News Release 18-098

NSF announces new awards for research to better understand Earth’s biodiversity

Projects simultaneously explore ecological and evolutionary processes to grasp synergistic impact



Carla Atkinson studies the evolutionary ecology of freshwater mussels.



October 25, 2018



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The National Science Foundation (NSF) is investing over $18 million in 10 new projects to research processes in nature and their complex interactions with climate, land use and invasive species at local, regional and continental scales. The awards are funded through NSF's Dimensions of Biodiversity program in the agency's environmental biology division.

Despite centuries of discovery, most of our planet's biodiversity remains unknown. The scale of the unknown diversity on Earth is especially troubling given the rapid and permanent loss of biodiversity across the globe. The goal of the Dimensions of Biodiversity campaign is to transform how we describe and understand the scope and role of life on Earth.

"This research is unique in that multiple dimensions of biodiversity are addressed simultaneously," said Joanne Tornow, acting assistant director for NSF's Directorate for Biological Sciences. "These are novel approaches that intend to get at synergistic roles of critical ecological and evolutionary processes."

This campaign promotes novel integrative approaches to fill the most substantial gaps in our understanding of the diversity of life on Earth. It takes a broad view of biodiversity, and focuses on the intersection of genetic, phylogenetic and functional dimensions of biodiversity. The projects all integrate these three dimensions to understand interactions and feedback among them.

This year's funded projects include:

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Karl Hambright's work will help identify patterns in cyanobacterial algal blooms.

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Fay-Wei Li's research will help to understand plant interactions with nitrogen-fixing microbes.

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Chris Marx will study methylobacterium, which are a bacteria found in soil and sewage and on leaves.

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Marjorie Weber studies causes and consequences of plants adapting to coexist with their "pests."

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Media Contacts

Ivy F. Kupec, NSF, (703) 292-8796, email: ikupec@nsf.gov



The U.S. National Science Foundation propels the nation forward by advancing fundamental research in all fields of science and engineering. NSF supports research and people by providing facilities, instruments and funding to support their ingenuity and sustain the U.S. as a global leader in research and innovation. With a fiscal year 2020 budget of $8.3 billion, NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 2,000 colleges, universities and institutions. Each year, NSF receives more than 40,000 competitive proposals and makes about 11,000 new awards. Those awards include support for cooperative research with industry, Arctic and Antarctic research and operations, and U.S. participation in international scientific efforts.

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