CBS

While laws to limit pollution have been around for decades, heavy metal pollutants like lead remain a problem in many areas. Lead and other metals in the soil or air can move through urban ecosystems, impacting the health of humans, plants and animals.

In Minnesota, CBS researchers like Finlay lead efforts to keep drugs such as oxycodone, heavy metals, insect repellent and the like from contaminating the waters we cherish—and waters around the world.

Minnesota’s beloved waters, fish, forests, and other natural treasures are under attack from invaders like carp, spiny water fleas, zebra mussels, the emerald ash borer, and buckthorn. 

Results from a decades-long field study in Minnesota reveal the dangerous impact of rising carbon dioxide and nitrogen pollution on grassland biodiversity.

Common tansy, whose scientific name is Tanacetum vulgare, is an invasive plant found in Northeastern Minnesota spreading rapidly throughout the state.

Maria Park spends her days studying tree communities. The PhD student in Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, College of Biological Sciences (CBS), is a keen observer of nature who turns those observations into insights about how trees influence one another.

New research led by Camilla Sharkey, a postdoctoral associate at the Wardill Lab in the College of Biological Sciences, investigated the complex evolutionary history of jewel beetles’ vision

Marlene Zuk, a professor in the University of Minnesota College of Biological Sciences, was recently recognized by the BBVA Foundation for outstanding contributions to the field of behavioral and evolutionary ecology.

Chino Nwakama (’23, Neuroscience, College of Biological Sciences) is creating opportunities for historically marginalized and low-income students to connect with science.

The Sustainable Development Goal 15 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is devoted to “protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.” Co-hosted by MnDRIVE Environment, this session of the SDG Webinar Series will feature three very different perspectives on biodiversity and its importance for ecosystem health.