North Carolina

Flocking to the Coast

April 9, 2020

Professors Allen Hurlbert and Keith Sockman want their students out of the classroom as much as possible. Every other year, the UNC researchers lead an avian biology course that explores the physiology, anatomy, evolution, and behavior of birds. Throughout the semester, the class visits wildlife reserves across the state to see these lessons in the field.

Carnivorous Conservation

September 12, 2019

Native only to a 90-mile inland radius around Wilmington, the Venus flytrap is a symbol of the Atlantic coastal plain’s unique ecology — and a contender for the federal endangered species list. As wild populations suffer due to poaching and habitat loss, UNC researchers work to preserve these carnivorous wonders through genetic testing and seed banking.

Trapped on the Surface

September 10, 2019

In the past decade, the Cape Fear River has become more susceptible to algal blooms — a potential public health concern for more than 1.5 million people relying on the river as a drinking water source. UNC researcher Nathan Hall thinks droughts and slow flows are the culprit, and aims to predict when future blooms will occur.

A History Suppressed

August 20, 2018

A dark time in our nation’s history, the period between the end of post-Civil War Reconstruction and 1950 saw thousands of African Americans murdered via lynching – predominantly in the South. Two UNC professors hope to honor these individuals by uncovering injustices that, for decades, have been systematically erased from public memory.

A Deep Dive into Jordan Lake

May 17, 2017

Using state-of-the-art instrumentation and lab analyses, UNC researchers gather information on Jordan Lake.

Growth from the Ground Up

April 18, 2017

A Robeson County tortilla manufacturer is ready to increase his production from 25,000 pounds of tortillas a week to 120,000 pounds. UNC Kenan-Flagler MBA student Ben Holmes is helping him do just that — through NCGrowth, an affiliate of the Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute for Private Enterprise.

Proving Innocence: Lessons from The Wilmington Ten

December 12, 2016

In 1971, as civil rights battles raged across the South, 10 young men and women fought for fair treatment within Wilmington, North Carolina’s newly desegregated schools. UNC historian Kenneth Janken shares their story in his new book, “The Wilmington Ten: Violence, Injustice, and the Rise of Black Politics in the 1970s.”