“MY BIG IDEA IS WE NEED A MUCH BIGGER PLACE FOR PLANNING AND COLLABORATION. WE HAVE HUGE ISSUES TO TACKLE; BUT REAL GOOD PLANNING WILL GET US THROUGH. IT MIGHT BE THE OPTIMIST IN ME THAT WE CAN TACKLE THESE THINGS AND BE HOPEFUL FOR THE FUTURE.” —SHANNON
BONNEY
“Shannon quickly became key in our work identifying options for sustainable transboundary water management in the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee Flint,” says her advisor, Laurie Fowler. Fowler, an associate dean of administrative affairs in the School of Ecology, is also director for policy and managing director of UGA’s River Basin Center. “She helps coordinate students and faculty in six southeastern universities who are part of this effort, conducts cutting edge research by interviewing executive directors of transboundary institutions across the globe to identify successes and pitfalls and serves as first author on our summary report, helps define future research efforts and presents much of our work to our stakeholder clients. Nothing fazes her as she throws herself into this major issue— water wars—that will become more relevant around the world as a result of competing water uses and changing climate!” When Bonney is asked what her Big Idea is, as in why her work fits with the theme of this issue concerning Big Ideas, she doesn’t miss a beat. “My big idea,” Bonney firmly answers, “is we need a much bigger place for planning and collaboration. We have huge issues to tackle; but real good planning will get us through. It might be the optimist in me that we can tackle these things and be hopeful for the future.” She talks as quickly as a fast typist can type. Actually, she talks faster than 65 words per minute. “It’s sometimes hard to keep your morale up, but if you look for examples of people making positive change it is easier to keep your optimism.”
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www.grad.uga.edu
As an undergrad at Green Mountain College, she did a project on civic engagement. She says she looked at civic engagement and how sustainability relates, and she leaves no doubt she was ever anything less than a serious student. “The understudy part is, what does it mean to have a community you are part of, and involved in? The decline of civic engagement came with the rise of technologies.” Now that we have the ability to socialize only with our peers, in our same interest groups, she says we select interests and others who mirror ourselves. “Whereas before you were connected with people who had different points of view.” She says that different points of view are necessary and healthy. In fact, Bonney has been so entrenched in the concept of making differing voices part of a cohesive whole that this premise is quickly becoming the centerpiece of her work. “My project is a very regional, local project. I’ve always been driven to get involved with a community. I chose the conflict over water between Georgia/Alabama/Florida. When I came in, I was lucky to work with Laurie Fowler. She is connected with the River Basin Center at UGA, and studies water issues in a practical way.” How has Bonney’s all-consuming ACF research affected her doctoral focus? All for the good, she says. “It has been great to get to know the water community in a way I otherwise couldn’t have,” Bonney replies. The relationships she has made through ACF have provided a framework for her dissertation research. She explains her dissertation title, which is a mouthful, but reflects consensus