Research
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The Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources (FER) is recognized worldwide for its cutting-edge research into issues involving forestry, wildlife management, environmental sciences, biotechnology and more. These efforts are important not only because they lead to new breakthroughs in forestry and natural resource management, but also because they provide a valuable training ground for students interested in working on the frontline of their chosen fields as part of their educational experience.
FER faculty, staff, and students work with public and private groups, organizations, institutions, and industries to identify and solve complex, real-world environmental resource issues.
The list below includes our current research thrusts:
- Camcore, a non-profit, international program that works for the conservation of tropical and subtropical forest tree species. Camcore works around the world with industry partners to identify threatened species and collect seeds from them for use in conservation and growth studies, assess genetic diversity to improve methods of conservation, evaluate the adaptability of trees to new locations and develop long-term improvement programs for ensuring the sustainability of resources.
- Center for Advanced Forestry Systems (CAFS) is a National Science Foundation Industry/University Cooperative Research Center that bridges top forestry research programs with industry members to solve complex, industry-wide problems and transcends traditional disciplinary bounderies.
- Center for Earth Observation was established in 1983 and is an Affiliate Campus of the International Space University in Strasbourg, France. The Center pursues a varied research and teaching agenda, using high-end laboratories equipped with powerful computer research capabilities.
- Christmas Tree Genetics Program is improving the growth, quality and pest resistance of Christmas tree species important to North Carolina including Fraser fir, Virginia pine, Eastern white pine and Eastern red cedar. It also screens new species and is conducting genetic conservation efforts for Fraser fir, a globally threatened species.
- Forest Biotechnology, which works with partners around the world to promote innovation in basic science in order to advance the application of molecular genetics to forest trees.
- includes the Forest Biotechnology Industrial Research Consortium (FORBIRC) promotes innovation and advances in forest, wood, and paper science using the most advanced forest biotechnology by creating a collaborative platform involving leading forest products industry participants worldwide and NC State University.
- includes the Forest Biotechnology Industrial Research Consortium (FORBIRC) promotes innovation and advances in forest, wood, and paper science using the most advanced forest biotechnology by creating a collaborative platform involving leading forest products industry participants worldwide and NC State University.
- Forest Nutrition Cooperative is an international partnership committed to creating innovative solutions to enhance forest productivity and value through the sustainable management of site resources. Team members have expertise in silviculture, forest nutrition, ecophysiology, soils, plant community ecology, growth and yield modeling, remote sensing, spatial analysis and GIS, and statistics.
- International Forestry and Conservation promotes international faculty exchanges, student participation in global research projects and courses in relevant topics. It offers research grants to students, and works with a wide variety of worldwide organizations in pursuing international research topics.
- Natural Resource Economics, Management and Policy, which combines forest management and economic policy techniques under a single umbrella, allowing graduate students to pursue customized interdisciplinary studies covering the whole spectrum of forest economics and management, including public resource policy.
- Southern Center for Sustainable Forests, a cooperative organization comprised of FER, Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences and the North Carolina Division of Forest Resources. The Southern Center provides leadership for research, education and extension that promotes economically and ecologically sustainable management of forests in the South.
- Restoration Ecology, a unique program that prepares students to help in the recovery of ecosystems that have been degraded, damaged or destroyed. Emphasis is placed on the actual craft of restoring natural ecosystems as well as the social and philosophical principles that mandate restoration.
- Southern Forest Resource Assessment Consortium (SOFAC) develops forest sector market models for application to forest resource assessments in the South, U.S., and the World. SOFAC integrates currently available forest resource data from the USDA Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program and economic theory to model timber supply and demand in the South by local area.
- Tree Improvement Cooperative (TIP) is committed to on-going research into forest genetics, selection, breeding, testing, and technology transfer in an effort to increase forest productivity within the Southeast timber region. TIP is responsible for some of the most significant breakthroughs in forestry over the past half century and it continues to lead the way in developing new and more effective productivity and breeding improvement techniques.
- Several of our cooperative research programs compose the Center for Industrial Research Programs in Forestry.
For more information on individual research initiatives, please explore our Faculty Directory. Click on "What's Your Interest?" in the left column to explore more about other research initiatives in Forestry and Environmental Resources.
