Russell L. Rustici Endowed Chairs

Meet the Russell L. Rustici Endowed Chairs and learn more about their work benefiting California rangelands

Toby O'Geen, Professor and CE Specialist of Soil Science, was appointed as the Russell L. Rustici Endowed Chair in Rangeland Watershed Sciences at UC Davis in 2021. O’Geen’s research and extension program focuses on soil-landscape relationships, decision support tools for working lands, soil health, hydropedology, application of digital soil databases, soil survey; biogeochemical and hydrologic characterization of deep regolith; and management of soil physical properties. For more information, visit the O’Geen Lab web page (http://casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu), or contact Dr. O’Geen at atogeen@ucdavis.edu

Lynn Huntsinger, Professor of Rangeland Ecology and Management, was appointed the Russell L. Rustici Endowed Chair in Rangeland Management at UC Berkeley in 2016. Rangeland livestock production requires negotiation between demand for a predictable flow of products and the inherent unpredictability of most rangeland ecosystems. This has given rise to a host of social and ecological adaptations to rangeland disequilibrium dynamics. Huntsinger seeks to understand these adaptations as part of socio-ecological systems, with the goal of learning how sustainable management of rangelands can be supported. Please see Dr. Huntsinger’s web page for more information.