UCLA Center for Tropical Research

The @UCLA Practicum Team is raising funds to travel to Cameroon for critical tropical research and advancing the #ebonyproject. They’ve reached 32% of the goal thanks to 54 donors. Help us get them there: crowdfunding.ucla.edu/project/48675/…

Prof. Thomas Smith (UCLA) @UCLA_CTR ’s founding director and Nicholas Russo, a recent PhD student, share their knowledge in a new Yale Environment 360 article. @UCLAIoES

Researchers are finding a disturbing uptick in the trade of African hornbills, both in local voodoo markets and globally on the internet. Conservationists want protections for these birds, which play a key role in seeding African forests. e360.yale.edu/features/afric…

@VMZaun will join the panel From Data to Decisions: Research Driving Climate-Ready Development in the #CongoBasin, one of the world’s most critical ecosystems. Join us at #COP30 📍 Forest Pavilion, Blue Zone | Nov 18 | 11:50AM–12:50PM

@VMZaun joins the @CBCSI panel at COP30 to moderate a discussion about building scientific capacity for a resilient #CongoBasin. 📍 Blue Zone, Pavilion B51 | Nov 14 | 12:45–13:45

Come listen to Dr. Zaunbrecher @VMZaun at #COP30 - UK Pavilion on Nov 13th

📣 A Life Among Elephants - US Tour Dates! 📍 Indianapolis - Sept 27 📍 Chicago - Oct 1 📍 Los Angeles - Oct 9 📍 New York - Oct 15 Don't miss this award-winning film about Dr. Iain Douglas-Hamilton’s mission to save Africa’s elephants. 🐘 🎟️ Tickets: bit.ly/3K9674J

CTR joined COP16 in Colombia, and will be at COP30 in Brazil, to push for science-driven, community-led solutions. What happens there will define our planet’s future. Read more on pg 7 of our newsletter: #page=1" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">ioes.ucla.edu/wp-content/upl… Support/Connect: lnkd.in/garYX9TY #Tropics

Grad students: Apply now to the PATHWAYS Program for interdisciplinary water research in Latin America. Summer school in Ecuador + funded fieldwork. Deadline: Oct 2, 2025 Details: transect-of-the-americas.wsu.edu/pathways-progr…

Oceans are warming, acidifying, and under pressure. CTR scientists are analyzing tropical marine DNA to reveal how organisms, such as coral, can fight back. Read more on pg 19 of our newsletter: #page=1" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">ioes.ucla.edu/wp-content/upl… Support/Connect: lnkd.in/garYX9TY

They’re called the lungs of the planet, but how much longer will they breathe? With The PANGEA Project, 800+ researchers unite to decode the future of tropical forests. Read more on pg 13 of our newsletter: #page=1" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">ioes.ucla.edu/wp-content/upl… Support/Connect: lnkd.in/garYX9TY #PANGEA

@CBI_UCLA scientists and @TaylorGuitars explain to @npratc why African elephant poop is so important! Listen: npr.org/2025/08/27/nx-…

@CBI_UCLA Scientists discover how elephant extinction threatens everything from rainforests to musical instruments newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/eleph…

In Cameroon, injury deaths are 2x higher than in the U.S., and there’s no 9-1-1 system. However, the PASE program is building sustainable trauma systems, changing this story. Learn more on pg 9 of our newsletter: #page=1" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">ioes.ucla.edu/wp-content/upl… Support/Connect: lnkd.in/garYX9TY

New online! Plant genome sequencing needs to go tropical bit.ly/4mqYEfO

Important perspective on #globalequity in plant genomics from @UCLA_CTR co-director Felipe Zapata: “Plant #genome sequencing needs to go #tropical” in @NatRevBiodiv A call to expand genomic research beyond temperate zones. Read here: nature.com/articles/s4435…

The Ebony Project started with conserving West African ebony, and now it’s shaping sustainability efforts within Cameroon communities. Learn more on pg 18 of our newsletter: #page=1" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">ioes.ucla.edu/wp-content/upl… Support/Connect: giving.ucla.edu/campaign/?&amo…

CTR scientists retraced Humboldt’s journey along the Orinoco, studying palms that thrive across the rainforest-savanna transition and provide clues to climate resilience in tropical ecosystems. Read more on Pg 10: #page=1" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">ioes.ucla.edu/wp-content/upl… Support/Connect: giveto.ucla.edu/fund/center-fo…

@IITA_CGIAR Cameroon and @CBI_UCLA is hiring a Participatory Mapping Consultant for the INFORBIO Project. Work with communities in eastern Cameroon to map land use and support restoration planning. Apply by Aug 14. ioes.ucla.edu/jobs/call-for-…