Jiquan Chen
Professor
A native of Shanxi in Northern China, Dr. Chen received his undergraduate education in grassland ecology, MS in forest ecology, and PhD in ecosystem Analysis (University of Washington). His postdoc training was in stream ecology and ecosystem management. He was a Bullard Fellow at Harvard University (1999–2000). He was on the faculty at Michigan Tech University (1993–2001) and University of Toledo (2001–2014).
His research and academic instruction programs are on ecosystem processes and their interactive feedbacks to the biophysical and human activities, including community ecology to 3-D canopy structure, forest fragmentation, edge effects, riparian zone, conservation biology, landscape ecology, and micrometeorology. His current research lies in the coupled effects of global climate change and human activities on terrestrial ecosystems, global change ecology, bioenergy, and carbon/water fluxes.
He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS, 2011) and a fellow of the Ecological Society of America (ESA, 2014).
Current Members
Jie Dai
Research Associate
Dr. Dai is a broadly trained geographer interested in ecosystem processes and landscape ecology. His overall research goal involves understanding, envisioning, and conserving earth systems in the context of global climate change and socioeconomic developments. He integrates geographic information science (GIS), field-based observations and modeling to examine human-environment interactions across different scales.
Dr. Dai received his PhD from the Joint Doctoral Program (JDP) between San Diego State University (SDSU) and UC Santa Barbara. Before joining the LEES Lab, he was a postdoctoral research scholar in the Center for Global Discovery and Conservation Science (GDCS) at Arizona State University.
Lulu Hou
Visiting Scholar (2026–2028)
Dr. Hou studied theoretical ecology and botany, with a research focus on Grassland Ecology and Remote Sensing, including grazing livestock behavior and the mechanisms of productivity change in grazing grasslands. She received her Ph.D. and Master’s degrees from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), where she is currently a postdoctoral researcher. She is a visiting scholar at the LEES Lab (2026–2028).
Cheyenne Lei
Research Associate
Dr. Cheyenne Lei is a Research Associate within the Landscape Ecology & Ecosystem Science Lab at the Center for Global Change and Earth Observations.
Her research focuses on coupled human-environment change, atmospheric physics, geographic information systems, remote sensing, and landscape ecology. Dr. Lei facilitates the development of modeling different landscapes using farmer input, remotely sensed imagery, cadastral mapping, and aerial imagery in order to advance sustainable agricultural practices and the reintroduction of diversified cropping and livestock over space and time within the Midwest.
Nurul Mujahid
Doctoral Student
Nurul Mujahid is a Ph.D. student at the School of Planning, Design, and Construction at Michigan State University, with research interests in urbanization, sustainable development, land-use and cover change, affordable housing, and real estate. He holds degrees from the Bandung Institute of Technology (2001) and Indiana University Bloomington (2011), and is a scholarship awardee of the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP), covering 2022–2026.
Moriz Steiner
Ph.D. Student
Moriz is a Crop and Soil Sciences Ph.D. student pursuing a major in Ecology and a minor in Artificial Intelligence (AI). From far Northern Italy, he completed his B.Sc. in Animal Sciences from Wageningen University and M.Sc. in Wildlife Biology and Conservation from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. His research focuses on spatial predictions of species distributions, landscape fragmentation, modeling impacts of climate change, Big Data, GIS, Machine Learning, and sustainable species conservation.
Moriz is also a member of the Climate Crisis Commission, Small Mammal Specialist Group, and Species Survival Commission of the IUCN, and served as a natural site reviewer for UNESCO World Heritage applications (2024 & 2025).
Carol A. Stepien
Professor (Adjunct)
Dr. Stepien is a molecular ecologist investigating the effects of anthropogenic disturbances on species-, population- and community-level diversity to discern changes and patterns across time and space, using genetic, genomic, and bioinformatic approaches. Her research analyzes the comparative influences of climate change, geological events, and anthropogenic stressors (including invasive species, exploitation, habitat and connectivity loss, parasites/pathogens, coastline development, etc.). She currently partners with the LEES lab on the ecological effects of the Russia-Ukraine War, having long worked on the evolutionary ecological and genetic/genomic relationships of Ponto-Caspian fauna that have invaded North America.
