This Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074) supports a collaborative research project to integrate leaf metabolomics and tree demographic models to understand the impacts of climate change on forests in the Rocky Mountains and Great Smoky Mountains. The $858,572 award to Clemson University will fund an interdisciplinary team of ecologists, biochemists, and modelers to develop early-warning markers of tree mortality risk by linking stress-related leaf metabolomics to whole-plant physiology and forest demography. The 4-year project (8/1/2024 - 7/31/2028) aims to provide accurate forecasts of forest health under changing environmental conditions, with the ultimate goal of informing forest management strategies. The research will involve controlled drought experiments, field studies in national parks, and the incorporation of metabolomics data into forest simulation models. The project will also provide research training for several postdoctoral fellows, Ph.D. students, and undergraduate students.
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