About AGC

Mission Statement

• Explore and understand Arctic geobotanical relationships and dynamics at local to global scales;
• Investigate Arctic land-use and conservation issues through interdisciplinary collaboration;
• Educate and train students in Arctic vegetation field skills and analysis;
• Disseminate information about our research to educators, students, scientists and the general public.

The Alaska Geobotany Center (AGC) is dedicated to understanding northern ecosystems through the use of geographic information systems, remote sensing, field experiments, and cooperative team research projects. We share a commitment to excellence in field research and teaching with the goal of inspiring an appreciation of northern ecosystems and making our research and teaching relevant to societal issues and concerns, particularly issues relevant to the state of Alaska.

Ecological studies use a hierarchical approach to examine landscape pattern and change at several scales. Primary areas of interest include vegetation classification, analysis of vegetation and landscape patterns as they relate to environmental variables, geobotanical mapping, snow ecology, appropriate land-use planning, and analysis of disturbance and recovery in northern regions.

AGC's educational role includes assisting and guiding undergraduates with independent research projects, offering summer research opportunities, teaching courses in the Department of Biology and Wildlife, and mentoring graduate students. The cornerstone of our teaching philosophy is practical training within a solid theoretical framework.

AGC also strives to serve the broader community by directing our research and teaching to increase public awareness of the importance of northern ecosystems as they relate to local, regional, and global societal issues, including the human dimensions of land-use and climate.

Personnel

• Donald A. (Skip) Walker, PhD, Director
• Martha Raynolds, PhD, Post-Doctoral Researcher
• Jana Peirce, Project Coordinator and Communications Specialist
• Kadey Ambrose, Administrative Assistant
• Olivia Hobgood, Earth System Sciences M.S. Student
• Briana McNeal, Earth System Sciences M.S. Student