Dr. Austin Himes

Dr. Austin  Himes

Title

  • Assistant Professor

Contact Information

austin.himes@msstate.edu
Office: 662-325-4249
Thompson Hall, Rm 369

Overview

Biography

I grew up in a small natural resource dependent town in northeastern Oregon. Agriculture, the forest industry and tourism made the bulk of the economy. A large portion of the county I grew up in is U.S. Forest Service land which historically provided a large portion of harvested lumber to local saw mills. Changes in USFS policy and practice in the 1990's resulted in substantially reduced harvests contributing to the closure of three small saw mills in the county. In the following decades the community has tried to find new identity and restore the local economy. Living through these changes nurtured a deep interest in finding solutions to natural resources problems and eventually lead me to a career in forestry and later academia.

Education

  • Oregon State University, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Forest Ecosystems and Society
  • University of Washington, Master of Science (M.S.), Environmental and Forest Sciences
  • University of Oregon, Bachelor of Science (B.S.) , Environmental Science
  • University of Oregon, Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), English Literature

Research Interests

Silviculture
Forest Ecology
Ecosystem Services and Natures Benefit to People
Short Rotation Woody Crops for Bioenergy
Relational Values

Teaching Interests

Forest Ecology
Professional Practices
Silviculture for Multiple Ecosystem Services
Ecological Silviculture

Website

Publications

Year Publications
2024

Rai, N., Ma, Q., Poudel, K. P., Himes, A., Meng, Q. 2024. Evaluating the Uncertainties in Forest Canopy Height Measurements Using ICESat-2 Data. Journal of Remote Sensing 4(0160).

2023

Himes, A., Bauhus, J., Adhikari, S., Barik, S. K., Brown, H., Brunner, A., Burton, P., Coll, L., D'Amato, A., Diaci, J., Dorji, Y., Foli, E., Ganz, D., Hall, J., Keenan, R., Lu, Y., Messier, C., Munanura, I., Piotto, D., Seifert, T., Sheil, D., Shorohova, E., Sisay, K., Soto, D., Tanaka, H., Umunay, P., Velazquez-Martinez, A., Puettmann, K. 2023. Forestry in t fahece of global change: results of a global survey of professionals. Current Forestry Reports 9:473-489.

2023

Arko, A., Himes, A., Cannon, J., Polinko, A. D. 2023. The effects of a moderate severity hurricane on gap characteristics in a longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) woodland. Forest Ecology and Management 551:121502.

2023

Raymond, C. M., Anderson, C. B., Athayde, S., Vatn, A., Amin, A. M., Arias-Arévalo, P., Christie, M., Cantú-Fernández, M., Gould, R. K., Himes, A., Kenter, J. O., Lenzi, D., Muraca, B., Murali, R., O’Connor, S., Pascual, U., Sachdeva, S., Samakov, A., Zent, E. 2023. An inclusive typology of values for navigating transformations towards a just and sustainable future. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability 64:101301.

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2023

Resch, B. S., Himes, A., Grado, S. C., Grala, R. K., da Silva, B. K. 2023. Functional Zoning by Site Index to Balance Multiple Objectives for Pine in Southern US Family Forests. Journal of Forestry 121(4):307-318.

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2022

Baach, E., Himes, A., Polinko, A., Granger, J. J., Zhou, Q. 2022. Diversity-productivity relationships in forests of the southeastern United States: Leveraging national inventory data and tree functional traits. Forest Ecology and Management 521:120426.

2022

Buntrock, L., Thomas, V., Strahm, B., Fox, T., Harrison, R., Himes, A., Littke, K. 2022. Patterns in Foliar Isotopic Nitrogen, Percent Nitrogen, and Site Index for Managed Forest Systems in the United States. Forests 13(10):1694.

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2022

Himes, A., Betts, M., Messier, C., Seymour, R. 2022. Perspectives: Thirty years of triad forestry, a critical clarification of theory and recommendations for implementation and testing. Forest Ecology and Management 510:120103.

2021

Himes, A., Leavengood, S., Polinko, A. D. 2021. Variation in Wood Properties of Hybrid Poplar Lumber by Radial and Vertical Position in Stem; A case study from Boardman, OR. Wood and Fiber Science 53(3):161-177.

