Building a Framework for Providing Practitioners Local-Scale, High Quality Data for Tree Planting and Restoration

Forests are a key tool for mitigating climate change.

The Climate & Forest Regeneration project brings together UVA faculty, postdocs, other researchers, and multi-institution partners with expertise in genetics, genomics, physiology, and modeling to characterize the genetic population structure of tree species and investigate how these underlying genetic patterns are currently associated with climate. The project will build a database of genetics and environment in critical tree species that will help to inform ways to better tailor nursery restocking efforts, design planting projects, and create timely inventories of species for disease resistance.

When completed, the Climate & Forest Regeneration project will advance the understanding of local adaptation in forest trees using genomic tools. Through its work with practitioners and partners, the project will help translate this information into products that help decision-making around nursery stocking, reforestation, and species conservation efforts in the eastern United States.