Steering Group
I am studying the role of vascular plants in year-round carbon cycling in alpine/arctic ecosystems, using a combination of ecological and physiological methods.
Reactions on minerals have shaped Earth's ever-changing environments and atmospheres over geological time. They not only sustain life on Earth, but may even have played an important role in the origins of life!
I am an ecosystem ecologist with an emphasis on global change science. I am particularly interested in cryosphere/biosphere interactions and their coupling to the climate system.
Ruth Varner is a Professor in the Earth Systems Research Center of the Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space, and in the Department of Earth Sciences. She is also the Director of the Joan and James Leitzel Center for Mathematics, Science, and Engineering Education at the University of New Hampshire.
Special focus within my research lies in studying the importance of organic matter (humic substances) and nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) for lake ecosystem productivity and food web structure.
My research focuses on the controls over ecosystem structure and functioning in streams, rivers, and watersheds. We study these systems to understand their condition as natural resources, but also as models to test general ecological and biogeochemical principles.
I am a plant ecologist with a passion for the ecosystems of cold areas. I am fascinated by their characteristic plant communities and by the plants’ abilities to survive harsh conditions through manipulation of their neighbours and their micro-environment.
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