Biophysical interactions in agricultural systems across environmental gradients

农业生产的创新方法将最大限度地减少当前的一系列挑战：滥用化肥；土壤和水污染；土地利用变化。事实上，人们对这种复杂的环境问题的批判性观点越来越感兴趣。我和我的研究小组通过使用新技术量化农业生态系统动态来研究农业生产的替代系统，以回应这一研究需求。我的研究计划解决了我们在了解植物特性和不同农业生态系统的营养经济方面的重要差距。总的来说，我最重要的研究贡献通过确定有利于替代生产系统的农业生态系统动态，进一步加深了我们对这些系统的理解。NSERC发现资助计划下的新研究将推进在安大略省和国际农业背景下实现重要管理处方的战略。具体地说，我从这项研究计划提案中做出的贡献将：i)绘制以前未报道的多物种系统中的种间相互作用图；ii)开发新的研究工具，以克服描述地下过程的局限性；iii)增进我们对植物介导的农业养分供应的理解；以及iv)说明跨学科的环境研究。这项拟议的综合研究是加拿大独有的，也是非常及时的，因为在食品安全、保护和可持续发展的交叉点上迫切需要严格的科学信息。

Innovative approaches to agriculture production will minimize a host of current challenges: misuse of fertilizers; soil and water contamination; land-use change. Indeed, there is rising interest in critical perspectives for such complex environmental problems. My research group and I respond to this need for research by examining alternative systems of agricultural production using novel techniques to quantify agroecosystem dynamics. My research program addresses important gaps in our understanding of plant traits and the nutrient economy of diverse agroecological systems. Broadly, my most significant research contributions have furthered our understanding of alternative systems of production by identifying agroecosystem dynamics that are beneficial to such systems. New research under this NSERC Discovery Grant Program will advance strategies to achieve important management prescriptions in both an Ontario and international agricultural context. Specifically, my contributions from this research program proposal will i) chart previously unreported interspecific interactions in multi-species systems, ii) develop new research tools to overcome limitations in describing belowground processes, iii) advance our understanding of plant-mediated nutrient supply in agriculture, and iv) illustrate interdisciplinary environmental research. This proposed integrated research is unique to Canada and extremely opportune, as rigorous scientific information is urgently needed at the intersection of food security, conservation, and sustainable development.