Our Action chair, Daniele Penna, finally had his glorious WATSON “moment”, thanks to a STSM grant! He was hosted by the Segura’s lab at the Oregon State University.
Let’s read what he says about this experience.
I had a fantastic time spending almost one month at the College of Forestry at Oregon State University (Oregon, USA), to visit the lab led by Prof. Dr, Catalina Segura. I had the opportunity to perform several activities strongly relevant for the WATSON COST Action. I had fruitful meetings and discussions with my host on current and future research activities involving the use of isotopes to understand water flow pathways and water sources in mountain catchments and in agroecosystems. I met students and faculties from OSU, I visited the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest, in the Oregon Cascade range, and I had detailed idea exchanges on how to take advantage of the wonderful isotope and hydrometeorological database collected there. I gave a seminar entitled “How do topography and seasonal meteorological forcing affect hydrological response and tree water uptake?” that generated discussion and brainstorming on possible future data analysis. We also planned future joint research activities, student exchange, and further visits.
In the end, the STSM has been extremely useful to consolidate the scientific collaboration between the two institutions (University of Florence and Oregon State University) and between the two research groups in hydrology. This will result in long-lasting and certainly productive scientific collaboration.
You can find more information about Daniele in his CV and you can follow him on his Twitter account.