A consequence of global climate change is a rapidly warming arctic resulting in thawing permafrost, changes in soil structure and stability, and an increase in the cover of tall deciduous shrubs. In addition to the large direct impacts of higher temperatures, these changes in vegetation composition have been shown to affect both physical (e.g. soil temperature) and biogeochemical (e.g litter decomposition) processes in tundra ecosystems. The objectives of this project are to better represent accelerated permafrost thaw, vegetation shifts and accompanying nitrogen dynamics, carbon storage and emissions, and community sustainability in Alaska. To achieve this project goal, we will examine how alder succession at the NRCS soil climate analysis network (SCAN) site near the native village of Unalakleet, Alaska is influencing soil saturation, permafrost thaw, and biogeochemical cycling. Part of the field campaign will focus on developing and testing dynamic soil property methods that can be reproduced in future NRCS surveys. Field work will be focused on permafrost characterization and ice richness, tundra vegetation heterogeneity and surface features, nitrogen fixation and transformation pathways following alder encroachment, and associated seasonal shifts in saturation, oxygen availability, and organic matter decomposition.