Team

Research Interests Taylor is interested in Arctic permafrost carbon dynamics and how high latitude biogeochemistry and ecosystem function changes in response to rapid climate change. To quantify these processes, she uses carbon flux measurements and isotope geochemistry within long-term experimental manipulations in Alaskan discontinuous permafrost to develop a mechanistic understanding Read more…

Jack studies the ecology and conservation of aquatic animals. His work stretches from sky-islands in the Caribbean island of Trinidad W.I.  to headwater streams in Arizona. His current research aim is to understand the ecology of native Arizona fishes to improve the reintroduction and/or repatriation of two endangered fish species, Read more…

Maria graduated from Northern Arizona University with a Master’s in Business Administration in 2009 and BS in Accountancy in 2007. She spent over six years in the property management/investment industry with a focus on corporate accounting and financial reporting for senior living communities. While attending NAU she worked with the Read more…

 Van Gestel’s research focuses on quantitative global change ecology, from biogeochemical cycles to biodiversity to sustainable agriculture. She uses a variety of quantitative approaches, such as data assimilation, meta-analyses and multivariate analyses. She works in a broad array of ecosystems, from deserts to grasslands to forests to the poles, and Read more…

Van Groenigen’s research focuses on how management practices and changes in atmospheric conditions affect the flow of C and N through ecosystems. To do this, he often use meta-analytic techniques to synthesize findings in his field of research. Van Groenigen also studies the role of soil microbes in C and Read more…

Woodruff’s graduate work involves analyzing the carbon-14 content of microbial DNA in Alaskan tundra soils to better understand carbon feedback loops and how they relate to global climate change. Before coming to NAU, Woodruff worked as a middle school and high school teacher for thirteen years sharing his excitement and Read more…

Adam’s research interests are broadly focused on understanding how ecosystems respond to environmental change at large spatial and temporal scales. To date, his research has mainly focused on: (1) quantifying fire-climate-vegetation relationships in boreal forest and tundra ecosystems, and (2) exploring how phenology regulates land-atmosphere fluxes of water and energy Read more…

Caitlin’s research addresses how saguaro cacti’s (Carnegiea gigantea) pollination biology is influenced by shifts in climate. In looking at saguaro’s physiological responses coupled with changes in their pollination ecology she hopes to better understand how climatic stressors will influence this charismatic species in the future. Full Curriculum Vitae

Zuniga’s research focuses primarily on how plants, specifically native grasses, interact with their local soil microbial community, the significance of their association, and what implications this may have on ecosystem processes as well as global climate change. She’s interested in increasing her understanding of  the complex structures of soil microbial Read more…

Xin works in the field combing high performance computation and ecosystem. Currently, her research mainly focuses on sensitivity analysis of terrestrial models based on observation data, trying to identify their influentially uncertain components and capture different models’ divergence along with their developments, especially Community Land Models (CLMs). This work contributes Read more…