Christopher W. Swanston

Research Ecologist

Chris Swanston is the Forest Service Climate Advisor and Director for the Office of Sustainability and Climate. Chris spent 10+ years leading the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science, a partnership designed to provide climate adaptation services to all land managers. He also served as Director of the USDA Northern Forests Climate Hub and led the Climate, Fire, and Carbon Cycle Sciences research group.

Dr. Swanston studied the processes that control organic carbon dynamics in forest soils. Soil carbon is a fundamental component of ecosystem structure, and understanding the forms and fate of belowground carbon helps us predict and mitigate the effects of management, natural disturbance, and climate change. Dr. Swanston has been especially interested in how the physical and biological components of soil ecosystems interact to stabilize carbon, and how this interaction changes in different forest ecosystems. His research has made extensive use of radiocarbon and organic matter fractionation techniques to increase the sensitivity of estimates of soil carbon storage and flux.

Dr. Swanston has worked with researchers and land managers to begin understanding the potential effects of climate change on forested ecosystems. Given the inherent uncertainties of the changing climate and forest responses, he has had continued interest in helping design approaches to adapting our forests to altered climate regimes.