Ernesto Medina

Ernesto A. Medina is an ecologist specializing in plant physiology when adapting to the changing environment. He is an elected international member of the National Academy of Sciences, and is an adjunct professor in the department of Center for Applied Tropical Ecology and Conservation (CREST-CATEC).

Early life and education
Medina was born on July 27, 1938 in Maracaibo, Venezuela. After receiving his undergraduate degree in biology at the Universidad Central de Venezuela, he went to Stuttgart, Germany where he completed a doctorate (PhD) in agronomy.

Career and research
He was assistant professor at the Universidad Central in Caracas, and joined the department of Ecology at the Venezuela Institute for scientific Research (IVIC) in 1970.

Since 2013, he held a position as adjunct professor in the department of Center for Applied Tropical Ecology and Conservation (CREST-CATEC) where he continued his research on plant physiology.

Fields
Medina focuses on the study of plant populations and their environmental variables, particularly nutrient availability in natural ecosystems. His research includes the study of how a changing environment can affect photosynthesis, respiration, and nutrient uptake during various plant developmental stages. He studies how the plant community is affected by industrial pollution, change in land use caused by agriculture, pasture, lumbering and fire management, and he applies his findings in the area of global change research. His current research focuses on plant productivity responses to salinity, drought, and nutrient availability in coastal wetlands.

Awards and honors
He holds an honorary membership in the Ecological Society of America supported by letters from P. D. Coley, T. A. as well as the international membership in the National Academy of Sciences.

His honors also include Guggenheim fellow and Lorenzo Mendoza Fleury Prize.

Public engagement
In 1970, he did postdoctoral research at the Carnegie Institution (Stanford, California) on the photosynthesis of plants.

In 1979, Medina was a guest at both the Australian National University and Stanford University (USA).

Medina has also participated projects with MAB, INTECOL, SCOPE, OAS, and FAO. He has helped establish a school of plant ecology in Venezuela by training 27 students through IVIC and the Universidad Central de Venezuela.

Personal life
Medina is married to Elvira Cuevas.