Tracy Lawson

Tracy Lawson is a Professor in the School of Life Sciences at the University of Essex, specializing in plant physiology and photosynthesis. She leads research on stomatal behavior, crop resilience, and improving agricultural productivity under climate change. Her roles include Director of Impact and Director of the Essex Plant Innovation Centre.

Education: PhD in Plant Science from the University of Dundee (1997), BSc(Hons) in Applied Biology from Liverpool John Moores University (1993).

Research focuses on optimizing stomatal kinetics, enhancing water-use efficiency, and leveraging genetic diversity to improve crop yields. Current projects include vertical farming productivity, photosynthetic efficiency in wheat, and nanoparticle impacts on plant performance. Key funding sources include BBSRC, Innovate UK, and the EU Horizon 2020 program.

Lab members include researchers like Dr. Pauline Lemonnier (RIPE project) and PhD students Alexandra Milliken (pea yield improvement) and Mengjie Fan (blue light optimization). Past collaborations involved institutions like the University of Illinois (RIPE initiative) and NIAB (wheat breeding).

Grants span topics from phenotyping infrastructure (PhenomUK) to climate-smart crop development. Publications emphasize AI-driven phenotyping, light spectra optimization, and genetic engineering of photosynthetic pathways.