“Systems Thinking Shapes my World View”

Name: Sharlynn Sweeney 

Time connected to the CFW: I was a PhD student and Research Assistant from 2000-2009, Program Coordinator from 2007-2019, and Communications Specialist from 2019 -2022.

What initiatives and projects at the CFW stand out as being particularly impactful?  

In addition to the multitude of research projects over the years, the Graduate Certificate in Wetland Sciences and the Interdisciplinary Concentration in Wetland Sciences are decades-long programs at UF that prepared hundreds of students across many disciplines for wetlands-related careers. The Water, Wetlands, and Watersheds Seminar (formerly Wetlands Seminar) is another significant CFW program, launched in the 1970’s by H.T. Odum and offered every fall and spring semester for 50 years. I’m proud to have overseen the expansion of the seminar from in-person only, to having recordings available online to anyone, to including remote speakers and providing a livestream option on YouTube, significantly enlarging our pool of speakers and audience.

How have your experiences at the CFW shaped your perspective on the importance of preserving and protecting natural ecosystems?  

I’ve always thought of protecting natural ecosystems as important, but the grounding in systems ecology I received during my PhD at the Center added another dimension by deepening my appreciation of how interconnected human society is with the ‘ecosystem services’ of natural systems across geographic and temporal scales. More generally, when traveling through or thinking about any system, including human-dominated ones, my perspective is strongly shaped by systems thinking: pulsing paradigms, self-organization, energy flow and transformation, hierarchy, embodied energy, feedback loops, and so on. That framework shapes my worldview whether I’m gardening, driving through a city, or contemplating landscapes from an airplane window. I’m very grateful for that particular outcome from my time at CFW.

What memories or stories from your time with the CFW are your favorite?  

I was at the CFW for over 20 years in various roles, and looking back, it feels very special to have witnessed and interacted with so many people coming and going through CFW’s doors, whether they were there for years obtaining a degree, on a shorter visit as one of our many international scholars, or just passing through for a seminar or meeting.