NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology FY 2010

本行动资助美国国家科学基金会2010年度少数民族博士后研究奖学金。该奖学金支持奖学金获得者在主办实验室的研究和培训计划，该奖学金获得者还提出了扩大生物学参与的计划。丽贝卡·科尔的研究和培训计划的标题是“了解极端潮湿的热带森林中的碳储存”。这项研究的主办机构是科罗拉多大学博尔德分校，赞助科学家是艾伦·汤森博士。热带森林在陆地碳收支中发挥着关键作用。减少热带森林砍伐和退化造成的碳排放的全球努力正在加强，同时实施了新的市场工具，如环境服务支付（PES），以加强碳封存。然而，关于完整的热带森林和正在迅速取代它们的退化森林类型的碳动态的信息缺乏，特别是在生物圈-大气碳交换率特别高的热带生物群系最潮湿的部分。这项研究正在产生关于极端潮湿的局部森林和目前在PES倡议下的森林类型的碳储量和通量的基线数据：完整的雨林、选择性采伐和演替森林以及林业人工林。培训目标包括发展生物地球化学实地和实验室技术方面的专业知识，扩大研究员在热带雨林生物地球化学和生态系统对气候变化的反应方面的知识，以及提高赠款撰写、指导和外联技能。该项目的成果有助于对碳储量进行评估，为哥斯达黎加和其他热带国家的碳抵消项目提供参考。该研究将为森林的高空间分辨率航空成像光谱提供关键的地面真实测量，从而可以在广泛的地理区域内绘制碳储量图。该项目还为哥斯达黎加和美国的本科生提供研究经验，并向当地社区和学校提供服务。该项目的成果通过在主要研究期刊上发表、在国家会议上介绍以及向哥斯达黎加保护、政府和大学团体传播。

This action funds an NSF Minority Postdoctoral Research Fellowship for FY 2010. The fellowship supports a research and training plan in a host laboratory for the Fellow who also presents a plan to broaden participation in biology. The title of the research and training plan for this fellowship to Rebecca Cole is "Understanding carbon storage in extremely wet tropical forests." The host institution for this research is the University of Colorado at Boulder and the sponsoring scientist is Dr. Alan Townsend. Tropical forests play a critical role in the terrestrial carbon budget. Global efforts to reduce carbon emissions from tropical deforestation and degradation are increasing along with implementation of novel market instruments, such as Payments for Environmental Services (PES), to enhance carbon sequestration. Yet information on the carbon dynamics of intact tropical forests and the degraded forest types that are rapidly replacing them is lacking, particularly in the wettest portions of the tropical biome where rates of biosphere-atmosphere carbon exchange are exceptionally high. This research is generating baseline data on the carbon stocks and fluxes in extremely wet topical forest and forest types currently under PES initiatives: intact rainforest, selectively logged and successional forests, and forestry plantations.The training objectives include developing expertise in field and laboratory-based techniques in biogeochemistry, broadening the Fellow's knowledge of rainforest biogeochemistry and ecosystem responses to climate change, and improving grant writing, mentorship, and outreach skills. The results of this project enable an evaluation of carbon storage that will inform carbon offset programs in Costa Rica and other tropical countries. The research will produce key ground-truthing measures for high spatial resolution airborne imaging spectroscopy of forests allowing for mapping of carbon storage over a broad geographic region. The project also provides research experience for Costa Rica and US undergraduate students and outreach to local communities and schools. The results of this project are being disseminated through publication in major research journals, presentation at national meetings, and to Costa Rican conservation, government, and university groups.