Conference: The 38th Annual Interdisciplinary Plant Group Symposium: Enhancing the Resilience of Plant Systems to Climate Change

University Of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia MO

Investigators

Abstract

Plants sustain life on Earth, but are threatened by global environmental change. Increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere have caused rapid changes in climate. Understanding how plants respond to the combination of elevated carbon dioxide, warming temperatures, and more variable precipitation is crucial towards developing more resilient crops, more efficient agricultural systems, and determining how natural ecosystems will cope with rapidly evolving environmental conditions to aid in conservation efforts. Developing pathways for mitigating and adapting to climate change is a grand challenge facing society, and for which the plant science community will play a central role to ensure food, water, and energy security. The purpose of the University of Missouri Interdisciplinary Plant Group’s 38th Annual Symposium, which has the theme Enhancing the Resilience of Plant Systems to Climate Change, is to bring together world-leading experts from diverse disciplines to educate the scientific community on the opportunities to develop innovative mitigation strategies to adapt plants to climate change. A major emphasis of the symposium is the scientific program that fosters the development of early career scientists (e.g., students and postdoctoral fellows), particularly those from underrepresented groups, through learning and networking opportunities. Additionally, the exposure to interdisciplinary research and the interactions with scientists from diverse research backgrounds will be an invaluable experience. Instilling the virtues of interdisciplinary collaboration early in students’ careers will provide broad impacts to society by equipping the next generation of scientists with the mindset and approach needed to tackle big societal challenges. Plants sustain life on Earth and human civilization by providing oxygen, food, fiber, fuel, and innumerable ecosystem services. Climate change poses a grave threat to plants and thus life on Earth. Enhancing fundamental scientific knowledge of plant environmental responses, and predictions of how plants will respond to the combination of elevated carbon dioxide concentrations, warmer temperatures, and more variable precipitation are critical elements of mitigation and adaptation strategies. The development of novel plants with enhanced stress tolerance and/or yields is needed to maintain food security. Moreover, projecting the future climate is dependent on biosphere-atmosphere interactions, which is highly reliant on accurate representation of plant environmental responses in models. The scope of the challenge is large, and magnified by the need for strong interdisciplinary research efforts. The 38th University of Missouri Interdisciplinary Plant Group’s Annual Symposium: Enhancing the Resilience of Plant Systems to Climate Change, will bring together preeminent experts at the intersections of disciplines and diverse scales ranging from molecules to ecosystems, to educate the scientific community on the opportunities to develop innovative mitigation strategies and to adapt plants to climate change. A major goal of the symposium is creating learning and networking opportunities for students and postdoctoral fellows, particularly those from underrepresented groups. The exposure to interdisciplinary research will be an invaluable experience. Furthermore, instilling the virtues of interdisciplinary collaboration early in students’ careers will provide broader impact to society by equipping the next generation of scientists with the mindset and approach needed to tackle big societal challenges. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.