Smithsonian Environmental Research Center

Understanding Ecosystems for a Sustainable Future

The Reed Education Center and surrounding trailheads are closed to the public until early April 2023 for maintenance. Our trails are open but only accessible from the trailhead near the main campus. Parking is available in the gravel lot on the main campus. Read Plan Your Visit for information on where to park, updated maps and hours, safety, and more.

The Woodlawn History Center is open Fri. & Sat. with extended hours from 10am-2pm!

Global Change Ecology

Principal Investigator

Genevieve Noyce

NoyceG@si.edu

443-482-2351

Global Change Ecology Projects

Though there is a great deal of interest in how rising CO2 and nitrogen impact ecosystems together, very few long-term field studies have manipulated both.

Carbon Dioxide, Nitrogen, & Marsh Elevation
The first experiment on the marsh, and the longest-running of its kind in the world, began in 1987 under the guidance of plant physiologist Bert Drake.

Elevated Carbon Dioxide and Plant Communities
The Global Change Research Wetland is dedicated to unraveling the complex ecological processes that confer stability on coastal marshes as they respond to global environmental change.

Global Change Research Wetland (GCREW)
Warming and elevated CO₂ experiment in the Global Change Research Wetland. Heat lamps warm the plants from above, while cables heat the soil.

Salt Marsh Accretion Response to Temperature eXperiment (SMARTX)

Global Change Ecology Projects

Carbon Dioxide, Nitrogen, & Marsh Elevation

Elevated Carbon Dioxide and Plant Communities

Global Change Research Wetland (GCREW)

Salt Marsh Accretion Response to Temperature eXperiment (SMARTX)