Yolanda Chen, Professor
- Ph.D. Dept. of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, 2001
- B.S. Natural Resource Management, Rutgers University, NJ 1995
I am interested in how historical and contemporary human activities shape the ecology and evolution of insect as pests. My broad goals are to understand how to “farm with nature” within a globalized world. I am interested in basic questions, such as how has the origin of agriculture shaped insect-plant interactions, as well as applied questions on exploiting insect ecology and evolution to improve pest control. I am particularly interested in how insects have been able to evolve so rapidly and successfully to anthropogenic change. I have a wide array of interests including: pest evolution, insect-plant interactions, crop domestication, evolutionary ecology, population genetics, phylogeography, epigenetics, genomics, insecticide resistance, and how biodiversity is shaped within the Anthropocene.
Outside of science, I love to eat, cook, garden, explore the outdoors, and travel.
Other Languages: Mandarin Chinese (Fluent-oral, aural), Spanish (Intermediate)
C. V.
12/30/19 Interview on “People Behind the Science”
Postdoctoral Researcher
Dr. Joe Gunn, Postdoctoral Research
Ph. D. University of Missouri
Graduate Students
Andrea Campbell, Ph. D. candidate
I see food insecurity as one of the world’s pressing social and economic issues that will only intensify with population growth, degrading land use practices, and climate change. This is the broader issue that I hope to serve throughout my career and is a driving force behind where I find myself today. I am principally interested in plant-insect interactions and I enjoy exploring the possibility of exploiting natural interactions such as host location and mating for ecologically-based pest management solutions in agriculture. My thesis will examine patterns of emergence and mating in swede midge to maximize the efficacy of pheromone mating disruption technologies.
Blair Christensen, MPH, Ph.D candidate
I received my BSES in Entomology from the University of Georgia and my MPH in Biostatistics from Georgia State University. Before joining the lab, I worked as high school science teacher in La Nucia, Spain and as an epidemiologist for the Georgia Department of Health. I am studying how pest insects survive and thrive in stressful environments, focusing on gene regulation, epigenetics and metabolic resistance. When I’m not spending time with the Colorado Potato Beetle, I enjoy sci-fi/fantasy/horror, writing, arts, and being outdoors.
Alex Kissonergis, Ph. D. student
I attended the University of Wyoming, where I received a B.S. in Biology. From a young age, I’ve been fascinated with how organisms adapt and change, a curiosity that has since been
refined to an interest in the rapid adaptation and evolution of pest insects. As a member of the IAEL, I work with the Colorado Potato Beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata), investigating how stressors, such as insecticide exposure, influence genetic and epigenetic mechanisms. My goal is to uncover processes driving rapid adaptation and help contribute to the development of effective pest management strategies. Outside the lab, you can find me skiing, mountaineering, and reading science-fiction.
Jorge A. Ruiz-Arocho, Ph. D. candidate
Broadly, my interests are centered around entomology, arthropodology, and ecology. Specifically, I’m interested in understanding how anthropogenic effects mold arthropod populations and biodiversity. I am studying how crop domestication in Mexico has shaped the insect biodiversity associated with these plants. My studies will be focused on wild progenitors and cultivated crops and the insects associated with them across multiple Mexican states. Also, I’m interested in plant-insect interactions and arthropod taxonomy, biogeography, and food webs. My hobbies include reading, drawing, cooking, hiking and everything else that includes nature.
Vincent Tamakloe, Ph.D. Student
I hold a BS in Animal Biology and Conservation Science and a Master’s in Entomology from the University of Ghana. I am interested in understanding how invasive pests influence agricultural systems and leveraging their bioecology for sustainable management. At the IAEL, my work focuses on deploying and optimizing pheromone mating disruption techniques to manage midge (Contarinia nasturtii) in brassica crops. Outside the lab, I enjoy playing soccer and listening to music.
