IE Director Larry Band: From the Bronx to Carolina

Chatting with Dr. Larry Band reveals a long path from his youth in the Bronx to his positions as a distinguished professor at UNC, the chair of Carolina’s Department of Geography, and now the director of the Institute for the Environment.  His urban roots paved the way for his research in the field of urban ecology, including the critical area of how urban areas impact watersheds. 

According to Band, his earliest experience with urban water pollution occurred at the age of five, when he took a spill in to the Bronx River, emerging an unpleasant shade of green.  Though too young to think critically about the implications at the time, the incident nevertheless made an impression on him.  He later attended the Bronx High School of Science, where he studied math and science.  But it was his senior year course in urban ecology that made a lasting impression.  “It suddenly struck me that there’s something called an ‘ecosystem’ outside the door in New York City.  We could go out and analyze the city just like any natural environment,” Band said.   That first connection between the city and science evolved into a robust career focused on improving the way we look at and manage the interactions between the natural and built environments.

Band laid the groundwork for a broad understanding of environmental science during his undergraduate years at SUNY Buffalo where his courses introduced him to professors working on projects all over the world. One summer, while driving a cab in New York, Band was offered the opportunity to join one of his professors on the Bay of Fundy for a summer of research on tidal stream networks.  “The tide would go out and come back in about as fast as you could walk,” Band recalls.  The bay’s tidal flats, Band says, piqued his analytical interest.  “The tide would come in over a uniform, smooth area that was flat as a pancake—so you could look at tidal stream networks developing without interference from much else.” 

Stream networks continued to be a research focus for Band during his graduate work at the University of California, Los Angeles, where research in California’s San Gabriel Mountains (located in northern Los Angeles County) offered a new set of challenges.  Band continued to beef up his background knowledge, taking courses in climatology, geology, hydrology, math and engineering, and ultimately earning a Ph.D. in Geography from UCLA.  “My research at UCLA was a good mix of detailed field measurement and numerical modeling of hydrologic and geomorphic systems (how geologic processes change landscapes),” he says.

Band’s connection with New York City came full circle when he accepted his first tenure track job at Hunter College in the heart of Manhattan.  The city’s Department of Parks and Recreation soon asked him to assess water and soil issues in some outlying parks in the Bronx and Queens.  “I was working in areas that I used to play in as a kid.  It was interesting to go back and learn the city from a professional standpoint,” Band explains.  Having experienced New York in so many ways, the geography of the place all started to come together.  This furthered Band’s interest in urban ecosystems, which led to his co-proposing and starting one of the National Science Foundation’s Long-Term Ecological Research sites to study urban ecology in Baltimore, Maryland (www.beslter.org). 

Having modeled watersheds and ecosystems in a set of forest and rural landscapes, Band and his colleagues found that urban ecosystems can be studied and modeled as well.  However,  understanding them can be a complex, time-consuming challenge.  “We started adapting our models to figure out the types of measurements we needed to apply models developed for forested watersheds to urban areas.  We want to know how to retrofit some of these impacted urban areas so the ecosystem functions more like it would in a natural area,” Band explains.

Unique sites all over the world, from the east coast of the United States to Canada’s Boreal Forest and across the Pacific to China’s Loess Plateau, have played host to Band’s research over the years.  Still, he’s always thinking about our challenges here at home in North Carolina and the United States.   Challenges, he says, that are exacerbated by the same growth in population and economy that allow us to thrive here.  “We did not develop a water resources infrastructure that was geared toward the population and economic growth that we have. We always thought that we had plenty of room and plenty of rainfall.”  Band is confident that the science and ability is in place to respond to these challenges.  “The extreme droughts and floods we have experienced over the last decade remind us that we have our work cut out for us to adapt our water management for larger populations, more pavement, and changing climate,” he said.

As director of IE, the home for collaborative environmental research at Carolina, Band has confidence that the collaborative, innovative work being done will lead to the information necessary to manage North Carolina’s water issues,  from water allocation during drought to sustainable community design that will reduce damage from flooding and minimize a community’s contribution to water pollution.  And when it comes to North Carolina and its evolving landscape and climate, Band’s expertise—from observing the unquiet waters of the Bay of Fundy to studying one of the world’s most bustling cities—is an important resource for Carolina and the people of the state it serves. 

Student body president uses sustainability principles to approach problem solving

Student Body President and environmental studies major Will Leimenstoll has not always had access to nature.  Growing up in downtown Greensboro, the rising senior had more experience with pavement and patios than flora and fauna. The son of historic preservation architects, Leimenstoll quickly learned about the challenges and ultimate rewards of preservation and conservation.  His regular summer beach trips to Emerald Isle, North Carolina and a childhood love for animals also helped establish a connection to the environment that has become a fundamental part of his life. 

