Awardees: Meixi Lin, second year Ph.D. student in the Wayne Lab, and Ana Garcia Vedrenne, Ph.D. in Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology at UCSB. Ana is using DNA meta-barcoding to identify and quantify parasite and pathogen biodiversity in California ecosystems. Meixi is intrigued by how molecular biology tools could help resolve previously impossible wildlife conservation puzzles.
On November 8th, 2018 the Woolsey fire swept across the Santa Monica Mountains. It claimed 96,949 acres of undeveloped land in the mountains, making it the most extensive fire ever…
In collaboration with the National Park Service, La Kretz Postdoc Rachel Blakey is investigating how large wildfires, like the Woolsey fire of 2018, influence the movement and behavior of California's top carnivore: the mountain lion.
Environmental Science Without Borders (ESWB) is an international peer-mentorship program where students and scientists from different countries come together and learn from one another in environmental fields. ESWB was created…
Awardee: Erin Toffelmier, Ph.D. student in Brad Shaffer’s lab. Erin's research focuses on understanding the drivers of population declines in the Santa Barbara County populations of the California tiger salamander, Ambystoma californiense.
Awardee: Sarah Helman, Ph.D. in Professor Jamie Lloyd-Smith's lab. Sarah is interested in disease surveillance of marine and terrestrial mammals along the California coast.
Awardee: Ioana Anghel, second year Ph.D. student in the Zapata Lab. Ioana is interested in the drivers of diversification and how taxa maintain their phenotypic and genetic identity while co-existing in a small area with the potential to hybridize.
Awardee: Eleanor Diamont, Ph.D. in the Yeh Lab. Eleanor is interested in using the Dark-eyed Junco as a model system to understand how birds can cope with and adapt to urban stressors.
Awardee: Rachel Turba de Paula, Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. Rachel studies population genetics of endangered and extirpated species in southern California, as well as community change in coastal lagoons to address local conservation efforts.
Awardee: Gaurav S. Kandlikar, PhD candidate and NSF Graduate Research fellow in Dr. Nathan Kraft’s plant community ecology group. Gaurav is deeply fascinated by the origins and consequences of diversity, and in his research he uses a combination of ecological theory, field experiments, and molecular techniques to study the ecological processes that help maintain plant species diversity, especially in southern California grasslands.
Wildfires in California are becoming more frequent and destructive, resulting in increased loss of property and life. In November 2018 alone, fires throughout the state caused up to an estimated…
Rainforests have long been recognized for their importance to the entire planet. They absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen, something all animals need to survive. They are also home to…
