Waleed joined the lab in July 2023 as a postdoc working on a new project evaluating how microbial activity and functions may influence, expedite, and maintain agroecosystems in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Waleed holds a Ph.D. in soil microbiology and ecology from the University of Yamanashi, Japan, and an MS in environmental science from Beijing Normal University, China. Waleed is interested in many areas of sustainable crop production and agricultural management, including how to improve soil health, how nutrients move through the soil, and how soil-plant microbial communities help wheat crops grow under different stress conditions.