March 28, 2022
More than a half-century of research on the use of treated wastewater for irrigation and groundwater recharge will be the focus of a three-day conference hosted by Penn State April 5-7 at the Wyndham Garden hotel in Boalsburg. The conference will highlight Penn State's "Living Filter," a year-round spray irrigation system that recycles the University's treated effluent.
March 25, 2022
If average temperatures rise as projected in eastern North America in coming decades, at least one widespread amphibian species likely will be unable to adjust, and its range may shift northward, according to a new study led by Penn State scientists.
March 21, 2022
A team of Penn State researchers will develop a long-term solution for the testing and management of urban soils for the safe production of garden and food crops in urban settings, funded by a $100,000 grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.
March 3, 2022
Christopher Scott's vast experience and expertise in water, climate change, energy, policy, sustainability and agriculture has led to Scott’s appointment to the Maurice K. Goddard Chair of Forestry and Environmental Conservation at Penn State.
February 23, 2022
Tom and Mary Jo Young pledged a $3.2 million estate gift to create the Woodland Gardens at The Arboretum at Penn State with a supporting endowment, as well as an undergraduate scholarship in the Department of Ecosystem Science and Management.
February 14, 2022
Seven students in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences have received predoctoral fellowships from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture. The students received a combined total of nearly $1.1 million — the most received for this year's fellowships among U.S. universities.
February 8, 2022
A century after scientists first noted that the environment contributes to the evolution of adaptive differences among plant populations, scientists are on the verge of figuring out how that adaptation happens — by combining results from huge “common garden” experiments with genomic sequencing.
January 26, 2022
Since the 1990s, scientists have been predicting that North American tree species will disappear from portions of their ranges within the next 50 to 100 years because of projected changes in climate. A new study led by Penn State forest biologists found that when transplanted to warmer environments, ash trees can survive increased temperatures of 7 degrees Fahrenheit and sometimes even up to 18 degrees Fahrenheit, suggesting that these trees may be more resilient to climate warming than previously believed.
January 26, 2022
Five Penn State faculty members in areas ranging from the ecology and evolution of fish and coral reef ecology to bone regeneration and intrinsically disordered proteins have been named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world's largest general scientific society. This year a total of 564 individuals are being recognized with this lifetime honor, bestowed by their peers, for their extraordinary achievements in advancing science.
January 25, 2022
Although tropical forest ecosystems around the world have been modified and fragmented by agroforests planted to produce commodities such as coffee, rubber and areca palm, amphibian communities can survive in those transformed landscapes — if the agroforests are managed to support biodiversity.
January 21, 2022
Researchers in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences will use a newly awarded $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to work with 13 other land-grant universities in the eastern U.S. to create an education program that will help private forests owners adapt to and mitigate climate change.
January 7, 2022
Margaret Brittingham, professor of wildlife resources, extension wildlife specialist and one of the state’s leading ornithologists, recently retired from Penn State after a 33-year, innovative career in the College of Agricultural Sciences.
December 15, 2021
The vast majority of Pennsylvanians responding to a recent survey conducted by Penn State researchers said they strongly support bird conservation and indicated they believe future efforts will be needed to protect avian species. But there is good and bad news in those responses to questionnaires that were part of a study to examine public attitudes toward bird conservation, government involvement in private lands issues, and private forest management.
December 14, 2021
The winning selections from Penn State University Libraries Short Stories’ “Through the Woods” fall 2021 contest have been announced, representing five Penn State campuses. Each of the four Editorial Board winners and the People’s Choice winner will receive a $100 Visa gift card. All winning entries, including nine honorable mentions, will be added to the Libraries’ Short Edition short-story dispensers
December 7, 2021
Each fall, the Penn State Schuylkill Alumni Society announces the Alumni Award winners for that year. Honorees are selected based upon the impact they have in their communities, outstanding professional achievements, and embodiment of Penn State values. This year’s cohort includes Michael G. Messina (class of 1979), Scott C. Price (class of 1985), and Abigayle Kaiser (class of 2020).
November 3, 2021
The Society of American Foresters recently named David Jackson, a forest resources educator with Penn State Extension, as a 2021 Presidential Field Forester Award recipient. He will be recognized at the virtual SAF National Convention, Nov. 3-6.
November 1, 2021
Laura Leites, associate research professor of quantitative forest ecology, has been named Penn State's inaugural Equity Leadership Fellow. The new fellowship in Office of the Vice Provost for Educational Equity aims to help faculty members develop as leaders in diversity, equity and inclusion while creating opportunities to make a positive impact at Penn State.
October 19, 2021
Jim Finley long will be remembered for his simple but powerful message: take care of the woods. And in conveying that idea to thousands of people across Pennsylvania and the nation over a five-decade Penn State career, the professor emeritus of forest resources persuaded many.
October 5, 2021
Because of the warm, wet summer, trees in Pennsylvania are mostly in great shape. But for the state’s forests to exhibit their most vibrant colors, conditions need to be cooler and drier in the next few weeks, according to a Penn State expert.
September 24, 2021
Penn State senior Elka Hoelsken is exploring environmental and natural resource issues as a student in the Environmental Resource Management program.
September 14, 2021
At a time when many municipalities are seeking to control urban stormwater by investing heavily in green infrastructure — such as water-quality ponds, infiltration basins, porous pavement and riparian plantings — a new study suggests that these expensive efforts may not have much of an impact.
August 19, 2021
There is good and bad news about ginseng collection and production in Pennsylvania, and likely much of Appalachia, according to a new study conducted by Penn State researchers.
August 2, 2021
The application of manure after the growth and demise of legume cover crops in rotations is a recipe to increase nitrous oxide releases during ensuing corn growth, according to a team of Penn State researchers who conducted a new study. They suggest that innovative management strategies are needed to reduce these emissions.
July 14, 2021
Burnout. It is a syndrome that is said to afflict humans who feel chronic stress. But after conducting a novel study using trail cameras showing the interactions between white-tailed deer fawns and predators, a Penn State researcher suggests that prey animals feel it, too.
July 8, 2021
Elizabeth Boyer, professor of water resources in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, is the 2021 recipient of the Alex and Jessie C. Black Award for excellence in research.
July 1, 2021
The fast-moving decline and extinction of many species of detritivores — organisms that break down and remove dead plant and animal matter — may have dire consequences, an international team of scientists suggests in a new study.
June 25, 2021
John Carlson, professor of molecular genetics in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences and director of the Schatz Center for Tree Molecular Genetics, is retiring this month after a career spanning four decades of pioneering research with forest trees.
June 21, 2021
Alyssa Curry, a junior majoring in environmental resource management, with minors in environmental engineering and entomology, is gaining various experiences at Penn State, including research and study abroad opportunities.
June 9, 2021
Watershedwide nutrient credit trading has been suggested as a mechanism for reducing pollution entering the Chesapeake Bay, but a new study by Penn State researchers suggests that the high cost of producing nitrogen credits through the establishment of riparian buffers on Pennsylvania farmland currently does not provide an incentive for buffer establishment.
May 18, 2021
Computed tomography — CT scanning — which combines a series of X-ray images taken from different angles around an organism and uses computer processing to create cross-sectional images of its bones, is providing new insight into an old initiative to characterize fishes in Africa’s Lake Malawi.