Hogyeum Evan Joo got an honorable mention for the Ehrenfeld Award for the Best Student Presentation in Urban Ecology for his presentation at the Ecological Society of America 110th Annual Meeting in Baltimore.
Enrenfeld was one of the pioneers of urban ecology whose contributions helped shape our knowledge of urban ecosystems. Her work spanned many taxa and systems, ranging from novel work on urban wetlands to the role of people in shaping urban ecosystem processes.In recognition of Joan Ehrenfeld’s many contributions to urban ecology, the best oral presentation in urban ecology given at the annual Ecological Society of America meeting is named in her honor. The award is open to both undergraduate and graduate students giving an oral presentation in the field of urban ecology at the annual meeting. 
Beyond celebrating Evan’s impactful work, Dr. Aronson is especially honored that he received this award she co-founded in 2012!
https://esa.org/urbanecology/ehrenfeld-award/
Read the abstract below.
Habitat heterogeneity, not park size, drives plant biodiversity in urban green spaces
Presenting Author: Hogyeum Joo, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
Co-Author: Myla Aronson, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
Habitat heterogeneity plays a crucial role in maintaining biodiversity. In urban green spaces (UGS), habitat heterogeneity is shaped by management, design, and human use. However, we lack an understanding of the variety of habitat types and biodiversity UGS is capable of supporting. In this study, we hypothesized that size and habitat heterogeneity of UGS are important predictors of species richness, and these relationships are mediated by park type. To test this hypothesis, we we sampled the vegetation of four park types: a) Neighborhood Parks (n=11), b) Community Parks (n=5), c) Playgrounds (n=7), and d) Nature Areas (n=4), in New York City, USA.
We categorized habitat types within each park using canopy density, shrub density, and mowing/weeding intensity of the herbaceous layer. We conducted 10 x 2m transect surveys of plant species composition within each habitat type. The surveyed parks supported 26 habitat types. Community Parks (avg size=34.54ha) supported the highest number of habitat types (avg=8.2) and species richness (avg=159.8), Neighborhood Parks (avg size=2.23ha) had the next highest number of habitat types(avg=6.45) and species richness (avg =112.36). Nature Areas (avg size=23.58ha) and Playgrounds (avg size=0.35ha) had the lowest habitat heterogeneity and species richness (avg=4.75 and 3.14; 83.75 and 46.57, respectively).
Park size showed significant, but weak, positive relationships with habitat heterogeneity (p=0.023, R2 = 0.191) and species richness(p=0.012, R2= 0.226). Notably, habitat heterogeneity reported a strong positive relationship to species richness (p<0.0001, R2=0.721).Post-hoc comparisons (Tukey’s HSD test) indicated that mean habitat heterogeneity significantly differed among park types (ANOVA p<0.0001). Community Parks had a significantly higher number of habitat types compared to Nature Areas (p<0.05) and Playgrounds (p<0.005). However, Playgrounds had significantly lower habitat heterogeneity than Neighborhood Parks (p<0.05). When comparing species richness across park types, we found a significant difference only between Community Parks and Playgrounds (p<0.005). Our study highlights that habitat heterogeneity is a stronger driver of species richness than park area in urban green spaces. These results suggest that increasing habitat heterogeneity within existing parks may be a key strategy for enhancing urban biodiversity.