The JGI is eager to work and share our tools with a widening circle of researchers. That’s why each year we look for novel research projects — aligned with DOE missions and from PIs who have not led any previously-accepted proposals — through the New Investigator call under our Community Science Program.
Below find a list of researchers whose proposals were accepted for 2024. Harnessing the JGI’s resources, these researchers will dive into a range of projects spanning the resilience of desert grasslands to the metabolic savviness of microbial ecosystems at the forest floor and along ocean shores. Their results could bring key insights into how our planet’s nutrient cycles are regulated, and the ways organisms can adapt to climate change and environmental disturbances.
Proposals are accepted year-round for this annual call; the next deadline for proposal submission is October 4, 2024, for inclusion in the December 2024 review. You can also find more information about the JGI’s various proposal calls here.
| Name | Affiliation | Proposal Title |
| Bulseco, Ashley | University of New Hampshire | Exploring the microbial response to salt marsh restoration and its connection to carbon and nitrogen cycling |
| Conway, Jonathan | Princeton University | Metagenomic sequencing of the rhizosphere during drought to enable engineering of microbiome-mediated resilience |
| Cusick, Kathleen | University of Maryland, Baltimore County | Draft genome and RNA-sequencing to examine the link between secondary metabolite synthesis and copper detoxification in the algal (dinoflagellate) species Pyrodinium bahamense |
| Erickson, Katie | University of California, Davis | Functional impacts of a chromosomal inversion on eelgrass (Zostera marina) performance under marine heatwave conditions |
| Glodowska, Martyna | Radboud University (Netherlands) | Rising tides, shifting gasses: Impacts of salinization on peatland ecosystems |
| Korenblum, Elisa | The Agricultural Research Organization, Volcani Institute (Israel) | Exploring the climate change effects on the rhizosphere microbiome functions of Brachypodium wild populations in Israel |
| Longley, Reid | Los Alamos National Laboratory | Genomics and transcriptomics of Mucoromycota and their endobacteria from arid grasslands |
| Maillard, François | Lund University (Sweden) | Deciphering the oxidative mechanisms of chitin degradation in ectomycorrhizal fungi: a legacy from brown rot ancestors? |
| Martínez-Pérez, Clara | ETH-Zurich (Switzerland) | Community composition and elemental fluxes in cultured microalgae-bacteria assemblages |
| Martínez Martínez, Joaquin | Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Science | Identifying the microbial and viral players that influence coastal phytoplankton bloom dynamics in the Gulf of Mexico |
| McDonald, Mark | Argonne National Lab | Breaking the fast: Investigating the relationship between microbial function and carbon degradation following permafrost thaw |
| Ruytinx, Joske | Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Belgium) | Radionuclide tolerance in the Suillus–Pinus ectomycorrhizal system |
| Simonsen, Anna | Florida International University | Effects of soil-warming on plant rhizosphere microbiomes in tropical forests |
| Skoog, Emilie | University of California, San Diego | Development of metagenomic and metatranscriptomic data for the discovery of novel biogeochemical processes in Orca Basin |
| Sogin, Maggie | University of California, Merced | Seasonal effects on microbial carbon cycling within the seagrass rhizosphere and sediments |
| Tabima Restrepo, Javier | Clark University | Diversity and evolution of secondary metabolism in a commensal cosmopolitan genus, Basidiobolus |
| Turchetto-Zolet, Andreia C | Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil) | Microbiome of the neotropical tree species Eugenia uniflora L (Myrtaceae): Implications for evolution and conservation under a changing world |
| Vannette, Rachel | University of California, Davis | Genomic insights into the ecology and metabolism of a bee-associated lipophilic yeast |
| Winegar, Peter | University of California, Berkeley | Whole genome sequencing, assembly and annotation of Veratrum californicum and Veratrum nigrum |
| Yanuka-Golub, Keren | The Institute of Applied Research, The Galilee Society (Israel) | Investigating microbial dynamics as a key factor for assessing the carbon and greenhouse gas budget of restored wetlands |
| Zhao, Jun | University of Florida | Coupling taxon-specific soil carbon sequestration to the recovery of nitrogen transformation after environmental disturbance |