| what | when | with |
|---|---|---|
| PhD: UC Davis, Davis CA | September 2021-Current | Graduate Group Ecology; Magney Lab |
| MSc: Purdue University, West Lafayette Indiana | 2019-2021 | Forestry & Natural Resources Department; Forest Ecology |
| Concentration, 3.9 GPA | ||
| Bachelors: Kalamazoo College, Kalamazoo, Michigan | 2014-2018 | Biology Major & Environmental Studies Concentration, 3.6 GPA, Cum Laude |
Benjamin Joseph Rivera
benrivera@ucdavis.edu
About Me
I am a researcher of plant ecology and current UC Davis PhD student. I was born and raised in Oregon and then received my undergraduate degree from Kalamazoo College. For my Master’s thesis at Purdue University, I studied how to control the invasive Amur honeysuckle () more effectively and its potential ability to self-pollinate. My other research interests include imperiled plant conservation, trait-based ecology, neutral theory, and biostatistics. I am continuing my studies for a PhD at UC Davis in coastal dune plant ecology and am working with a tribal land trust to focus on indigenous knowledge, ethnobotany, and restoration on coastal dunes. My career goals are to become a professor and to help encourage other underrepresented people feel welcomed in the natural sciences.
Education
Experience
| what | when | with |
|---|---|---|
| ArcGIS Consultant | 2018-2019 | Kalamazoo College Lillian Anderson Arboretum; Intermittedly |
| B4WarmED Research Intern | 2018 | University of Minnesota, Cloquet, MN |
| Arboretum Research Technician | 2015-2018 | Kalamazoo College Lillian Anderson Arboretum |
| Teaching Assistant | 2017-Current | Kalamazoo College, Purdue University, & UC Davis |
| Reseach Assistant | 2016-2020 | Kalamazoo College |
Awards
| what | when | with |
|---|---|---|
| JT Williamson Scholarship | 2014 | Kalamazoo College Scholarship |
| Enlightened Leadership Scholarship: Sustainability | 2014 | Kalamazoo College Scholarship |
| Trustee Award | 2014 | Kalamazoo College Scholarship |
| Hough Grant | 2017 | $10,000 award to pursue senior thesis |
| Senior Leadership Award | 2018 | Awarded for mentorship, teaching, and environmental stewardship |
| DOW Council | 2018 | Founding member of council for inclusion within the Sciences at Kalamazoo College |
| Purdue FNR Poster Competition Honorable Mention | 2021 | The Self-Pollination of Amur honeysuckle |
| Charles H. Michler Scholarship | 2021 | for the Outstanding Graduate Student Researcher in Forest Biology |
| Restoration Ecology Student Poster Award | 2021 | Third place in student poster comitition at ESA 2021 |
| Jastro & Shields Graduate Research Award | 2022 | $2,550 award to conduct my Ph.D. research |
| Jastro & Shields Graduate Research Award | 2023 | Amount yet to be announced |
Presentations
| what | when | with |
|---|---|---|
| Hough Grant Presentataion | 2018 | https://vimeo.com/kalamazoocollege/review/264995260/f2457b921b |
| Oshtemo Historical Society Presentation | 2018 | The Natural History of the Lillian Anderson Arboretum |
| Diebold Biology SIP Symposium | 2018 | Using Arduino-Based Microclimate Sensors to Uncover Niche or Neutral Tendencies of an Endangered Dune Thistle |
| ESA Poster Presentation | 2018 | Relative influence of environmental factors in determining distribution of an imperiled dune thistle [Cirsium pitcheri] on Great Lakes shoreline |
| Purdue FNR Poster Competition | 2021 | The Self-Pollination of Amur honeysuckle |
| https://youtu.be/zVSHCk8Ha3A | ||
| ESA Poster Presentation | 2021 | The effect of a novel herbicide adjuvant in treating Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii) |
| ESA Contributed Talk | 2022 | The Self-Compatability of Amur honeysuckle |
| Guest Lecture at American River College | 2022 | Assemble the Community: A Brief History of Community Assembly Theory |
| ESA Contributed Talk | 2023 | Plant Community Similarities Change Along an Intense Stress Gradient |
| ESA INSPIRE Session: Cómo Haces Ecología? Como Você Faz Ecologia? How Do You Do Ecology? Latine Voices in Our Community of Ecologists | 2023 | Dunes, Death, and Identity: Weathering Grad School When You Barely Know Who You Are |
Publications
Rivera, B.J., K.C. Wynne, E.B. Girdler. 2021. Large scale presence determinants do not necessarily predict individual growth of an imperiled dune thistle (Cirsium pitcheri). Great Lakes Botanist, 60(3-4), 97-109.
Santangelo, J.S., Ness, R.W., Cohan, B., Fitzpatrick, C.R., Innes, S.G., Koch, S., et al (including B.J. Rivera). 2022. Global urban environmental change drives adaptation in white clover. Science, 375, 1275–1281.
Rivera, B., Meilan, R., Scharf, M., Karve, R., & Jenkins, M. 2022. The effect of a novel herbicide adjuvant in treating Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii). Invasive Plant Science and Management, 15(2), 81-88. doi:10.1017/inp.2022.15
Rivera, B., Meilan, R., Jenkins, M., 2023. The Self-Compatibility of Amur Honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii). In prep.