Research. |
Danica L. Lombardozzi
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I am a global change ecologist. I am interested in understanding how terrestrial ecosystems respond and contribute to environmental change.
Approach
My work combines measurements with process-based models. Models are useful for understanding processes across spatial and temporal scales, testing ecological theory, and disentangling complex ecological interactions. Ecosystem models are especially important for understanding the impacts of changes, such as climate, air pollution, and management decisions, which helps to identify possible outcomes of climate change projections and to devise potential mitigation options. Observations are necessary to understand the mechanisms driving ecosystem processes and their responses to change. Integrating these techniques affords a powerful approach to document, understand, and predict ecosystem changes across spatial and temporal scales.
Ecosystem responses to climate and pollutionHumans are causing unprecedented rates of change in climate and pollution, yet we do not fully understand the ecological impacts and potential climate feedbacks of these changes. My research explores how climate and air pollution change ecosystem processes and investigates the mechanisms underlying ecosystem responses.
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Impacts of land management decisionsNearly half of all habitable land is managed, but we are just beginning to understand the large-scale impacts of land management decisions. My work aims to understand how land management decisions impact resource availability and climate, and to identify the land management practices that can continue to sustain or increase resource production with minimal climate impacts.
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Uncertainty in global ecosystem responses to changePredicted changes in terrestrial carbon and water cycles are highly uncertain, yet there is limited understanding about the drivers of change. What ecological mechanisms and environmental changes are the dominant drivers of future ecosystem processes, and how much do they contribute to uncertainty in our understanding of future carbon and water cycling? Understanding the drivers of change in models and observations is essential to determine when and where ecosystem states or fluxes have significantly changed and improves our ability to identify the fingerprint of change.
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