Climate change and forest health focus of webinar

Climate change and the health of North American forests will be the focus of a Zoom webinar to be presented next week by Sheridan College.

The webinar will start at 7 p.m. Wednesday.

Vikram Chhatre, a research scientist in the University of Wyoming Department of Molecular Biology, will discuss how global warming will affect forests, and various strategies scientists are employing to preserve our forests for the future. Chhatre will also provide a list of reading materials for those interested in learning more about this subject.

With global temperatures projected to rise significantly by 2050, many forest tree species once adapted to their local environments will become maladapted. In addition, rapidly warming climate over the last several decades has led to emergence of novel pests and diseases. Insect and fungal species have devastated many natural forests all over North America.

Chhatre is a forest tree geneticist whose research on population genetics of various forest tree species has been published in many prominent scientific journals. During 2018-19, he served on a National Academy of Sciences study committee that investigated the potential for biotechnology to improve forest health.

He obtained his PhD in genetics in 2013 from Texas A&M University and did postdoctoral research at USDA Forest Service and the University of Vermont before joining the University of Wyoming.

To access the Zoom webinar, go online to www.sheridan.edu/lecture.