Conversation with Dr. Morgan Varner - Prescribed Fire

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Morgan Varner, the Director of Research and a Senior Scientist at Tall Timbers Research Station. He leads research on post-fire tree mortality, fire-adapted traits, and the science and policy surrounding prescribed fire. In this conversation, we dive into prescribed fire, smoke, public health, and a little bit of policy shaping the ability to use prescribed fire on the landscape.

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Steven Brantley, an ecohydrological researcher studying interactions between land and water—with a focus on the longleaf pine ecosystems of the Southeastern US. We dive into the science of regional watersheds and forests, alongside the forest management choices shaping the Southeast today.

OverviewThis episode features an interview with Courtney Peterson, a climate adaptation specialist with NIACS, a research associate in the Forest and Rangeland Stewardship Department at Colorado State University, and the ASCC Network Program Manager. Courtney begins by sharing her experience in the field of natural resource, leading up to her current roles. She then goes on to define adaptive management and provides resources and frameworks—including the RRT and no-action framework used by the ASCC Network—for those wanting to get started with climate adaptive management. Afterwards, Courtney asserts her belief that scientists need to find ways to better tell the story of climate change, and she provides possible pathways for that improvement. Then, Courtney describes how some perceptions about climate adaptive management have shifted over time, especially regarding resistance and transition treatments. Finally, Courtney ends by sharing what keeps her inspired to continue her work and encourages interested listeners to consider getting started on their own climate adaption journey. Check out these resources for information about topics discussed in this episode:Resources ASCC about page. ASCC experimental design page. NIACS home page.https://forestadaptation.org/demos The Adaptation Workbook publication (Swanston et al., 2016).ASCCing the Experts episode 1.Miller et al. (2025) - Toward a Shared Vision for Climate Informed ResourceStewardship.Millar et al. (2007) - Climate Change and Forests of the Future: Managing in theFace of Uncertainty DOI Climate Adaptation Science Centers home page.USDA Climate Hubs home page. The RAD framework about page. Yale Climate Opinion Maps 2024. The Great Lakes Silvicultural Library.  Music Attribution The intro and outro music used in this podcast is from the song Harmony by artist Ketsa. The track used is licensed under Creative Commons License BY 4.0.

OverviewThis episode features an interview with Dr. Martha Sample, a Climate Adaptation Specialist with the University of Minnesota Department of Forest Resources and the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science (AKA NIACS). Martha starts by sharing her personal and professional journey in the field of natural resources, culminating with her current project related to northern lowland hardwood forests in the Upper Midwest. She describes these systems and the distinct ways in which climate change and emerald ash-borer are affecting them. Afterwards, Martha expands on the integral the role of managers, practitioners, and stewards in determining adaptation pathways for these forests, and provides some examples of actions already being implemented regionally. In closing, she shares how the idea of positive uncertainty brings her hope, and invites listeners interested or working in northern lowland hardwood forests to reach out via her email included in the show notes. Check out these definitions and resources for information about topics discussed in this episode:DefinitionsAccording to an author from the University of Pittsburgh, The Great Cut over in the Upper Midwest was a period of intense for-profit logging that led to widespread landscapedegradation in the region, producing cutover lands. According to the University of Minnesota Extension, Dutch elm disease is an invasive pathogen that is spread by elm beetles and causes wilting and death in elm species. ResourcesMartha Sample’s email address: [email protected] The ASCC Network about page. The NIACS about page.The USDA APHIS EABmap .A USGS data release showing changes in inundation on the Upper Mississippi River.The Great Lakes Silviculture Library.EPA information page about the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Music Attribution The intro and outro music used in this podcast is fromthe song Harmony by artist Ketsa. The track used is licensed under Creative Commons License BY 4.0.

