The Jackson lab examines the ways people affect the Earth. They seek to produce the building blocks of basic scientific knowledge and to use that knowledge to guide policy solutions for global warming, energy extraction, and other environmental issues. They're currently examining the effects of climate change and droughts on forest mortality and grassland ecosystems. Recently they've also published the first studies looking at fracking and drinking water quality and mapped thousands of natural gas leaks across cities such as Boston and Washington, D.C.
An an author and photographer, Rob has published a trade book about the environment (The Earth Remains Forever, University of Texas Press), two books of children’s poems, Animal Mischief and Weekend Mischief (Highlights Magazine and Boyds Mills Press), and recent or forthcoming poems in the journals Southwest Review, Boston Literary Magazine, Avocet, and Light. His photographs have appeared in many media outlets, including the NY Times, Washington Post, USA Today, US News and World Report, Nature, and National Geographic News.