Leimenstoll's leadership in Grimsley High School's student chapter of the Sierra Club was just the beginning of his active involvement in leadership and environmental interest.   In addition to serving as senior class president and being active in cross country and swimming, he secured a grant for Grimsley High to be carbon audited, leading to recommendations for energy conservation and significant cost savings.  Immersed in downtown Greensboro, Leimenstoll took an interest in urban planning coupled with the environment and began to search for colleges where he could study both.  Though a life-long Carolina fan, Leimenstoll considered programs all over the country.  He ultimately decided to attend Carolina, where he quickly declared environmental studies as his major, and added a minor in city planning.
 
On campus, Leimenstoll settled in to Morrison residence hall as part of the "Sustainable Living and Learning Community," a floor program established by UNC Housing to allow students to immerse themselves in their interests.  He continues to enjoy many activities and programs available at Carolina. He is active in his fraternity, Pi Kappa Phi, and also spent a semester in Cape Town, South Africa though the College of Arts and Sciences’ Study Abroad program. There he developed environmental education materials for the Youth Environmental School.  During the second half of his junior year, at IE’s Sustainable Triangle Field Site (STFS) in Chapel Hill, Leimenstoll enjoyed staying on campus and relished the smaller classes and research component, which allowed him to work as a team with other students for his Capstone project.  “As part of my attending the Sustainable Triangle Field Site, I took Dr. Greg Gangi’s class, 'Reimagining the American Landscape', where you learn to use environment, economy, and equity as a framework for looking at different problems in American society.  That class connected the dots for me and gave me a new way to solve problems that was much more holistic,” he said. 

Thanks to his friend and fellow environmentalist Mary Cooper, an environmental health sciences major and Carolina’s 2011-2012 student body president, Leimenstoll got involved in student government on campus.  In his new post, he believes any issue on campus, from transportation to education, can be best approached with "the three e’s" of sustainability in mind—environment, economy, and equity.  When it comes to his year ahead as student body president, he is excited about bringing a new approach to problem solving. “Looking at problems through the lens of 'the three e’s' is very exciting and it is because of my environmental classes that I had viewpoint.  It wasn’t that I thought becoming student body president would allow me to push an environmental agenda, but rather in bringing that culture of sustainability to the rest of campus, and looking at all three e’s at once, you get the best outcomes,” he said. 

New IE faculty models environment in Center for Environmental Modeling and Policy Development

This spring, IE welcomed Dr. Jared Bowden to its Center for Environmental Modeling and Policy Development.  Bowden is a North Carolina native whose studies in Meteorology and Marine Science provided a firm understanding of climate and climate modeling.  We asked him to answer a few questions to get to know our new faculty member and understand the valuable work he will do for the Institute.

In your youth, did you have any experiences that connected you with nature?

I was born and raised in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.  I always loved the outdoors.  I loved to bike and hike at local parks. When I was eight, I had a memorable experience while boating in the Pamlico Sound.  There was a severe storm, and it was very frightening.  That made me curious about the weather, which became a passion that led to my becoming a meteorologist.

When did you first take an interest in science?

I first became interested in science by accident.  I was five
years old and playing outside with a magnifying glass.  While looking at a leaf, it suddenly started to smoke and caught on fire.  I was intrigued that this could happen, and began doing various homemade science experiments. 

Tell us about your education and how it prepared you for your
work at IE.

I started off at Nash Community College, where my mother worked for years, on a Gamma Beta Phi scholarship.  At Nash, I was a lab technician in the biology, chemistry, and physics labs. Finishing with an associate degree in science in 1999, I began the first of ten years at NC State University.  There, I earned bachelor of science degrees in meteorology and marine science, a master of science in atmospheric science, and a doctorate in atmospheric science.  I also participated in the Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program, supported by the National Science Foundation.  I found that I particularly enjoyed studying climate modeling, and took an interest in water and environmental engineering. 

Atmospheric modeling requires a lot of expertise with computers.  I have had to learn how the models work, which required specialized classes and training, and an understanding of the atmosphere to understand the limitations and implications of the models.  Many of today’s problems involve using these models to bridge multiple disciplines to provide a more complete view of the Earth system. 

Talk about your work in IE’s Center for Environmental Modeling for Policy Development.  What is the ultimate goal of the work that you do?

My work is centered on physical models of regional climate and weather.  I use these models to improve our understanding of the complex Earth climate system.  My research includes developing models, improving model sensitivity, and applications of these models.  My most recent work helped us to better understand some of the principles of regional climate modeling.  I work towards bettering our understanding of the regional climate and improving regional climate change projections using models. This often involves using multiple models at once to address various issues. 

How does your work affect our communities? 

Much of my work involves applying projections that we get from the regional climate change model to address environmental issues, such as water availability and air quality.  Regional climate model data can be used to drive models for air quality and hydrology as well, and these can be used for things like air quality forecasts and watershed management.  Better forecasts and watershed management can mean reduced health impacts from air and water pollution, and  reduced impact of droughts and flooding on our communities and surrounding watersheds.