Sydney Miller, Lead Technician; Vermont Bee Lab, MS Student
I manage the day-to-day operations at the Vermont Bee Lab and help teach summer beekeeping classes at UVM. I am a master’s student in the Plant and Soil Science department at UVM, investigating hygienic behavior and its interaction with a gut parasite, Nosema, in honey bees. I am passionate about engaging with diverse agricultural stakeholders and have led an initiative to connect pesticide applicators and beekeepers in Vermont through FieldWatch, an online mapping platform that helps reduce unintended pesticide exposures to bees.
Graduate Alumni
Jatinder Singh Sangha (Ph. D. 2007, University of Philippines Los Baños)
Research scientist Crop Physiologist, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
Victor Izzo (Ph. D. 2013)
Lecturer, Dept. of Plant and Soil Sciences
Gemelle Brion (M.Sc. 2015)
Soil Conservationist, USDA NRCS, Eastern Shore, MD
Tara Madsen-Steigmeyer (Ph. D. 2014; advised by Prof. Neil Tsutsui, UC Berkeley)
Rachel Schattman (Ph.D. 2016; advised by Prof. Ernesto Mendez)
Assistant Professor of Sustainable Agriculture, University of Maine
Chase Stratton, (Ph.D. 2018)
Assistant Professor, Delaware State University
Elisabeth Hodgdon, (Ph.D. 2019)
Extension Vegetable Specialist
Cornell Cooperative Extension
CCE Clinton County
Dave Landay, (M.S. in Complex Systems 2019)
Data Scientist
Optimal Solutions, Inc.
Sam Zonay, (M.S. in Complex Systems 2019)
Data Scientist
Rotunda Solutions
Kristia
n Brevik, (Ph.D. 2020)
Lecturer, Rubenstein School, University of Vermont
Artist – http://www.kristianbrevik.com/
Erika Bueno, (Ph. D. 2023)
Postdoctoral researcher, UC Davis
Undergraduate Alumni (Thesis students)
Sam Bjorklun (2024 BS Environmental Science)
Ethan Dean (2021, BS Biology) Ph. D. student, Dept. of Entomology, Penn State University Emma Schoeppner (2019, BS Ecological Agriculture) MS student, Dept. of Entomology, North Carolina State University
Kathryn Jacobs (2018, BS Ecological Agriculture)
Justine Samuel (2018, BS Biology, Honors) Ph. D. student at University of Cincinnati
Paolo Filho (2017, BS Ecological Agriculture)
Maggie Williams (2017, BS Environmental Science)
Ross Pillischer (2017, BS Biology) Veterinary School at University of Pennsylvania
Sean Quigley (2020, BS Microbial and Molecular Genetics)
Phoebe Judge (2017, BS Environmental Sciences, Columbia University)
Samuel Zuckerman (2016, BS Environmental Science) Ph. D. student at the University of New Hampshire
Anna Grubb (2015, BS Environmental Science)
Hannah Eiseman (2014, BS Zoology) M. S. Student at Tufts University
Danielle Bartolanzo (2014, BS Zoology) MPh, SAS Data Analyst/Statistican II at The Henry M.Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine
Joe Labrum (2012, BS Biology)
Monica Beers (2012, BS Environmental Science)
Jordan Armstrong (2012, BS Biology)
Nathan Harriman Mercer, BS Biology 2010.
Michelle Gorayeb, BS Biology 2009.
Collaborators
Andrei Alyokhin, University of Maine, USA
Julio Bernal, Texas A & M University, USA
Betty Benrey, Université de Neuchâtel, Switzerland
Angelica Cíbrian-Jaramillo, LANGEBIO-CINVESTAV, Mexico
Rebecca Hallett, University of Guelph, Canada
Christy Hoepting, Cornell University Cooperative Extension, USA
Leena Lindstrӧm, University of Jyväskylä, Finland
Stephanie McKay, University of Vermont, USA
Cesar Rodriguez-Saona, Rutgers University, USA
Sean Schoville, University of Wisconsin, USA