Cooperative Extension is welcoming applications for the second year of a program that connects New England military veterans and beginning farmers with opportunities in agriculture. The University of Rhode Island Boots to Bushels program is a comprehensive nine-month market garden training program for beginning farmers, military veterans, and their family members.

The University of Rhode Island inducted 11 retired faculty and staff members–including three from CELS–into the Lifetime Service Society honoring them for 40 years or more of service to the University.

Awards recognize graduate leaders focused on science communication, public policy, and coastal resiliency and were selected based on academic achievement and demonstrated potential as future leaders.

Nic Fisk, assistant professor of cell and molecular biology, uses computational biology and bioinformatics to research cancer.

Associate Professor of Agroecology John Taylor’s research explores how urban farmers and gardeners are using alternative food networks, and the lessons that could be applied to broader food policy.

This month’s Teaching Excellence Spotlight features Michelle Peach, Clinical Assistant Professor and Program Coordinator for the Master of Environmental Science and Management Program. ” I hope students learn to see the natural world in new and interesting ways and that they develop a stronger personal connection to the natural world,” she says.

Undergraduate students majoring in Medical Laboratory Science work alongside professionals in URI’s Health Services as interns. Among other responsibilities, they run diagnostic testing, perform urine dipstick analysis, prepare samples, and set up slides for microscopic examination.

For 26 years, URI’s Metcalf Institute, which is based in the College of Environment and Life Sciences, has been training journalists and scientists to be better science communicators. As climate change accelerates and misinformation proliferates, its work is more important than ever.

Megan DeLaurier, an environmental science major with a minor in soil science, placed eighth in the recent Northeast Regional Collegiate Soils contest.

A biological and environmental sciences master’s student, Margit Burgess’ interviewed homeowners about their current landscaping habits and views on barriers and motivations for shifting to practices that enrich biodiversity.