Reflections on Long-Term Ecological Research from National Science Foundation Program Directors’ Perspectives

Evolution of the Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program has required highly motivated leadership in both the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the science community. It has also benefited from inspired leaders in other agencies. Core research areas enable comparative study across highly diverse field sites. The LTER program promotes integrative ecological research and is an important model for other environmental research programs. New observational capabilities and emerging networks will change the operating environment for the LTER program in unforeseen ways. The conceptualization and implementation of the LTER program that began in the mid-1970s have depended on the dedicated guidance and input from a large number of individuals within NSF management, within other agencies (particularly the US Forest Service), and in the science and education communities that they serve. The authors served as NSF program directors for the LTER program, respectively, for 10, 8, and 14 years between 1997 and 2011, in the Biological Sciences Directorate (BIO), Office of Polar Programs (OPP), and the Geosciences Directorate (GEO). From that context, we offer our perspectives on this remarkable program. Several central issues have dominated the development of the LTER program since its inception in 1980. These issues are the designation of core thematic research areas, the establishment of new sites and the expansion of NSF program involvement, the evolution of comparative and synthetic science across multiple LTER sites, the dynamics of top-down (NSF-driven) and bottom-up (principal investigator–driven) efforts that have coalesced to produce the present-day network, and the development of new environmental observing capabilities that should enhance the future scientific impact of the LTER program. The specification and emphasis on five core research areas (Waide, Chapter 2) as elements of the LTER program, which served as part of the initial rationale for the formation of the program, have varied over time and with changes in program management at NSF. Our consensus is that core research themes provide a major vehicle for integrative research, both comparative and synthetic, and additionally, serve as a strong guide for programmatic review.