Colleen M Iversen
Distinguished Staff Scientist and Group Leader (Plant-Soil Interactions Group)
Bio
About me
I am an ecosystem ecologist who uses a variety of field and laboratory techniques to understand and predict how ecosystems are shaped by climatic change. Specifically, I work at the root-soil interface to investigate how atmospheric and climatic change alters belowground carbon and nutrient cycling.
My science takes me to a number of interesting and beautiful ecosystems from bogs to temperate forests to Arctic tundra, and I lead a team that curates the largest root trait database in the world, FRED.
Please see www.colleeniversen.com and https://colleeniversen.ornl.gov for more information!
Recent publications of interest
Please see http://www.colleeniversen.com/publications.html for more publications!
Iversen CM, Latimer J, Brice DJ, Childs J, Vander Stel HM, Graham J, Griffiths N, Malhotra A, Norby RJ, Olehieser K, Phillips J, Salmon VG, Sebestyen SD, Yang X, Hanson PJ. 2022. Whole-ecosystem warming increases plant-available nitrogen and phosphorus in the SPRUCE bog. Ecosystems, on-line.
Defrenne CE, Childs J, Fernandez CW, Taggart M, Nettles WR, Allen MF, Hanson PJ, Iversen CM. 2021. High‐resolution minirhizotrons advance our understanding of root‐fungal dynamics in an experimentally warmed peatland. Plants People Planet 3: 640 - 652. Part of a Special Issue on Mycorrhizas for a Changing World.
Defrenne CE, Childs J, Fernandez CW, Taggart M, Nettles WR, Allen MF, Hanson PJ, Iversen CM. 2021. High‐resolution minirhizotrons advance our understanding of root‐fungal dynamics in an experimentally warmed peatland. Plants People Planet 3: 640 - 652. Part of a Special Issue on Mycorrhizas for a Changing World.
Freschet GT, Pagès L, Iversen CM, et al. 2021. A starting guide to root ecology: strengthening ecological concepts and standardizing root classification, sampling, processing and trait measurements. New Phytologist 232: 973 - 1122.
Iversen CM, McCormack ML. 2021. Filling gaps in our understanding of belowground plant traits across the world: An introduction to a Virtual Issue. New Phytologist 231: 2097 - 2103. This is an introduction to a Virtual Special Issue that highlights new belowground understanding gained from more than 40 awesome papers published in New Phytologist over just the last 2 years!
Weigelt A, Mommer L, Andraczek K, Iversen CM, et al. 2021. An integrated framework of plant form and function: The belowground perspective. New Phytologist 232: 42 - 59.
Bergman J, Weigelt A, van der Plas F, Laughlin DC, Kuyper TW, Guerrero-Ramirez N, Valverde-Barrantes OJ, Bruelheide H, Freschet GT, Iversen CM et al. 2020. The fungal collaboration gradient dominates the root economics space in plants. Science Advances 6: eaba3756.
Iversen CM, Bolton WR, Rogers A, Wilson CJ, Wullschleger SD. 2020. Building a culture of safety and trust in team science. Eos 101.
Malhotra A, Brice D, Childs J, Graham JD, Hobbie EA, Vander Stel H, Feron SC, Hanson PJ, Iversen CM. 2020. Peatland warming strongly increases fine-root growth. PNAS 117: 17627 - 17634. Highlighted by Science Magazine, and also here by ORNL!
Iversen CM. 2019. New Phytologist Associate Editor Profile. New Phytologist 223: 530 - 531.
Iversen CM, Childs J, Norby RJ, Ontl TA, Kolka RK, Brice DJ, McFarlane KJ, Hanson PJ. 2018. Fine-root growth in a forested bog is seasonally dynamic, but shallowly distributed in nutrient-poor peat. Plant and Soil 424: 123-143.
Iversen CM, McCormack ML, Powell AS, Blackwood CB, Freschet GT, Kattge J, Roumet C, Stover DB, Soudzilovskaia NA, Valverde-Barrantes OJ, van Bodegom PM, Violle C. 2017. Viewpoints: A global Fine-Root Ecology Database to address belowground challenges in plant ecology. New Phytologist 215: 15-26.
Iversen CM, Sloan VL, Sullivan PF, Euskirchen ES, McGuire AD, Norby RJ, Walker AP, Warren JM, Wullschleger SD. 2015. The unseen iceberg: Plant roots in arctic tundra (Tansley Review). New Phytologist 205: 34-58.
McCormack ML, Dickie IA, Eissenstat DM, Fahey TJ, Fernandez CW, Guo D, Helmisaari H-S, Hobbie EA, Iversen CM, et al. 2015. Redefining fine roots improves understanding of below-ground contributions to terrestrial biosphere processes (Tansley Review). New Phytologist 207: 505-518.
Awards
Please see http://www.colleeniversen.com/honorsandawards.html for more information!
Highly Cited Researcher, Web of Science Group, Clarivate Analytics (2019 and 2020)
‘In recognition of exceptional research performance demonstrated by production of multiple highly cited papers that rank in the top 1% for field and year in Cross-Field.’
Science Communicator Award, UT-Battelle Awards Night (2019)
‘In recognition of Colleen’s many contributions to science communication and outreach, and to her ability to present science in a compelling manner to audiences of all ages.'
‘In recognition of Colleen’s many contributions to science communication and outreach, and to her ability to present science in a compelling manner to audiences of all ages.'
Director’s Award for Outstanding Individual Accomplishment in Mission Support, UT-Battelle Awards Night (2019)
‘Among the many achievements recognized at the 2019 UT-Battelle Awards Night, yours was selected as an exceptional contribution to our success.'
‘Among the many achievements recognized at the 2019 UT-Battelle Awards Night, yours was selected as an exceptional contribution to our success.'
Inaugural cohort, New Voices in Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2018 - 2020)
'The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are launching the 'New Voices in Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine' initiative to identify outstanding early-career science, engineering, and medicine (SEM) leaders. They will engage in communicating the evidence base for addressing national and global challenges to provide new perspectives on issues of importance to the community represented by the National Academies, and to help identify ways to expand the diversity of expertise that is brought to all of the Academies' convening and advisory activities.'
'The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are launching the 'New Voices in Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine' initiative to identify outstanding early-career science, engineering, and medicine (SEM) leaders. They will engage in communicating the evidence base for addressing national and global challenges to provide new perspectives on issues of importance to the community represented by the National Academies, and to help identify ways to expand the diversity of expertise that is brought to all of the Academies' convening and advisory activities.'
Early Career Fellow of the Ecological Society of America (2017 - 2021)
'Elected for her leadership and creativity in linking experimentation and modeling to advance ecological understanding of the influence of fine plant roots on the fate of vast pools of carbon and nutrients held in the soils of diverse biomes.'
'Elected for her leadership and creativity in linking experimentation and modeling to advance ecological understanding of the influence of fine plant roots on the fate of vast pools of carbon and nutrients held in the soils of diverse biomes.'
Stanley I. Auerbach Early-Career Award for Excellence in Environmental Sciences (2012)
Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Finalist in New Phytologist Tansley Medal competition (2010)
Digging deeper: Fine-root responses to rising atmospheric CO2 concentration in forested ecosystems'.
Highlighted in ‘The New Phytologist Tansley medal’
Digging deeper: Fine-root responses to rising atmospheric CO2 concentration in forested ecosystems'.
Highlighted in ‘The New Phytologist Tansley medal’
Distinguished Achievement Award for Post-Graduate Research (2010)
Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory