Research Interests

I am an ecosystem ecologist with broad research interests that include: (1) nutrient biogeochemical interactions across trophic levels in coastal ecosystems; (2) ecosystem response to global environmental change, and (3) land use and biogeochemical cycling. While my area of expertise is in phosphorus biogeochemistry and its link to carbon and other biolimiting elements, my research is driven by the desire to understand how earth’s natural systems are functionally interrelated and modified by human behavior. These research efforts integrate ecosystem processes at multiple scales – from nutrient transformations to response of ecosystem components such as plants and microbes leading to reciprocal feedbacks to climate and environmental change. I am also interested in building integrated environmental monitoring networks for studying global environmental change (see Indoflux Initiative).

New Grants

NSF

USGS/USDA/NRCS

NASA Consortium Development Grant

Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) - SDSM&T has recently joined the Great Plains CESU (GP-CESU). This cooperative ecosystems study unit is a network of 15 academic institutions in the Great Plains region and six federal agencies.  The University of Nebraska-Lincoln serves as host to the GP-CESU.  The unit encompasses a broad geographical portion of the Great Plains and offers an outstanding group of scientists in grasslands, ecosystems studies, and natural and cultural resources management for collaborative research, technical assistance and educational opportunities in the CESU. I will be serving as the technical representative for SDSM&T.     

New Student Opportunities

There are currently no openings, but please check back.

Following are links to my primary research interests, with more detailed discussion of the research. 

Ecosystem response to global environmental change

International Activities: