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Christa P. H. Mulder

To view UP TO DATE research, teaching, and outreach info, go to my lab webpage:
https://sites.google.com/view/mulder-lab/home
I am a plant ecologist who works primarily on plant-animal interactions, usually at the intersection of population, community, and ecosystem ecology. While the questions and the systems I and members of my lab work on are diverse, our work usually involves both direct and indirect interactions between several species, and between those species and their physical environment. We combine field work with greenhouse experiments, historical datasets, and some modeling.

- University of Alaska Fairbanks, Alaska, USA. Ph.D. in Biology, December 1996
- Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada. M.Sc. in Biology, 1991
- Bates College, Lewiston, Maine, USA. B.A., High Honors in Biology, 1988
- Professor, Institute of Arctic Biology and Department of Biology and Wildlife, University of Alaska Fairbanks (July 2012-present).
- Chair, Department of Biology and Wildlife, University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) (July 2010-present).
- Assistant Department Chair (Graduate Program), Department of Biology and Wildlife, University of Alaska Fairbanks (January–June 2010).
- Associate Professor, Institute of Arctic Biology and Department of Biology and Wildlife, University of Alaska Fairbanks (July 2006-June 2012).
- Assistant Professor, Institute of Arctic Biology and Department of Biology and Wildlife, University of Alaska Fairbanks (Jan. 2001-June 2006).
- Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Ecology, School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington (VUW), New Zealand (Feb. 1998-Dec. 2000).
- Post-doctoral fellow, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå, Sweden (May 1996-Jan 1998).
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
Pages
- 2008-2009 National Education Fellow in the Life Sciences, National Academies of Science, USA.
- 2007-2008 Outstanding Teaching Award, College of Natural Science and Mathematics, UAF
- 1995 Dissertation Year Fellowship, University of Alaska Fairbanks
- 1991-1993 Chancellor's Fellowship, UAF
- 1991-1992 National Science and Engineering Research Council Post-Graduate Scholarship 3 (declined)
- 1990-1991 National Science and Engineering Research Council Post-Graduate Scholarship 2
- 1989-1990 Queen's Graduate Fellowship, Queen's University
- 1988 Dean's Merit Award, University of Michigan
- 1988 Phi Beta Kappa Honors Society
- 1988 Bates Key Honors Society, Bates College
- 1988 Paul Hardy Award, Bates College
- 1985-1988 Dean's Award, Bates College
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United States Forest Service "Every Kid in a Park" program - $7,000 for Fostering Science. With collaborator Teresa Hollingsworth, USFS.
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2018 United States Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Women and Minorities in STEM Field Grant Program: Alaska Native Youth Investigate Food SysTEMS and Explore Career Paths in Food and Agriculture (Co-PI; PI is Heidi Rader, $93,329).
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2017 National Science Foundation: Arctic Berry Harvest – Public Participation in Scientific Research (Co-PI; PI is K. Spellman, $878,592).
- 2017 National Science Foundation: Does variation in development explain variation inphenological responses to temperature? (PI; collaborative research with P. Diggle; $193,000, of which $109,000 to UAF).
- 2016 National Science Foundation: Bonanza Creek Long-Term Ecological Research Site renewal grant. (Senior Investigator; includes $20,000 / year for research + up to $15,000 a year for the Fostering Science outreach program).
- 2012 National Science Foundation: Bonanza Creek Long-Term Ecological Research Site renewal grant (Senior Investigator; $15,000 for research, $6,000 for an REU student).
- 2009 United States Department of Agriculture: “Are Alaskan Pollinators Abandoning Native Berries for an Exotic Clover? Implications for Invasive Plant Management on Fruit Production” (PI, $494,000)
- 2007, 2008 National Park Service: “Data Collection for Modeling Invasive Plant Spread via Burned Lands in Alaska” (PI, $14,000 in 2007, $20,000 extension in 2008)
- 2007 National Science Foundation Research Coordination Network: “SEAPRE: Seabird Islands and Introduced Predators: Impacts of Presence and Eradication on Island Function” (PI, $247,000).
- 2006 Center for Invasive Plant Management: “Assessing wildfire burn susceptibility to invasive plant colonization in black spruce forests of interior Alaska”. (PI; with K. Villano and T. Hollingsworth, $5,000).
- 2003 National Science Foundation: “Rats on islands: direct and indirect effects on plant communities” (PI, $392,000).
- 2003 Western Regional Center (WESTGEC) of the National Institute for Global Environmental Change (NIGEC): “Will global warming alter plant parasite loads in the boreal understory?" (Co-PI; B. Roy PI., $244,000).
