Situated on the University of Iowa's Ashton Cross Country Course, the Ashton Prairie Living Laboratory (APLL) is an educational and research facility for UI students and researchers and the local community.
The APLL began as a collaborative idea among several individuals, including former UI student Megan Lenss; Associate Professor Andrew Forbes; former instructor Mike Fallon; Athletics Head Groundskeeper Tony Senio; and Stratis Giannakouros, Director, OSE. The University of Iowa Department of Athletics has generously provided space at the Ashton Cross Country Course for the APLL.
The APLL facility is a joint collaboration between the Office of Sustainability and the Environment (OSE), UI Athletics, the School of Earth, Environment, and Sustainability (SEES), the Dept. of Biology, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and the College of Engineering. It is a cross-campus effort and part of a broader vision as stated in the campus goals and priorities. The UI and OSE are creating living laboratories campus-wide; providing opportunities for students and researchers to make the campus more sustainable and environmentally friendly. Ashton Prairie is an active living laboratory. Multiple courses use the APLL as an outdoor classroom for applied coursework and student-led research.
Living Lab Features
Below are some of the special features of this living lab that offer unique teaching, learning, and research opportunities.
For Instructors:
This living lab provides a valuable resource for instructors at the University of Iowa and beyond to enhance their educational objectives. Our team has identified specific connections to a diverse array of academic disciplines. Instructors are encouraged to bring their students to the site to engage with these curricular linkages firsthand, fostering experiential learning. Additionally, students are invited to utilize the space for research and exploration, allowing them to deepen their understanding of the interplay between nature and their field of study.
Curricular Connections
Health Sciences & Wellness
Evaluate the health benefits of recreation in natural spaces such as at the Ashton Cross Country Course.
Investigate if and what medicinal plants are present at APLL and their uses.
Historical, Cultural, and Museum Studies
Reflect on the indigenous peoples who inhabited the prairies of the American Midwest prior to European colonization.
Practice collecting and pressing herbarium specimens as well as documenting precise localities with detailed information.
Design a way to commemorate the indigenous people that once inhabited this area – ex. signage or artwork.
Environmental Sciences & Ecology
Use the ‘Plants in the Prairie’ page and iNaturalist to practice plant identification.
Look under the boards laid out in the prairie for insects and other critters such as mice and snakes!
Listen for birds in the prairie and identify them using the Merlin Bird ID app.
Geology & Earth Science
Measure the rate of water infiltration into the soil in a variety of spots around the prairie.
Practice taking soil cores and field identification using the USDA soil classification method.
Look in the soil pits and identify soil horizons.
Fine Arts & Creative Writing
- Listen to the sounds of the prairie and consider what musical elements could be used to compose a programme piece emulating a prairie ecosystem.
- Workshop precise photography skills by capturing images of insects on plants.
- Spend time at APLL and write prairie inspired poetry pieces.
Geography
- Research the uses of the LI-COR eddy covariance flux tower – a large instrument at APLL that collects location data.
- Investigate total stations and GNSS receivers and in what mapping conditions and situations each one should be used.
Communications, Media, Marketing
- Design an event and create promotional material that attracts a new audience to visit and learn about the prairie.
- Draft social media plans that could be used to promote APLL and keep people updated.
Public Policy & Sustainability
- Perform an environmental sustainability audit of Ashton Prairie’s ecosystem services.
- Design a mini climate action plan illustrating how improved prairie management contributes to campus climate goals.
- Through stakeholder interviews and regulatory research, draft a policy brief assessing current prairie management practices — such as prescribed burns, invasive species removal, and stormwater mitigation — and recommend improved policies for balancing ecological sustainability with university athletics usage.
Engineering
- Look into the instruments that can be used to measure streamflow velocity, the situations that each design is used for, and consider how you could improve the designs.
- Conduct a site analysis, then design an improved stormwater management system (ex: such as bioswales, permeable surfaces, retention basins, or expanded prairie buffer zones) that integrate natural prairie features to enhance infiltration, reduce runoff, and minimize erosion across the Ashton Prairie and adjacent athletic fields.
Education
- Investigate the pedagogical techniques for engaging young students in a setting, such as Ashton Prairie, without classical classroom resources.
- Design a multi-day, interdisciplinary curriculum unit that integrates prairie ecology with subjects like math, art, language arts, or social studies, using the Ashton Prairie Living Laboratory as the core learning context. Incorporate cross-curricular standards, encouraging students to explore the prairie through multiple disciplinary lenses (e.g., data collection for math, nature journaling for language arts, indigenous land history for social studies, or prairie-inspired art).
Assignment Development
Discussion Questions
- Why are prairies important? What ecosystem services do they provide?
- What are some of the benefits and barriers of learning outdoors in a space such as APLL?
Interpretive Prompts
- Consider the proximity of Ashton Prairie to neighborhoods and businesses. How might they positively and negatively impact one another? Is the urban/suburban exposure to chemicals and non-native species worth the integration and access to the community? Why or why not?
- Design a pop-up museum exhibit about APLL for the University of Iowa’s Main Library. Decide what information is important to include to tell its story. Consider what representation methods and display items could be used.
Analysis Prompts
- Research the geologic history of Iowa. How do the structures and composition contribute to the ecosystems present across the state? What geologic features are advantageous to prairies? Which types of prairies will you see at different elevations and hill positions?
- Walk down to Camp Cardinal Creek and look at the vegetation along the bank. Then, slowly move inland and look at how the vegetation changes. Identify different zones of vegetation. What is present in each zone? How does proximity to the stream affect which plant species are present?
Testimonials
“The new APLL will provide students from a range of disciplines and backgrounds an integrated understanding of environmental processes from the deep bedrock to the soil to the upper atmosphere.”
“There’s so much energy around the project. It’s important; it’s valuable. It stands with so many of the things the student government and the university has said they want to do. This is a big physical, tangible change. This is a way of showing that the university cares about the environment by showing it to our visitors and creating this future community piece.”
Ashton Prairie Living Laboratory Stakeholders
Click below to search a directory of caretakers, researchers, stakeholders, and people involved with Ashton Prairie Living Laboratory.
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