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  Serena Vilaga Barasi

Serena Vilaga Barasi

PhD Candidate

 

Physical & Biological Sciences Division

Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Department

PhD Candidate

Graduate

CSC Coastal Biology Auxiliary Building
164

261

CBB/EE Biology

I am an ecologist whose research interests span conservation, restoration, and invasive species management, and I am dedicated to developing innovative solutions for nature and people. As a Filipino whose family moved from one island to another, I have long been fascinated by the ecological communities and ecosystems islands have to offer. My doctoral work is advised by Dr. Ingrid Parker in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UCSC and has been funded by the UCSC DDCSP Fellowship and the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship.

I explore the ecological processes that promote or hinder native forest regeneration in southern Guam’s patchwork of non-native plantations and savannas. My research combines greenhouse and field experiments, as well as forest surveys. I also use remote-sensing tools to map and analyze how savannas and forests shift over time, seeking to understand the ecological feedbacks that maintain these states. I hope to support decision-making surrounding the restoration of native forests in Guam. Every aspect of my research has been developed in collaboration with local agencies such as the Guam Department of Agriculture and Guam SeaGrant, and more recently with federal agencies, such as the US Forest Service Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry (IPIF) based in Hawaii. 

Plant ecology, invasion ecology, restoration ecology, conservation, biodiversity, Pacific Biology

Doris Duke Graduate Fellow

NSF Graduate Research Fellow

Santa Cruz Community Foundation Educational Fund

UCSC Activating Innovative Graduate Research

American Philosophical Society Lewis and Clark Exploratory Fund

NSF Navigating Home Summer Fellow

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