Matías Gómez-Corrales, a recent biological sciences Ph.D. graduate, and his advisor, Associate Professor Carlos Prada, have published a paper in Nature Communications, revealing key mechanisms in speciation in corals and proposing a new hypothesis on the origin of species in the ocean.

URI’s Cooperative Extension is offering its convenient Home Horticulture Certificate course, starting in January 2026, with applications for the course due by Thursday, Jan. 1

Faculty offer suggestions for holiday gifts and family activities that get children—and adults—off devices and outdoors, helping to build science literacy and the next generation of active and curious future scientists.

Among this year’s 10 recipients of the Emerging Coastal Leaders Awards, are members of the CELS community: Ben Charo (Ecology and Ecosystem Science), Megan Delatte-Guidry (Evolution and Marine Biology), Geubrina Fajria (Biological and Environmental Sciences), Aida Pauls (Fisheries Economics), and Oliver Tiliouine (Marine Affairs).

The annual symposium showcases the work of URI Fellows in energy, agriculture and food systems, summer research and outreach, on topics from brain health to veggie trials.

The Champlin Foundation has awarded URI $500,000 to purchase equipment and technology that will benefit more than 850 students annually. Funds will support three interdisciplinary proposals submitted by faculty from URI’s Colleges of the Environment and Life Sciences, Engineering, and Pharmacy.

Laura Meyerson in Natural Resources Science and Simona Trandafir (pictured) in Environmental and Natural Resource Economics are among the URI faculty receiving grants.

Drawing on the hands-on experience and mentorship he got while at URI, Joseph V Andreozzi IV ‘14, founder of Sherlock Hemp, LLC, has turned his passion for plant science into a thriving business.

World Soil Day highlights the essential role soil plays in sustaining life. URI’s Patrick Sorensen is dedicated to understanding the microorganisms that make it all work. Through cutting-edge research on soil microbial diversity and function, he reveals how unseen organisms protect water and air quality, maintain the resources we depend on, and more.

URI students are growing poinsettias, one of the most economically important holiday crops, in Camilo Villouta’s “Horticultural Plant Production” course. Managing the plants’ complex temperature, nutrition, and timing requirements builds essential skills for careers in agriculture. Read more.