Sustainability Leadership Fellowship Cohort: 2011-2012

Ph. D. Student, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology

Research Summary: My PhD research is examining the impacts of climate change on alpine grasslands in Tibet, as well as how these changes could affect the traditional yak and sheep herders who depend on these ecosystems for their livelihoods. Understanding how Tibetan grasslands will respond to warmer temperatures and greater exposure to extreme weather events, such as severe snowstorms, will give insight into how government policies and local land management practices can be adapted to maintain the health of these rangelands while also sustaining their ability to support communities of livestock herders, as they have for millennia.