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Proposal: Ecology and Ecologism

Judging from the example questions and what seems to be most popular, I get the sense that most of the focus is on sustainability topics. While there certainly is a lot of overlap, from my academic experience with ecology, the questions should have a footing in biology topics such as resource management, ecological niche development/studies, and interactions on the scales of individuals, populations, communities of organisms, and ecosystems.

I feel as though sustainability topics are better framed as examining the ways in which human intervention have/can impact the earth's systems (positively and negatively), while the greater question of ecology is the study of organisms (and typically not humans) to understand how they adapt to biotic/abiotic conditions.

My question: Is this proposal focused on questions targeted at ecologists/biologists within different domains studying sharing knowledge of organisms and biosphere interactions or is this more of a sustainability/human intervention-focused SE proposal?

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    Not sure why people are downvoting an entirely reasonable question that points out an apparent lack of transparency about the purpose of this proposal, especially in light of recent proposals with overlapping topicality being closed recently. Users should be well aware that Trojan horses won't be looked on more favourably than vote fraud or sockpuppetting. – Nij Feb 10 at 5:27
  • I didn't vote on your post here or at example questions, But as most of your example questions have not been well received. I am not sure what this post adds to the proposal. A discussion that does not add value, gets down votes. – James Jenkins Feb 10 at 10:47
  • That is certainly true. And for that reason, I find myself still wondering to what degree this proposal reflects discussions on ecology. The goal of this post is to understand and help formally define the intended user base and scope of the proposed SE. All that I am asking is what are the ways in which this proposal is different from things like the sustainability SE. It's hard to say what is and is not relevant in an ill-defined SE. – Trevor J. Smith Feb 10 at 20:27
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    Not sure it really matters, Unless there is a drastic change, this proposal is not on track to launch – James Jenkins Feb 11 at 15:15
  • @JamesJenkins I get what you're saying but I respectfully don't regard your opinion as beneficial to the as well, people are still showing interest nonetheless, myself included. In the interest of constructive discussion, maybe we discuss what would need to be clarified in order to get this proposal off the ground. Understanding the scope might help. – Trevor J. Smith Feb 11 at 21:03
  • @TrevorJ.Smith and I respect your opinion as well. I have seen this before, and it really only matters "If you have access to a healthy, enthusiastic community', if so wait a couple months, and come back to start a fresh proposal with the scope as you see it, then invite your community to join. The current proposal seems to have a very different scope idea from you. – James Jenkins Feb 12 at 13:44
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Given the example questions I don't see why this site is necessary. It could easily take questions from other sites:

Biology.SE:

Are there any limitations in a detritus food chain?

Why do male little bustard (Tetrax tetrax) with symetrical white flange on the neck have more reproductive success than other males?

Earth Science.SE

Why is the North Pole warmer than the South Pole?

Why don't we fabricate extra ozone to supplement the losses in the ozone layer?

Engineering.SE:

Under which conditions would electrical cars be a less greenhouse gas producing alternative to combustion engine cars?

Too Broad:

How long does most plastic take to decompose?

How long do leaves take to decompose?

Can I put styrofoam in recycle bins?

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  • I'm leaning towards your opinion as well. The example questions are definitely better suited to being asked in other SEs, and the domain of ecology is, IMO, much larger than waste management, biology, and climate studies. Personally, I would like to have seen this SE be more focused on the more recognized approaches to ecology (biology, genetics, adaptations, individual-to-ecosystems) or the more grander critical applications of ecology (socio-ecological systems interactions (theoretical ecology) and/or critical perspectives stemming from them, e.g. political ecology, ecological economics). – Trevor J. Smith Apr 17 at 13:56

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