Changing Tundra Landscapes

Cathy Campbell became interested in science when she was a very little girl. Her grandfather had a city-lot sized garden, and every spring Cathy helped him plow and plant, water and weed, and watched as the plants bloomed, bore fruit, and were harvested. Worms, insects, birds, snakes, and all manner of critters fascinated her and led her to become a biologist. As the daughter of an English teacher, it was natural that she would also become a teacher. Ms. Campbell was a NASA Spaceward Bound teacher, leading to her research experiences in the Atacama Desert in Chile in 2006 and to the Mojave Desert in 2007. Many of the activities and experiences from her fieldwork have been translated into her classroom at Scarlett Middle School in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where Ms. Campbell has been teaching math and science for 12 years.

Donie Bret-Harte is a Research Assistant Professor at the Institute of Arctic Biology at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Dr. Bret-Harte is a plant community and ecosystem ecologist who examines how global climate change affects arctic vegetation composition and nutrient cycling.

Laura Gough is an associate professor of biology at the University of Texas at Arlington. Her research focuses on the forces that structure plant communities, how species diversity affects ecosystems, and the effects particular traits may have on species responses to disturbances. Dr. Gough has been studying arctic tundra in northern Alaska since 1996. In addition to arctic tundra, she has been active in research on several different ecosystem types, including salt marshes, coastal marshes, prairie, and savannah.

John Moore is a research scientist in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Northern Colorado. Dr. Moore’s professional and research activities cover several areas, including soil and theoretical ecology and food web dynamics. He is also the Director of the UNC Mathematics and Science Teaching (MAST) Institute. As Director, he leads several programs that involve pre-service teacher education, in-service professional development, and graduate studies for teachers.