Research Interest Tropical forests including mangroves, forested wetlands, and urban forests; ecosystem functioning including productivity, nutrient cycling, succession, and response to natural and anthropogenic disturbances; social-ecological studies including natural processes of novelty and emerging novel ecosystems. In addition to continued interest in previous research areas, current research also includes an assessment of the role of tropical forests in global processes; ecological studies of tropical tree plantations; comparisons of plantations and natural forests; response of tropical forests to disturbances; studies of tropical wetlands; studies of introduced species; and the ecological characteristics of novel tropical forests including urban ecosytems.