Saara DeWalt
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Saara J. DeWalt is an American biologist who specializes in plant ecology, and has co-authored over 50 peer-reviewed publications in scientific journals.[1] She has been the dean of the College of Biological Sciences at the University of Minnesota since 2023,[2] and was formerly the chair of the Department of Biological Sciences at Clemson University (2019–2023).[3]
DeWalt spent nearly 20 years at Clemson University's Department of Biology, starting as an assistant professor in 2005, gaining tenure in 2011 and being promoted to full professor in 2017. She served as interim chair of the department starting in 2018 before becoming chair in 2019.[3]
Since 2023, DeWalt has been the dean of the College of Biological Sciences as well as a professor in the Department of Plant and Microbial Biology at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.[2]
DeWalt has been actively involved in The Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation (ATBC) where she served as President-elect (2019), President (2020) and Past-President (2021). Earlier she was involved in creating mentoring circles[4] to support new researchers and worked to increase broader regional inclusion in the organization.
Scientific contributions
DeWalt studies forest ecosystems around the world, focusing on the neotropics.[5] Her published papers cover a wide variety of topics directed at understanding the biodiversity, evolution and ecology of complex plant communities.[6][7][8] Key questions addressed in her studies include trying to understand why some plants are invasive when introduced to new environments but are less abundant in their original environments.[9] Her research also assesses forest succession patterns and impacts of species diversity and abundance on the health of forest communities.[7]
