Publications by Alexandra Fries

IAN is committed to producing practical, user-centered communications that foster a better understanding of science and enable readers to pursue new opportunities in research, education, and environmental problem-solving. Our publications synthesize scientific findings using effective science communication techniques.

Moving beyond the ecosystem in ecosystem health report cards (Page 1)

Moving beyond the ecosystem in ecosystem health report cards

Laumann KM, Nastase EA, Vargas-Nguyen V, Kelsey RH, Carew A, Donovan EC, Fries AS, Spitzer SE, and Dennison WC ·
2019

Early ecosystem health report cards focused on assessing the health of natural ecosystems, producing a “snapshot” of ecosystem health at one point in time. Ecosystem health report cards are used to guide efforts that improve ecosystem health through natural resources manage- ment and stakeholder engagement. Common themes among Report Cards include water quality and quantity and habitat. These indicators are not strictly environmental concerns, though.

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2018 Chesapeake Bay & Watershed Report Card (Page 1)

2018 Chesapeake Bay & Watershed Report Card

Alexandra Fries, Caroline Donovan, Dylan Taillie, Heath Kelsey, Sky Swanson, Bill Dennison ·
21 May 2019

This report card provides a transparent, timely, and geographically detailed assessment of Chesapeake Bay. In 2018, the report card includes five water quality indicators and two biotic indicators. In 2018, the overall grade for Chesapeake Bay is a 46%, a C. This means the Bay is in moderate health. Despite the decrease in score from 2017, overall bay health is still significantly improving over time. Long term trends of each reporting region health and a fisheries index are also presented.

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Developing a Report Card for the Verde River Watershed (Page 1)

Verde River Watershed Report Card 2nd Newsletter

Apr. 4–5, 2019 Second stakeholder workshop summary

Andrew Elmore, Emily Nastase, Alexandra Fries, Heath Kelsey ·
17 May 2019

This newsletter summarizes outputs from the second stakeholder workshop to develop the Verde River Watershed Report Card. The objectives of the workshop were to: i) develop indicators, ii) discuss scoring approaches, and iii) establish narrative appropriate for the report card. Indicators for the report card center around three main themes: Water, Habitat, and Communities—all necessary components to determine the health of the Verde watershed.

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2012-2017 Everglades Report Card (Page 1)

2012-2017 Everglades Report Card

Alexandra Fries, Emily Nastase, Bill Nuttle, Caroline Donovan, Heath Kelsey ·
23 April 2019

This is the first Everglades report card. It is a RECOVER product that provides a transparent, timely, and geographically detailed assessment of health of the Florida Everglades using data from May 1, 2012 – April 30, 2017. The Everglades Report Card, a complement to the 2019 System Status Report, assesses and synthesizes ecological data to evaluate overall ecosystem condition using performance-driven metrics compared against a goal or ecologically-relevant threshold.

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Healthy Rivers for All (Page 1)

Healthy Rivers for All

Brianne Walsh, Alexandra Fries, Heath Kelsey ·
29 January 2019

The world’s waters are threatened by a host of problems. Impacts from human activities like development and overuse are exacerbated by changes in climate and increased competition by different societal interests, putting vulnerable communities and ecosystems at risk. Creating a sustainable balance of water needs for both nature and people is challenging. It will require people that are competing for water resources to work together in new collaborations and partnerships.

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Developing a Report Card for the Verde River Watershed (Page 1)

Verde River Watershed Report Card 1st Newsletter

Nov. 13–14, 2018 Stakeholder workshop summary

Emily Nastase, Alexandra Fries, Andrew Elmore ·
22 January 2019

This newsletter summarizes outputs from the initial stakeholder workshop to develop the Verde River Watershed Report Card. The objectives of the workshop were to: i) introduce the project and agree on expected outcomes; ii) begin the process of developing a report card; and, iii) define the geographic scope of the report card, indicators, thresholds, data sources, and communication plan.

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2018 Status Report Scoring Methodology for Pacific Jurisdictions (Page 1)

2018 Status Report Scoring Methodology for Pacific Jurisdictions

Donovan C, Kimball J, Swanson D, Couch C, Vargas-Angel B, Williams I, Heenan A, Oliver T, Brainard R, Gorstein M, Levine A, Edwards P, Loerzel J, Eakin M, Geiger E, Kelsey H, Fries A ·
19 December 2018

This technical document summarizes the methodology for the indicator calculations and scoring for coral reef status reports of the Pacific jurisdictions: American Samoa, Hawaiian Archipelago, Pacific Remote Islands, Guam, and Northern Mariana Islands.

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Coral reef condition: A status report for American Samoa (Page 1)

Coral reef condition: A status report for American Samoa

Jane Thomas, Caroline Donovan, Alexandra Fries, Heath Kelsey ·
19 December 2018

Effective coral reef conservation cannot be accomplished without an informed and engaged public. The American Samoa coral status report is part of a larger effort to provide communities and decision-makers with information about managing and conserving coral reef ecosystems. The American Samoa status report presents the results of an analysis of indicators that were chosen to reflect key ecosystem processes and values.

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