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April 27, 2017

Study: Wildfire in a Warming Climate Could Relegate Some Forests to Shrubland

A fire burning on a hill surrounded by dense vegetation.

The ability of some Western conifer forests to recover after severe fire may become increasingly limited as the climate continues to warm, according to a new study published today in Global Change Biology, by HF Senior Ecologist Jonathan Thompson and fellow scientists from the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) and UVA.

Although most of the evergreen trees in the study region

April 25, 2017

New Study Links Hemlock Decline to Shifts in Water Resources

Underneath the canopy of hemlock trees.

Each year in New England, tree-killing insect pests cause sweeping changes in forests. Some changes are highly visible – like swaths of dead trees. A new Harvard Forest study points to a less visible but still critical impact: changes to freshwater streams, including streams that source public water supplies.

According to the study, recently

April 18, 2017

2017-2018 Bullard Fellows Announced

People walking down a path surrounded by trees in the fall.

We are pleased to announce the Harvard Forest Charles Bullard Fellows for 2017-2018. The mission of the Charles Bullard Fellowship Program is to support advanced research and study by individuals who show promise of making an important contribution--either

April 13, 2017

Museum Event to Launch New Book: Witness Tree

The witness tree by Lynda V. Mapes

Near the edge of the Harvard Forest stands a stately red oak tree that, if you listen closely, tells a rich, 100-year story of human and environmental change. Veteran Seattle Times reporter Lynda Mapes studied the tree and its environs intently for a year during a recent Bullard Fellowship. The result is her new book,

April 10, 2017

Field Trip Scholarships for Middle & High School Classrooms

Guided field trip

Scholarships are now available for educators wishing to bring middle and high school classes for a guided field trip to explore the forest and Fisher Museum, and to collect data as part of an authentic ecological field study. 

Field trips are available in two locations: the Harvard Forest in central Massachusetts or Highstead in southern Connecticut.

A limited number

March 10, 2017

Open Studio to Feature Sci-Art Collaboration

Direct Action plug by artist David Buckley Borden.

On Saturday, April 29, artist and designer David Buckley Borden, a 2016-2017 Bullard Fellow and Harvard GSD alumnus, will host an open studio at the Harvard Forest for students and the public to explore his ongoing work.

The open studio will run from 12:00-4:00pm. 

Borden’s year-long collaboration with Harvard Forest scientists will ultimately culminate in a multi-disciplinary, immersive exhibition in fall

March 23, 2017

Learning from an Island: Harvard Students Explore Vineyard Ecosystems

Harvard Forest students in the Aquinnah dune.

A lucky group of Harvard students spent 5 days on Martha's Vineyard during Spring Break with HF Director David Foster, exploring the Island's history, culture, and ecosystems. Foster has been studying the Island for decades, and recently published a book and series of maps about the Island, around which the program was based.

The focus of the trip was to

March 23, 2017

Keystone Project Honored for Outstanding Environmental Education

The Massachusetts Keystone Project gathering at Harvard Forest.

The Massachusetts Keystone Project, led by UMass Extension since 1988 and involving a 3-day training workshop at Harvard Forest every April, has been awarded a prestigious Environmental Service Award by the Mass. Association of Conservation Commissions. The award, given for Outstanding Environmental Education, is well-deserved; since 1988, Keystone Project leaders David Kittredge and

February 15, 2017

2017 Harvard Forest Ecology Symposium

A observation tower at Harvard Forest.

The 28th annual Harvard Forest Ecology Symposium will be held Tuesday, March 21 from 9:00 am to 5:30 pm in the newly reopened Harvard Forest Fisher Museum. We are at full capacity, and registration is closed. However, you can join us online from anywhere; the event will be

February 10, 2017

New Study: Nitrogen Pollution Hinders Forest Decomposers

Process of taking soil sampling.

Atmospheric pollution may be altering forest ecosystems in ways that are difficult to reverse, according to a study of experimental Harvard Forest soils recently published in the journal Ecology, led by a team of HF collaborators from the University of New Hampshire, University of Wyoming, and University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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