As a PhD student in the Luong lab, I’ll be studying plant-pollinator interactions in grassland restorations in California using traditional pollinator survey techniques paired with floral eDNA methods. I graduated from UC Davis in 2023, and worked a variety of field based positions before joining the lab, from surveying high intensity burn scars in the Sierra Nevadas, restoring prairie on the great plains of Nebraska, surveying rangeland plant diversity across California with Point Blue, to leading a crew monitoring long term shrub health and recruitment in the Mojave desert for the Abella lab. Outside of the lab, I enjoy botanizing on my own time, gardening, and walking around. It’s impossible to choose among the dizzying diversity of plants in California’s grasslands, but my favorites include Asclepias californica, Wyethia angustifolia, and Caulanthus inflatus!

Hello! My name is Angelina and I am a Natural Resources graduate student planning to research secondary invasions under the guidance of Dr. Luong. Before pursuing my master’s degree, I attended Chico State and received a B.S. in Plant Biology. There, I was able to develop skills in both restoration and lab research. While working as a land steward at Big Chico Creek Ecological Reserve, I found a passion for rehabilitating native plant communities and was later able to connect that knowledge to my lab assistant position for the GRASS-Net project. My research interests include restoration ecology, soil health, invasive species physiology, and I hope to explore more ethnobotanical topics in the future! In my free time, I enjoy longboarding, cooking, practicing my plant identification, and bug hunting with friends. Some of my favorite plants include Aquilegia formosa, Trifolium depauperatum, and Adiantum jordanii.

Growing up in the wilds of southern Appalachia on the VA/Tenn border I developed a love and respect for nature at a young age and have always sought to be an advocate for wild places and the species that depend on them. Heading to college right out of high school and not knowing completely what field to go into, I earned a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies from Virginia Tech in 2003. I quickly fell in love with field biology and research, working a series of seasonal jobs, knowing my true passion was for plants, plant communities, and ecosystems. In 2005 I found myself in Humboldt County working with the Northern Spotted Owl and earned a BS in Botany from Humboldt State University in 2008. I have been working for the Wiyot Tribe as their botanist and Natural Resources Director since 2014, and seek to apply the knowledge I’ve learned toward the protection of ethnobotanical sites and Tribal cultural resources, lobbying for the reinstitution of indigenous land management and the application of traditional ecological knowledge in natural resources management. I enjoy spending time out in nature with my wonderful daughters Iris and Azalea, backpacking, botanizing, and playing the banjo.

Hello! I am a graduate student joining the Luong Lab at UC-Berkeley. Originally from Tidewater Virginia, I developed a love of plants and the outdoors during family trips to the mountains of New England. These interests led me to pursue a BA in Conservation Biology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where I spent many hours in the campus greenhouses escaping the Midwest winter and studying pine seedling responses to drought. After college I worked various seasonal positions and took part in two terms as an AmeriCorps member, one in the Palouse region of eastern Washington State and one in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. After working most recently as a conservation ecologist with the non-profit Pollinator Partnership, I’m excited to further explore my interests in plant ecology and the use of native seed in restoration. In my free time, I’m usually cooking, playing music, or working on something at the makerspace I’m part of. My favorite native plants are Chamaebatia foliolosa and Quercus douglasii.

Hello! My name is Lee. I’m a first-year natural resources grad student here. I grew up in New Jersey and have spent nearly all of my academic and professional career there, graduating from Rutgers University with a degree in Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources in 2017. I have a wide variety of interests in ecology and I’m fortunate to have been able to work in roles that allowed me to explore all of those interests from songbird point counts and banding to assessing forest plant communities, rare plant surveys, fire ecology, and the applications of terrestrial LiDAR. In my spare time I love hiking, mountain biking, and looking for cool plants and birds along the way. I’m still getting to know the California flora, so my favorite plants are from back home in the east, but my favorite forb is Anemonoides quinquefolia and my favorite grass is Elymus hystrix.

Hello, I am an research ecologist in the Luong Lab at UC Berkeley. I am particularly interested in functional ecology and understanding drivers of plant community assembly. Much of my current work sits at the intersection of plant ecology, data science, and translational ecology. Through GRASS-NET, I work on projects to better serve and understand the needs of natural resource managers and decision-makers. My goal is to leverage research data to build practical, accessible frameworks and tools for application. I received my M.S. in Natural Resources from Cal Poly Humboldt and my B.A. in Environmental Studies from UC Santa Cruz. My previous experience includes working as a restoration practitioner and educator in Point Blue’s Students and Teachers Restoring a Watershed program as well as working as a field botanist in the North Coast for the California Native Plant Society. In my spare time, I enjoy numerous outdoor activities including naturalizing and looking for rare plants and I also enjoy tinkering on my homelab. My favorite forbs are any and all heterotrophic plants, Lillies, and Leptosyne gigantea; my favorite grasses are Danthonia californica and Poa douglasii.

Hello! My name is Lilly. I am a sophomore at UC Berkeley pursuing an undergraduate degree in Molecular Environmental Biology with a concentration in Animal Health and Behavior. I am from the Bay Area, where I grew up hiking, scuba diving, and riding horses. I am fortunate to have worked in roles involving wildlife rehabilitation, aquatic restoration and protection, public education concerning animal welfare and health, and teaching relationship-based horsemanship. I am particularly interested in natural resource management relating to working lands conservation, sustainable ranching, and wildlife protection. My favorite native plant is Quercus garryana.

