Category: News and Announcements

Student Award Winners from the 2022 ESC Student Research Forum

The Ecosystem Science Center is proud to announce the winners for best poster presentations from the ESC’s 17th Annual Student Research Forum. The Forum was held on April 22 and had over 30 participants, including both graduate and undergraduate students, who conducted research related to socio-ecological processes, patterns, interactions, and connections in the environment. 

Graduate Student Award Winners:

  • Grand Prize: ROB TUNISON – Poster Title: Tropical Wet Forest Root Respiration Responses to Experimental Warming and Hurricane Disturbance. Advisor(s): Molly Cavaleri
  • Merit Award: EMMA SHEDD – Poster Title: Acclimation of Quercus rubra Root Respiration Across a Midwest Latitudinal Gradient. Advisor(s): Carsten Kuelheim, Andy Burton and Molly Cavaleri
  • Merit Award: SAMUEL L. OLIVEIERA – Poster Title: Do Oil Palm Plantations Provide Quality Habitat for Migratory Birds? A Case Study from Mexico. Advisor(s): David Flaspohler and Jared Wolfe
  • Merit Award: MELANIE A. OTTINO – Poster Title: Fecal Metabarcoding for Winter Diet Analysis of White-Tailed Deer: Developing an Optimized Noninvasive Molecular Approach for Wildlife Research. Advisor(s): Kristin Brzeski, Carsten Kuelheim, and Chris Webster

Undergraduate Student Award Winners

  • Grand Prize: NATALIE M. HOWARD – Poster Title: Variance Components and Phenotypic Plasticity of Northern Red Oak (Quercus rubra) in a Replicated Common Garden Experiment. Advisor(s): Carsten Kuelheim and Molly Cavaleri
  • Merit Award: ABRAHAM STONE – Poster Title: Developing a Commercially-Viable Native Biocontrol Application for Invasive Buckthorn Management. Advisor(s): Chris Webster, Sigrid Resh and Tara Bal

Welcome to our new Center Manager

The Ecosystem Science Center (ESC) advertised for and hired a staff person to aid faculty and staff with major proposal preparation and post-award administration. The interview process was completed in May 2021, with the new center manager, Dr. Jeff Henquinet, starting on July 12, 2021. The position is co-funded by the Tech Forward Natural Resources, Water & Energy initiative and the ESC.

New Ecological Restoration Hub

The Environmental Restoration Hub (ERH) signed memorandums of understanding with the Ecosystem Science Center and Great Lakes Research Center. The ERH will build transdisciplinary collaborations to integrate and strengthen ecosystem restoration knowledge across natural, urban, and post-industrial landscapes. For more information, contact Dr. Rod Chimner (rchimner (at) mtu.edu).