Jeremiah Vallotton

Doctoral Candidate, Memorial University

Carbon in Global Boreal and Alpine Soils Under Climate Change-Driven Land Use

Jeremiah's Experiential Plan

Global climate change, induced by human mismanagement of the environment, affects all humanity and all ecosystems. Soils in boreal and alpine regions contain about 33% of world’s soil carbon, yet expansion of agriculture into these regions, and climate-driven northward shifts of the temperate zone, threaten to release this carbon into the atmosphere. Canada is uniquely positioned to be affected, and arguably benefit, from this shift, possessing many diverse research programs relevant to the northernmost margins of agricultural activities. However, many other nations are likewise affected, with mixed acknowledgement and actions taken that are unique to the local situation. In combination with different cultural approaches to the role of agriculture, this creates a wide range of research approaches that can address agricultural and carbon-relevant environmental investigations. Mr. Vallotton, a PhD student at the Memorial University of Newfoundland, researches the critical role of carbon cycling in cold region soils,under natural and converted states, for both local food security and global climate stability.His research is focused locally and regionally in Atlantic Canada,and while it can fill information gaps, it benefits tremendously if accurately contextualized within global circumboreal agricultural research. Thus, Mr. Vallotton’s ELP is focused on building strong collaborations with researchers and farmers across four continents and eight countries. Visits will target regions that have a strong systemic approach to research and also where agriculture is undergoing similar shifts as in Canada. The ultimate goal is to forge cross-geographical and cross-cultural,globally-informed land management strategies to combat human-induced climate change.

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