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Sustainable Bioenergy Cropping Systems

New model helps ID source of potent greenhouse gas

Elise Rivett was researching nitrous oxide (N20) when she discovered a problem with the model long used to trace the source of this potent greenhouse gas. 

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| Ashley Carlin

Bioenergy crops are an alternative energy source that, unlike fossil fuels, could positively impact the environment by reducing greenhouse gases, soil erosion, and carbon dioxide levels. They can be produced even more sustainably if they are grown on poor quality land unsuitable for food.

| Ben Cook
Congratulations to Federica Brandizzi and Robert Last who were awarded the title of University Distinguished Professor in recognition of their exceptional teaching abilities, prominent record of public service, and scholarly, creative and artistic achievements.
| Matt Davenport

Michigan State University Foundation Professor Bruno Basso has long been a believer in the power of digital agriculture.

| Mark E. Griffin
To Cheyenne Lei, a Ph.D. student in the landscape ecology and ecosystem science lab at Michigan State University (MSU), geography can mean dabbling in remote sensing, satellite imagery, hydrology, or even volcanic eruptions. Lei uses this broad curiosity at the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC) to study how land in the Midwest accommodates the sun’s rays, a phenomenon called “albedo.”
| Timothy Donohue and Erik Iverson

On June 8, the Senate passed the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act, a sweeping bill that would make significant investments in critical technology areas and increase the number of Americans who can participate in the benefits of scientific innovation. Attention now turns to the House, which will consider its own version of the bill.

| Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
This study examines the role of lipids in the relationship between leaf-cutter ants and the fungi they cultivate. Both the ants and the fungi benefit, and the organisms co-evolved to create this symbiotic relationship. This type of fungal metabolic regulation could be harnessed to develop microbial systems for sustainable bioproduct production.
| Allison Bender
Kevin Myers has been virtually visiting with students all over the country through the Skype a Scientist program, which gives classes and other groups the opportunity to talk with scientists. We sat down with him to hear his reflections on the experience.

In an exciting collaboration between Bruno Basso, Michigan State University Foundation Professor, and Kristofer Covey, assistant professor of Environmental Studies and Sciences at Skidmore College in New York, farmers in the United States will have an opportunity to

| Bruno Basso
In the coming years, agriculture will be called on to feed a growing population, while reducing its greenhouse gas emissions and making better use of increasingly scarce resources. To do this, the current agricultural system must adapt. Bruno Basso discusses his work in this context.
| Mary Riker
Our graduate students and postdoctoral researchers play an enormous role in the transition to a sustainable, resilient, and affordable energy future that is centered on social and economic equality. This week we spoke with Shannon Goes, a graduate student assistant in Shannon Stahl’s lab at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

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