- 2002 Marsden Foundation (New Zealand): “Impacts of alien organisms on ecosystem functioning: a test using island ecosystems” (with D. Wardle, P. Bellingham, D. Towns, G. Yeates and W. Williamson, NZ $600,000)
- 1999 Research grant, Victoria University of Wellington (NZ $3000)
- 1997 Research grant, Oscar and Lilli Lamm Foundation, Sweden (SEK 72,000)
- 1993 Research Grant, Center for Global Change and Arctic System Research, UAF ($1500)
For more information, including links to syllabi, go to: https://sites.google.com/view/mulder-lab/teaching
Undergraduate:
- Fundamentals of Biology II (BIOL 116),
- Introduction to Plant Biology (BIOL 239)
- Community Ecology (BIOL 472),
Graduate level
- Scientific Writing, Editing, and Revising (BIOL 604)
- Current Topics in Scientific Teaching (STO 692)
Current Graduate Students (More info)
- Kara Kornhauser
Past Graduate Students
Please see my cv by going to my lab website: https://sites.google.com/view/mulder-lab/mulder-cv
News Releases
- Alaska, Canada, NYC researchers seek citizen scientists for climate project
(2 July 2014) Citizen-science project to study plant phenology in Alaska and Canada - Invasive plants may threaten Alaska's native berries
(23 April 2012) Climate warming is allowing invasive plants to take hold in Alaska and possibly luring pollinators away from native berries, says University of Alaska Fairbanks ecologist Christa Mulder.
In the News
- Berry crops becoming more unpredictable
(pdf)
(9 August 2019) Fairbanks Daily News-Miner - ‘World citizen’ winds up in Fairbanks
(14 October 2018) Fairbanks News Miner - UAF Program Helps Science-oriented Youths ‘Broaden Expertise’ with Hands-on Learning
(29 August 2018) KUAC - UAF plans free science camp for kids in foster, state care
(2 April 2018) Webcenter11 - Warming climate affecting Alaska berries
(25 January 2018) KTVF Channel 11 - Three honored as champions for children
(26 October 2017) Fairbanks Daily News Miner - Story49: A New Season in Shishmaref
(18 September 2017) KNOM - Berry research project seeks Alaskan volunteer citizen scientists
(17 August 2017) Phys Org - Kids do hands-on science at UAF summer academy
(25 February 2016) Arctic Sounder - USGS: Berry harvests becoming less predictable
(12 October 2015) Peninsula Clarion - Climate Change Causes Diet Change in Polar Bears
(25 September 2014) DailyRead (online newspaper designed to foster children's interest in the world) - For Polar Bears, a Climate Change Twist
(22 September 2014) The New York Times - Researchers investigate invasive plants
(pdf)
(10 August 2014) Fairbanks Daily News-Miner - Researchers seek citizen scientists for northern plants project
(pdf)
(31 July 2014) The Tundra Drums - Researchers Call for Citizen Scientists to Help Record Plant Migration
(8 July 2014) KDLG Public Radio Dillingham, Alaska - Invasives pollination study shows mixed results for Alaska berries
(pdf)
(23 August 2013) Fairbanks Daily News-Miner - Pollinator Attraction: How do non-native plants change pollination of berry plants across Alaska?
(20 August 2013) Alaska Center for Climate Assessment & Policy - Plant monitoring project tracks competition for pollinators
(11 June 2013) UAF Cornerstone - The beauty of pollen is nothing to sneeze at
(17 May 2013) Fairbanks Daily News-Miner - Invasive plants may threaten Alaska’s native berries
(pdf)
(28 May 2012) The Tundra Drums - Invasive plant could threaten tundra berries
(24 April 2012) KYUK public radio Bethel, Alaska - Invasive plants may threaten Alaska’s native berries
(pdf)
(23 April 2012) SitNews - Invasive plants may threaten Alaska’s native berries
(20 April 2012) UAF news - Bond proposal key to future of UAF's life sciences building
(pdf)
(9 October 2010) Fairbanks Daily News-Miner - Invasive Plant Education in Alaskan School
(27 May 2010) United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service Alaska Region, State of Alaska Department of Natural Resources Division of Foresty - Fairbanks school to study invasive sweet clover
(pdf)
(15 January 2010) Juneau Empire - UAF to study effect of invasive sweet clover
(pdf)
(14 January 2010) Fairbanks Daily News-Miner - UAF to study invasive sweet clover
(pdf)
(14 January 2010) KTUU.com NBC - UAF Wins Grant to Study Invasive Plants
(13 January 2010) Alaska Public Radio Network (APRN) - Islands: No Guarantee of Safe Haven
(pdf)
(24 October 2008) Bird Conservation Fall 2008 (magazine)
Please see my cv by going to my lab website: https://sites.google.com/view/mulder-lab/mulder-cv