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Local business leaders, policy makers, elected officials, city planners, emergency managers, and private citizens are responsible for, and deeply affected by, the performance of critical supply chains and related infrastructures. At the center of critical supply chains is the food-energy-water nexus (FEW); a nexus that is key to a community’s wellbeing, resilience, and sustainability. In the 21st century, managing a local FEW nexus requires accurate data describing the function and structure of a community’s supply chains. However, data is not enough; we need data-informed conversation and technical and social capacity building among local stakeholders to utilize the data effectively. There are some resources available at the mesoscale and for food, energy, or water, but many communities lack the data and tools needed to understand connections and bridge the gaps between these scales and systems. As a result, we currently lack the capacity to manage these systems in small and medium sized communities where the vast majority of people, decisions, and problems reside. This study develops and validates a participatory citizen science process for FEW nexus capacity building and data-driven problem solving in small communities at the grassroots level. The FEWSION for Community Resilience (F4R) process applies a Public Participation in Scientific Research (PPSR) framework to map supply chain data for a community’s FEW nexus, to identify the social network that manages the nexus, and then to generate a data-informed conversation among stakeholders. F4R was piloted and co-developed with participants over a 2-year study, using a design-based research process to make evidence-based adjustments as needed. Results show that the F4R model was successful at improving volunteers’ awareness about nexus and supply chain issues, at creating a network of connections and communication with stakeholders across state, regional, and local organizations, and in facilitating data-informed discussion about improvements to the system. In this paper we describe the design and implementation of F4R and discuss four recommendations for the successful application of the F4R model in other communities: 1) embed opportunities for co-created PPSR, 2) build social capital, 3) integrate active learning strategies with user-friendly digital tools, and 4) adopt existing materials and structure. 

<ext-link href='http://Abstract'>Abstract</ext-link> Global climate change is expected to both increase average temperatures as well as temperature variability.Increased average temperatures have led to earlier breeding in many spring‐breeding organisms. However, individuals breeding earlier will also face increased temperature fluctuations, including exposure to potentially harmful cold‐temperature regimes during early developmental stages.Using a model spring‐breeding amphibian, we investigated how embryonic exposure to different cold‐temperature regimes (control, cold‐pulse, and cold‐press) affected (a) compensatory larval development and growth, (b) larval susceptibility to a common contaminant, and (c) larval susceptibility to parasites.We found: (a) no evidence of compensatory development or growth, (b) larvae exposed to the cold‐press treatment were more susceptible to NaCl at 4‐days post‐hatching but recovered by 17‐days post‐hatching, and (c) larvae exposed to both cold treatments were less susceptible to parasites.These results demonstrate that variation in cold‐temperature regimes can lead to unique direct and indirect effects on larval growth, development, and response to stressors. This underscores the importance of considering cold‐temperature variability and not just increased average temperatures when examining the impacts of climate disruption. 

Social distancing measures have been imposed across the United States in order to stem the spread of COVID‐19. We quantify the reduction in the doubling rate, by state, that is associated with this intervention. Using the earlier of K‐12 school closures and restaurant closures, by state, to define the start of the intervention, and considering daily confirmed cases through April 23, 2020, we find that social distancing is associated with a statistically‐significant (p < 0.01) reduction in the doubling rate for all states except for Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota, when controlling for false discovery, with the doubling rate averaged across the states falling from 0.302 (0.285, 0.320) days⁻¹to 0.010 (−0.007, 0.028) days⁻¹. However, we do not find that social distancing has made the spread subcritical. Instead, social distancing has merely stabilized the spread of the disease. We provide an illustration of our findings for each state, including estimates of the effective reproduction number,R, both with and without social distancing. We also discuss the policy implications of our findings.