2026 Stephen W. Pacala: Ecology and Evolution Researcher – H-Index, Publications & Awards

Discipline name	D-Index	World Ranking	Current World Ranking	National Ranking	Current National Ranking	Publications	Citations
Ecology and Evolution	111	161	150	64	60	266	61257

Research.com Recognitions

2026 - Research.com Ecology and Evolution in United States Leader Award
2025 - Research.com Ecology and Evolution in United States Leader Award
2012 - Fellow of the Ecological Society of America (ESA)
2007 - Member of the National Academy of Sciences
2005 - Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
2003 - Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
1997 - George Mercer Award, The Ecological Society of America
Honorary Member of the British Ecological Society
Honorary Member of the British Ecological Society

Overview

Stephen W. Pacala is affiliated with Princeton University in the United States. Their research spans key areas within environmental science and agricultural and biological sciences, focusing extensively on global and planetary change, nature and landscape conservation, and ecology. The scope of their work also includes plant science and economics related to environmental systems.

The scientist's research addresses multiple interconnected topics, notably:

Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
Plant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics
Plant and animal studies
Atmospheric and Environmental Gas Dynamics
Climate Change Policy and Economics
Forest ecology and management
Tree Root and Stability Studies

Stephen W. Pacala frequently publishes in several scientific journals, including:

Ecology Letters
Ecological Monographs
Global Change Biology
Science
Environmental Research Letters

Among their recent published papers are:

Climate-driven risks to the climate mitigation potential of forests, 2020, Science
Acting rapidly to deploy readily available methane mitigation measures by sector can immediately slow global warming, 2021, Environmental Research Letters
The exploitative segregation of plant roots, 2020, Science
Mission net-zero America: The nation-building path to a prosperous, net-zero emissions economy, 2021, Joule
Indicate separate contributions of long-lived and short-lived greenhouse gases in emission targets, 2022, npj Climate and Atmospheric Science

The scientist collaborates regularly with several colleagues including Jonathan M. Levine, Matteo Detto, Ciro Cabal, Fernando Valladares, and Elena Shevliakova.

Over the course of their career, Stephen W. Pacala has been recognized with several professional honors. These include being named a Fellow of the Ecological Society of America in 2012, a Member of the National Academy of Sciences in 2007, and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2005. Additional distinctions include Fellowship in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2003, the George Mercer Award from The Ecological Society of America in 1997, and an Honorary Membership of the British Ecological Society.

Best Publications

A Large and Persistent Carbon Sink in the World’s Forests

Yude Pan;Richard A. Birdsey;Jingyun Fang;Jingyun Fang;Richard Houghton

8308
Citations
Stabilization Wedges: Solving the Climate Problem for the Next 50 Years with Current Technologies

Stephen Wilson Pacala;Robert Socolow

4273
Citations
Beneficial Biofuels—The Food, Energy, and Environment Trilemma

David Tilman;Robert Socolow;Jonathan A. Foley;Jason Hill

1986
Citations
Recent patterns and mechanisms of carbon exchange by terrestrial ecosystems

D. S. Schimel;J. I. House;K. A. Hibbard;P. Bousquet

1889
Citations
Forest models defined by field measurements : Estimation, error analysis and dynamics

Stephen W. Pacala;Charles D. Canham;John Saponara;John A. Silander

1457
Citations
Pervasive drought legacies in forest ecosystems and their implications for carbon cycle models

W. R.L. Anderegg;C. Schwalm;F. Biondi;J. J. Camarero

1271
Citations
A Large Terrestrial Carbon Sink in North America Implied by Atmospheric and Oceanic Carbon Dioxide Data and Models

S. Fan;M. Gloor;J. Mahlman;S. Pacala

1240
Citations
Assessment of methane emissions from the U.S. oil and gas supply chain

Ramón A. Alvarez;Daniel Zavala-Araiza;David R. Lyon;David T. Allen

1207
Citations
Consistent land- and atmosphere-based U.S. carbon sink estimates.

S. W. Pacala;G. C. Hurtt;D. Baker;P. Peylin

1154
Citations
The maintenance of species richness in plant communities

D. Tilman;Stephen Wilson Pacala

1140
Citations
Juvenile Tree Survivorship as a Component of Shade Tolerance

Richard K. Kobe;Stephen W. Pacala;John A. Silander;Charles D. Canham

1003
Citations
Causes and consequences of resource heterogeneity in forests : interspecific variation in light transmission by canopy trees

Charles D. Canham;Adrien C. Finzi;Stephen W. Pacala;Diane H. Burbank

963
Citations
Greater focus needed on methane leakage from natural gas infrastructure

Ramón A. Alvarez;Stephen Wilson Pacala;James J. Winebrake;William L. Chameides

911
Citations
A METHOD FOR SCALING VEGETATION DYNAMICS: THE ECOSYSTEM DEMOGRAPHY MODEL (ED)

P. R. Moorcroft;G. C. Hurtt;Stephen Wilson Pacala

891
Citations
Reid's Paradox of Rapid Plant Migration Dispersal theory and interpretation of paleoecological records

James S. Clark;Chris Fastie;George Hurtt;Stephen T. Jackson

847
Citations
Mechanisms of long-distance dispersal of seeds by wind

Ran Nathan;Gabriel G. Katul;Henry S. Horn;Suvi M. Thomas

791
Citations
Long-Term Studies of Vegetation Dynamics

Mark Rees;Richard S. Condit;Mick Crawley;Steve Pacala

760
Citations
Climate-driven risks to the climate mitigation potential of forests

William R.L. Anderegg;Anna T. Trugman;Grayson Badgley;Christa M. Anderson

733
Citations
The emergence and promise of functional biogeography

Cyrille Violle;Peter B. Reich;Peter B. Reich;Stephen W. Pacala;Brian J. Enquist;Brian J. Enquist

731
Citations
Contributions of Land-Use History to Carbon Accumulation in U.S. Forests

John P. Caspersen;Stephen W. Pacala;Jennifer C. Jenkins;George C. Hurtt

702
Citations
SEEDLING RECRUITMENT IN FORESTS: CALIBRATING MODELS TO PREDICT PATTERNS OF TREE SEEDLING DISPERSION'

Eric Ribbens;John A. Silander;Stephen W. Pacala

677
Citations
Spatial Moment Equations for Plant Competition: Understanding Spatial Strategies and the Advantages of Short Dispersal.

Benjamin M. Bolker;Stephen Wilson Pacala

674
Citations

Frequent Co-Authors

Elena Shevliakova Princeton University

George C. Hurtt University of Maryland, College Park

William R. L. Anderegg University of Utah

Simon A. Levin Princeton University

Robert H. Socolow Princeton University

John A. Silander University of Connecticut

Jeremy W. Lichstein University of Florida

John P. Caspersen University of Toronto

Jorge L. Sarmiento Princeton University

Richard A. Houghton Woods Hole Research Center

External Links

Personal website of Stephen W. Pacala

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