History Pub  - Blast from the Past: Legacies and Resilience from Mount St. Helens Presented by Dr. Cynthia Chang

 It has been 45 years since Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. How have ecological communities recovered since this major disturbance? Come learn how plants have recolonized, survived, and adapted to this once barren environment. Discover how this natural experiment has provided valuable lessons on ecological resilience in an era of major global change. 

Dr. Cynthia Chang is an Associate Professor at University of Washington-Bothell, School of STEM, Division of Biology. She is a plant ecologist who has done long term research on Mount St. Helens since 2011. She thinks broadly about the importance of biodiversity on ecosystem resilience to global change and disturbance, as well as the importance of human diversity and inclusion in the STEM field.