Climate Change Scientists Cards

• M.S. Forest Ecology, Colorado State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A dendroecologist uses tree rings to reconstruct climate, disturbances (including human land use), and other factors that influence tree growth.

• Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• I am a mountain scientist, and I study the effects of past and present climates on mountain ecosystems.

• Ph.D., University of North Dakota
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A landscape ecologist studies how landscapes (ranging from large continents to small fields) are put together and how they function to provide ecosystem services to humans and all life.

• Ph.D., Oregon State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Landscape ecology differs from traditional ecology by including humans as a key component of ecosystems.  We study how ecosystems are affected by human activities over very large regions.

• Ph.D., University of New Mexico
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A plant ecologist studies plants and how they function on the landscape.

• M.S., University of Georgia 
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A forest hydrologist studies the water cycle.  Where does water go after it falls as a raindrop?  We study how it travels through a forest, into the soil, and eventually to a stream.

• M.S., University of Mississippi
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A geographic information system (GIS) is a computer system that can capture, store, analyze, manage and display geographic data.  A GIS professional uses the computer system to perform spatial analyses on geographic data to answer scientific questions and present the results in maps.

• M.S., Virginia Tech
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A biological scientist is a jack of all trades.  I work with other researchers in diverse disciplines to study forest ecosystems response to prescribed burning, climate change, and natural and man-made disturbance.

• M.S., North Carolina State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A GIS analyst uses geographic data to answer questions, solve problems, and tell stories.  In my work, this often means looking for spatial patterns that show how forests respond to climate change or other stressors.

• Ph.D., University of New Hampshire 
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Ecology is a Greek word - "ology" means "to study" and "eco" means house.  In this case, the house is the Earth, and I study large parts of our planet, so I am a "landscape ecologist."

• Ph.D., University of Florida
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Hydrologists study the water cycle.  Studying the water cycle means tracking water movement from raindrops falling from sky to the ground, going into the soils, flowing through the rivers, and eventually moving to the ocean.

• University of California, Berkeley 
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• As a statistical scientist I translate scientists' hypothesis and word problems into a few (essential) equations that help further our understanding of the world we live in. 

• University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• An aquatic ecologist studies plants and animals that live in streams, lakes, and wetlands.  We try to understand the roles these organisms play in aquatic ecosystems and how stressors such as land use change, climate change, and exotic species influence those roles.

• Ph.D., University of Michigan
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A research social scientist studies the relationships between people and the environment.

• Ph.D., University of Wyoming - Laramie
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A wildlife biologist studies living organisms such as birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians and their habitats, their life history, population changes, and movement patterns.

• Ph.D., University of Washington-Seattle
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A quantitative ecologist uses mathematical skills and ideas to better understand forests, rivers, oceans, fish, wildlife, climate, and more.

• Ph.D., Ohio State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A landscape ecologist studies how different land uses influence and shape ecological communities.  I am particularly interested in how birds and forests respond to a changing environment.

• Ph.D., Silesian University, Katowice, Poland 
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• As an ecologist, I monitor and evaluate the impacts of air pollution and climate change on forests and other ecosystems.

• Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• I study disturbance ecology, climate change, conservation and management of Neotropical resident and migratory bird communities and invasive species.

• Ph.D., University of Florida
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A fire ecologist explores the interactions between wildland fire and plant communities.  I study how fires burn and how forests grow and reassemble after fire. 

• Ph.D., University of Maine 
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A forest ecologist studies the interrelated patterns and processes of vegetation, animals, energy, water and nutrients in forests.

• Ph.D., University of Wisconsin - Madison
• Member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A forester/social scientist studies how people and communities use, manage, and think about their forests and sustainability.

• Ph.D., University of Minnesota
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Soil scientists study how soils influence the cycling of water, nutrients, carbon, pollutants, and other materials.  We also study similarities and differences among different soil types. 

• Ph.D., Oregon State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A fish biologist studies fishes and the habitats they occupy to better understand the relationships between fish biology and habitat.

• Ph.D., University of Vermont
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A plant physiologist studies the biology of how plants work.  These studies are often done to determine if a part of a plant is not working or is causing the plant problems.  An example includes low air temperatures causing injury and poor growth.

• Ph.D., Utah State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Hydrologists study how water moves around the world, whether as streamflow, groundwater, precipitation, or transpiration.  Water is important to all life.

• Ph.D., University of Montana
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• As a research fire ecologist, I study how vegetation, weather, and terrain interact to influence wildland fires.

• Ph.D., University of Wyoming
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Environmental economists study the way people interact with nature.  This research includes how people value nature, how they respond to changes in the environment, and what policies can be used to protect the environment. 

• Ph.D., University of California Berkeley
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• An urban ecologist studies the relationship of living organisms with each other and their surroundings in an urban environment.  I have focused my research on urban forests which are an important part of urban ecosystems in many cities and towns across the world. 

• Ph.D., Northern Arizona University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Plant ecologists study plants and their surroundings, or environment, and inform people about how to leave plant communities healthy for future generations. 

• Ph.D., University of Maine
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A forest ecologist studies interactions among plants, animals, energy, water, and nutrients.  A forest ecologist also studies how all of these things relate to patters and processes in forest ecosystems. 

