Matt Clark

Profile

Ph.D. Student
Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior

Matthewclark989@boisestate.edu
Twitter @MattCScience

Boise State Hazards & Resilience Institute

Github

National Park Visitation Forecaster 

I’m interested in the social and environmental conditions that drive individuals to engage in community-based conservation efforts. I use theories and methods from the fields of cultural evolution, land system science, and the general study of complex systems. My current research projects are primarily located in Pemba, Tanzania. My collaborators and I are quantifying past conservation interventions’ effects on communities, the environment, and the future of conservation on the island. I perform this research through a research residency at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology – Department of Human Behavior, Ecology and Culture.

I have a strong interest in science communication and producing actionable scientific insights. To achieve this, I work closely with a number of stakeholders including the World Wildlife Fund, the Zanzibar Department of Forests, and Community Forests International. I aim to produce interactive visualizations, applications, web dashboards, or other public facing science communication tools with all of the research I do. These contribute to my larger dedication to open science and scientific reproducibility.

Education / Academic background

I graduated with my B.S. in Ecology from California State University Chico in 2016. I then worked for the Forest Restoration Research Unit at Chiang Mai University, Thailand. After returning home, I worked briefly as a wildlife biologist for an environmental consulting firm in California before deciding to pursue graduate school at Boise State University. I completed my Masters of Science in Biology at Boise State before continuing on to my current PhD work. Currently I am also working as a resident researcher with the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Department of Human Behavior, Ecology, and Culture.

About

In my free time and sometimes when I should be working, I enjoy rock climbing, mountaineering, white water rafting, and going to brunch.

Research Interests

I apply a diverse set of mathematical and computational tools to understand how we can meet ambitious conservation goals while bolstering the well-being of local communities. Topically, I leverage theory from cultural evolution, complex systems, ecology, and social-ecological systems broadly. Methodologically, I generally employ Bayesian mixed-effect modeling (Stan & R), agent-based modeling (R), network analyses (R), and remote sensing (Google Earth Engine). I am interested in using this set of tools and theories to link disparate sources of knowledge such as participatory mapping and satellite imagery in order to identify complex causal pathways in social-ecological systems.

Publications

PEER REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS

1. Clark, M., Hamad, H., Andrews, J., Kolarik, N., Hillis, V., Borgerhoff-Mulder, M. (In prep for submission to Conservation Letters). A Productive Friction: Leveraging Misalignments Between Local Ecological Knowledge and Remotely Sensed Imagery for Conservation Planning. *Manuscript available upon request.
2. Clark, M., Hamad, H., Andrews, J., Hillis, V., Borgerhoff-Mulder, M. (In review). Quantifying Local Perceptions of Environmental Change and Links to Conservation Practices. Conservation Biology. https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.02.13.527316v1.
3. Clark, M., Andrews, J., Kolarik, N., Omar, M., Hillis, V. (In review). Causal attribution of agricultural expansion in a small island system using approximate Bayesian computation. Land Use Policy. https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.01.20.524853v1.
4. Demps, K., Herzog, N., Clark, M. (In review). From mind to matter: modeling an ecology of social learning and its archaeological outcomes. American Antiquity.
5. Andrews, J., Borgerhoff-Mulder, M., Hillis, V., Clark, M. (In review). Adaptive responses to inter-group competition over natural resources: The case of leakage, with evidence from Pemba Tanzania. Ecological Economics. https://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4154871.
6. Andrews, J., Clark, M., Hillis, V., Borgerhoff-Mulder, M. (In review). Evolving Ostrom’s first principle: The dynamic evolution of common property rights and their role in resource management. Nature Human Behavior. https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-2225599/v1.
7. Clark, M., Killion, A., Williamson, M., Hillis, V. (In review). National Park Attendance is Not Impacted by Increasing Wildfire Smoke in the American West. Ecosphere: Social-Ecological Systems.
8. Caughlin, T., Clark, M., Jochems, L., Kolarik, N., Zaiats, A., Hall, C. (In review). Socio-ecological heterogeneity driven by wealth inequality and road network connectivity shapes the distribution and demography of a harmful invasive plant in an urban landscape. Ecological Solutions and Evidence.
9. Caro, T., Andrews, J., Clark, M., Borgerhoff-Mulder, M. (2022). Practical guide to coproduction in conservation science. Conservation Biology. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.14011.
10. Clark, M., Andrews, J., Hillis, V. (2022). A Quantitative Application of Diffusion of Innovations for Modeling the Spread of Conservation Behaviors. Ecological Modeling, 473 110145. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2022.110145.
11. Clark, M., Wilkins, E. J., Dagan, D. T., Powell, R., Sharp, R. L., Hillis, V. (2019). Bringing forecasting into the future: Using Google to predict visitation in U.S. national parks. Journal of Environmental Management, 243, 88–94. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2019.05.006.

BOOKS

Clark, M., Salim, S., Hamad, H. (in contract and undergoing copyediting for publication with Mkuki na Nyota Publishers). Mangroves of Pemba: A brief overview of ecology, status, and species found. – Field guide to the mangrove species found in Pemba, Tanzania and their ecological and cultural importance. *Manuscript available upon request.

OTHER PUBLICATIONS

1. Ngwali, A., Massoud, M., Clark, M., Borgerhoff Mulder, M., Caro, T. (2022). Report on Community Enrollment in Voluntary Conservation Planning in Mtambwe North and Mtambwe South Wards, Pemba Island, Tanzania – Report for the Zanzibar Department of Forests. *Full Kiswahili version and English summary of report available on request.
2. Clark, M., Andrews, A. (2021). A Game of Spillovers – Conservation Strategies in Pemba and their Unintended Consequences. Anthroposphere: The Oxford Climate Review. https://www.anthroposphere.co.uk/post/a-game-of-spillovers.
3. Clark, M. (2019). Methodological Advances for Understanding Social Connectivity and Environmental Implications in Multi-Use Landscapes. Boise State University Theses and Dissertations. https://scholarworks.boisestate.edu/td/1586/.
4. Skinner, A., Clark, M., Lobo, R., Mahajan, S., De Nardo, M. (2019). Social Outcomes of the CARE-WWF Alliance in Mozambique: Research Findings from a Decade of Integrated Conservation and Development Programming. Impact assessment for the CARE-WWF Alliance and the Alliance for Conservation Evidence. *Full report and impact brief available upon request.
5. Dagan, D., Wheeler, I., Beck, L, Benedetti, A., Blacketer, M., Clark, M., McHugh, K., Noss, C., Sizek, J., Wilkins, E., Powell, R., & Sharp, R. 2018 Park break report: Developing a visitation forecasting tool and management recommendations for the Mojave Desert Region NPS Units. Research report to the National Park Service. *Full report available upon request.

Teaching

I designed and now teach a new laboratory course in the Biology Department at Boise State University. This course teaches incoming MSc and PhD students in the department the foundations of R programming for data analysis in the biological sciences. As part of this role, I also serve as a statistical consultant for the department. Lastly, since 2018, I have worked as a certified instructor for Software Carpentry, a non-profit organization that provides training in scientific computing.