Research Interests
I am interested interested in how modern human societies affect and depend on ecosystems, value nature, and articulate such values. As a field ecologist, I have studied tree and forest responses to fire, insects, human land use, and climate in western ponderosa pine forests and eastern mixed forests of the Hudson Valley and Shawangunk region. I also study the role of ecological science in the sustainable stewardship of ecosystems, with a special focus on protected wildlands and designated wilderness. 

Teaching
I am an associate professor in Biology at SUNY New Paltz, where I teach general ecology, conservation biology, plant ecophysiology, global change biology, and human ecology. I also mentor undergraduate students in independent research projects in ecology and sustainability.

Education
BS – Conservation & Resource Studies, UC Berkeley
Senior Synthesis: Environmental Ethics

MM – Music Performance, San Diego State University
Masters of Music – Jazz Studies

PhD – Organismal Biology & Ecology, University of Montana
Dissertation: Wildfire responses and tree longevity in old-growth ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir forests.

Post-Doctoral Research – Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies
Culturally-Relevant Ecology and Environmental Science Literacy

Current CV
E – Keeling-CV SP 2023