Associate Professor Frances C. Moore was recognized by the Academic Senate and Federation for her public service work.  She has consulted with various government agencies and groups including the Environmental Protection Agency.  From September 2022 and September 2023 she served as a Senior Economist for the Council of Economic Advisors for the White House. 

https://www.ucdavis.edu/news/senate-and-federation-honor-15-top-academics

Traffic congestion in California has been a long standing issue within the state.  A common suggestion to help ease traffic is widening the roads on the freeways by adding more lanes.  Susan L Handy, Department Vice Chair and Professor, discusses why this is not an optimal solution and offers other viable solutions from her, Shifting Gears: Toward a New Way of Thinking about Transportation (The MIT Press, 2023).

The Chancellor’s Fellows Program honors outstanding faculty members early in their careers. Honorees each receive a one-time award of $25,000 to be used for research, teaching or service activities. Frances Moore is part of UC Davis’ newest class of Chancellor’s Fellows for her work in environmental economics and climate science.

In an article featured on the UC Davis website, Susan P Harrison discusses the importance of the UC Davis McLaughlin Natural Reserve research site.  The news feature describes a 15-year study Harrison worked on which described the decline plant diversity due to climate change.  This study is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States.  

In a recent episode of the Resources Radio podcast, Dr. Frances C. Moore, an associate professor with the Department of Environmental Science & Policy at UC Davis, discusses her work at the White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) and her role as senior economist.     

https://caes.ucdavis.edu/news/professor-reflects-role-council-economic-…;

A recent study, led by lead author Dr. Bernardo Bastien-Olvera, a former UC Davis doctoral student and current postdoctoral fellow at Scripps, along with scientists from the University of California, Davis, and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, reveals that climate change is expected to cause a 9% loss of ecosystem services by 2100, with significant economic consequences. This research, which emphasizes the importance of accounting for nature's value in climate policies, was conducted with the leadership of Dr. Frances C.

Gwen Arnold has won the prestigious national award, the NACADA Award for Excellence in Advising.  NACADA is an association of professional advisors, counselors, faculty, administrators, and students working to enhance the educational development of students.  

https://nacada.ksu.edu/Programs/Awards/Global-Awards/Outstanding-Advising.aspx

The Fifth National Climate Assessment is a comprehensive report that assesses the impacts of climate change on the United States. Released periodically, it provides a detailed overview of the current state of the climate, as well as projections for the future. The report addresses various sectors, including agriculture, health, ecosystems, and infrastructure, highlighting the risks and vulnerabilities associated with a changing climate.

A recent study by the British Antarctic Survey reveals that significant ice melt in West Antarctica is inevitable by the end of the century, even with efforts to reduce carbon emissions. This poses a serious threat to coastal regions like San Francisco Bay, with potential global sea-level rise exceeding 16 feet if the West Antarctic ice sheet were to melt completely.

Dr. Alan Hastings' recently had a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) with authors Gabriel Gellner and Kevin McCann.  This study examines the relationship between diverse food webs and the stability of whole ecosystems.  

https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2212061120 

At the 2023 Animal Behavior Society meeting in Portland, Oregon Andy Sih was given the Distinguished Animal Behaviorist Award, which recognizes an outstanding career in animal behavior!  Andy was recognized for his seminal work on behavioral syndromes, phenotypic plasticity, response to human-induced rapid environmental change (HIREC), and for his work in integrating behavior into community ecology. Andy has also been extremely active in service to the ABGG and to the field of animal behavior.

Distinguished Professor Daniel Sperling and Associate Adjunct Professor Gil Tal examine why Australia has trailed other developed nations in its development of low carbon and electric vehicles.  The article explores the successes of California and suggests ways that Australia can follow in the same path. 

California's progress on the 2035 ZEV (zero emissions vehicles) initiative, which will require all new vehicles sold by 2035 to be electric, has been examined in an Autoweek article earlier this year.  Associate Adjunct Professor Gil Tal, who is the Director of the Electric Vehicle Research Center at the Institute of Transportation Studies, weighs in on the progress and discusses how progress can be accelerated. 

The SF Gate article discusses the differences and similarities between the wildfires impacting the East Coast versus 2020 wildfires on the West Coast.  Hugh Safford discusses the impact of the wildfire smoke stating that "Wildfire smoke is even more unhealthy than vehicle emissions and it kills, directly and indirectly, thousands to millions of people every year."

Three students in the Environmental Science and Management program have been awarded and recognized for their academic achievements in research.  Aaron Guerra has been selected as the only UC Davis student to be part of the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdeinst (DAAD) Rise Germany Program.   Aaron's research is dedicated to inform water policy and aspires to become a professor.  Caden Williams has been awarded the Barry M.