Are we Conserving Ohios Climate Resilient Lands?

The goal of this assignment is to practice synthesizing information from credible sources to create a cohesive, informative written academic report designed for an expert audience.

Instructions:

Step 1: Review Your Initiative

Take a moment to refresh your knowledge of the specific Nature Conservancy habitat conservation initiative you selected in Week 1 and think about the audience you need to address. You will be writing this report for other Nature Conservancy professionals and experts in your field, so you will be writing in a formal and objective manner.

Step 2: Synthesize Your Research

As the Staff Researcher, you will use credible resources to compile a Research Report.

Your Research Report must synthesize information from a minimum of 5 sources. You may use the resources you found in Week 1 as the Research Intern as well as any additional sources that are relevant to your selected conservation initiative.

While developing your synthesis, make sure you are also considering the appropriate writing elements described in the Learning Materials, including:

• Organization
• Tone
• Evidence
• Attribution
• Clarity
• Cohesion

Double check that you are synthesizing (not summarizing) ideas from your sources using the

, and that you are providing appropriate in-text citations and a list of references at the end of your report.

Your report should be written in the third person perspective (avoid using I, me, and my).

Step 3: Develop Your Evidence

In week 1, as the Research Intern, you considered why your selected project was important why it mattered. This week you will support this position with evidence as the Staff Researcher. You are providing evidence from your sources to prove that your stance is well-informed.

Note: You may need to find additional sources to support your position.

Step 4: Length & Formatting

Write 400500 words using APA style throughout your report. Your writing should include in-text citations and a References page to support your claims.

Follow this organization:

• Title Page Include your report title, your name, and the date.
• Introduction Begin with a short paragraph that introduces your topic, explains your research question, and tells the reader why the issue matters. (Do not label this section Introduction.)
• Background or Literature Review Summarize and synthesize what credible sources say about the issue. This section shows the landscape of whats already known.
• Analysis or Discussion Explain the major themes, findings, or insights from your research. Connect ideas across sources and note where authors agree or disagree.
• Conclusion Summarize what youve learned, highlight key takeaways, and identify remaining questions or possible next steps for future research.
• References List all sources cited in APA format using hanging indents.

Formatting Guidelines:

• Double-spaced text, 1-inch margins, 12-point Times New Roman font
• Clear section headings for each labeled part of the report (except the Introduction)
• Submit as a Word (.docx) or PDF (.pdf) file