The plant's epidermis forms the protective layer between the environment and the inner tissues. Within the leaf epidermis, the numerous pavement cells (PCs) are indispensable to confer protection, structure, and strength. PC development is intertwined with the developmental pathway of stomata, the pores allowing water and gas exchange. However, while the cell fate regulators of the stomatal lineage have been extensively studied, the genetic basis for PC fate acquisition remains elusive. Yet, finding PC cell fate regulators could lend itself to bioengineering of crops in a changing climate, by modulating the number of stomata to allow higher resistance to stresses such as drought. This research will aim to unravel PC identity regulators, including transcription factors and other regulators such as proteases, kinases, phosphatases, and receptors. For this, I will identify upstream regulators of known early PC differentiation genes, as PC identity acquisition is a cell fate switch expected to occur before early PC differentiation. Upstream transcription factors will be elucidated through an optimized Reverse Chromatin Immunoprecipitation. In parallel, regulators will be determined through a forward genetics screen on plants that express the new visible RUBY reporter marking the cells with PC identity. Finally, the top candidate regulators will be used for in-depth characterization through molecular assays and leaf phenotyping under standard and drought stress conditions.