Biography
The Honorable Dr. Asmeret Asefaw Berhe is Professor of Soil Biogeochemistry and Environmental Engineering, Ted & Jan Falasco Chair in Earth Sciences and Geology, and Director of the Sierra Nevada Research Institute at the University of California, Merced. She previously served as Director of the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science and as Associate Dean for Graduate Education at UC Merced.
Her research bridges soil science, geochemistry, global change science and political ecology. Her work seeks to understand the role of soils in regulating Earth's climate, particularly the biogeochemical cycling and stabilization of carbon and nutrients and their responses to climate change, land-use change, erosion and wildfire. She also studies the relationship between land degradation, ownership and human communities.
Dr. Berhe was elected to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering in 2023. She is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Geophysical Union, and the Geological Society of America. Her recognitions include the Joanne Simpson Medal, the Randolph W. “Bill” and Cecile T. Bromery Award, the Geochemical Society's John Hayes Award, and a National Science Foundation CAREER Award.
Her expertise is particularly relevant to Liberia's priorities in soil health, climate resilience, land restoration, sustainable agriculture, environmental research and scientific capacity development.