This week Mae Macfarlane interviews Dr. Chip Small, a professor from the Biology Department and the Department of Earth, Environment, and Society. Dr. Small's research focuses on nutrient cycling, which is the process of transferring energy and matter between living organisms and non-living parts of the environment. He applies this concept to sustainability, studying how natural ecosystems differ from urban ecosystems and through his work, Dr. Small aims to understand the ways in which nutrient cycling can be harnessed to create more sustainable urban environments.
Cooney, Ellen M. et al. “Tale of Two Storms: Impact of Extreme Rain Events on the Biogeochemistry of Lake Superior.” Journal of geophysical research. Biogeosciences 123.5 (2018): 1719–1731. https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2017JG004216
Finlay, J. C., Small, G. E., & Sterner, R. W. (2013). Human Influences on Nitrogen Removal in Lakes. Science, 342(6155), 247–250. http://www.jstor.org/stable/42619828
Shrestha, P., Small, G. E., & Kay, A. (2020). Quantifying nutrient recovery efficiency and loss from compost-based urban agriculture. PLoS One, 15(4) https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0230996
Small, G. E., Osborne, S., Shrestha, P., & Kay, A. (2019). Measuring the Fate of Compost-Derived Phosphorus in Native Soil below Urban Gardens. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(20) https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16203998
Small, Gaston E. et al. “Potential for High Contribution of Urban Gardens to Nutrient Export in Urban Watersheds.” Landscape and urban planning 229 (2023): 104602–. https://www-sciencedirect-com.ezproxy.stthomas.edu/science/article/pii/S0169204622002511
Small, G. E., Mcdougall, R., & Metson, G. S. (2019). Would a sustainable city be self-sufficient in food production? International Journal of Design & Nature and Ecodynamics, 14(3), 178-194. https://doi.org/10.2495/DNE-V14-N3-178-194
Wang, Ze et al. “Soil Quality in Urban Forests Under Different Understory Management Practices.” Land degradation & development 34.3 (2023): 899–910. https://onlinelibrary-wiley-com.ezproxy.stthomas.edu/doi/full/10.1002/ldr.4504