Goutham Thotakuri is a graduate student in the Kravchenko lab at Michigan State University. His research is focused on the study of carbon transfer between various cover crop species and soil carbon sequestration. Recent changes to our climate dynamics have brought on alarming drought conditions in many parts of the world. Since we cannot control the climate, we need to prepare our agricultural systems for adversity. One way to do this is through understanding the soil's hydro-physical and biochemical processes. We can identify critical factors influencing drought resilience by
A new perspective – using bioenergy crops to alleviate global warming: Reflections from an LTER fellow
Jinho Lee is a PhD student in the Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences Department at Michigan State University. He works in the Kravchenko lab with interests in carbon dynamics of soil. Today we are facing one of the biggest environmental challenges that our species has never faced, and one that is caused by our own actions. Since the Industrial Revolution, the worldwide carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have increased due to use of C-based fossil fuels. This has resulted in global warming. To alleviate global warming and reduce the dependence on fossil fuels, several alternative