Maricar Aguilos

Maricar Aguilos is an Assistant Research Professor at the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources, College of Natural Resources, North Carolina State University. Her research focuses on ecosystem carbon and water cycling in forested ecosystems, including forested wetlands, pine plantations, and bioenergy crops. She employs eddy covariance systems, soil respiration chambers, and remote sensing tools to quantify fluxes and model ecosystem processes. She holds a PhD in Environmental Science from Hokkaido University, Japan, and previously conducted research at the French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA) on tropical rainforest dynamics in French Guiana.

Education:

• PhD in Environmental Science, Hokkaido University (Japan)
• Research experience at INRA, France (tropical forest carbon studies)

Research Interests: Carbon sequestration, ecohydrology, methane emissions from wetlands, climate change mitigation, bioenergy feedstock optimization, and remote sensing applications in ecosystem modeling. She explores how land-use changes, climate variability, and human activities impact forest ecosystem services.

Grants: Leading a $159,640 USDA Forest Service-funded project (2021–2026) synthesizing threats to forest carbon/water cycling across the US Southeast. Uses FIA data, AmeriFlux observations, and geospatial modeling to identify drivers of ecosystem service degradation.

Labs/Groups: Active in AmeriFlux networks, collaborates with global researchers on FLUXNET outreach. Affiliated with the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources faculty group.