Some good news to share

Last March the National Science Foundation announced a new program, Dimensions of Biodiversity. Quoting from the program's synopsis:

The Dimensions of Biodiversity initiative seeks to characterize biodiversity on Earth by using integrative, innovative approaches to fill rapidly the most substantial gaps in our understanding of the diversity of life on Earth. This campaign will take a broad view of biodiversity, and in its initial phase will focus on the integration of genetic, taxonomic, and functional dimensions of biodiversity. Successful proposals should integrate these three dimensions to understand interactions and feedbacks among them. While this focus complements several core NSF programs, it differs by requiring that multiple dimensions of biodiversity be addressed simultaneously, in innovative or novel ways, to understand the roles of biodiversity in critical ecological and evolutionary processes..

Why do I mention this program seven months later? Because I am lucky enough to be part of one of the first projects funded. Here's the press release from NSF announcing the first set of projects funded under the program.

Our project focuses on the genus Protea and the genus Pelargonium. It builds on work that my colleagues Cindi Jones, Carl Schlichting, and I have been involved in over the last decade or more. Working with Justin Borevitz (University of Chicago) and Andrew Latimer (University of California -- Davis) we will determine the genetic basis of trait differences in the two genera and explore the relationship between diversity in our groups and the diversity and stability of the surrounding community. You can find more information about our project on a wiki that we set up last weekend.