University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
AC-10: Support for Research

The River Studies Center (RSC), created by the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse in 1972, is a non-curricular unit focusing on environmental research and informational programs pertinent to the Upper Mississippi River and its related resources. In addition, UW-La Crosse also has a long-standing, well-supported program of undergraduate research. In both 2009 and 2013, UW-L has hosted annual meetings of the leading organization that promotes undergraduate research -- the National Conferences on Undergraduate Research (NCUR). Given UW-La Crosse's commitment to undergraduate research and its support of the RSC, there are numerous opportunities for UW-L students to engage in sustainability-related. In fact, student research, at both graduate and undergraduate levels, are integral to nearly all projects conducted by RSC faculty and their professional collaborators. Students help collect field and laboratory data, but are they also involved in formal presentation of research findings -- they are commonly included as co-authors on peer-reviewed journal articles and presentations given at scientific conferences.

UW-L supports diverse faculty research interests, including those who have sustainability-related research programs. However, its support of the River Studies Center (see description above), is has a specific sustainability focus. RSC faculty and students have engaged in a variety of research topics that have a specific sustainability focus, including: • Landscape factors affecting sensitivity of aquatic ecosystems to atmospheric deposition of mercury and heavy metals. • Effects of nitrogen deposition on alpine lakes. • Hydrological development of the Volga and Mississippi Rivers. • Effects of mercury from coal-fired power plants on aquatic communities. • Wetland conservation. • Amphibian deformations. • Use of GIS technology to describe urban sprawl and landscape patterns. • Ecological effects of landscape transformation and watershed disturbance on aquatic communities. • Contamination, bioaccumulation, and biogeochemistry of mercury and other potentially toxic metals in aquatic ecosystems. • Toxicant effects on structure and function of aquatic communities and behavior of fish and invertebrates. • Environmental, social and cultural history of the Upper Mississippi River valley

Murphy Library lists subject-specific resources for multiple disciplines, include resources of specific relevance to the environment. In addition, provides excellent access to virtually all scholarly journals related to sustainability. PDF copies of articles from journals not available through formal subscription may be quickly accessed via interlibrary loan. In addition, copies of all theses produced by UW-L graduate students are available from our library.