UI gets $15 million to study climate change

A team of University of Idaho researchers received a $15 million, six-year grant to study the long-term effects of drought and fire on forest ecosystems.

Their research may determine how ecosystems respond to climate change, according to a UI news release.

The National Science Foundation grant will fund the Embedding Molecular Biology in Ecosystem Research (EMBER) Institute. The team includes experts across disciplines including molecular and cellular biology, organismal physiology and ecosystem sciences.

Additionally, EMBER will participate in community outreach by partnering with the Coeur d’Alene Tribe and the Bonneville Environmental Foundation to establish an Indigenous Innovation Lab for tribal and rural students.

It is also partnering with UI’s McClure Center for Public Policy Research and RepublicEn, a conservative organization aimed at solving climate change by hosting discussions in a noncombative political space.

UI researchers on the team include Tara Hudiburg, Laurel Lynch, Chris Marx, Klas Udekwu, Michael Strickland, Kris Waynant, Andrew Child and postdoctoral fellow Kelsey Bryant.