Research by the Harvard team is interdisciplinary, attracting increasing participation by scientists within the five member institutions (Harvard, MIT, WHOI, Rochester, Smithsonian Institution). We have also been successful in promoting cross-team collaborations -- currently, research projects are underway with colleagues from the Carnegie, MBL, Rhode Island, Penn State, NASA Ames, and JPL teams, as well as both the Spanish and Australian astrobiology centers. Moreover, our team participates actively in the Evogenomics Focus Group and has taken a leadership position in the Mission to Early Earth Focus Group (A. Anbar). Team members are active in research on novel biosignatures and digital mapping technologies that can be applied to solar system research; A. Knoll and J. Grotzinger are members of the 2003 Mars MER science team; and R. Summons serves on MEPAG and the Astrobiology Science Strategy Group, committees charged with defining astrobiological research strategyies for upcoming Mars missions. Equally important, research by Harvard team members on sedimentary and geochemical biosignatures as well as early states of Earth's atmosphere directly influence planning for continuing planetary exploration and the projected Terrestrial Planet Finder mission.

The Harvard team has a particularly active field presence, with projects currently underway in Australia, southern Africa, Svalbard, Canada (Newfoundland and the Rocky Mountains), China, Oman, and Spain. We also teach actively at three universities, contributing to both the training of new professionals and the education of a broader university community. Basic courses in geobiology and Earth systems science are offered at MIT, Harvard, and Rochester. During the past year, R. Summons initiated an advanced geobiology/astrobiology course at MIT, and, at Harvard, D. Schrag and A. Knoll gave a graduate seminar on biomineralization. In year 4, much of our EPO effort was focused on university teaching, but individual team members lectured to K-12 and adult groups (including space engineers at JPL), we sponsored a public lecture by Paul Davies, and we organized a Pardee Keynote Symposium on geobiology and astrobiology for the 2001 annual meeting of the Geological Society of America.