Urban areas are expanding globally, and this has implications on the structure, composition, and functioning of forested ecosystems. Relative to non-urban forests, urban areas are characterized by elevated temperatures, carbon dioxide concentrations, species invasions, and other changes that are expected to increase globally, making them well-suited to studying the effects of global change on forest function.

I have worked in collaboration with land managers in New York City to investigate the effects of plant invasions on soil carbon and nitrogen cycling within urban natural areas (Ward et al. 2020). I have also studied the effectiveness of different urban forest restoration practices on the recovery of soil nutrient dynamics in experimental plots within a highly degraded urban park (Ward et al. 2021).  

Public outreach and community engagement are also integral components of urban forest ecology, and I worked alongside with local teenagers in New Haven through my role as manager of Urban Resource Initiative's tree planting program for high school students. 

Relevant publications

Ward EB*, DA Doroski*, AJ Felson, RA Hallet, EE Oldfield, SE Kuebbing, and MA Bradford. 2021. Positive long‐term impacts of restoration on soils in an experimental urban forest. Ecological Applications 31: e02336.  
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Ward EB, CC Pregitzer, SE Kuebbing, and MA Bradford. 2020. Invasive lianas are drivers of and passengers to altered soil nutrient availability in urban forests. Biological Invasions 22:935-955.
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