6-Shinhye Han (EEPS)
“Multi-layer Soil Moisture Estimation Using Sentinel-1 and HydroBlocks” #E4initiative (7/7)

5-Alex Bradley (BioSciences)
“Sex-specific root exudates as driver of soil microbial diversity” #E4initiative (6/n)

4-Mampi Sarkar (EEPS)
“Urban Rain, Aerosol and Meteorological Network for Houston Convection Studies” #E4initiative (5/n)

3-Camille Desisto (RSI)
“Soundscapes of Sustainability: Acoustic Monitoring of Biodiversity and Ecological Functioning across Agroecosystems” #E4initiative (4/n)

2-Sahar Bakhshian (EEPS)
“Numerical Simulation of Halite Precipitation During CO2 Injection in Saline Aquifers” #E4initiative (3/n)

1-Sven Kranz (BioSciences)
“Building and testing an ice-tank simulator to probe ecological and ecophysiological responses to transitional stress in Southern Ocean phytoplankton” #E4initiative (2/n)

a group of minions are standing next to each other and saying congratulations ! ALT: a group of minions are standing next to each other and saying congratulations !

The #E4initiative in the School of Natural Sciences is happy to announce the recipients of the inaugural E4 Cooper Family Endowment Seed Grants! Thanks to generous philanthropic support, we funded 6 innovative research projects led by our faculty, postdocs & grad students! (1/n)

Exciting #E4initiative meeting last week! David Abraham and Kristianna Bowles presented on opportunities to feature #RiceUniversity environmental and sustainability scholarship next year, when Houston hosts games for the World Cup! ⚽️🌱

The #E4initiative & @ricesustainability.bsky.social have partnered with the #RiceUniversity Shared Equipment Authority to fund two new vehicles to support field-based scholarship in research and teaching! A 4x4 truck and an AWD van! Let’s go!!!

Last #E4initiative meeting of the semester! Dr. Joe Campana, Director of EcoStudio at #RiceUniversity shared their work on environmental scholarship across campus, & Ted Walker from the Office of Corporate & Foundation Relations spoke about foundation support.

Thanks to Dr. Ana Bento from #CornellUniversity for an engaging talk on the eco-evolutionary signature of disease re-emergence! This seminar was co-hosted by the Dept. of BioSciences & Dept. of Economics at #RiceUniversity; and co-sponsored by @ricesustainability.bsky.social & the #E4Initiative!

We have had two excellent and collaborative #E4initiative meetings in March and April, including presentations from Jim Blackburn with BCarbon & @dominicboyer.bsky.social who co-directs the Center for Coastal Futures here at @riceuniversity.bsky.social!

We had an exciting #E4initiative meeting this week! Dr. @volkerrudolf.bsky.social gave a ⚡️-talk about his research, Dr Carrie Masiello gave an update on the Rice Sustainability Institute, & we discussed plans for two upcoming events- the 2025 Climate Conference & Texas Biodiversity Symposium!

We had a great visit by environmental geographer, NAS member, & MacArthur genius award winner Dr. @ruthdefries from @Columbia University. She gave a great talk, met with students and faculty, and we introduced her to Valhalla. #E4Initiative @RiceUniversity

Finally, the #E4Initiative will also seek to build new strengths across the School of Natural Sciences at #RiceUniversity, across our region, & across the world to address the science of our changing planet. (6/6).

Third, a team dedicated to Our Changing Biosphere will advance our understanding of the central role of #biodiversity & the impacts of habitat destruction, global change, & core ecological & evolutionary processes - guiding interventions & conservation policy. #E4Initiative (5/n)

Second, an Earth System Futures team is concentrating on atmospheric, hydrologic, & geochemical cycles, & seeks to measure & understand past & current changes to make critically important projections about the future. #E4Initiative (4/n)

A team focused on Natural Resources in the Energy Transition is leveraging our strengths in fundamental #geoscience, subsurface applications, & coupled processes at Earth’s surface to address challenges at the intersection b/t resource needs & Earth’s systems. #E4Initiative (3/n)

To magnify #RiceUniversity's impact & build on our strengths in research on the #Earth, #environment, #ecosystems & #energy, the School of Natural Sciences is launching the #E4Initiative, which will scale up multidisciplinary teams to pursue research in three interconnected areas. First ... (2/n)