How does wood decompose and cycle carbon throughout the Australian tropics? What roles do termites and fungi play across wet and dry tropical ecosystems? These are the questions that the WTF (wood, termites, and fungi) group seeks to answer, but the research questions are only a part of what makes this group of collaborators unmatched.

This past June we all convened at the James Cook University Daintree Rainforest Observatory to analyze data and write papers summarizing a 4 year NSF study on the relative roles of termites and fungi in wood decomposition across a tropical rainfall gradient. This team of climate modelers, termitologists, artists, forest ecologists, and biogeochemists not only continually inspires my ongoing PhD chapters, but they also make science incredibly fun.

On the science side, we did fieldwork in the rainforest, built ecosystem models, cracked open termite mounds - all to better understand the process of tropical forest carbon cycling. On the fun side, we explored science communication through art, baked termite-themed cakes, ran along the beach, always had G&Ts on tap, and workshopped a termite card game. With these brilliant mentors, I am growing as a scientist and learning how our role in society is so much larger than simply turning out publications.

A special shoutout to our artistic collaborator Donna Davis and her unique, beautiful take on the WTF research. Nature is truly an artistic place, and I am forever energized by the reflections on natural spaces that Donna’s work portrays.