US-Botswana Planning Visit: Nutrient, Hydrologic, and Physiological Controls on Belowground Productivity and Carbon Sequestration in Kalahari Savanna Ecosystems

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Okin 0536910This award supports a planning visit by a team of scientists from the University of Virginia who will visit Dr. Susan Ringrose and other research partners at the Harry Oppenheimer Okavango Research Centre in Botswana to plan a project that examines root system function and carbon sequestration in African savannas. Savannas cover 20% of the earth's surface and represent significant carbon sources or carbon sinks, depending on how they are managed. The planned research project will explore the distribution of tree roots in Southern African savannas, their role in water and nutrient transport, and their controls on above-ground and below-ground carbon sequestration. During the planning visit, techniques for excavating roots and determining root function using stable isotopes and sap flow meters will be evaluated. Research will be performed in collaboration with Botswana researchers who will be full intellectual partners in the project, providing expert scientific knowledge of the region. An additional component of the planning visit is to plan an interactive learning component in which Virginia and Botswana high school students would perform simplified field research and compare findings from their contrasting ecosystems using internet and tele-education technologies.This planning visit will strengthen collaborative research between US and Botswanan scientists and provide an international research experience for a US graduate student, who will stay longer in Botswana to collect preliminary data. The subsequent research project could enhance U.S. education at several levels by offering international field experience for U.S. undergraduate and graduate students and high school teachers. The collaborative research and education components will also provide broader societal impacts by stimulating international communication and bridging geographic and cultural divides.This award is co-funded by the Division of Environmental Biology.