Ecology

Ecology Department photo

Overview

Scientists in the Ecology Department lead development of new technologies to dissect the microbial diversity of complex ecosystems. Their internationally recognized expertise include scale-aware ecology systems, advanced imaging, physiological diversity of microbes, and plant-microbe interactions.

Core Capabilities

Our six core capabilities are:

Advanced Infrared Microscopy and Manipulation
Interactions and Feedbacks between Different Trophic Levels of an Ecosystem
Environmental Microbial Physiology and Biochemistry
Environmental Microbial Genomics and Bioinformatics
Predictive Multiscale Models and Model Data Integration
Soil Biogeochemical Cycling

Advanced Infrared Microscopy and Manipulation

Schematic genome-centric quantitative microbiome analysis — Environmental Microbial Genomics and Bioinformatics

Romy Chakraborty in her research lab — Environmental Microbial Physiology and Biochemistry

Interactions and Feedbacks between Different Trophic Levels of an Ecosystem

Predictive Multiscale Models and Model Data Integration

Lisa Alvarez-Cohen

Mechanical Faculty Scientific Engineer

Phone: 510-643-5969
lalvarez-cohen@lbl.gov

Abelardo Arellano

Research Associate

Phone: 510-486-7709
aarellano@lbl.gov

Nameera Baig

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Phone: 510-486-2795
nbaig@lbl.gov

Nicholas J. Bouskill

Research Scientist

Phone: 510-486-7490
Fax: 510-486-5686
njbouskill@lbl.gov

Eoin Brodie

Terrestrial Microbiologist, Senior Scientist

Deputy Director, Climate & Ecosystem Sciences Division

Lead, Environmental & Biological Systems Sciences Program Domain

Phone: 510-486-6584
Fax: 510-486-7152
elbrodie@lbl.gov

Shannon Mieko Brown

Student Assistant

Phone: 714-815-5659
shannonbrown@lbl.gov

Javier Arturo Ceja Navarro

Research Scientist

Phone: 510-486-7709
jcnavarro@lbl.gov

Romy Chakraborty

Ecology Department Head

Staff Scientist

Phone: 510-486-4091
Fax: 510-486-7152
rchakraborty@lbl.gov

Liang Chen

Project Scientist

Phone: 510-495-2658
lchen2@lbl.gov

Yiwei Cheng

Research Scientist

Phone: 510-486-6762
yiweicheng@lbl.gov

Hee Jung Cho

Graduate Student Assistant

Phone: 510-486-6584
heejungcho@lbl.gov

Ricardo Jorge Eloy Alves

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Phone: 510-486-6180
rjealves@lbl.gov

Yuan Sheng Fang

Graduate Student Research Assistant

Phone: 510-486-5943
michaelfang@lbl.gov

Mary Firestone

Faculty Scientist

Phone: 510-642-3677
mfirestone@lbl.gov

Zhao Hao

Senior Scientific Engineering Associate

Phone: 510-486-7335
zhao@lbl.gov

Hoi-Ying N. Holman

Senior Staff Scientist

Head, Chemical Ecology

Director, Berkeley Synchrotron Infrared Structural Biology (BSISB) Imaging Program

Phone: 510-486-5943
Fax: 510-486-7152
hyholman@lbl.gov

Ulas Karaoz

Research Scientist

Phone: 510-486-4118
ukaraoz@lbl.gov

Arthur Okhtay Montazeri

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Phone: 510-495-2658
amontazeri@lbl.gov

Whendee L. Silver

Faculty Scientist

Phone: 510-486-6223
wlsilver@lbl.gov

Patrick Oliver Sorensen

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Phone: 510-486-4390
posorensen@lbl.gov

Neslihan Tas

Research Scientist

Phone: 510-486-5538
Fax: 510-486-7152
ntas@lbl.gov

Patricia M. Valdespino Castillo

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Phone: 510-486-5943
pmvaldespino@lbl.gov

Shi Wang

Principal Research Associate

Phone: 510-495-2657
shiwang@lbl.gov

Evan R. Williams

Chemist Faculty Scientific Engineer

Phone: 510-643-7161

Xiaoqin Wu

Project Scientist

Phone: 510-486-7515
Fax: 510-486-5686
xiaoqinwu@lbl.gov

Jizhong Zhou

Visiting Faculty

Phone: 510-486-6223
jzzhou@lbl.gov

News & Events

Berkeley Lab Isotope Geochemists Study Isotopic Fractionation by Plants

August 3, 2018

Isotope geochemists at Berkeley Lab are the first to establish the degree of Potassium (K) isotopic fractionation by plants. Isotopes are atoms of the same element that have a different number of neutrons. Scientists have just in the past decade begun studying for key nutrient elements (other than C,…

Three Amazing EESA Women Take Home Women @ The Lab Awards

July 12, 2018

Romy Chakraborty, Ecology Department Head Sixteen women at various stages of their careers were honored for making extraordinary contributions to STEM and Operations here at Berkeley Lab at the third Women @ The Lab event on Monday, July 9. Hundreds of friends and colleagues cheered as each woman approached the stage in the B50…

CESD research scientist Kolby Jardine Selected as Early Career Research Program Recipient

June 21, 2018

Climate and Ecosystem Sciences Division scientist Kolby Jardine is one of six researchers selected by the Department of Energy to receive significant funding for research through its Early Career Research Program this year. The program, now in its ninth year, is designed to bolster the nation’s scientific workforce by providing support to exceptional researchers during the…

EESA Women Honored as Women @ The Lab Awardees

June 1, 2018

Three oustanding EESA women were chosen for the 2018 Women @ The Lab awards – Lisa Kelly (EESA Operations Manager); Shi Wang (Principal Research Associate); and Romy Chakraborty (Ecology Department Head). They join an esteemed cohort of 16 women awardees across Berkeley Lab who have made and continue to make significant…

Living Large: Exploration of Diverse Bacteria Signals Big Advance for Gene Function Prediction

This article was authored by Massie S. Ballon for the Joint Genome Institute. Ecology Department Head Romy Chakraborty participated in this research on behalf of EESA. In the air, beneath the ocean’s surface, and on land, microbes are the minute but mighty forces regulating much of the planet’s biogeochemical cycles. To better understand their…

EESA Early Career Researchers Learn What It’s Like Across Berkeley Lab

When not at work researching Arctic permafrost microbes or mountainous watersheds, research scientists Neslihan Taş (above left) and Erica Woodburn (above right) are out and about learning what it’s like across Berkeley Lab with fellow recipients of Early Career research awards from the Department of Energy, Berkeley Lab, and UC Berkeley. In December, Berkeley Lab…