Nov. 23, 2015
A new paper, co-led by CICS Researcher Xin Zhang, a postdoctoral research associate in PEI, is among the first to globally analyze “nitrogen use efficiency” – a measure of the amount of nitrogen a plant takes in to grow versus what is left behind as pollution. Looking at fertilizer and crop harvest data in regions like the United States, Western Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa, the researchers examined how policies and market conditions have influenced farmers’ use of nitrogen fertilizers over the past five decades. Denise Mauzerall, an AOS associated faculty member and CICS PI, is among the paper's coauthors. The paper, "Managing nitrogen for sustainable development," was published online November 23 as a Perspectives piece in Nature.