My name is Clay Christenson, and I’m a doctoral candidate in Plant Sciences at the University of Arizona (Pauli Lab), expecting to graduate in Spring 2027. My dissertation focuses on hydraulic phenotyping of field-grown cotton under drought stress, combining microtensiometers, thermal imaging, drone-based multispectral sensing, and gas exchange systems to characterize how different genotypes manage water under field conditions.

What drew me to plant sciences was the science itself, but what keeps me motivated is simpler: the solutions matter. My research has given me a close-up view of how much useful information gets lost between research findings and breeding decisions. That’s the space I want to work on: helping breeding programs integrate new phenotypes into selection pipelines, improving how field trial data gets translated into variety decisions, and developing tools that make grower outcomes more predictable.

Outside the lab or the field, I’m usually riding my bike or trying to find some shade while hiking around the Sonoran Desert.