I am a NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellow working with both Dr. Ben Blonder and Dr. Maggi Kelly and to study widespread tree mortality, specifically in quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides), the most broadly distributed tree species in North America. I am a plant physiological ecologist, with a specialized background in plant-water relations, plant response to climate change-induced drought, cloud forest ecology, and stable isotope biogeochemistry. As a Postdoctoral Scholar, I am working to broaden my skill set and apply my ecophysiological background to genetics, remote sensing, and geospatial science to combat widespread tree die-off. I have a deep commitment to broadening the participation of underrepresented and historically marginalized groups in the sciences and providing opportunities for others to cross exclusionary boundaries the way that my journey has allowed me to do. Originally from East Los Angeles (Tovaangar, unceded Tongva lands) and now based in the East Bay (unceded Huichin Ohlone land), I completed my bachelor’s degree from Pitzer College, CA in Environmental Science and my Ph.D. from UC Berkeley in the Dept. of Integrative Biology with Dr. Todd Dawson. I love to climb trees, both for my research and for fun.

Why some plants persist while other perish in response to global changes? I am a botanist (JBRJ/Brazil) and plant ecologist (UERJ/Brazil) that is particularly interested in deciphering the mechanisms underlying the differential stability (resilience, recovery and resistance) of plant communities to climate change. During my PhD I used meta-analytical and functional approaches to investigate grasslands stability in response to droughts, focusing on the role of two main factors: functional diversity and species’ ability to use atmospheric sources of water. Now, I am excited to expand my research line through evaluating the linkages between leaf venation architecture and leaf venation functions. Specifically, I will focus upon resistance and resilience to damage, mechanical support and transport efficiency. By quantifying both ecophysiological traits and multi-scale vein network traits, on a phylogenetically diverse set of species, I aim to elucidate how venation traits can be used to predict species functioning and distribution. Besides research on plants, I also adore teaching on plant topics and even painting plants (botanical illustrations)!

I am a plant biologist interested in how polyploidy and genome size variation contribute to or inhibit adaptation. As a postdoc co-advised by Dr. Ben Blonder and Dr. Moises Exposito-Alonso, I am developing evolution-informed models of quaking aspen mortality for forest management. I completed my bachelor’s from Appalachian State University in Biology and my Ph.D. in Plant Biology from UC Davis with Dr. Jeffrey Ross-Ibarra, where my Ph.D. research integrated population genetics and ecophysiology to study the origins and persistence of mixed-ploidy in Andropogon gerardi, an ecologically dominant prairie grass.

I am a plant ecophysiologist who is interested in understanding the mechanisms that allow plants to tolerate environmental stress, particularly heat and drought. Under the guidance of PI’s Dr. Ben Blonder, Dr. Luiza Aparecido, and Dr. Kevin Hultine, I am leading an NSF-funded project to identify adaptive water use strategies to cope with extreme thermal stress across a wide range of plant functional types. During this project I will be working primarily at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, AZ. I previously completed my PhD at the Australian National University with Prof. Owen Atkin, where I studied the acclimation of photosynthesis and respiration to high temperature in wheat. I then worked as a postdoc in Dr. Nick Smith’s plant ecophysiology lab at Texas Tech University, where I continued my research on photosynthetic thermal acclimation. While most of my research has focused on leaf-level gas-exchange, I am also interested in identifying the biochemical processes that underpin physiological responses to warming. Outside of research I enjoy hiking, cooking, crosswords, and discovering new music.