Coastal Mangroves and Climate Change
Integrating physiological threshold experiments, remote sensing, and climate modeling to characterize the sensitivity of coastal ecosystems to climate change
Projects
Collaboration: How do chaparral shrubs respond to and recover from heat waves?
La Kretz Center Postdoc Alex Pivovaroff works on looking at native species response to environmental change throughout the year.
Community Outreach
Our community outreach includes visiting schools, hosting groups for tours, mentorship, and research experience for high school students and teachers and members of the public.
Congo Basin Institute
As UCLA's first foreign affiliate, the Congo Basin Institute in Cameroon provides a vital space for training and scientific research in Africa.
Desert tortoise conservation
At the La Kretz Center, scientists are working toward a win-win between green energy and endangered species conservation in the Mojave Desert.
Dja Reserve
For the past 20 years, we have been conducting research in the Dja Biosphere Reserve and adjacent areas. The Dja Biosphere Reserve is a UNESCO World Heritage site located in…
Drought Influence on Chlorophyll Fluorescence in Evergreen and Deciduous Plant Species of Southern California
Awardee: Ariel Pezner. Ariel's research focuses on the effects of drought on the chlorophyll fluorescence of four drought deciduous and evergreen plant species native to Southern California.
Eco-Evolutionary Consequences of Global Change on Invasive Plant Species
Human activities are dramatically impacting ecosystems worldwide due to air pollution – and resulting changes to climate and nitrogen cycling – and the spread of nonnative plant species. These drivers of global change may have strong and interactive ecological effects, but the evolutionary impacts of these factors are poorly understood. La Kretz postdoc Justin Valliere is currently exploring potential adaptation to nitrogen pollution and climate in common invasive plant species of California. This study will have important implications for invasive plant management under predicted global change.
Eco-labels and Quality in Wine
Eco-labels are part of a new wave of environmental policy that emphasizes information disclosure as a tool to induce environmentally friendly behavior by both firms and consumers. Little consensus exists…
Ecological Impacts of Nitrogen Deposition on Coastal Sage Scrub of the Santa Monica Mountains
California’s native ecosystems are increasingly impacted by nitrogen deposition resulting from air pollution, particularly in the greater Los Angeles area. This project, led by La Kretz postdoc Justin Valliere, extends an ongoing collaboration between the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service and the UCLA, with the goal of understanding the ecological impacts of nitrogen pollution on the severely threatened coastal sage scrub plant community of the Santa Monica Mountains.
eDNA: Experimental Restoration of Native Grassland at Stunt Ranch
UCLA researchers are actively restoring this site with native California grassland plants
Environmental Bonds Should Equitably Benefit All Communities: Looking Forward Based on an Analysis of Prop 84
In 2006, California voters approved Proposition 84, a bond measure authorizing $5.4 billion in spending on projects to improve parks, natural resource protection, and water quality, safety, and supply. Most…