Yahn-Jauh Su
Research Associate
Dr. Yahn-Jauh (YJ) Su is an ecosystem ecologist whose research focuses on the relationship between carbon fluxes and their biophysical drivers, particularly soil respiration, and how the carbon fluxes of ecosystems respond to environmental regimes and disturbances such as climate change, extreme climate events, land use conversion, and other human activities.
Jin Wang
Research Associate
Dr. Wang has a comprehensive academic background in geography and environmental science. His research interests focus on remote sensing of urban environments and quantitative and spatial analysis of coastal regions. Before joining the LEES lab, he served as a research professor at South China Normal University (2022–2024) and as an assistant professor at the Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (2018–2022). He earned his PhD in environmental science from the Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, CAS (2018).
Current Collaborators
| Name | Institution |
|---|---|
| Peilei Fan | Tufts University |
| Ranjeet John | University of South Dakota |
| Phil Robertson | Michigan State University – KBS |
| Jiliang Tang | Michigan State University – Data Science and Engineering |
| Kurt D. Thelen | Michigan State University – PSM |
LEES Alumni & Associates
Graduate Students Advised — Thesis & Current Position
| # | Name | Degree | Year | Dissertation / Thesis Topic | Current Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shirkey, Gabriela | Ph.D. | 2023 | Spatiotemporal changes in carbon and anthropogenic contributions in an agricultural-forest watershed. Michigan State University. | Grand Challenge Initiative Postdoctoral Fellow, Chapman University |
| 2 | Sciusco, Pietro | Ph.D. | 2023 | Global warming impacts of landscape mosaic in southwestern Michigan: a cross-scale assessment of climate regulations of albedo and net ecosystem exchange. Michigan State University. | Research Scientist, Planeteck, Italy |
| 3 | Lei, Cheyenne | Ph.D. | 2022 | The analysis of albedo on bioenergy crops: assessment for climate and global warming impact. Michigan State University. | Research Fellow, University of Michigan |
| 4 | Park, Hogeun | Ph.D. | 2018 | Urban transformation in transitional economies: lessons from the Mongolian Plateau. Michigan State University. | Specialist, World Bank, Washington, D.C. |
| 5 | Su, Yahn-Jauh | Ph.D. | 2017 | Carbon sequestration and soil respiration after land use conversion in biofuel cropping ecosystems. Michigan State University. | Research Associate, Kellogg Biological Station |
| 6 | Wu, Susie R. | Ph.D. | 2016 | Green buildings and green users: an assessment of using green building environments to communicate sustainability to users. Michigan State University. | Postdoctoral Researcher, CGCEO |
| 7 | Zhu, Liuyan | M.S. | 2016 | The influence of urban landscape structure on the spatiotemporal changes of PM2.5. NUIST. | Donghai Navigation Safety Administration |
| 8 | Ouyang, Zutao | Ph.D. | 2015 | Global change and ecosystem characteristics: spatial and temporal variations and key climate and biological drivers of NEE and WSA in three distinct ecosystems in the United States. | Assistant Professor, Auburn University |
| 9 | Fan, Jiazhi | Thesis | 2015 | Parameter optimization for improving poplar plantation simulation based on the measurement and modeling of stomatal behavior. IceMe-NUIST (Co-Chair with Dan Wang). | — |
| 10 | Chu, Hosen | Ph.D. | 2014 | Response and biophysical regulation of carbon fluxes to climate variability and anomaly in contrasting ecosystems. | Research Scientist, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory |
