Varsha S. Pathare, is a Postdoctoral Researcher under Andrew Leakey within the Institute for Genomic Biology- at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Pathare’s research aims to understand how variation in leaf anatomical and biochemical properties influence the CO₂-uptake and water-use capacities of diverse plant species. She then uses the information to predict and combat the impacts of climate change on our ecosystem. Thus, Pathare’s objectives in the RIPE project are modeling photosynthesis, optimizing canopies, and mesophyll conductance. She is currently investigating how modification of stomatal traits affect the cellular, leaf, and canopy level CO2-uptake and water-use in soybean. Pathare has earned a bachelor's and master’s degree in Botany at the University of Pune, India. She has also earned a Doctorate in Plant Science from Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Australia. Journals that have published Pathare’s work are: Global Change Biology, New Phytologist, and Plant Cell and Environment.