Pages (7 results)
TopAbout ERG
Our Mission The mission of the Energy and Resources Group is a sustainable environment and a just society. ERG is a collaborative community of graduate students, core faculty, nearly 200 ... Continue Reading »
Who We Are
A Brief History of ERG For thirty years, the Energy and Resources Group (ERG) at the University of California, Berkeley has provided its outstanding graduate students and exceptional faculty the ... Continue Reading »
Courses
All Course Offerings Please note: This is a full list of ERG course offerings; not all courses are offered each term. For current course offerings, please refer to the online ... Continue Reading »
Harte Lab: Ecology & Global Change
Ecology and global change are the primary topics of research in the Harte Lab. Among the goals are: to characterize ecological feedbacks to climate change, to predict effects of global change on biodiversity, and to develop fundamental theory that predicts the structure of ecosystems across spatial scales.
Climate & Carbon Sciences Program
The research mission of the Climate & Carbon Sciences Program is to advance the understanding and prediction of multiscale climate dynamics, abrupt and extreme climate events, terrestrial feedbacks to climate change, and their impacts on energy and water resources.
Faculty by Primary Interest
Areas of Interest Climate Change ERG COREDavid AnthoffDavid Anthoff is an environmental economist who studies climate change and environmental policy. He co-develops the integrated assessment model FUND that is used ... Continue Reading »
Affiliated Faculty
ERG has a small core faculty but a much larger group of affiliated faculty. Affiliated faculty are based in other departments on campus or at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, ... Continue Reading »
Faculty (2 results)
Top
Lara Kueppers
Associate Professor
Lara Kueppers is an Associate Professor in the Energy and Resources Group, with a Faculty Scientist appointment at Berkeley Lab. She is an interdisciplinary environmental scientist, whose research focuses on ecological responses and feedbacks to climate change.
Margaret Torn
Adjunct Professor
The focus of my work is carbon and nutrient cycling in terrestrial ecosystems and trace-gas flux between soil and atmosphere. I conduct research on soil carbon, global change, and the impacts of human activities on ecosystem processes.
Students (3 results)
Top
Elliot Carleton
MS
Elliot is an MS student in the Energy and Resources Group focusing on sustainable land management and conservation. His research interests are motivated by the time he spent working with ... Continue Reading »
Rachel Ward
MS, PhD
Tropical Forests and the Allocation of Carbon to Reproduction (MS ’20) Rachel is interested in the social, ecological, and geophysical dynamics of agro-forestry coffee and cacao systems in the tropics. ... Continue Reading »
Micah Elias
MS, PhD
Payment for Watershed Ecosystem Services: Effectiveness, Efficiency, and Equity (MS ’20) Micah Elias earned his B.S. in International Agricultural Development from UC Davis in 2012. After graduating he worked with ... Continue Reading »
Alumni (20 results)
Top
Adam Hanbury-Brown
MS, PhD
Predicting the future of forests under global change: the critical role of the regeneration process (PhD ’22) Adam is a PhD focused on ecosystem modeling and remote sensing. His research ... Continue Reading »
- Agriculture
- climate
- Earth System Models
- ecology
- Forest Regeneration
- Movement Ecology
- remote sensing
- Vegetation Dynamics
- Wildlife Ecology
Richard Barnes
PhD
Algorithms for, and Applications of, Global Terrain Analysis (PhD ’20) Richard applies computational and mathematical techniques to better understand the complex interface of society and the environment. His work includes ... Continue Reading »
Váleri Vásquez
MS, PhD
Váleri Vásquez is a PhD candidate in the Energy and Resources Group with a Designated Emphasis in Computational Data Science and Engineering. Váleri conducts most of her work in the ... Continue Reading »
Katie Epstein
MA
Katie’s interests are in community forestry, natural resource conflict management, cultural dimensions of ecosystem management and place studies. She graduated with a BA in Anthropology from Davidson College (2010) and ... Continue Reading »
Alana Siegner
MA, PhD
Growing Environmental Literacy: On Small-Scale Farms, in the Urban Agroecosystem, and in School Garden Classrooms (PhD ’20) Alana Siegner graduated from Tufts University in 2012 with a double major in ... Continue Reading »
Margaret Torn
MS, PhD
The Threats to Biological Diversity in California (’90 MS) Environmental Controls Over Methane Flux from Ecosystems and the Potential for Feedbacks with Climatic Change (’94 PhD) See Faculty Profile
- biodiversity
- biogeochemistry
- Carbon cycle
- climate change
