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Many scholars have pointed to spatial data as an important boundary object in inter- and trans- disciplinary environmental work. And these sorts of complex, integrated projects are becoming more common in the face of funder pressure, shifting scholarly norms, and the deep complexity of modern socio-ecological crises. Therefore, it has never been more important to understand the potential translational role of spatial data in joining together large teams of environmental scientists, engineers, and social scientists. The current Wyoming Track 1 EPSCoR program, called Wyoming Adapting to Climate-Water Transitions (WyACT), puts this to the test. Environmental data are inherently spatial, and the project has been designed to promote interdisciplinary synergies via overlapping study locations and data that can crosswalk via spatial thinking. Even beyond the work already done, several of the sustainable deliverables of the program revolve around this concept of spatial science as boundary object, including: 1. An intersectoral modeling laboratory which centers spatial data (called CLIMES); 2. A long-term sensor network focused on collecting climate-water data throughout the state (WySEASON); and 3. A spatial data communication platform, which has become the host for most data collected through the project (WyADAPT). In this session, members of the WyACT team will discuss the ways that spatial data and spatial thinking have shaped their experience of WyACT, and how GIScience has influenced the outcomes of the project. We will use these presentations to catalyze discussion of the future of spatial science as a cornerstone of a more integrated academy in the 21st century.
