From Forests to Farmlands: Navigating the Tradeoffs in Land Use for Renewable Energy

As the U.S. accelerates its clean energy transition, land use conflicts between renewable energy infrastructure and agricultural or forested landscapes have become increasingly important. States are grappling with this challenge in various ways. In Massachusetts the installation of ground-mount solar systems has led to notable losses in forest carbon, biodiversity, and agricultural land productivity since 2010. This discussion will examine the tradeoffs involved in siting renewable energy projects in the Northeast and beyond. Join us to explore strategies for scaling solar energy responsibly, ensuring that we preserve the environmental and cultural values of natural and working lands. SPEAKERS Jonathan Thompson: Senior Ecologist and Research Director, Harvard Forest Jonathan Thompson is a forest landscape ecologist whose research focuses on long-term and broad-scale changes in forest ecosystems, with an emphasis on quantifying how land use - including harvest, conversion, and land protection - affects forest ecosystem processes and services. He is the Principal Investigator for the Harvard Forest Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) program, sponsored by the National Science Foundation and involving more than 100 scientists and students investigating the dynamics of the New England landscape. He also leads the New England Landscape Futures project, which collaborates with diverse stakeholders from throughout the region to build and evaluate scenarios that show how land-use choices and climate change could shape the landscape over the next 50 years. Thompson holds a PhD in Forest Ecology (2008) and a MS in Forest Policy (2004) from Oregon State University. Grace Wu: Assistant Professor, UC Santa Barbara Grace Wu is an Assistant Professor in the Environmental Studies Program at UC Santa Barbara. Before joining UCSB, Grace was a Smith Conservation Fellow at The Nature Conservancy and the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis. She was also a UC President’s Postdoctoral Fellow at the John Muir Institute of the Environment at UC Davis. She was trained in systems thinking and interdisciplinary approaches in the Energy and Resources Group at UC Berkeley. Andrew Hoffman (moderator): Dean, Penn Vet Dean Andrew Hoffman is an acclaimed researcher, clinician, teacher, and mentor who, prior to becoming Penn Vet's Dean, served as director of the Regenerative Medicine Laboratory and professor of large animal internal medicine at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. At Tufts, Hoffman has energetically contributed to all areas of veterinary research, teaching, and clinical care. His leadership of regenerative medicine and stem cell research programs resulted in important contributions to both animal and human health, demonstrating the profoundly positive impact of veterinary research. He regularly mentored faculty with an interest in clinical translational research and helped colleagues fully appreciate the career options available to them thanks to the versatile skills provided by a veterinary education. Hoffman has significant clinical experience in large animal (dairy-equine) practice and in caring for and investigating animals as diverse as dogs, cats, horses, sheep, camelids, rodents, dolphins, and wildlife. He has led and served on numerous school- and university-wide committees, including chairing the Cummings School’s Admissions Committee and is a member of the Faculty Affairs Committee of the Tufts University Faculty Senate. Hoffman is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine, past president of the Veterinary Comparative Research Society, and a member of the International Society for Stem Cell Research and International Society of Extracellular Vesicles. His research programs have received continuous funding from the National Institutes of Health for nearly 20 years. He has authored more than 100 publications, including many in leading scientific and clinical journals. Hoffman earned his undergraduate degree with honors in biology from the University of Delaware, received his veterinary degree from Cornell University, and holds a doctorate in veterinary science from the University of Guelph in Canada.