art to archaeology, from economics to education to ecosystem science, and from remote sensing science to practicing nursing in rural areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2407_honors_with_shonto_20190908-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2483\" srcset=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2407_honors_with_shonto_20190908-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2407_honors_with_shonto_20190908-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2407_honors_with_shonto_20190908-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2407_honors_with_shonto_20190908-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2407_honors_with_shonto_20190908-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2407_honors_with_shonto_20190908-800x533.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Our unique setting enhances the university experience for faculty and students from nearly every academic discipline:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>World-class faculty in NAU\u2019s forestry, earth sciences, environmental sustainability, and biology programs conduct a wide range of field research among the many natural wonders of the Plateau\u2014in the Grand Canyon, on the San Francisco Peaks, on the Navajo Nation lands, and in the Colorado River\u2014mentoring students in scholarly inquiry, research methodology, and the excitement of discovery. Informatics experts use state-of-the-art drones to survey snowpack and measure the impact of climate change on the region\u2019s vegetation.<\/li><li>Students in NAU\u2019s fine arts programs, inspired by the unparalleled natural beauty of the Colorado Plateau, reach new heights of artistic expression.<\/li><li>The Colorado Plateau is home to eight Indigenous nations, each with a distinct history, culture, and language. NAU students engage in a variety of academic pursuits in the arts, letters, and social sciences as faculty guide them in studying Southwest history, literature, and anthropology. Students in NAU\u2019s education program prepare for their careers by teaching at schools in Indigenous communities, and those in NAU\u2019s health sciences programs receive hands-on experience in public health and healthcare by working in clinics serving Native populations. And students in NAU\u2019s business programs study the economic impact of real-life events on the region, such as wildfires and overgrazing on public lands.<\/li><li>Students such as Ronni Chavez, majoring in<strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/legacy.nau.edu\/ses\/geology-bachelor-of-science\/\">Geology<\/a><\/strong> and <a href=\"https:\/\/legacy.nau.edu\/global-languages\/undergraduate-programs\/bachelors-degrees\/modern-languages\/\"><strong>French<\/strong><\/a> through the <a href=\"https:\/\/legacy.nau.edu\/igp\/\"><strong>Interdisciplinary Global Program<\/strong><\/a>, gain hands-on experiences working on real-world projects with NAU Faculty. Undergraduate students gain unparalleled access to projects typically limited to graduate students. Students have <a href=\"https:\/\/legacy.nau.edu\/aspirations\/researcher-finds-home-in-geology\/\"><strong>researched springs<\/strong><\/a> with Professor Springer and <a href=\"https:\/\/legacy.nau.edu\/aspirations\/loving-the-lab\/\"><strong>collected samples on the Navajo Nation<\/strong><\/a> with chemistry professor <a href=\"https:\/\/directory.nau.edu\/?search=jani%20ingram&amp;person=jci5\"><strong>Jani Ingram<\/strong><\/a>.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/5765_Geology_Capstone_20210331-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2484\" srcset=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/5765_Geology_Capstone_20210331-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/5765_Geology_Capstone_20210331-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/5765_Geology_Capstone_20210331-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/5765_Geology_Capstone_20210331-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/5765_Geology_Capstone_20210331-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/5765_Geology_Capstone_20210331-800x533.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A World of Opportunity<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Colorado Plateau is much more than a stunning view seen through an NAU classroom window. It\u2019s a vibrant, diverse, exciting landscape that has much to teach us in so many ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2697_glen_canyon_workshop_20170916-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2793\" srcset=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2697_glen_canyon_workshop_20170916-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2697_glen_canyon_workshop_20170916-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2697_glen_canyon_workshop_20170916-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2697_glen_canyon_workshop_20170916-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2697_glen_canyon_workshop_20170916-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2697_glen_canyon_workshop_20170916-367x550.jpg 367w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2021\/09\/2697_glen_canyon_workshop_20170916-scaled.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/><figcaption>Claire Sipos photographs The Grand Canyon on a trip with the NAU Honors College<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\t<div class=\"nau-block nau-block-story_breakout_box\">\n\t<article class=\"content-wrapper color-scheme-grey-background\">\n\t\t\t<h2><strong>LIVE AND LEARN <\/strong> ON THE COLORADO PLATEAU<\/h2>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"breakout-col\">\n\t\t<ul>\n<li>Encompassing 240,000 square miles, the Colorado Plateau straddles the region known as the Four Corners, where Arizona, Utah, Colorado, and New Mexico meet.<\/li>\n<li>The Colorado Plateau ranges in elevation from 2,000 to nearly 13,000 feet above sea level.<\/li>\n<li>There are five ecological life zones on the Colorado Plateau:\n<ol>\n<li>Upper Sonoran (desert steppe or\u00a0chaparral)<\/li>\n<li>Transition (open woodlands)<\/li>\n<li>Canadian (fir forest)<\/li>\n<li>Hudsonian (spruce forest)<\/li>\n<li>Arctic-Alpine (alpine meadows or tundra)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<li>The Colorado Plateau is home to nine national parks:\n<ol>\n<li>Grand Canyon<\/li>\n<li>Black Canyon of the Gunnison<\/li>\n<li>Mesa Verde<\/li>\n<li>Canyonlands<\/li>\n<li>Arches<\/li>\n<li>Petrified Forest<\/li>\n<li>Zion<\/li>\n<li>Capitol Reef<\/li>\n<li>Bryce Canyon<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<li>The Colorado Plateau is home to 18 national monuments<\/li>\n<li>The Colorado Plateau has been continuously inhabited by Indigenous people of the Americas for approximately 12,000 years.\u00a0Today, the Indigenous peoples of the Colorado Plateau include the Hopi, Navajo, Zuni, Hualapai, Havasupai, Ute, Apache, and Southern Paiute.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"breakout-col\">\n\t\t<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-460\" src=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2020\/02\/Colorado_Plateau_2-e1594298170630.jpg\" alt=\"Students and an instructor stand on the edge of a body of water at the Colorado Plateau\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1199\" srcset=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2020\/02\/Colorado_Plateau_2-e1594298170630.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2020\/02\/Colorado_Plateau_2-e1594298170630-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2020\/02\/Colorado_Plateau_2-e1594298170630-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2020\/02\/Colorado_Plateau_2-e1594298170630-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2020\/02\/Colorado_Plateau_2-e1594298170630-768x767.jpg 768w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2020\/02\/Colorado_Plateau_2-e1594298170630-600x600.jpg 600w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2020\/02\/Colorado_Plateau_2-e1594298170630-550x550.jpg 550w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-942\" src=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2020\/05\/image026.png\" alt=\"map of Colorado Plateaus Province \" width=\"612\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2020\/05\/image026.png 612w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2020\/05\/image026-230x300.png 230w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/398\/2020\/05\/image026-421x550.png 421w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 612px) 100vw, 612px\" \/><\/p>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At Northern Arizona University\u2019s Flagstaff campus, the Colorado Plateau is literally in our back yard\u2014and it offers an ecologically diverse natural lab.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":532,"featured_media":2857,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[6],"class_list":["post-177","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-science-discovery","tag-forestry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/532"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=177"}],"version-history":[{"count":80,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5647,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177\/revisions\/5647"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2857"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=177"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=177"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}