{"id":38036,"date":"2021-11-17T13:06:00","date_gmt":"2021-11-17T18:06:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/?p=38036"},"modified":"2024-10-21T13:10:29","modified_gmt":"2024-10-21T17:10:29","slug":"faculty-feature-marcelo-ardon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/2021\/11\/faculty-feature-marcelo-ardon\/","title":{"rendered":"Faculty Feature: Meet Associate Professor Marcelo Ard\u00f3n"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n

Marcelo Ard\u00f3n Sayao<\/a>\u00a0is an associate professor in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources. His work as a professor and researcher focuses on environmental sciences, ecosystems, wetlands and streams.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ard\u00f3n grew up in Costa Rica and moved to the United States to attend Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania. While there, he earned two undergraduate degrees \u2014 one\u00a0of them in biology, the other in environmental science.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI love water and I am happiest sitting next to a stream, lake or wetland,\u201d he said. \u201cInitially I wanted to be a marine biologist, but then I realized that I get seasick very easily. I took a limnology (the study of inland water) class during my undergrad, and I thought studying streams would be fun.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ard\u00f3n\u2019s interest in streams eventually led him to the University of Georgia, where he earned a Ph.D. in ecology while conducting research in Costa Rica. \u201cI was lucky to find a graduate position that allowed me to study streams, and extremely lucky that the research was in Costa Rica,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He later completed a postdoctoral position at Duke University and taught as an assistant professor at East Carolina University\u2019s Department of Biology. Ard\u00f3n joined NC State\u2019s College of Natural Resources in August of 2016, drawn to \u201cthe breadth and depth of research\u201d being published by its faculty, he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ard\u00f3n currently teaches courses in both the Environmental Sciences and Natural Resources programs, including \u201cES 100: Introduction to Environmental Sciences.\u201d The class ranges in size from 200 to 420 students, and Ard\u00f3n uses the class as an opportunity to get students excited about science and nature. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI want to engage students in environmental science and try to introduce them to the beauty of science, the awe of nature and the great challenges we have ahead. I don\u2019t necessarily want them to become environmental sciences majors, but I want them to take what they learn in our classrooms and apply it in their majors,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ard\u00f3n also teaches a wetlands course and graduate seminar focusing on tipping points, resilience and rapid change in ecosystems. \u201cAt the graduate level, I try to work with diverse students to answer tough questions. I hope to provide training to graduate students that they can use in their careers, and in their lives,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When he\u2019s not teaching, Ard\u00f3n\u2019s research focuses on ecosystem ecology and biogeochemistry of wetlands and streams. He studies how land use and climate change alter the movement of water, carbon and nutrients in these places, and how certain interventions can help recover the loss of ecosystem services. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ard\u00f3n is currently studying coastal wetlands in North Carolina and streams in Costa Rica. \u201cIn North Carolina we have spent a lot of time trying to understand\u00a0ghost forests<\/a>, which are coastal forested wetlands that are transitioning into marshes or open water,\u201d Ard\u00f3n said. He and his team are examining the causes and consequences of these changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Costa Rica, Ard\u00f3n is researching tropical streams influenced by geothermally modified groundwater. This groundwater exists near tectonically active areas and affects stream chemistry. He is studying how it is impacted by changes in precipitation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ard\u00f3n\u2019s work as both a researcher and professor focuses on solutions. When asked about the impact he hopes to make on his students, he said: \u201cI talk a lot about the problems we face, like biodiversity loss, climate change, pollution of our waters, etc. But I always try to emphasize the opportunities for solutions. I try to focus on the urgency of the challenges ahead and the agency they have in their lives to make a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false,"raw":"\n\n\n\n\n