Hey! My name is Sean (he/they), and I’m a student assistant in the Luong Lab. I’m a Wildland Soil Science major with a Botany minor, and I came to Humboldt county in 2024 from Los Angeles County. I grew up near the San Gabriel Mountains, hiking and camping with my family, and I have a lot of curiosity about the chaparral and sagebrush ecosystems in that area. In my free time, I love cooking, drawing, painting, and sewing. Working in the lab has been awesome, and I really appreciate being exposed to all the research! My favorite plants from back home are California Buckwheat, Eriogonum fasciculatum, and California Sagebrush, Artemisia californica, and since working in the lab, my favorite grass species has become Danthonia californica.

Hi! I’m Bailey Glashan and I am a student lab assistant in the Luong lab. I am pursuing my undergraduate degree in Rangeland Resource Science here at Cal Poly Humboldt with an emphasis in entomology and minors in botany and indigenous peoples, natural resource use, and the environment. I am a transfer student from Santa Rosa Junior College and though I miss the chaparral and vernal pools we have down south, I have quickly fallen in love with the redwood forest and coastal prairie. I spent lots of time in community college conducting native bee surveys at Pepperwood Preserve and in manicured native gardens in urban areas. Currently I am working on an exciting undergraduate research project looking into how insect populations are affected by fixed solar panels. I grew up as an active 4-H member and raised livestock most of my life which gave me a passion for community and sustainable agriculture. When I’m not working or doing school work, I enjoy hiking, fishing, gardening, and listening to music.

Hello! My name is Ayla (she/her), and I’m a Lab Assistant in the Luong lab. I’m a sophomore here at UC Berkeley, pursuing degrees in Molecular Environmental Biology and Forestry. I grew up nearby in Pleasanton, California, where I spent much of my time hiking and adventuring in nature, and where I grew a major appreciation for oak savannas and woodlands. I’m especially interested in plant genetics, forestry (and trees in general), and prescribed fire. Since coming to Berkeley, I’ve enjoyed doing habitat restoration work supporting native plants and reducing fire risk, as well as doing forestry work like prescribed burns. I’m also a horticultural volunteer at the Berkeley Botanical Gardens, where I get to spend my days surrounded by plants. When I’m not working, I love climbing, painting, and playing folk songs on guitar. My favorite native plants are the Coast Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia) and the Arroyo Lupine (Lupinus succulentus)!

Miles Pay (he/him) is a freshman at Berkeley High School and a Lab Assistant in the Luong Lab. He is currently pursuing a high school degree and has an interest in environmental restoration, the law, and sustainable environmental policy. Miles is currently a writer for the Berkeley High Jacket, his high school newspaper, covering various topics relating to environmental restoration. Miles enjoys running on his cross country and track team, and is a Parliamentary debater for Berkeley High’s debate team. He lives in Berkeley with his parents, his twin brother, Julian, and his dog, Buddy. His favorite native species is the California Poppy (Eschscholzia Californica).

Hello! My name is Viola (she/her), and I’m a Senior at UC Berkeley studying Society and Environment with a minor in History. I hail from Quilcene, a small town on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula, where I grew up riding horses, playing music, sailing, and adventuring in the great outdoors. During the summer, I’ve worked on a habitat restoration crew, doing community education on defensible space for wildfire, and teaching sailing. I’m interested in environmental policy and natural resource management, especially in the multi-use paradigm, and the future of sustainable ranching and forestry. My favorite native plant is the trailing blackberry (Rubus ursinus)!

My name is Alyssa Pun (she/her), and I am an undergraduate researcher in the Luong Lab at UC Berkeley, where I study Conservation & Resource Management. I bring over a decade of experience in habitat restoration and land management, beginning with AmeriCorps after high school, where I first fell in love with field ecology and native plants while restoring salmon habitat in the Pacific Northwest. Since then, I’ve worked with nonprofits and public agencies in the Bay Area to plan and implement restoration projects, coordinate volunteers, and engage community members in stewardship. I’m passionate about protecting natural resources through an environmental justice lens and supporting the inclusion of Traditional Ecological Knowledge in land management. I’m especially interested in strengthening the connection between research and land managers, and advancing climate-resilient management in California grasslands. My favorite grassland plants are two clovers, Trifolium depauperatum (cow bag clover, looks like an udder!) and Trifolium microdon (cupcake clover).

Hi! I’m Jenny, and I’m currently a sophomore at UC Berkeley studying molecular environmental biology. I’m from SF and love going to the beach by my house to watch the sunset. I have helped restore parts of Golden Gate Park and worked as a junior zoologist for three years at the San Francisco Zoo, where I cared for a wide variety of animals from across the world. Among the animals I worked with, my favorites were the American kestrel, European legless lizard, and blue-tongued skinks. In my free time, I enjoy traveling, reading, and listening to music. My favorite native plant is the bush mallow.

Hello! My name is Kai Zerbo and I am a junior at the Rangeland Resource Department with a concentration in soils and botany. I came to Humboldt in 2024 from San Francisco. I have always had a deep appreciation for California’s ecosystems, specifically vernal pools, chaparral, and coastal grasslands. I am interested in studying post fire management, conservation, and soils. In my free time, I enjoy fiber arts, hiking, music, painting, and hanging out with my dog! My favorite range plant is Phacelia californica.