People

Rebecca is a rural studies and agrifood system scholar. Using a range of methodological approaches, she examines how experiences with environmental and agrifood system change are shaped by inequality and marginalization.

Jodi is the leader of LUL@BSU — the Land Use Lab at Boise State University. She is a land-use scientist who studies landscape change and its drivers, and the impacts of landscape change on biodiversity and ecosystem services.

For more information on Dr. Brandt’s lab group and research, go to her lab website.

Megan is interested in how interacting anthropogenic and biophysical factors alter disturbance regimes and subsequent recovery, and in evaluating the efficacy of intervention options in increasing social-ecological resilience.

Vicken studies human behavioral and institutional change in environmental contexts, using quantitative surveys, behavioral experiments, computational modeling, and social-ecological network analysis.

Kelly studies how environmental and social changes are affecting ecosystems and rural livelihoods, particularly in mountain and pastoral regions.

Matt is a conservation scientist interested in understanding how the interactions between people, their environment, and the institutions that govern them inspire (or inhibit) conservation action and how that impacts their effectiveness. Learn more about Professor Williamson’s lab here: SPASES Lab

Emily is a fluvial geomorphologist who uses field data and remote sensing to investigate the structure and function of river corridors. She is interested in characterizing natural environments to inform and improve restoration and management practices. She has her PhD and MS in Geosciences from Colorado State University, and her BS in Biological Systems Engineering from the University of California, Davis.

Kelsey is a natural resource and environmental economist working on research at the intersection of forest and land management, climate change adaptation, and ecosystem service provision.

Nick’s focus is on using remote sensing techniques to evaluate human-environment interactions. Land systems often have measurable effects on the landscape key to issues surrounding resource use, human welfare, and conservation efforts. He aims to contribute to interdisciplinary research that helps guide decision-making at multiple spatial and temporal scales. Nick is advised by Dr. Brandt.

Katie is a Postdoctoral Researcher, studying the causes and consequences of NEPA conflict.

Briana is a social-ecological systems scientist that studies how land is governed and the consequences for rural communities and ecosystems. She integrates methods from geography, ecology, and the social sciences to understand and promote sustainable land management.

Education: B.Eng Information and Communication Engineering, Covenant University.

Uwaila’s research interests include Social Media Mining, Computational Social Science, Climate Change Opinion Dynamics and Stance Detection on Social Media. Uwaila is advised by Dr. Vicken Hillis.

Sky’s interests include land management, ecosystem restoration, ecological resilience, and remote sensing. Sky’s current research involves using UAS remote sensing to address questions about resilience of western U.S. forests. Sky is advised by Dr. Megan Cattau.

Committee: Megan Cattau, Allison Simler-Williamson, and Jennifer Forbey

Tao Huang’s research focuses on ecosystem ecology. He examines the effects of climate change and disturbances (e.g., fire, drought) on vegetation cover and hydrological processes.

Carolyn is broadly interested in land cover change and nature’s benefits to people. Her current research examines agricultural lands and farmland loss using an ecosystem services framework. Carolyn is advised by Dr. Jodi Brandt.

Mike studies conservation institutions in Mexico.

Will’s research interests include population ecology and generating usable science. Their current research involves working with multiple stakeholders from non-profit organizations, universities, and state and federal agencies to generate usable science with the goal of aiding the conservation of a rare Idaho native species. Will is advised by Dr. Jay Carlisle and Dr. Megan Cattau.

Tyler’s research interests include environmental history and regenerative agriculture. He is studying changes in sheep grazing over time on U.S. Forest Service grazing allotments. Tyler is advised by Dr. Kelly Hopping.

Colin is interested in mesic systems and their response to disturbance and restoration initiatives. His research combines remote sensing tools with large field-based datasets to improve our current monitoring tools and quantify the impacts of restoration projects. Colin is co-advised by Dr. Jodi Brandt and Dr. Trevor Caughlin.

Erik is interested in applied science for climate adaptation, and is researching the benefits of mesic restoration on agricultural lands. He uses spatial analysis with remotely sensed data to answer questions regarding carbon sequestration.

Sonam’s research interests include grazing and climate change, and she is studying the impact of climate and land use change in Changthang, Ladakh, India.

She is advised by Dr. Kelly Hopping.

Mallory’s research interests include land management, geomorphology, dendrochronology, and climate change. She is currently engaged in researching the connections between disturbance and the expansion of western juniper. Mallory is advised by Dr. Megan Cattau and Dr. Jen Pierce.

Education: BS Geology with minors in Forestry and Sustainability, Iowa State University

Committee: Megan Cattau, Jen Pierce, David Wilkins, and Dave Huber

Juan’s interests include remote sensing techniques, machine learning, and deep learning to investigate carbon sequestration dynamics across various land coverings. Juan is advised by Dr. Brandt.

Education: Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Engineering, Universidad del Cauca, Colombia; MS Geomatics, Universidad del Cauca, Colombia

Emily’s research interests include agricultural entrepreneurship and rural resilience.

Zaldi’s interest revolves around Spatial Analysis, Remote Sensing, Mapping, Unoccupied Aerial Systems (UAS), and Invasive Species. Align with the interest mentioned, his current research is about mapping the invasive species using UAS which incorporates spatiotemporal analysis which ultimately helps us to predict and classify the invasive species occurrence on the landscape. Zaldi is advised by Dr. Megan Cattau.

Education: Master of Environmental Science and Management (MESM), University of Rhode Island; Graduate Certificate in GIS and Remote Sensing, University of Rhode Island; BS Agriculture Product Technology, Syiah Kuala University

Committee: Trevor Caughlin, Jodi Brandt, and Peter Olsoy