This $307,069 Project Grant awarded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074) supports the CRUSTNET research collaboration to study the global determinants of biodiversity in biocrusts and their impacts on ecosystem function, resistance, and resilience.
The project will establish an international network of researchers to conduct coordinated field observations and experiments across multiple sites. Key goals include: 1) determining the factors controlling biocrust biodiversity globally, 2) assessing how biocrust biodiversity influences ecosystem functions and responses to disturbances like climate change, and 3) providing data and tools to predict the impacts of environmental changes on biocrust-dependent ecosystems. The grant will also fund a postdoctoral researcher position and the production of a documentary film to raise public awareness of the project.
Generated 2/25/25, 4:30 AM