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2021

Eisenbies, M., Volk, T., DeSouza, D., Hallen, K., Stanton, B., Espinoza, J., Himes, A., Shuren, R., Stonex, R., Summers, B., Zerpa, J. 2021. An assessment of the harvesting and fuel performance of a single-pass cut-and-chip harvester in commercial-scale short-rotation poplar crops as influenced by crop and weather conditions. Biomass and Bioenergy 149:106075.

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2021

Himes, A., Emerson, P., McClung, R., Renninger, H. J., Rosenstiel, T., Stanton, B. 2021. Leaf traits indicative of drought resistance in hybrid poplar. Agricultural Water Management 246(106676).

2020

Himes, A., Busby, G. 2020. Wood buildings as a climate solution. Developments in the Built Environment 4:100030.

2020

Stanton, B. J., Bourque, A., Coleman, M., Eisenbies, M., Emerson, R. M., Espinoza, J., Gantz, C., Himes, A., Rodstrom, A., Shuren, R., Stonex, R., Volk, T., Zerpa, J. 2020. The practice and economics of hybrid poplar biomass production for biofuels and bioproducts in the Pacific Northwest. Bioenergy Research 14:543-560.

2020

Himes, A., Puettmann, K., Muraca, B. 2020. Trade-offs between ecosystem services along gradients of tree species diversity and values. Ecosystem Services 44.

2020

Himes, A., Puettmann, K. 2020. Tree species diversity and composition relationship to biomass, understory community, and crown architecture in intensively managed plantations of the coastal pacific northwest, USA. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 50(1):1-12.

2018

Himes, A., Muraca, B. 2018. Relational values: the key to pluralistic valuation of ecosystem services. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability 35:1-7.

2018

Kimura, E., Fransen, S. C., Collins, H. P., Stanton, B. J., Himes, A., Smith, J., Guy, S. O., Johnston, W. J. 2018. Effect of intercropping hybrid poplar and switchgrass on biomass yield, forage quality, and land use efficiency for bioenergy production. Biomass and Bioenergy 111:31-38.

2017

Collins, H. P., Fay, P. A., Kimura, E., Fransen, S., Himes, A. 2017. Intercropping with switchgrass improves net greenhouse gas balance in hybrid poplar plantations on a sand soil. Soil Science Society of America Journal 81(4):781-795.

2017

Eisenbies, M. H., Volk, T. A., Espinoza, J., Gantz, C., Himes, A., Posselius, J., Shuren, R., Stanton, B., Summers, B. 2017. Biomass, spacing and planting design influence cut-and-chip harvesting in hybrid poplar. Biomass and Bioenergy 106:182-190.

2014

Himes, A., Turnblom, E. C., Harrison, R. B., Littke, K. M., Devine, W. D., Zabowski, D., Briggs, D. G. 2014. Predicting risk of long-term nitrogen depletion under whole-tree harvesting in the coastal Pacific Northwest. Forest Science 60(2):382-390.

Extension Publications

Year Publications

Graduate Students

  • Mira Olma
  • Jianing Liang
  • Pratima Poudel
  • Kelechi Ibeh

Awards & Honors

  • Peoples Choice Award
    Mississippi State University Three Minute Thesis
  • College of Forestry Dean’s Distinguished Fellow
    Oregon State University College of Forestry
  • Jake Eaton Short Rotation Hardwood Plantations Fellow
    Oregon State University, College of Forestry
  • OSU Foundation Fellow Tuition Support Scholarship
    Oregon State University
  • Provost’s Distinguished Graduate Fellow
    Oregon State University
  • First Place - Oral Presentation
    Mississippi State University Graduate Research Symposium
  • Outstanding graduate student poster
    22nd Biennial Silviculture Research Conference
  • Third Place - Poster Presentation
    Mississippi State University Graduate Research Symposium
  • Oregon State University Graduate School Thesis/Dissertation Completion Award
    Oregon State University
  • 2019 Robert F. Tarrant Graduate Fellow for Hardwood Ecology and Silviculture
    Oregon State University College of Forestry
  • 2018 Robert F. Tarrant Graduate Fellow for Hardwood Ecology and Silviculture
    Oregon State University College of Forestry

Society Memberships

  • Ecological Society of American
  • Forest Stewards Guild
  • Society of American Foresters