The Melotto Lab at UC Davis earned a 2022 Lab Safety Award for maintaining impeccable safety standards with zero violations in two years. Led by graduate students, the team ensures safety in a lab researching plant defenses against harmful bacteria like E. coli.
The SCOPE project at UC Davis, led by students, is developing new crop varieties for organic farmers, including improved peppers, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, and flowers. Their work focuses on better taste, disease resistance, and yield.
UC Davis ecologist Derek Young is leading the Open Forest Observatory project, combining drone photography, machine learning, and big data to map and manage forests. This $1M NSF-funded initiative aims to enhance forest recovery from wildfire, drought, and disease.
UC Davis researchers showcased new rice varieties offering better weed control with less herbicide at the Rice Field Day. They discussed drought impacts, fallow land benefits, and new herbicide trials to combat resistant weeds.
Matthew E. Gilbert, UC Davis associate professor, received the Program Advising and Mentoring Award for his dedication to graduate student well-being, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, and his commitment to supporting student success.
UC Davis researchers, led by Steve Fennimore, are studying robots that reduce hand-weeding costs and use steam to combat soil pathogens, improving lettuce yields and reducing chemical herbicide use in the process.
Gail Taylor advocates for vertical farming as a solution to urban food security and drought, emphasizing its role in enhancing, not replacing, outdoor agriculture. Her research focuses on making greens like watercress more nutritious for mechanical harvesting.
UC Davis' Louise Ferguson was recognized by the American Society of Horticultural Science for her leadership, including guiding the organization through virtual and hybrid conferences and establishing the ASHS Leadership Academy.
A study found that undergraduate students taking an online climate change course traded slightly lower grades for the flexibility of online scheduling. Women, humanities majors, and seniors were likelier to choose online learning.
UC Davis master's student Isha Poudel has been named a 2023 Future Leaders Forum fellow. She aims to empower women farmers in Nepal and address climate change impacts on vulnerable populations through agricultural technology and gender equity.
