Associate Professor
Jennifer Blesh is a broadly trained agroecologist who uses interdisciplinary research approaches to understand how different agrifood systems impact environmental quality and social justice. Her ecological research focuses on soil nitrogen and carbon biogeochemical cycles, agroecosystem nutrient management, and legume nitrogen fixation. Current projects include assessing land reform processes in the Brazilian Cerrado for socioecological resilience, and research in the U.S. centered on improving nitrogen retention in farm fields. Her research program pays particular attention to alternative production-consumption relations, and is guided by a pragmatic motivation to support development of more ecologically sustainable and equitable food systems.
Prior to joining SEAS, Jennifer was a post-doctoral fellow hosted by the Federal University of Mato Grosso in Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Brazil, and Cornell University. She earned M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Cornell University in Soil and Crop Sciences, and a B.S. degree from the University of Georgia in Ecology. Blesh Lab website link