OverviewThis episode features an interview with Dr. Adrienne Keller, a terrestrial ecosystem ecologist and soil carbon scientist associated with Michigan Tech University and the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science (NIACS).  In this interview, Adrienne describes her work and interest in above and below ground forest carbon. She starts off by describing the miraculous world of mycorrhizal fungi leading into a discussion about forest soil carbon and carbon cycling. Adrienne also explains how she effectively communicates about forest carbon with managers, and shares insight about the value of place-based knowledge had by on-the-ground practitioners. She ends by mentioning some resources that listeners can use to boost their carbon confidence and competence, which are included in the show notes. Be sure to take a look at those, and the other resources below, and check back in in two weeks for the next episode! Check out these definitions and resources for information about topics discussed in this episode:DefinitionsThe UN Food and Agriculture Organization defines carbon pools as “reservoir[s] of carbon” and systems that have“ the capacity to accumulate or release carbon,” carbon sinks as “Any process or mechanism which removes a greenhouse gas, an aerosol or a precursor of a greenhouse gas from the atmosphere,” and carbon fluxes as the “transfer of carbon from one carbon pool to another in units of measurement of mass per unit area and time (e.g., t C ha -1 yr-1).”Carbon uptake (sequestration) is a “process by which plants take up atmospheric carbon dioxide and convert it to biomass (plant biomass is approximately 50% carbon).” It is a flux and is “commonly expressed as units of carbon sequestered from atmosphere into forest per year” (Keller, 2025, Forest Carbon 101 Presentation). Carbon emissions are “carbon that moves from the forest into the atmosphere, contributing to the greenhouse gas effect.” They are a flux and  “part of the natural carbon cycle; humans have disrupted the carbon cycle primarily by moving fossil fuels into the active carbon cycle” (Keller, 2025, Forest Carbon 101 Presentation).Carbon storage is “carbon that is retained in a pool at a given time.” It is a stock and is “commonly expressed as units of carbon stored in a forest pool” (Keller, 2025, Forest Carbon 101 Presentation).According to the USDA Forest Service, carbon Stewardship “consists of actions informed by carbon science that foster carbon uptake or storage in plants and soils or increase long-term carbon stability through land-use and vegetation management strategies.” Carbon stewardship has four main principles: timescale, stability, climate adaptation, and holistic management. The US Natural Resource Conservation Service describes mycorrhizal fungi as fungi that form a relationship with plants that supports plant and fungi growth.According to Alexander et al. (2021), mesophication refers to the hypothesized process that that mesophytes—which are opportunistic plants that prefer wetter, shadier conditions—encourage wetter conditions through shade creation and water retention to proliferate their own growth, often resulting in altered species composition and fire exclusion in the areas they establish successfully. ResourcesDr. Adrienne Keller’s website Adriennebkeller.com,Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science (NIACS) home page.The Newell and Ann Meyer Nature Preserve (site protected by the Nature Conservancy) information page.Engaged Science Strategies, Opportunities and Benefits⁠ by Dr. Adrienne KellerPrimers co-authored by Dr. Adrienne Keller: Non-Native Invasive Earthworms in the Midwest and Eastern United StatesEffects,of Fire on Ecosystem Carbon in the Midwest and Eastern United StatesSoil Organic Carbon in Temperate Managed EcosystemMusic AttributionThe intro and outro music used in this podcast is from the song Harmony by artist Ketsa. The track used is licensed under Creative Commons License BY 4.0.

