Prof. Leslie is interested in the ecological and social processes that link people and marine ecosystems, and how to more effectively integrate science into marine policy and management. Her research areas include coastal ecology, the design and evaluation of marine conservation and management strategies, and human-environment interactions.

Biography

An emerging leader in marine conservation, Heather Leslie conducts research on the ecology, policy, and management of coastal marine ecosystems. She is interested in understanding the drivers of ecological and social processes in marine systems, and how to more effectively integrate science into marine policy and management. Specific research areas include coastal marine ecology, design and evaluation of marine conservation strategies, and human-environment linkages in coastal areas. Leslie's work has appeared in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Ecology, Conservation Biology, and Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, and has been covered by the New York Times and the Environmental News Service.

A member of the Brown faculty since July 2007, Heather Leslie received an A.B. in Biology from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in Zoology from Oregon State University. Before arriving at Brown, she was a research fellow at Princeton University. She is originally from Plymouth, Massachusetts.

Research Description

In terms of coastal ecology, my work focuses on the causes of variation in reproduction and recruitment of marine invertebrates, and the implications of this variation for marine community dynamics and designing marine protected areas. I also am developing a field program focused on Narragansett Bay (RI) and the responses of intertidal organisms like barnacles to the changing climate. I also have a strong interest in the development and application of scientific tools for marine reserve design and other conservation and management efforts, and am now investigating the factors that contribute to the success of ecosystem-based management in the US and elsewhere. My ecosystem service research is focused on trade offs among different fisheries sectors in the Gulf of California, Mexico. I anticipate developing investigations of the sources and flows of marine ecosystem services in the Gulf of Maine region in the near future.

Awards

2007-2009 Visiting Research Collaborator, Princeton University
2007 Installed as the inaugural Peggy and Henry D. Sharpe Assistant Professor
2004-2007 McDonnell Postdoctoral Fellowship, Santa Fe Institute
1999-2002 Graduate Research Fellowship, National Science Foundation
2002 University Club Foundation Fellowship, Portland, Oregon
1996-1997 Benjamin A. Trustman Traveling Fellowship, Harvard University
1996 Certificate of Distinction in Undergraduate Teaching, Harvard University
1995 NSF REU in Forest Ecology, Oregon State University
1992-1996 Elizabeth Agassiz Award of Merit, Harvard University
1992-1996 John Harvard Scholarship, Harvard University

Affiliations

American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Society of Limnology and Oceanography
Ecological Society of America
Society for Conservation Biology

Funded Research

2009-2010 ADVANCE Career Development Award, Brown Univ. ($15,000)

2009-2010 Linking Global Thinking & Local Action: The Brown Environmental Fellows Program ($30,000), Henry David Thoreau Foundation (HL, Lead PI)

2009-2010 Linking Global Thinking & Local Action: The Brown Environmental Fellows Program ($14,000), Swearer Center for Public Service (HL, Lead PI)

2008-2010 Evaluating Progress of Marine Ecosystem-Based Management Efforts ($247,540), The David and Lucile Packard Foundation (H Leslie, Lead PI)

2008 Developing the Science of Marine Ecosystem-Based Management, Santa Fe Institute's Social Robustness Program ($19,684)

2006-2008 Sea of Cortés Ecosystem-Based Management Project ($244,000), The David and Lucile Packard Foundation: HL (co-PI) with S. Levin (Lead PI, Princeton U.)

Teaching Experience

Coastal Ecology and Conservation (ENVS 0455)

This intermediate-level course will enable to students to master fundamental ecological concepts and to understand how this knowledge can be used to inform coastal conservation and management. Case studies from New England and elsewhere and field trips to rocky shores, salt marshes and other coastal ecosystems will enable students to develop scientific skills and experience the challenges of coastal conservation science. Suitable for students with at least some biology background. Instructor permission required. To be taught by Profs. Leslie and Bertness.

Marine Conservation Science and Policy (ENVS 1455)

The aim of this upper-level course is to enable students to develop an interdisciplinary understanding of ocean ecosystems and how human communities are connected to them ecologically, socially and economically. Through lectures, discussions, written and oral presentations, students will have opportunities to integrate the scientific and human dimensions of marine conservation science and policy. We will analyze the current status, trends, and threats to ocean ecosystems; the range of individual- based and institutional solutions to mediate these threats; and a series of case studies from New England and other places in the world's ocean and coastal areas.

Senior Seminar in Global Environmental Change (ENVS 1750)
** NEW COURSE FOR SPRING 2011

This senior seminar will enable to students to place their research in the context of environmentally relevant policy and practice. Development of an environmentally-focused senior thesis or other independent research project is a prerequisite. Students will lead sessions focused on the science and policy elements of their independent research projects, and hone vital professional skills. The course is required of all students who receive a Brown Environmental Fellows Grant (http://www.brown.edu/Research/ECI/activities/bef.html), and is open to others doing environmentally relevant projects. For more information, contact Heather_Leslie@brown.edu

Courses Taught

• Coastal Ecology and Conservation (ENVS 0455)
• Marine Conservation Science and Policy (ENVS 1455)

Selected Publications

• Leslie, H.M., M. Schlueter, R. Cudney-Bueno, and S. A. Levin. Modeling responses of the coupled social-ecological systems of the northern Gulf of California to anthropogenic and natural perturbations. In press, Ecological Research.(2009)
• McLeod, K. L. and H. M. Leslie (editors). 2009. Ecosystem-Based Management for the Oceans. Washington, DC: Island Press.(2009)
• Leslie, H. M. and K. L. McLeod. 2007. Confronting the challenges of implementing marine ecosystem-based management. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 5, doi:10.1890/060093.(2007)
• Berkes, B., T. P. Hughes, R. S. Steneck, J. A. Wilson, D. R. Bellwood, B. Crona, C. Folke, L. H. Gunderson, H. M. Leslie, J. Norberg, M. Nyström, P. Olsson, H. Österblom, M. Scheffer, B. Worm. 2006. Globalization, roving bandits and marine resources. Science 311:1557-58.(2006)
• Leslie, H. M. 2005. Positive intraspecific effects trump negative effects in high-density barnacle aggregations. Ecology 86(10):2716-2725.(2005)
• Leslie, H. M., E. N. Breck, F. Chan, B. A. Menge, and J. Lubchenco. 2005. Barnacle reproductive hotspots linked to nearshore ocean conditions. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 102(30):10534-39.(2005)
• Leslie, H. M. 2005. A synthesis of marine conservation planning approaches. Cons. Biol. 19(6): 1701-1713.(2005)
• Leslie, H., M. Ruckelshaus, I. R. Ball, S. Andelman, and H. P. Possingham. 2003. Using siting algorithms in the design of marine reserve networks. Ecological Applications 13(1): S185-S198.(2003)
• Airamé, S., J. E. Dugan, K. D. Lafferty, H. Leslie, D. A. McArdle, and R. R. Warner. 2003. Applying ecological criteria to marine reserve design: A case study from the California Channel Islands. Ecol. Appl. 13(1): S170-S184.(2003)