Global environmental changes, such as nitrogen deposition, elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide and shifting precipitation, are altering the availability of basic resources plants need for growth.  These changes, along with other factors such as invasive species and disturbance, may be shifting the species composition of ecosystems. It isn’t yet clear why some species increase in abundance, and others decrease, in response to environmental changes. The lab focus is at this dynamic intersection of plant community ecology and ecosystem ecology.  Our research seeks to ask fundamental questions about community structure and ecosystem function, while contributing to a greater understanding of pressing environmental problems.