Rachael Bay, an EERREC trainer and faculty member in the UC Davis Department of Evolution and Ecology, has been named a member of the 2021 Class of Packard Fellows!

The Packard Foundation selects Packard Fellows for Science and Engineering for their research promise, creativity, and mentorship, and provides $875,000 over five years to support research by the Fellows. According to Richard Alley, Chair of the Packard Fellowships Advisory Panel, “Packard Fellows are shaping the future of research and academia, and the future of our world as we understand it.”

Bay uses a genomic approach coupled with ecological observations and physiological experiments to understand how and when organisms adapt to climate, with the goal of developing a predictive framework for evolutionary responses to climate change. Her study systems include coral reefs, California's rocky intertidal and seagrass meadows, and both resident and migratory birds.

In summer 2022, Bay and her students traveled to French Polynesia for field work. Moreover, Bay plans to use Packard funds to expand this research: “The Packard fellowship not only allows us to broaden our geographic scope, but also enhances our ability to establish long-term presence in a single place and monitor real-time dynamics of a coral population over a longer period of time.” 

The joint Bay and Grosberg labs hosted EERREC scholars Joanne Lam and Carlo Lo in 2021. Bay joins EERREC trainer Santiago Ramirez, a member of the 2014 cohort of Packard Fellows, in receiving this honor.

Congratulations, Rachael!