- conservation
- democracy
- ecosystem goods and services
- ecosystem processes
- isotopes
- land use
Kathy Tonnessen
MA, PhD
Integrated Assessment of Environmental Impacts: A Regulatory Approach to the Problem (’79 MA) The Potential Effects of Acid Deposition on Aquatic Ecosystems of the Sierra Nevada, California (’83 PhD)
- air quality
- aquatic ecology
- inventory and monitoring of natural resources
- parks and protected areas
- Rocky Mountain ecosystems
Zachary Subin
MS, PhD
Greenhouse Gas Abatement Supply Curves for California’s Transportation Sector (MS ’08) Interactions of Water and Energy Mediate Responses of High Latitude Terrestrial Ecosystems to Climate Change (PhD ’12)
Karin Shen
MS, PhD
A Microclimate Model to Investigate Greenhouse Warming of a Sub-Alpine Ecosystem (MS, ’92) A Modeling Study of Experimental Warming of a Sub-Alpine Meadow (PhD, ’98)
M. Rebecca Shaw
PhD
Ecosystem and Plant Community Consequences of Climate Warming in a High-Altitude Meadow (’97 PhD)
Scott Saleska
PhD
Global Climate Change and Ecosystem Carbon Storage: An Experimental Investigation of Ecologically-Mediated Feedbacks to Climate in Montane Meadows (’98 Ph.D.)
- ecology of environmental systems (eg. global climate)
- environmental impact of nuclear energy and nuclear weapons production
- how to implement and practice "public interest science"
- modeling life-cycle environmental impacts of human activities
- social justice and environmental sustainability
Karen Plaut
MS
A Comparison of Measured and Calculated Evapotranspiration in a Sub-Alpine Meadow Ecosystem (’95 M.S.)
Philippe Martin
MS, PhD
Qualitative Analysis: The Method and Its Use in Modeling the Influence of Space on Ecosystems (’86 M.S.) Forest Succession and Climate Change: Coupling Land-Surface Processes and Ecological Dynamics (’90 Ph.D.)
- atmosphere/biosphere interactions
- carbon cycling
- climate change and public health - especially malaria
- energy and resources geopolitics
- integrated environmental assessment
- terrestrial biosphere modeling
Nathan Hultman
MS, PhD
Inter-Annual Climate Variability and Carbon Uptake in a Young Forest Ecosystem (99 MS) Carbon Financial Risk in the International Greenhouse Gas Market (03 PhD)
- carbon and greenhouse gas markets
- climate change and developing countries
- international climate change policy
- regional interests: East Africa and Scandinavia
- risk and scientific uncertainty in policy
Jennifer Dunne
PhD
Climate Change Impacts on Community and Ecosystem Properties: Integrating Manipulations and Gradient Studies in Montane Meadows (’00 Ph.D.)
Yuko Chiba
MS
Traditional Ecological Knowledge: An overview of an academic field and its implications to on-the-ground conservation of lightly managed ecosystems (04 MS)
Erica Newman
MS, PhD
Erica’s niche is fire, particularly in the ecologically sensitive region of French Polynesia. She has already been trained as a physicist, but her curiosity draws her to ecology. ERG has become a unique place for Erica to explore her aspirations in the biological sciences alongside those who have successfully trekked through similar transitions. Read in her own words how Erica has fine-tuned her fascinations while at ERG.
- anthropogenic impacts on fire regimes
- California chaparral
- climate change and biodiversity interactions
- Fire ecology and natural disturbance
- French Polynesia cloud forests and wet montane forests
- macroecology
Lydia Smith
MS, PhD
Subsurface Controls on Carbon Dynamics in a Changing Arctic Ecosystem (PhD ’18) Terrestrial Biological Carbon Dioxide Removal: An Ecological Perspective (MS ’12) Lydia’s research takes her to the Alaskan Arctic, ... Continue Reading »
Kripa Jagannathan
MS, PhD
Ready-to-use? Bridging the Climate Science Usability Gap for Adaptation (PhD ’19) Kripa’s research interests are in the field of climate change adaptation and climate-resilient planning. Her PhD focuses on improving ... Continue Reading »
- Adaptation
- Agriculture
- Carbon markets
- climate change
- climate-resilient planning
- co-production of knowledge
- science usability
- stakeholder engagement
- water
Pierce Gordon
MS, PhD
Investigating Innovation Practice: Cross-disciplinary Studies in International Development (PhD ’18) As a NSF, Chancellor’s, and InFEWS Fellow in the Energy and Resources Group (ERG), Pierce investigates frameworks, methodologies, and contexts ... Continue Reading »
- Actors/History in International Development
- Berkeley Expert System Technologies (BEST) Laboratory
- Design
- Design Thinking
- development
- Development Engineering
- Evaluation
- Impact Evaluation
- Marginalization
- Sub-Saharan Africa
News (16 results)
Top
Energy New ERG Courses Focus on Data
June 26, 2018
The Energy and Resources Group has announced two new courses this fall addressing current, timely topics in energy and environment. Registration is open.