• M.N.R., University of Georgia
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• As a natural resource analyst, I gather geographic and field data on forests and wildland fires.  I analyze these data using computer software to answer scientific questions related to fire and plant interactions.

• Ph.D., Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• As a research meteorologist, I study how climate variability and climate changes drive forest disturbances, like wildland fires.  I also study how forest conditions affect the environment, and how to predict climate-forest interactions.

• M.S., Arizona State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Ecology is the study of the relationships between organisms and their physical surroundings.  As an ecologist, I use my background in geography to examine spatial patterns in ecology. 

• Ph.D., University of Montana
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• As an ecologist, I study the interaction of climate, plants, and animals in rangelands.  

• M.S., North Carolina State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• As a social scientist, I study the ways that landowners and natural resources specialists interact with scientific information.  I help scientists and tool developers improve their communications and products.

• Ph.D., Oregon State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• I help natural resources professionals consider how to change the management of ecosystems to address the challenges of a changing climate.

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• Ph.D., University of Georgia
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Aquatic ecologist study how forest and other environmental factors influence the plants, animals, and ecological processes in aquatic ecosystems. This knowledge helps resource managers better manage land and aquatic habitats so they provide clean water for people and wildlife.

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• Ph.D., University of Oklahoma
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A research ecologist studies streams and lakes to explore both who lives in the water and how forestry and year to year climatic variability impact the water quality and water as habitat for biota.

• Ph.D., University of Maryland
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Oikos is the Greek root word for "household."  It is also the root of the word "economy" and "ecology!"  Good managment of the economy, and ecology, is like good management of a household.

• Ph.D., Auburn University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Engineers study many different areas.  My area is forest operations, or more simply put, logging management.

• Ph.D., Rutgers University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A forest ecologist studies how plants and animals interact within a forest community.  Some of these scientists are particularly interested in how forests cycle carbon and work to measure how carbon moves through these systems.

• Ph.D., University of Arizona
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A forester / anthropologist studies the diversity of ways that people talk about, value, and use trees and forests.

• Ph.D., University of Washington
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• I study ways to provide estimates of multiple environmental benefits.  An example of a benefit is forest carbon.  The estimates are needed at local to national to global scales.

• Ph.D., University of Washington (Seattle)
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A silviculturist studies how trees interact with each other and how changing a tree's neighborhood influences how it grows and the other plants that grow with it.  A tree physiologist studies the biological processes that influence tree growth.

• Ph.D., Oregon State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Ecologists help study the relationships among organisms and between organisms and their environment.

• Ph.D., University of California at Davis
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• An entomologist studies insects and their interactions with other organisms and the environment.

• Ph.D., University of Hawaii, Manoa
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A plant ecophysiologist studies the ways in which plants interact with the environment.

• Ph.D., The University of Washington
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A wildlife biologist studies terrestrial wildlife species (mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians) and the habitats they occupy to better understand their biology and habitat relationships.

• Ph.D., Oregon State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Landscape ecology differs from traditional ecology by including humans as a key component of ecosystems.  We study how ecosystems are affected by human activities over very large regions.

• University of Florida
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Ecology is the study of interactions between organisms and their environment.  I primarily study animals.

• University of Alabama, Huntsville
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A meteorologist studies weather and climate.  Weather is what is happening today or tomorrow.  For example, is it raining or is it hot or cold?  Climate is how weather changes over time.  For example, this winter was colder or warmer than normal. 

• Ph.D., University of Minnesota
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• As a forester, I study carbon dynamics in forest ecosystems.  I develop and improve techniques to estimate forest carbon stocks and changes to the carbon stocks using forest inventory information. 

• M.S., University of Georgia
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A soil ecologist studies how soil interact with the organisms that live in and on them.

• Ph.D., University of Montana
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• An applied forest ecologist develops new knowledge regarding the function and processes of forest ecosystems.  This knowledge can have real impacts on forest management and conservation. 

• Ph.D., University of Georgia
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• As a forest and soil ecologist, I am interested in how forest management practices impact soils. 

• Ph.D., University of Washington
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A forest ecologist studies the structure, composition, and processes that interact in a forest to provide different habitats for plants and animals.  My research focuses on improving our understanding of changes in forest conditions.

• B.S., Clemson University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• As a forestry technician in the research field, my work is a balance of field work (ie, collecting samples, taking measurements, and downloading dataloggers), lab work (ie, sample preparation and analysis), and data processing (ie, creating spreadsheets, charts, and graphs).

• Ph.D., University of New Mexico
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• As an economist, I study how humans use the environment for goods and services.  I also study the value people place on natural resources and processes.

• Ph.D., University of Montana
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Fire ecologists study how wildfire changes ecosystems.  As a fire ecologist, I study the impacts of removing fire from, or changing how fires burn in, forests which originally had fire. 

• Ph.D., Penn State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• A forest ecologist studies forest changes to understand what it means for forest values like clean air and water, wood products, wildlife habitat, and recreation.

• Ph.D., North Carolina State University
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• Soil ecologists focus on understanding the interaction between soils, water resources, ecosystem productivity, and biodiversity to ensure sustainable landscapes.  Soil is the foundation for our agricultural and forest ecosystems.

• Ph.D., University of Montana
• USDA Forest Service Scientist
• As a resource economist and computer modeler, I study how people choose to use and manage forests and natural resources.  This enables us to predict how people may use those resources in the future.