About Rich

Richard Conant is an ecosystem ecologist at the Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, professor in the Ecosystem Science and Sustainability Department, and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in the Warner College of Natural Resources. He is also an adjunct Professor at Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia and a Sr Research Scientist at the International Livestock Research Institute. Dr. Conant is a participant in national and international efforts to quantify human impacts on carbon cycling. He earned his Ph.D. at Arizona State University in 1997.

Website CV

Interests

  • Dr. Conant's research focuses on understanding the feedbacks between human activities and ecosystem biogeochemistry. Specifically, Dr. Conant is interested in how land use and land management practices impact carbon and nitrogen cycling in agricultural and grassland ecosystems. He has worked closely with scientists from diverse disciplines to understand the characteristics of scientific information that best informs decision making, and has worked to integrate those conclusions into his own research.

Education

PhD, Botany - Arizona State University
Tempe, AZ, 1997

BA, Environmental Biology - University of Colorado
Boulder, CO, 1990

Awards, Honors, Grants

  • Queensland Smart Futures Fellow, 2010
  • Warner College Distinguished Scientific Research Award , 2008
  • Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of the IPCC , 2007
  • NREL Best Advisor, 2006

Memberships

  • Soil Science Society of America
  • Ecological Society of America
  • American Geophysical Union