This talk is part of the weekly ESPM Seminar Series.
Discussion to follow in 139 Mulford Hall
Brief Bio:
I am an agroecologist motivated to help make our agricultural systems restorative and resilient by increasing reliance on biodiversity and ecological processes. My research centers on how plant-soil-microbial interactions underpin sustainable resource use in agroecosystems and lies at the intersection of plant ecophysiology, soil biogeochemistry, and microbial ecology. I am currently a postdoc in the Department of Natural Resources and Environment at the University of New Hampshire working to identify the belowground mechanisms by which greater crop rotational diversity could reduce vulnerabilities of agricultural systems to changing precipitation patterns. For my Ph.D. in Ecology from UC Davis, supported by NSF Graduate and GROW fellowships, I used a participatory, landscape approach in working with local organic farmers to show how their management enhances soil organic matter and microbial activity to support both tight nitrogen cycling and high yields.