Marcelo Ard\u00f3n Sayao<\/a>\u00a0is an associate professor in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources. His work as a professor and researcher focuses on environmental sciences, ecosystems, wetlands and streams.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ard\u00f3n grew up in Costa Rica and moved to the United States to attend Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania. While there, he earned two undergraduate degrees \u2014 one\u00a0of them in biology, the other in environmental science.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI love water and I am happiest sitting next to a stream, lake or wetland,\u201d he said. \u201cInitially I wanted to be a marine biologist, but then I realized that I get seasick very easily. I took a limnology (the study of inland water) class during my undergrad, and I thought studying streams would be fun.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ard\u00f3n\u2019s interest in streams eventually led him to the University of Georgia, where he earned a Ph.D. in ecology while conducting research in Costa Rica. \u201cI was lucky to find a graduate position that allowed me to study streams, and extremely lucky that the research was in Costa Rica,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He later completed a postdoctoral position at Duke University and taught as an assistant professor at East Carolina University\u2019s Department of Biology. Ard\u00f3n joined NC State\u2019s College of Natural Resources in August of 2016, drawn to \u201cthe breadth and depth of research\u201d being published by its faculty, he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ard\u00f3n currently teaches courses in both the Environmental Sciences and Natural Resources programs, including \u201cES 100: Introduction to Environmental Sciences.\u201d The class ranges in size from 200 to 420 students, and Ard\u00f3n uses the class as an opportunity to get students excited about science and nature. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI want to engage students in environmental science and try to introduce them to the beauty of science, the awe of nature and the great challenges we have ahead. I don\u2019t necessarily want them to become environmental sciences majors, but I want them to take what they learn in our classrooms and apply it in their majors,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ard\u00f3n also teaches a wetlands course and graduate seminar focusing on tipping points, resilience and rapid change in ecosystems. \u201cAt the graduate level, I try to work with diverse students to answer tough questions. I hope to provide training to graduate students that they can use in their careers, and in their lives,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When he\u2019s not teaching, Ard\u00f3n\u2019s research focuses on ecosystem ecology and biogeochemistry of wetlands and streams. He studies how land use and climate change alter the movement of water, carbon and nutrients in these places, and how certain interventions can help recover the loss of ecosystem services. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ard\u00f3n is currently studying coastal wetlands in North Carolina and streams in Costa Rica. \u201cIn North Carolina we have spent a lot of time trying to understand\u00a0ghost forests<\/a>, which are coastal forested wetlands that are transitioning into marshes or open water,\u201d Ard\u00f3n said. He and his team are examining the causes and consequences of these changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Costa Rica, Ard\u00f3n is researching tropical streams influenced by geothermally modified groundwater. This groundwater exists near tectonically active areas and affects stream chemistry. He is studying how it is impacted by changes in precipitation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ard\u00f3n\u2019s work as both a researcher and professor focuses on solutions. When asked about the impact he hopes to make on his students, he said: \u201cI talk a lot about the problems we face, like biodiversity loss, climate change, pollution of our waters, etc. But I always try to emphasize the opportunities for solutions. I try to focus on the urgency of the challenges ahead and the agency they have in their lives to make a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n"},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ard\u00f3n uses solution-driven science to meet the challenges facing our ecosystems, wetlands and streams.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":136,"featured_media":23558,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"source":"","ncst_custom_author":"","ncst_show_custom_author":false,"ncst_dynamicHeaderBlockName":"ncst\/default-post-header","ncst_dynamicHeaderData":"{\"showAuthor\":true,\"showDate\":true,\"showFeaturedVideo\":false,\"displayCategoryID\":115}","ncst_content_audit_freq":"","ncst_content_audit_date":"","ncst_content_audit_display":false,"ncst_backToTopFlag":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[115,1],"tags":[359,362],"_ncst_magazine_issue":[],"class_list":["post-38036","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hidden-blog","category-hidden-news","tag-faculty-and-staff","tag-forestry-and-environmental-resources"],"displayCategory":{"term_id":115,"name":"Blog","slug":"hidden-blog","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":115,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":28,"filter":"raw"},"acf":{"ncst_posts_meta_modified_date":null},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38036","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/136"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38036"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38036\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38037,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38036\/revisions\/38037"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23558"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38036"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38036"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38036"},{"taxonomy":"_ncst_magazine_issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/_ncst_magazine_issue?post=38036"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}