I study the effects of climate change on northern high-latitude ecosystems, specifically exploring how permafrost thaw affects land-freshwater linkages. As a National Science Foundation Earth Sciences Postdoctoral Fellow, I work with scientists at Woodwell Climate and Harvard University to study the effects of permafrost thaw and wildfire on mercury and carbon cycling in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta in Southwestern Alaska.
After completing a B.A. in environmental science and geology from Middlebury College in 2011, I joined Woodwell as a research assistant. I got hooked on Arctic science on a trip to the remote Russian Arctic and became fascinated with the effects of permafrost thaw on ecosystems and climate. I pursued this interest through graduate studies in biological sciences at the University of Alberta in Canada, where my Ph.D. (2019) research investigated permafrost thaw effects on aquatic ecosystems and carbon cycling in the Yukon and Northwest Territories.
I am passionate about education and inspiring the next generation of scientists through involvement in initiatives like the Polaris Project. I find engaging with students and interacting with local northern communities to be among the most rewarding aspects of my collaborative research to better understand northern ecosystem change.
