Sierra Nevada Research Institute

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New Film Profiles Immediate Actions to Restore California's Wildfire-vulnerable Forests

The new film "California's Watershed Healing" documents the huge benefits that result from restoring forests to healthier densities. UC Merced's Sierra Nevada Research Institute partnered with the nonprofit Chronicles Group to tell the story of these efforts, the science behind them, and pathways that dedicated individuals and groups are pioneering to scale up these urgent climate solutions.

Warming Climate Pushes Rain to Higher Elevations, Raising Flooding Risks

A new study co-authored by UC Merced researchers assesses the effect of a warming climate in pushing the elevation of snow to rain higher during a storm, increasing runoff and the risk of flooding.

Grant Funds Research into Wildfire Behavior and Ecological Effects of Fuel Treatments

A grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) will fund a project led by a UC Merced researcher looking into predicting behavior of wildfires.

Jeanette Cobian-Iñiguez is leading a team from UCs Merced and Irvine awarded $1,179,479 to predict the impact of forest fuel treatments on fire behavior, focusing on an improved understanding of the influence of surface-fuel attributes on fire behavior and severity, and ultimately, on forest carbon storage, according to a project summary.

New Major Trains Students to Tell the Planet’s Urgent Stories

Compelling storytelling is vital to ensuring the action needed to secure a habitable planet for future generations, according to an increasing amount of research.

UC Merced is recruiting students now to become the next environmental storytellers.

Students who are interested in creatively conveying the urgency of environmental issues can make that mission the focus of their studies when the new environmental humanities (EH) major begins at UC Merced in fall 2024.

Founding Faculty Member Martha Conklin Bids Farewell to Campus Community

Professor Martha Conklin started her career at UC Merced at the Castle Research Facility, and it began with a frightening surprise.

“I had a baby rattlesnake in my office,” she said. “The whole building was snake-infested before UC Merced moved in. But it's a small thing — there were a lot of things to work out back then.”

Researcher Studies Effects of Dust on Climate Change

Being able to accurately predict how the climate will change in the future is one of the most important quests of our lifetimes. A key to better prediction is the fundamental understanding of how particles in the atmosphere are connected to climate and climate change. One way to do that is to better understand the interactions between desert dust particles and radiation — from the sun and the Earth's surface.

Students to Present Wide Array of Research at Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium

UC Merced students will present research conducted over the summer at the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center (UROC) annual Undergraduate Research Symposium.

The research presentations mark the end of the Summer Undergraduate Research Institute (SURI), a nine-week program conducted and hosted by UROC. This summer, over 160 undergraduate students worked alongside UC Merced faculty and graduate students to conduct research in every discipline offered on campus.

Matlock Retires After Stellar UC Career

In the early days of building UC Merced, founding faculty member Teenie Matlock took on lots of tasks that were well outside her job description. Over the years, she expanded her service to the campus and UC in many ways, from designing and developing courses and majors to co-authoring foundational policies to spearheading new programs to serving in leadership roles.

Ryals’ Teaching, Research and Service Earns Her Presidential Chair in Climate Change

Professor Rebecca Ryals has made campus history by being named UC Merced’s inaugural Presidential Chair in Climate Change. The appointment was recommended by her peers and Dean Betsy Dumont from the School of Natural Sciences in recognition of Ryals’ outstanding research, teaching and service.