Increasing the spatial and temporal impact of ecological research: A roadmap for integrating a novel terrestrial process into an Earth system model.
Emily Kyker-Snowman, Danica L Lombardozzi, Gordon B Bonan, Susan J Cheng, Jeffrey S Dukes, Serita D Frey, Elin M Jacobs, Risa McNellis, Joshua M Rady, Nicholas G Smith, R Quinn Thomas, William R Wieder, A Stuart Grandy
Author Information
Emily Kyker-Snowman: Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA. ORCID
Danica L Lombardozzi: Climate and Global Dynamics Laboratory, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colorado, USA. ORCID
Gordon B Bonan: Climate and Global Dynamics Laboratory, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colorado, USA. ORCID
Susan J Cheng: Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Center for Research on Learning and Teaching, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA. ORCID
Jeffrey S Dukes: Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA. ORCID
Serita D Frey: Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA. ORCID
Elin M Jacobs: Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA. ORCID
Risa McNellis: Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas, USA. ORCID
Joshua M Rady: Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA. ORCID
Nicholas G Smith: Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas, USA. ORCID
R Quinn Thomas: Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA. ORCID
William R Wieder: Climate and Global Dynamics Laboratory, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colorado, USA. ORCID
A Stuart Grandy: Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA. ORCID
Terrestrial ecosystems regulate Earth's climate through water, energy, and biogeochemical transformations. Despite a key role in regulating the Earth system, terrestrial ecology has historically been underrepresented in the Earth system models (ESMs) that are used to understand and project global environmental change. Ecology and Earth system modeling must be integrated for scientists to fully comprehend the role of ecological systems in driving and responding to global change. Ecological insights can improve ESM realism and reduce process uncertainty, while ESMs offer ecologists an opportunity to broadly test ecological theory and increase the impact of their work by scaling concepts through time and space. Despite this mutualism, meaningfully integrating the two remains a persistent challenge, in part because of logistical obstacles in translating processes into mathematical formulas and identifying ways to integrate new theories and code into large, complex model structures. To help overcome this interdisciplinary challenge, we present a framework consisting of a series of interconnected stages for integrating a new ecological process or insight into an ESM. First, we highlight the multiple ways that ecological observations and modeling iteratively strengthen one another, dispelling the illusion that the ecologist's role ends with initial provision of data. Second, we show that many valuable insights, products, and theoretical developments are produced through sustained interdisciplinary collaborations between empiricists and modelers, regardless of eventual inclusion of a process in an ESM. Finally, we provide concrete actions and resources to facilitate learning and collaboration at every stage of data-model integration. This framework will create synergies that will transform our understanding of ecology within the Earth system, ultimately improving our understanding of global environmental change, and broadening the impact of ecological research.
