Natalie R. Graham

Natalie R. Graham is an Assistant Professor of Biology at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, affiliated with the College of Natural and Health Sciences. Her research focuses on molecular ecology and the dynamics of arthropod communities in the Hawaiian archipelago, particularly addressing human impacts on vulnerable ecosystems. She holds a PhD in Environmental Science from UC Berkeley (2021) and an MS from Sonoma State University (2014). Graham leads the ʻElala Biodiversity Lab, investigating ecological and evolutionary processes shaping biodiversity over geological time using DNA metabarcoding and eDNA techniques. Her work emphasizes island ecosystems as models for understanding community assembly and invasion genomics.

Key research areas include arthropod interactions with plant networks, environmental DNA applications for biosecurity, and the genomic response of species to Rapid ʻŌhiʻa Death (ROD). She has secured grants including a UH Hilo SEED grant and HI INBRE funding, and mentors students through programs like PIPES. Collaborations include UC Berkeley’s Rausser College and federal agencies like USGS. Graham’s lab develops DNA reference libraries for Hawaiian arthropods and explores handheld sequencing technologies for rapid biodiversity assessments.

Her publications span topics from transposable element evolution in Hawaiian spiders to ethical genomic data practices. Graham actively engages in undergraduate training, offering courses in genetics, insect systematics, and quantitative ecology. She advocates for Indigenous data sovereignty and community-driven research in tropical conservation biology.