I am a Systems Ecologist with research spanning a wide range of both natural ecosystems and social-ecological systems. Projects include examining dynamics of change within pest-crop agroecosystems including aspects of climate change, examining ways to nudge human behavior to help protect the health of our livestock herds, and looking at factors motivating behavior that affects water quality in the Lake Champlain watershed. In the SEGS lab, I use experimental gaming as a novel technique for collecting data to examine decision making in social-ecological systems. An important goal of this work is the creation of applicable and predictive models to inform best management practices.
Scott C. Merrill
Research and/or Creative Works
Current and recently funded projects:
NSF EPSCoR. 2016-2021 Co-PI. Lake Champlain Basin Resilience to Extreme Events.
USDA-NIFA Agriculture and Food Research Initiative. 2015-2021 Co-PI. A human behavioral approach to reducing the impact of livestock pest or disease incursions of socio-economic importance.
Publications
Merrill, S. C., Trinity, L., Clark, E., Shrum, T., Koliba, C. J., Zia, A., Clark, E., Bucini, G., Sellnow, T., Sellnow, D. and Smith, J. M. (2021) Message delivery strategy influences willingness to comply with biosecurity. Journal: Frontiers in Veterinary Science Vol. 8. June 2021 . DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2021.667265
Schattman, R., Trinity, L., Clark, E., and Merrill, S.C. (2021) Awards: Untapped motivation for agricultural conservation behavior. Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene. 9 (1): 00120. https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2021.00120
Deutsch, C. A., J. J. Tewksbury, M. Tigchelaar, D. S. Battisti, S. C. Merrill, R. B. Huey, and R. L. Naylor. (2018) Insect metabolic and population growth rates predict increasing crop pest pressure under climate warming. Science. Vol. 361 (6405) 916-919. DOI: 10.1126/science.aat3466
Associations and Affiliations
Managing Director: Social-Ecological Gaming & Simulation (SEGS) Lab UVM
Gund Institute For the Environment Fellow, UVM
Research on Adaptation and Climate Change's (RACC) Policy and Governance team
North East Water Resources Network's (NEWRnet) Social Dimensions team
Adjunct Professor, Food Systems Program, University of Vermont
Areas of Expertise and/or Research
Systems ecology, Integrated Pest Management (IPM), social-ecological systems, Landscape ecology, serious games, experimental gaming, animal biosecurity, climate change, population modeling, Monte Carlo simulations, and spatiotemporal modeling.
Education
- Ph. D., Ecology, Colorado State University, 2007
- B.S., Mathematics, University of Oregon, 1994
- B.S., Psychology, University of Oregon, 1994
Contact
Email:
Phone:
- (802) 656-0711
Office Location:
217 Jeffords Hall
Office Hours:
By appointment
Website(s):
Courses Taught
HCOL 186 Ecological Gaming
PSS 381 Quantitative Thinking in Life Sciences