| 11 | Han, Juanjuan | Ph.D. | 2014 | Alterations of grazing and precipitation on ecosystem carbon, water cycling, and phenology in a Stipa breviflora desert steppe. | Assistant Professor, Southwest University, China |
| 12 | Xie, Jing | Ph.D. | 2012 | Seven-year variability of carbon and water fluxes of an oak-dominated forest in the USA. | Research Scientist, Beijing Municipal Bureau of Landscape and Forestry |
| 13 | Deal, Mike W. | M.S. | 2011 | Net primary production in three bioenergy crop systems following land conversion. | Research Manager, Ohio EPA |
| 14 | John, Ranjeet | Ph.D. | 2011 | Effects of LCLUC on ecosystem functions in semiarid Inner Mongolia. | Associate Professor, University of South Dakota |
| 15 | Gong, Chongfeng | Ph.D. | 2009 | The spatial-temporal characteristics of urban vegetation in Shenzhen. Sun Yat-Sen University. | — |
| 16 | Lu, Nan | Ph.D. | 2009 | Regional climate change and vegetation–water relations in Inner Mongolia. | Professor, Chinese Academy of Sciences |
| 17 | Schaefer, Jessica N. | M.S. | 2009 | The effects of inter-annual climate variability on butterfly communities in a heterogeneous landscape of the Oak Openings Region, northwest Ohio. | — |
| 18 | Xu, Jianye | M.S. | 2009 | Interannual dynamics of soil respiration in managed oak forests in Missouri Ozarks. | — |
| 19 | Shao, Changliang | Ph.D. | 2008 | Energy balance of three typical communities along temperature gradients in Inner Mongolia steppe. Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences. | Professor, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing |
| 20 | Henderson, Rachel | M.S. | 2007 | Soil effluxes of vertical profiles at MOFEP experiments. University of Toledo. | Research Associate, Rocky Mountain Ecology Laboratory |
| 21 | Tenney, Gwendolyn H. | M.S. | 2007 | Quantifying the effects of prescribed burning on soil carbon efflux in an Ohio oak woodland. | — |
| 22 | Zhang, Wenli | Ph.D. | 2007 | Carbon fluxes of typical steppe and cropland ecosystems in the agri-pasture transition region of Inner Mongolia, P.R. China. Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences. | Associate Professor, Three Gorges University |
| 23 | LaCroix, Jacob Joseph | Ph.D. | 2006 | Interactions between fire and landscape structure: applications of the FARSITE model. University of Toledo. | Research Fisheries Biologist, NOAA |
| 24 | Li, Qinglin | Ph.D. | 2006 | Carbon storage and fluxes in a managed oak forest landscape. University of Toledo. | Research Scientist, Canadian Forest Service |
| 25 | Concilio, Amy L. | M.S. | 2005 | Interannual variability in soil respiration and response to experimental burning and thinning in an old-growth mixed-conifer forest. University of Toledo. | Associate Professor, St. Edward’s University |
| 26 | Ryu, Soung-Ryoul | Ph.D. | 2005 | Effect of disturbances on fuel loading, fire spread, and interactions in managed forest landscapes. University of Toledo. | Assistant Professor, University of Alberta |
| 27 | Bresee, Mary K. | M.S. | 2004 | Photosynthetic characteristics of dominant tree species in two climatically different landscapes. University of Toledo. | Ecologist, USDA Forest Service |
| 28 | Le Moine, James Michael | M.S. | 2004 | Soil respiration across chronosequences of three dominant forest ecosystems in northern Wisconsin, USA. University of Toledo. | LiCor Company |
| 29 | Rademacher, John A. | M.S. | 2004 | Forest structure and carbon allocation within and between two northern mixed hardwood edges. University of Toledo. | Range Conservationist, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, Nevada |
| 30 | Ma, Siyan | Ph.D. | 2003 | Interactions between microclimate, soil respiration, and disturbances in a forest ecosystem: lessons from the Teakettle Experimental Forest. University of Toledo. | University of California, Berkeley |
