Abstract/non technical summary forests and wetlands are critical for ecosystem functioning, biodiversity, human recreational activity and product usage (e.g., biomaterials)

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded Michigan Technological University $741,354 under the Cooperative Forestry Research program (CFDA 10.202) on October 1, 2025, to support scientific research on forest and wetland sustainability and resilience in the temperate to boreal Great Lakes region over the next decade.

The College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science at Michigan Technological University will conduct multiple research initiatives examining how forests and wetlands in the Great Lakes region may change in response to global-scale alterations and local or regional impacts from human activity and management practices. Research will focus on disturbances affecting ecological principles and ecosystem functioning of forest and wetland systems, and on the production and use of forest biomaterials. The work spans biotechnology, ecology, and forestry disciplines, including developmental and organismal biology, genetics and genomics, hydrology, natural resource management, physiology, and soil science. Findings will be communicated to the scientific community, natural resource management community, and the public to advance understanding of regional and national forest system sustainability and resilience.

Performance occurs at Houghton, Michigan. The award period runs through September 30, 2027. This is a formula grant, with funds expected to be fully expended in the fiscal year of appropriation; however, current policy allows fifty percent of the FY 2025 allocation to carry over into FY 2026 and be fully expended by September 30, 2026.

IT is imperative that we determine the longevity and stability of these systems into the future. For these reasons, scientific projects supported through the mcintire stennis program at the college of forest resources and environmental science, at michigan technological university will support multiple initiatives into the next decade that address components of how the forests and wetlands in the surrounding temperate to boreal great lakes region, may change, and what any consequences are likely to flow from these changes. Future forest and wetland systems can be expected to exhibit changes, whether due to the consequences of global scale alterations, or to more local and regional impacts from people and management practices. We will focus on the sustainability and resilience of future forests, examining how disturbances (human or non human) are impacting both general ecological principles as well as the ecosystem functioning of forest and wetland systems, alongside questioning the production and use of forest biomaterials. This is inclusive of the biotechnology, ecology and forestry disciplines, with multiple foci across the many sub disciplines of each, for example including (but not limited to) developmental and organismal biology, genetics and genomics, hydrology, natural resource management, physiology, and soil science. Various techniques, approaches and experimental designs will be used based on the specific questions to be answered and the system being studied. Communication of findings will target the scientific community, the natural resource management community and the public, where appropriate, to contribute to a greater understanding of the sustainability and resilience of regional and national forest systems. Through the scientific research supported by this program, we expect to substantially increase our capacities to respond to, and to mitigate any, future negative consequences of forest and wetland change. Initiatives will intersect conservation, restoration and management practices for the continued sustainability and resilience of forests and wetlands into the future