I am a new Masters student under advisor Dr. Anthony Arendt. As an undergrad at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, I completed a B.Sc. in Astrophysics and a B.A. in Philosophy of Science. Although this might seem like an arbitrary pair, the combination of physical sciences and a critical eye for the effects of scientific development really capture the essence of my interests. This is how I came to focus on present-day problems in earth and environmental science.

After UBC, I spent a rather interdisciplinary year as an RA at the University of Calgary in Alberta. I started in a behavioural ecology group, observing the effects of clear-cut logging on deer and moose populations in the Canadian Rockies. Next, I spent some time at a stable isotope lab, analyzing air samples for pollutants from oil-extraction operations. Finally, I joined a glaciology group, mapping weather variability as it relates to topography in foothill areas. At this point, I focused my academic interest: examining glacier health as a result of changing climate.

Although not yet fully defined, my project here at UAF is likely to focus on two methods for assessing glacier health. One will be to examine data collected by the GRACE satellite mission, in which repeat gravity measurements of Alaska's mountain ranges are revealing negative changes in glacier mass over time. To corroborate this, we hope to implement a high-altitude meteorological station at a specific glacier basin (to be determined), to observe whether the GRACE data agrees with that area's climate pattern.

Outside of my time in my little cube, I enjoy traveling, biking, hiking, pretending to know how to ski, baking vegan treats and doing as much yoga as possible.