From Soil to Climate Solutions: Berhe Leads Sierra Nevada Research Institute into its Next Chapter

When Professor Asmeret Asefaw Berhe arrived at UC Merced in 2009, she and her husband, Professor Teamrat Ghezzehei, were leaving major research institutions to join a brand-new campus in California’s Central Valley. It was a leap of faith — one made easier by the Sierra Nevada Research Institute.

“SNRI folks were a really big part of why we decided to come to UC Merced,” Berhe said. “They welcomed us, supported us in establishing our research programs, and served as our unofficial mentors.”

Now, more than a decade and a half later, Berhe has taken the helm of the institute that helped launch her career. As the newly appointed director of SNRI, she brings a deep understanding of its roots and a bold vision for its future — one grounded in climate resilience, interdisciplinary collaboration and community impact.

A Leader for a Growing Mission

Berhe’s appointment became official July 1 after an internal search led by previous SNRI directors and the Office of Research and Economic Development. SNRI Executive Director Molly Stephens helped coordinate the transition. As executive director, Stephen is tasked with the institute’s administrative duties. Berhe will oversee all the research conducted through SNRI.

“Asmeret is a respected voice for science, both basic and applied,” Stephens said. “She’s equal parts optimism, persistence, strategic thinking, humanity and high expectations, with a dash of dreaming. She is a force.”

Berhe’s credentials are formidable. She served as director of the Department of Energy’s Office of Science in Washington, D.C., and built a research career that focuses on soil, climate solutions and equity in STEM. She holds the Ted and Jan Falasco Chair in Earth Sciences and Geology, has delivered two TED talks and is a member of the National Academy of Engineering. She is a fellow of the American Geophysical Union and the Geological Society of America, and was named a Great Immigrant, Great American by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Colleagues say she is known for her ability to listen, engage and cut straight to data-driven solutions.

Also, “she’s really passionate about soil,” Stephens said. “Did I mention soil?”

Berhe follows in the footsteps of respected directors. SNRI was founded in 2007 by now-retired Vice Chancellor for the Office of Research and Economic Development Samuel Traina and was later led by Professor Roger Bales, who served as director for the longest period and expanded it into a hub for interdisciplinary environmental research. Professors Stephen Hart and Martha  Conklin served as interim directors, and Professor Tom Harmon completed a five-year term just before Berhe’s appointment.

“It’s important to pay homage to the incredible institute that Sam, Roger, Martha, Steve, Tom and all the other faculty members built,” Berhe said. “I feel inspired because I’ve been inspired by their leadership, and now I get the opportunity to lead this outstanding institute into its next great chapter.”

More Than Mountains

Despite its name, SNRI has always been about more than the Sierra Nevada.

“The goal of SNRI research and researchers has always been to cover the vast and diverse ecosystems that extend from the crest of the Sierra Nevada to the Pacific Ocean,” Berhe said, “the nature, properties and management of all those natural ecosystems, their sustainability and human-environment relationships.”

SNRI researchers use a variety of methods, from field-based inquiry to lab and modeling work, to study drought, wildfire, pollution, land use, renewable energy and more — blending natural sciences, engineering and social sciences. The aim, Berhe said, is not just to conduct research but to turn it into real-world solutions.

“We’ve always worked to balance fundamental research with policy implications,” she said. “It’s about pushing the frontiers of knowledge forward to improve our understanding of natural processes, anthropogenic impacts and development of advanced technologies, and helping communities, stakeholders and policymakers understand and apply what we’re learning.”

A Climate-focused Evolution

One of Berhe’s first major tasks is overseeing the merger of SNRI with UC Merced’s Climate Institute, a state-funded institute established two years ago.

The integration is designed to streamline operations and amplify the impact of both institutes.

The merger might end up changing SNRI’s name through a planned rebranding effort, but it doesn’t change SNRI’s mission; it simply sharpens it.

“I think of it more as a progression or evolution of what has always been,” Stephens said. “We’re just being clearer about the role climate change plays in our motivation and sense of urgency.”

The combined institute will continue supporting research in hydrology, environmental contamination, sustainable land management, wildfire, precision agriculture, ecology and biodiversity, and also houses the UC Center for Climate Justice, led by Professor Tracey Osborne.

The Climate Institute adds three specialized centers to SNRI’s existing strengths:

• Fire Resilience Center, led by Professor Crystal Kolden
• Energy Center, led by Professor Sarah Kurtz
• Center for Resilient, Equitable and Sustainable Futures, led by Professor Rebecca Ryals

The center directors expressed excitement about Berhe’s leadership of SNRI.

“Professor Berhe is a visionary leader who brings not only an incredible scientific resume but also has been a powerful advocate for climate and environmental justice,” Kolden said. “We are lucky to have her at UC Merced, and I’m thrilled to have her at the helm.”

Kurtz added, “It will be very special to work with Asmeret. Her expertise is very different from mine, but our goals are aligned. We’re working together to make the world a better place.”

Leadership for a Warming World

For Berhe and Stephens, SNRI is uniquely positioned to lead right now.

“We’re facing unprecedented environmental challenges that are being exacerbated by many overlapping challenges,” Berhe said. “The need for science-based solutions has never been greater — and the need to communicate those solutions effectively has never been greater.”

Kurtz agreed the merger is timely.

“Solving today’s problems requires an interdisciplinary approach. It is very useful that the merger between SNRI and the Climate Institute can bring such a breadth of expertise together, leveraging a well-established program to quickly launch a new one,” she said.

Stephens said the institute is already building strategic research teams, diversifying support and developing ways to inspire hope and action.

“We have to balance the risk of pushing too hard with the risk of not pushing hard enough,” she added. “California and UC Merced researchers are poised to generate critical, actionable science that makes a real difference, but we have to move quickly.”

Looking Ahead

Reflecting on the past few years, Stephens said SNRI has focused on “steadying the ship” through COVID and campus transitions. Now, the institute is turning outward — building networks, engaging communities and co-producing solutions.

“In five years, I’d like our campus to be a leader in research that co-produces solutions for rural communities together with those communities,” she said. “That increases accessibility and sustainability of energy and food systems. That increases the resilience of human and ecological communities.”

Berhe agrees. For her, the work is personal — and urgent.

“We can’t afford to lose on the kind of issues that we work on in SNRI,” she said. “The work we do — and the people and researchers we support — is becoming more important with time.”