# positions[].organizations[].parent[].label
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

# overview
In the Veldman Lab at Texas A&M University, we study relationships among plant species, ecosystem functions, and human-induced environmental change. Fire - both as an ancient ecological force and as a management tool - is central to our research on the conservation and restoration of tropical and subtropical savannas and forests. Through interdisciplinary collaborations and outreach to environmental organizations, we work to improve public policies that impact fire-dependent ecosystems and human livelihoods.

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
University of Florida - (Gainesville, Florida, United States)

# publications[].label
Pitfalls of Tree Planting Show Why We Need People-Centered Natural Climate Solutions

# publications[].label
Molecular evidence of cryptic speciation, historical range expansion, and recent intraspecific hybridization in the Neotropical seasonal forest tree Cedrela fissilis (Meliaceae).

# publications[].label
Resilience and restoration of tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and grassy woodlands.

# publications[].label
Tillage agriculture and afforestation threaten tropical savanna plant communities across a broad rainfall gradient in India

# publications[].label
Natural climate solutions for the United States.

# publications[].publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

# publications[].label
Understory plant communities and the functional distinction between savanna trees, forest trees, and pines.

# publications[].label
Season of prescribed fire determines grassland restoration outcomes after fire exclusion and overgrazing

# publications[].label
Savannas are vital but overlooked carbon sinks.

# publications[].publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

# publications[].label
Selective logging and fire as drivers of alien grass invasion in a Bolivian tropical dry forest

# publications[].label
Grass-dominated vegetation, not species-diverse natural savanna, replaces degraded tropical forests on the southern edge of the Amazon Basin

# publications[].label
Fire frequency, agricultural history and the multivariate control of pine savanna understorey plant diversity

# publications[].label
Toward an old-growth concept for grasslands, savannas, and woodlands

# publications[].label
Chemical defense and the persistence of pioneer plant seeds in the soil of a tropical cloud forest

# publications[].label
High plant diversity and slow assembly of old-growth grasslands.

# publications[].publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

# publications[].label
Long-distance Dispersal of Invasive Grasses by Logging Vehicles in a Tropical Dry Forest

# publications[].label
Placing Brazil's grasslands and savannas on the map of science and conservation

# publications[].label
Land-use history and contemporary management inform an ecological reference model for longleaf pine woodland understory plant communities.

# publications[].label
Step back from the forest and step up to the Bonn Challenge: how a broad ecological perspective can promote successful landscape restoration

# publications[].publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

# publications[].label
Where Tree Planting and Forest Expansion are Bad for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

# publications[].label
Restoration prioritization must be informed by marginalized people.

# publications[].label
Suites of Fire-Adapted traits of Oaks in the Southeastern USA: Multiple Strategies for Persistence

# publications[].label
Savannas after afforestation: Assessment of herbaceous community responses to wildfire versus native tree planting

# publications[].label
Comment on "The extent of forest in dryland biomes".

# publications[].publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

# publications[].label
Spreaders, igniters, and burning shrubs: plant flammability explains novel fire dynamics in grass-invaded deserts.

# publications[].label
Grassy biomes: An inconvenient reality for large-scale forest restoration? A comment on the essay by Chazdon and Laestadius.

# publications[].label
Historical agriculture alters the effects of fire on understory plant beta diversity.

# publications[].label
Clarifying the confusion: old-growth savannahs and tropical ecosystem degradation.

# publications[].label
Grass functional traits reflect the long history of fire and grazers in the savannas of Texas.

# publications[].label
Comment on "The global tree restoration potential".

# publications[].publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

# publications[].label
SUITES OF FIRE-ADAPTED TRAITS OF OAKS IN THE SOUTHEASTERN USA: MULTIPLE STRATEGIES FOR PERSISTENCE

# publications[].label
Guidelines for including bamboos in tropical ecosystem monitoring

# publications[].label
How climate, topography, soils, herbivores, and fire control forest-grassland coexistence in the Eurasian forest-steppe.

# publications[].label
Biome Awareness Disparity is BAD for tropical ecosystem conservation and restoration

# publications[].label
Long-term, large-scale experiment reveals the effects of seed limitation, climate, and anthropogenic disturbance on restoration of plant communities in a biodiversity hotspot.

# publications[].publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

# researcherOn[].label
Collaborative Research: The Nature of Fire-Vegetation Relationships in Tropical Savanna-Forest Mosaics

# researcherOn[].awardedBy.label
Directorate for Biological Sciences - (Arlington, Virginia, United States)

# researcherOn[].label
Enhancing Livestock Production from Rangelands in the Great Plains

# researcherOn[].awardedBy.label
United States Department of Agriculture - (Washington D.C., District of Columbia, United States)

# researcherOn[].awardedBy.preferredLabel
USDA-National Institute of Food And Agriculture

# researcherOn[].label
Fire ecology of American savannas and grassland-forest mosaics

# researcherOn[].awardedBy.label
National Institute of Food and Agriculture - (Washington D.C., District of Columbia, United States)

# streetAddress
TEXAS A&M AGRILIFE RESEARCH; Ecosystem Science & Management; 2138 TAMU

# organizations[]
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

# schools[]
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

# inTheNews[].label
Old-growth grasslands should be valued, not destroyed