Lafayette College
Multidisciplinary Poster Project
Effective 8-23-14
BIOL 332, CHEM 252, CE 321, CHE 370, ECON 202, EVST 100
Fall 2014
Poster Project
Students will work in teams of three to research and report on an environmental topic of current
and/or local concern (Theme for 2014 – Biodiversity Loss: Causes, Consequences, and Choices).
Each project team must include at least two (2) different disciplinary perspectives. An easy way to do
this is to create a team with at least one student from a different participating class. Participating
classes and Instructors for this event are: BIOL 332: Advanced Aquatic Biology (Waters – watersn),
CHEM 252: Environmental Chemistry (Galloway – gallowam), CE 321: Environmental Engineering
and Science (Kney – kneya), CHE 370 Alternative Energy Sources (Tavakoli – tavakoli), ECON 202:
Environmental Economics (DeVault – devaultj), and EVST 100: Intro to the Environment (Hejny hejnyj).
Each team is expected to create a professional quality poster which will be presented at our
culminating event, a Poster Conference open to the Lafayette community and the public at large.
At the Poster Conference a number of students, faculty and outside experts will be on hand to judge
all posters. The Poster Conference will be held on Thursday, December 4th in Farinon from 7 to 9
pm. Additional poster guidelines and grading information will be provided within the first two weeks
of the semester.
Students are expected to participate in ALL events leading up to, and including the Poster
Conference. Events include, but are not limited to, regularly scheduled meetings, group meetings,
poster draft meetings and the culminating event on, December 4th.
Important Dates (tentative—dates may change only at discretion of the Instructors)
All assignments due by 12 noon
• Thursday, August 28, 2014: All-Class Meeting, Oechsle 224 – 12-1 pm –
Overview/Topics (Research/Lit Review), Use of Moodle, Why, Getting to know you
• Monday, September 8, 2014: Poster topic submitted and groups formed. Managed
through Special Moodle Site – “Fall 2014 Environmental Poster Session”.
• Friday, September 19, 2014: One-page summary (must include explicit statements with
regard to multidisciplinary perspective) and list of at least 8 references submitted (At
least 6 must be from reputable sources such as peer reviewed journals). References are
to be presented in APA format and available for review by Instructor.
• Monday, September 22, 2014: All-Class Meeting, Oechsle 224 – 12-1 pm –
Expectations, Progress Reports (pick names out of a hat), How to move forward, Past
poster winners to talk.
• Monday, October 20, 2014: All-Class Meeting, Oechsle 224 – 12-1 pm. – Progress
checkpoint and information for “Defense of Draft” meeting (see below).
• Monday, October 27, 2014: Draft #1 (published PDF) of poster submitted- color on
8x11 paper to all participating instructors. An electronic version must also be placed on
Moodle (FILE NAME = group members last names_Course #_posterdraft1_date.pdf).
• Monday, October 27th through Friday, October 31st: “Defense of Draft” meetings: A
short (~5 min) presentation must be prepared for the Instructors (individual group
Updated 8/23/14
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meetings will be scheduled throughout the week.
Wednesday, November 12, 2014: Optional – Full Size Printing of Draft #2. TWO
Electronic versions (1 = PowerPoint, 2 = PDF) must be placed on Moodle. (#1 FILE
NAME = group members last names_Course #_posterdraft2_date. pptx and #2 FILE
NAME = group members last names_Course #_posterdraft2_date. pdf).
Friday, November 21, 2014: Final Poster Due – 1 color copy on 8x11 paper is to be
submitted to your Instructor(s) and TWO Electronic versions (1 = PowerPoint, 2 = PDF)
must be placed on Moodle. (#1 FILE NAME = group members last names_Course
#_posterfinal_date.pptx and #2 FILE NAME = group members last names_Course
#_posterfinal_date.pdf).
Monday, November 24, 2014: All-Class Meeting, Oechsle 224 – 12-1 pm. –
Preparation for final presentations.
Thursday, December 4, 2014: Poster Presentation, 7-9 pm, Farinon, first and second
floor are be reserved for this event.
Monday, December 8, 2014: All-Class Meeting, Oechsle 224 – 12-1 pm. –
Awards Ceremony.
A. Teams- Each team project must include at least two (2) different disciplinary perspectives. An
easy way to do this is to create a team with at least one student from a different participating
class. Collaboration of this type is strongly encouraged.
B. Committee Work - Committees of students will be designated by the Instructors to arrange
invitations for guests, set up poster displays the evening of the poster presentation, arrange for
hors d’oeuvres/beverages for the event and handle any other details of the poster presentation
event night.
C. Technical Details
1. Title Banner - A title banner must contain the title of the poster and author(s).
2. Poster Units - Your audience must be able to see your material from a distance of 6 feet.
The following rules will help to govern design:
a. Size – Poster is to be designed in PowerPoint and published as a PDF.
i. In PowerPoint, formatting with height set at 36” and width at 48”. No
exceptions! See the template provided on Moodle.
b. Type Size - Lettering must be a minimum of 24-point font.
c. Line Weight - Graphs and figures must be drawn with a minimum width 1-point.
D. Organization - A person perusing your poster should be able to extract the essence of your work
by viewing the poster while unattended. This means your findings must be self-evident! The
following are some basic guidelines in developing a poster:
1. Organize poster components to flow orderly and logically from top to bottom and left to
right.
2. Number each component in the order you desire or use connecting lines to guide the
reader.
3. Block and subtitle the various parts of your poster as you would a technical paper.
4. Invite friends and colleagues to critique your poster prior to the formal
presentation.
Updated 8/23/14
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Theme for 2014
Biodiversity Loss: Causes, Consequences, and Choices
Topical areas for Biodiversity Loss Multidisciplinary Poster Project
I.
Causes of Biodiversity Loss
- Habitat loss
Climate change
Deforestation
Development
Desertification
- Introduction of exotic species
- Killing/poaching
- Pollution
II.
Consequences of Biodiversity Loss
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III.
Reduced biological productivity of ecosystems
Lost existence and option value
Lost use and indirect use value
Reduction in sustainability of life support services
Reduced ecosystem resilience
Choices to Limit Biodiversity Loss
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Land management policies
Land acquisition
Zoning and other regulatory policies
Conservation easements and other incentive-based policies
Climate change policies
Development of clean energy
Carbon tax
Cap and Trade
Regulatory policies like fuel efficiency standards
Regulatory Policies
Endangered Species Act
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species