Elena Litchman PhD

Elena Litchman, professor of aquatic ecology at Michigan State University, has been named the recipient of the 2021 G. Evelyn Hutchinson Award by the Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography, or ASLO.Dr. Litchman’s research career has focused on studying the structures of phytoplankton communities.

She’s perhaps best known for her seminal work developing a trait-based approach for the study of plankton ecology. Application of the trait-based framework originally described in terrestrial plant ecology to phytoplankton community dynamics has been transformational for the field. Dr. Litchman on the award, KBS Director Fredric Janzen said, Her work continues our tradition of more than 50 years of research on phytoplankton, and many other aspects of aquatic ecology while being distinctive in venturing beyond freshwater into marine ecosystems as well.