As an applied forest ecologist, Peter is interested in evaluating forest regeneration and developmental dynamics in response to global change and understanding adaptive silvicultural strategies at meeting a diverse suite of ecological objectives. His research background is in forest adaptation, regeneration ecology, functional ecology, and biogeography. He is keenly interested in co-developed science directly informed by natural resource practitioners.

Peter's current research involves examining the barriers for operationalizing assisted migration (and other adaptive regeneration efforts for global change), the tradeoffs in managing forests for multiple objectives (e.g., carbon mitigation versus adaptive capacity), and the effects of extreme climate on forest function. Some of his previous research used tree rings to reconstruct climate, insect outbreaks, and wildfire. He has also used his climbing skills to study cliffside ecology to quantify the sensitivity and distribution of non-vascular plant communities.