Rising atmospheric CO2, changes in climate, nitrogen deposition, increasing wildfires, redistribution of species, and land use have all dramatically altered the global environment over the past century, affecting Earth’s natural ecosystems and how they function. The converse is also true: changes in ecosystems affect the pace and direction of changes in the global environment.
In our lab, we study global change by asking, How do ecosystems respond to environmental forcing? How do their responses feedback to affect the pace of environmental change?