Andrea Grottoli

Andrea Grottoli, professor of earth sciences in the College of Arts and Sciences, has been awarded a prestigious 2020 – 2021 U.S. Fulbright Award to France.

Grottoli will visit Laboratoire Océanographique de Villefranche de Sorbonne Université to conduct research on how Mediterranean corals cope with ocean acidification during October 1, 2020 – March 31, 2021.

The research Grottoli will be conducting is in collaboration with the team of Jean-Pierre Gattuso at Sarbonne University’s Oceanographic Laboratory in Villfrance-Sur-Mer and will be a study on Mediterranean corals to determine how they are able to persist in stressful environments and how their survival can be enhanced through this century.

“Coral communities of the Mediterranean are critical ecosystems that support marine life and are essential to healthy ecosystem function,” Grottoli said. “The results of this study would be critical to identifying a mechanism for how Mediterranean corals cope with ocean acidification and could provide a possible strategy to enhance coral growth on restored or protected reefs by supplying them with zooplankton.”

During her time in France, Grottoli will also interact with researchers at the University of Perpignan and the University of Cote d’ Azur, improve her French language skills, interact with graduate students and forge new and lasting collaborations with French scientists.

For more information about the Fulbright Scholar Program, contact Joanna Kukielka-Blaser or visit fulbright.osu.edu.