Adrian Unc

Professor, PhD, Fellow of the British Soil Science Society

Program: BEAS

Phone: (709) 637-7153

Email: aunc@mun.ca

Office: FC 2020

Webpage: https://baarn.ca/

 

Credentials

PhD & MSc Soil Science, University of Guelph.
BSc Agronomy/Agricultural Engineering, University Life Sciences, King Michael the 1st

 

Research interests

Soil Scientist, trained in Agronomy and Agricultural Engineering, with Postdoctoral expertise in Molecular Biology, working on applied questions relevant to soil health and fertility, environmental quality for natural and managed systems, and integrated land management issues across ecosystems. Complementary expertise in the cultivation of algae for bio-products and biofuels.

 

Teaching

Global Environmental Change (ENVS 2370, Undergraduate)
Issues in Fertility of Boreal Soils (BEAS 6053, graduate)
Special Topics in Boreal Ecosystems and Agricultural Sciences (BEAS 6051, graduate)
Graduate seminar, BEAS 6000
Advanced Quantitative Research Methods for the Natural Sciences, BEAS 6002, graduate

 

Representative scholarly contributions

  1. Adrian Unc, Majdi R. Abou Najm, Paul Eric Aspholm, Tirupati Bolisetti, Colleen Charles, Ranjan Datta, Trine Eggen, Belinda Flem, Getu Hailu, Eldbjørg Sofie Heimstad, Margot Hurlbert, Meriam Karlsson, Marius Korsnes, Arthur Nash, David Parsons, Radha Sivarajan Sajeevan, Narasinha Shurpali, Govert Valkenburg, Danielle Wilde, Bing Wu, Sandra F. Yanni, Debasmita Misra. 2025. Arctic food-energy security at the crossroads, Communications Earth & Environment, 6, https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02122-6
  2. Vallotton, J. D., Comeau, L.-P., Goyer, C., Wagg, C., Unc, A. 2025. Land use is reliably predicted by soil burst respiration profiles. Applied Soil Ecology 214, 106315. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106315
  3. Vallotton, J. D., Galagedara, L., Altdorff, D., Unc, A. 2025. Boreal soil homogenization after conversion to agricultural use is constrained by carbon dynamics and soil health, Catena, 261, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2025.109553
  4. Vallotton JD, Unc A. 2024. Soil carbon in the boreal region under climate and land use change, Soil Use and Management, 40, e13108. https://doi.org/10.1111/sum.13108
  5. Medayiese A, Wu J, Unc A. 2023. Utility of wood ash, paper sludge and biochar for the mitigation of greenhouse gases emissions from acid boreal soils, Journal of Environmental Management, 330(15): 117202, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.117202
  6. Young EH, Unc A. 2023. A review of nematodes as biological indicators of sustainable functioning for northern soils undergoing land-use conversion. Applied Soil Ecology, 183: 104762, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2022.104762  
  7. Abedin J, Unc A, 2023. The rate dependent efficacy of biochar for crop yield and nutrition on Podzols newly converted from boreal forests, Field Crops Research, 303: 109121, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fcr.2023.109121
  8. Klöffel T, Young EH, Borchard N, Vallotton JD, Nurmi E, Shurpali NJ, Urban Tenorio F, Liu X, Young GHF, Unc A. 2022. The challenges fraught opportunity of agriculture expansion into boreal and Arctic regions. Agricultural Systems, 203: 103507, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2022.103507
  9. Kedir JA, McKenzie DB, Ziadi N, Unc A. 2022. Comparison of agri-environmental phosphorus tests for boreal agricultural and natural Podzols. Canadian Journal of Soil Science, https://doi.org/10.1139/CJSS-2022-0037
  10. Unc A, Altdorff D, Abakumov E, Adl S, Baldursson S, Bechtold M, Cattani DJ, Firbank LG, Grand S, Guðjónsdóttir M, Kallenbach C, Kedir AJ, Li P, McKenzie DB, Misra D, Nagano H, Neher DA, Niemi J, Oelbermann M, Overgård Lehmann J, Parson D, Quideau S, Sharkhuu A, Smreczak B, Vallotton JD, Whalen J, Young EH, Zhang M, Borchard N. 2021. Expansion of agriculture in northern cold-climate regions: A cross-sectoral perspective on opportunities and challenges. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems; 5: 236. https://doi:10.3389/fsufs.2021.663448

Online research profiles:

https://scholar.google.ca/citations?user=G7453PcAAAAJ&hl=en

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Adrian-Unc

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7265-9758

 

Awards and recognitions

  • Senior Cheney Fellow, water@Leeds, University of Leeds, School of Earth and Environment, Leeds UK
  • Teaching Merit Award, North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA)

 

Memberships and affiliations 

  • President Elect/President/Past President, Soil Science of Canada Society (2026/2027/2028).
  • Vice-Chair, Joint Commission 1.7/3.8 (Division 1 and Division 3): Permafrost Affected Soils, International Union of Science Societies
  • Editor, Alan Wild Reviews, Perspectives and Topical Collections, Soil Use and Management (International journal of the British Soil Science Society)