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PLEASE JOIN US at the Coastal State Discussion Series on Thursday February 12, 2015 for an evening of refreshments and discussion on the role of nitrogen in marine ecosystem functioning, impacts from climate change, and what it could mean for microbial structure and food web function in aquatic environments.

Guest speakers Dr. Robinson Fulweiler, Boston University, and Dr. Bethany Jenkins, University of Rhode Island, will discuss their latest research and what it means for Rhode Island’s coastal waters.

Role of Nitrogen in Ecosystem Functioning and Impacts of Climate Change
When: Thursday February 12, 2015
Time:   5-7 p.m.
Where: Center for Biotechnology & Life Sciences – Room 010
University of Rhode Island | Kingston, RI 02881

RSVP: This event is free and open to the public, but seating is limited, so please RSVP to mmhaas@uri.edu. For more information please visit Rhode Island Sea Grant’s website.

About the speakers:
Dr. Robinson “Wally” Fulweiler, an ecosystems ecologist and biogeochemist at Boston University, will discuss her work with energy flow and biogeochemical cycling of nutrients – specifically nitrogen and its impacts on coastal marine ecosystems. Her recent focus has been on how climate change may influence the nitrogen cycle in estuarine and shelf systems, and how anthropogenic impacts alter coastal nutrient cycles.

Dr. Bethany Jenkins, associate professor in the College of Environment and Life Sciences and Graduate School of Oceanography at the University of Rhode Island, will discuss her work in understanding how marine microbes are impacted by nitrogen cycling, and how profiling organisms based on their DNA can identify particular morphology characteristics in relation to nitrogen concentrations.

The Coastal State series is sponsored by Rhode Island Sea Grant with the support of the URI Coastal Institute, College of the Environment and Life Sciences, and the Graduate School of Oceanography.