predominantly Latinx communities Study shows PFAS threat to drinking water in rural
June 13, 2024
Public water wells in communities of color might be disproportionately polluted by pesticides contaminated with harmful per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), according to a new study led by a team ... Continue Reading »
ERG Professor Kueppers’ Research on Climate-Threatened Forests Published in Science
June 5, 2020
ERG Professor Lara Kueppers recently co-authored a research paper titled "Pervasive shifts in forest dynamics in a changing world". The research focuses on how global warming negatively impacts forests around the world, "resulting in shorter and younger trees with broad impacts on global ecosystems." Furthermore, the paper was picked up on various media sources, including Forbes, Science, Berkeley Lab, and others.
Challenges ERGies Contribute to IEEE “Electricity for All: Issues
September 9, 2019
Several ERGies recently contributed articles to an IEEE Special Issue on "Electricity for All: Issues, Challenges, and Solutions for Energy-Disadvantaged Communities."
Patrick Gonzalez Selected to be a Lead Author of IPCC’s Next Major Climate Change Report
April 17, 2018
ERG alumnus Patrick Gonzalez (PhD ’97) has been selected by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to be a lead author for a chapter about freshwater ecosystems in their ... Continue Reading »
Isha Ray Recognized as a Trailblazer for Her Impact on Developing Economies
March 22, 2018
“Gamechangers. Engineers. Innovators. Researchers. Entrepreneurs. These are just a few of the words that describe the outstanding women of the Blum Center ecosystem. In honor of National Women’s History month, ... Continue Reading »
What Happens When You Track Climate Change for Over 25 Years in the Rockies?
February 22, 2018
ERG ecosystems professor John Harte and his team at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory know the answer. They have been tracking wildflower populations and soil moisture in a meadow above Crested ... Continue Reading »
ERG Faculty Lara Kueppers Finds Critical Sierra Meadows Being Overtaken by Forest
July 7, 2017
"meadows are being increasingly overrun by forest as changing conditions allow the offspring of nearby trees to take hold in meadow environments"
Introducing New ERG Faculty Lara Kueppers
January 11, 2017
The Energy and Resources Group is delighted to announce the arrival of new core faculty member Lara Kueppers.
ERG Alum Calls For Effective Groundwater Management
May 25, 2016
ERG alum Michael Kiparsky (MS '04, PhD '10) co-authored an opinion column in The Fresno Bee on the pressing need for fair and effective groundwater management agencies in California.
ERG Summer Courses Available
February 28, 2016
ERG is offering four of its most popular courses this summer! Enroll Today!
Solar Power Expansion Could Pose Ecological Risks
October 22, 2015
Postdoctoral scholar, Rebecca Hernandez, discusses her study on the ecological footprint of solar power development with Scientific American.
Siegner finalist in Feeding the Planet’s Storyfest
May 3, 2015
Signer writes about the potential of urban foraging
23-year experiment finds surprising global warming impacts
February 11, 2015
Professor John Harte and team's paper on results of a 23-year ecosystem experiment in Rocky Mountain meadowlands featured in Guardian.
Will Dr. Harte’s MaxEnt lead to a unified theory of ecology?
September 4, 2014
"MaxEnt breaks everything that we ever thought about communities and species and ecology."
Professor Harte Featured in DOE’s Symmetry
August 20, 2014
He transitioned from physics to ecology. And at ERG, he's not the only one.
Topics (2 results)
Top
Hasmik Djoulakian
MS
Hasmik Djoulakian (she/her) is a Master’s student in the Energy Resources Group. Her research interests involve applying frameworks of feminist political ecology, cultural geography, and environmental justice to examine the ... Continue Reading »
Elliot Carleton
MS
Elliot is an MS student in the Energy and Resources Group focusing on sustainable land management and conservation. His research interests are motivated by the time he spent working with ... Continue Reading »