In an August 2001 interview, Tilman states that his passion with ecology stems from his love for both math and biology, and ecology is a field that allows him to express both together along with his love for the outdoors. His work explores how both natural and managed ecosystems can be used to meet the needs of humans, whether it be for food, energy, or
ecosystem services. Tilman has performed several studies to further determine the usefulness of grasslands for utilization in
biofuel. Each of these plots was continuously monitored for 20 years for factors such as
species richness and
biomass created by the community. Tilman's article looked at data both prior to and following a drought on the grassland plots in 1988, which provided surprising results. The drought provided substantial
disturbance and the biomass data showed a strong positive
correlation between the plant diversity within the community and the stability of the community as a whole supporting the
diversity-stability hypothesis. With regards to
succession he focuses on resource ratios, particularly between light and nitrogen. After a big disturbance, the pattern of succession is from high light/low nitrogen towards high nitrogen/low light environment.
Competition and biodiversity Another article by Tilman that has received substantial citation In a related paper, Tilman used this model to demonstrate the phenomenon of "
extinction debt," which refers to the time delay between
habitat destruction and the extinction of species.
Awards and honors In 2014, he received the
BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Ecology and Conservation Biology category, for scientifically establishing the value of biodiversity, quantifying, for the first time, how it contributes to make ecosystems more productive, more resilient to invasions, and more stable in the face of perturbations such as drought. He has been a
Guggenheim Fellow, is a Fellow of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science and of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and is a member of the
National Academy of Sciences. In 2000 Tilman was designated the
Most Highly Cited Environmental Scientist of the Decade by Essential Science Indicators. • 2012: Elected Fellow of the Ecological Society of America • 2013:
Alexander von Humboldt Medal • 2014:
Ramon Margalef Prize in Ecology • 2014:
BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award == References ==