OverviewThis episode features an interview with Dr. Jake Courkamp, who is a rangeland and weed ecology research scientist at Colorado State University. Jake shares about his experience as a researcher in the field of range science, and how his work supports practitioners in facing ecosystem challenges like weed removal. He justifies the need for active management of weeds in rangelands, and explains the importance of having good, “specific” management objectives. He then details the pitfalls and paths for the potential improvement of rangeland management tools, like ecological site descriptions. In parting, Jake shares how some of the ecosystems he’s visitedand worked in bring him hope and invites listeners to consider exploring range science professionally.  Check out the definitions and resources included below for more information about episode topics; and be sure to look for new episodes every other Monday! Check out these definitions and resourcesfor information about topics discussed in this episode:DefinitionsAccording to the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) an Ecological Site Description (ESD) is a report “that provide detailed information about a particular kind of land - a distinctive Ecological Site.” In doing so, ESDs “provideland managers [with] the information needed for evaluating the land as to suitability for various land-uses, capability to respond to different management activities or disturbance processes,  and ability to sustain productivity over the long term.” Per a publication by the Jornada, a state-and-transition model (STM) is a diagram “that organize large amounts of data and local knowledge.” These are often included within an ESD. According to the New Mexico State University Plant Clinic, Russian Thistle (Salsola tragus) (AKA a tumbleweed) is a non-native summer annual that can be toxic to livestock.According to USDA Plants, leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula)is an invasive, noxious weed that can negatively affect livestock. Per Nature author Sarah M. Emery, Clementsian succession refers to the theory posed by ecologist Frederick Clements in the 1900s that change in vegetation was predictable over time. Clements “proposed the concept of a climax state forcommunities, which represented the final, or permanent, end-stage of succession. […] Climax communities [are] the assemblage of characteristic plants thatdefine an ecosystem, such as tall grasses in a prairie, or mature trees in a forest. Clements held that, after a disturbance, any given ecosystem would eventually return to its characteristic assemblage of species.” According to Sarah M. Emery, Gleasonian plant community assembly refers to the alternative ideology posed by ecologist Henry Gleason, “that communities were individualistic; that is, communities were only the fortuitous assembly of species, and that there was no such thing as a climax state for ecosystems.” This argument is counter to Clement’s theory and recognizes “that the environment, and species’ movements, had an important role in regulating species assemblages, and that community changes were not nearly as predictable as Clements had proposed.” Desired future conditions“express the ecosystem conditions that are preferred by stakeholders and managers” (Nagel et al., 2025). ResourcesThe ASCC Network about page.Forest and Rangeland StewardshipDepartment at Colorado State University. home pageCSU Rangeland Measurements course syllabus link.

Overview:For the first episode of this series, we want to introduce who we are and what we do! In this episode I’m joined by Dr. Linda Nagel, who is the co-founder and leader of the Adaptive Silviculture for Climate Change (ASCC) Network. First, we discuss Linda’s connection to silviculture, and how the field relates to climate adaptation. We then chat about the Network’s conceptualization, and the many bright minds involved in its creation. Afterwards, we dive deep into the Network’s purpose and protocols, and end by discussing the Network’s recently published paper: Ten Years of Adaptive Silviculture for Climate Change: An Applied, Co-Produced Experimental Framework. Check out the resources below for help with terminology and more information about the Network, where we work, and what we do; and be sure to look for new episodes every other Monday!  You can read the transcript for this episode on the ASCC Network website linked here. Check out these definitions and resources for information about topics discussed in this episode:Definitions:Ecophysiology as defined by ScienceDirect is “the study of the complex relationship between an organism’s internal environment and external environmental factors, focusing on how organisms respond to and adapt to specific ecological pressures.” Spectroradiometer as defined by Taylor & Francis is “an instrument that quantifies the energy of light waves at different wavelengths [and] is used to measure the intensity of optical radiation and its spectral distribution.” Forest assisted migration is the human-assisted movement of future climate-adapted tree species, populations or genotypes to areas outside of their historical distributions to maintain biological diversity or ecosystem function in response to climate change (Palik et al., 2022). Desired future conditions “express the ecosystem conditions that are preferred by stakeholders and managers” (Nagel et al., 2025).ResourcesThe ASCC Network’s recent paper published in Bioscience: Ten Years of Adaptive Silviculture for Climate Change: An Applied, Co-Produced Experimental Framework. The ASCC Network about page. The ASCC Network’s experimental design (RRT + no action) web page. The Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science (NIACS) about page. The National Advanced Silviculture Program (NASP) home page. The Climate Change Response Framework (CCRF) home page. Summary of the 2009 National Silviculture Workshop. Music AttributionThe intro and outro music used in this podcast is from the song Harmony by artist Ketsa. The track used is licensed under Creative Commons License BY 4.0.