Interview with Donald A. Jameson, March 22, 1985

Segment Synopsis: This is an interview with Dr. Donald A. Jameson of Colorado State University. It takes place on March 22, 1985.

Partial Transcript: In the late 1960's,

Segment Synopsis: Jameson talks about the components of the ESA membership's support for the development of TIE. He doesn't believe there was competition between TIE and universities for research interests and funding.

Keywords: ESA; Ecological Society of America; TIE; The Institute of Ecology; asset; membership; proposal; research; universities

Partial Transcript: From the beginning, the membership

Segment Synopsis: Jameson talks about the problems of TIE's membership, primarily the assembly. He believes the valuable network really worked well for topical problems, as it provided good contacts between many different people.

Keywords: TIE; The Institute of Ecology; assembly; contacts; founders; non-scientists; objectives; pure scientists; sponsors

Partial Transcript: TIE never obtained a permanent source of funds

Segment Synopsis: Jameson discusses the factors contributing to TIE's financial troubles. He also states that the second-level staffing kept TIE running by raising funding in contrast to the ecologists' spending.

Keywords: TIE; The Institute of Ecology; financial problems; fiscal; hustle for money; indirect cost rate; lack of funding; management; money assured; non-ecologists

Partial Transcript: You might touch on that again in the next question

Segment Synopsis: Jameson mentions the most successful and least successful research projects and how they relate back to TIE's original objectives. Furthermore, he talks about the influence of the non-scientific staff on the Board of Trustees.

Keywords: Board of Trustees; coastal zone problems; environmentally active groups; main-in-the-living-environment; non-scientific; public policy; resource management; tropical ecology; urban ecosystems

Partial Transcript: TIE were to start today

Segment Synopsis: Jameson talks about how TIE would be different if it restarted today. He also explains why further interdisciplinary research wasn't sought after; primarily because they didn't want to get away from the workshop mode.

Keywords: IBP; International Biological Programs; RAND; Research ANd Development; TIE; The Institute of Ecology; change; committee mode; compromise; operations; public policy; resource management; think-tank; university system; workshops

Partial Transcript: In retrospect, was the exercise to develop

Keywords: funding; geographic dispersion; improper disciplinary orientation of the staff; insufficient response to the membership; misguided; national level; network; niche; organizational structure; part-time direction; supervision; teamwork

Subjects: Jameson recalls that the original idea behind TIE was quite good and not misguided. He explains why the organization's actions failed to meet its objectives. Later, Jameson talks about TIE's performance report by the five year review board.