| 31 | Euskirchen, Eugenie S. | Ph.D. | 2003 | Carbon fluxes in managed forest landscapes: an empirical and model-based approach. Michigan Technological University. | Professor, University of Alaska |
| 32 | Gerdes, Lynden B. | M.S. | 2001 | A contribution to the flora of the Rove Slate Bedrock Complex Landtype Association, northern Cook County, MN, USA. (Co-Chair with M. Gale). | Botanist, Minnesota DNR |
| 33 | Jaiteh, Malanding | Ph.D. | 2000 | The dynamics of human-induced land cover change in miombo ecosystems of southern Africa. Michigan Technological University. | Research Professor, Columbia University |
| 34 | Watkins, Radley | M.S. | 2000 | Road effects on understory vascular plants in a managed forest landscape. Michigan Technological University. | Project Manager for bear monitoring, Glacier National Park, MT |
| 35 | Brosofske, Kimberley Dawn | Ph.D. | 1999 | Relationships between understory vegetation and landscape structure across multiple spatial scales in northern Wisconsin. Michigan Technological University. | — |
| 36 | Wanggsenthorn, Surachit | M.S. | 1999 | Genetic diversity in isolated bird populations following recent rain forest fragmentation. Michigan Technological University. | — |
| 37 | Rudnicki, Mark | M.S. | 1998 | Relations of climate and radial increment of western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla) in an old-growth Douglas-fir forest in southern Washington. Michigan Technological University. | Professor, Michigan Technological University |
| 38 | Saunders, Sari C. | Ph.D. | 1998 | Multiscale relationships between landscape structure and function in a managed forest. Michigan Technological University. | Research Ecologist, Coast Forest Region, BC Ministry of Forests and Range, Canada |
| 39 | Song, Bo | Ph.D. | 1998 | Three-dimensional forest canopies and their spatial relationships to understory vegetation. Michigan Technological University. | Associate Professor, Clemson University |
| 40 | Brosofske, Kimberley | M.S. | 1996 | Effects of harvesting on microclimate from small streams to uplands in western Washington. Michigan Technological University. | — |
| 41 | Silbernagel, Janet | Ph.D. | 1996 | Dialectical sequences between culture and landscape ecological approach. Michigan Technological University. | Professor, University of Wisconsin–Madison |
Past Postdocs
| Name | Institution |
|---|---|
| Mike Abraha | Licor Company |
| Karrin Alstad | -- | Xiaoli Cheng | Yunnan University |
| Jared DeForest | Ohio University |
| Gang Dong | Shanxi University |
| Ranjeet John | University of South Dakota |
| Fei Li | Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences |
| Asko Noormets | Texas A&M University |
| Zutao Ouyang | Auburn University |
| David Reed | -- |
| Changliang Shao | CAAS | Xinli Wang | MTU, retired | Susie Wu | Canada | Jing Yuan | California Department of Water Resources | Burkhard Wilske | -- |
| Terenzio Zenone | National Research Council, Rome, Italy |
| Daolan Zheng | -- |
Visiting Scholars @ LEES Lab
| Name | Institution |
|---|---|
| Amarjargal Amartuvshin | University of the Humanities, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia |
| Raikhan Beisenova | x, Kazakhstan |
| Sara Demir | Bursa Technical University, Turkey |
| Mario Elia | University of Bari, Italy |
| Vincenzo Giannico | University of Bari, Italy |
| Anna Kvashnina | Russian Federal Nature Preserve (Zapovednik), Denezhkin Kamen, Russia |
| Maira Kussainova | Kazakh National Agrarian Research University, Kazakhstan |
| Raffaele Lafortezza | University of Bari, Italy |
| Xianglan Li | Beijing Normal University, PRC |
| Byesza Sat | Özyeğin University, Turkey |
| Shiqiang Wan | Hebei University, PRC |
