Climate Researcher Database

With over 500 faculty members investigating climate-related topics 
across two UBC campuses, it can be hard to know where to start. 

This page provides a searchable list of UBC faculty members conducting climate and climate-related research across the university. 

The database allows you to filter by campus, faculty or school, and research theme, or you can search by keywords.

If you are you a UBC research associate or faculty member who wish to be added to the tool, or to adjust an existing entry, please complete this Qualtrics survey or email us at climate.collective@ubc.ca.

Would you like to partner with UBC researchers?  You can connect with Innovation + Partnerships for support in Vancouver and the Okanagan.

For support with media enquiries, please reach out to UBC Media Relations in Vancouver or UBC University Relations in Kelowna. 

You can also contact us at climate.collective@ubc.ca 

Name Campus Research Interests Faculty Department, School, Affiliations Research Theme(s)
Quentin Cronk UBC Vancouver Comparative genomics; Molecular developmental biology and evolutionary biology to study plant form; Next generation sequencing of whole genomes and transcriptomes. Faculty of Science Department of Botany; Biodiversity Research Centre; Centre for Plant Research; Interdisciplinary Biodiversity Solutions Collaboratory (IBioS); CronkLab Biodiversity
Sean Crowe UBC Vancouver Improving our capacity to predict and respond to global change by creating new knowledge of the earth system; Biogeochemical cycling of nitrogen, iron, sulfur, phosphorus, and carbon in modern and past environments. Faculty of Science Department of Microbiology and Immunology; Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences; Life Sciences Institute; Bradshaw Research Institute for Minerals and Mining Paleoclimate, Carbon Cycle, Bioprocesses and Biotechnology
Patrick Culbert UBC Vancouver Drivers of spatial patterns of biodiversity; Quantification of agricultural intensification; Land-use change; Agricultural land-use legacies; Flipped classroom; Blended learning; Experiential learning; Learning theory; Instructional theory. Faculty of Forestry Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences; Centre for Sustainable Food Systems Forestry, Biodiversity, Agriculture, Land Use, Sovereign or Sustainable Food Systems, Climate Education and Environmental Literacy
Jeff Curtis UBC Okanagan Biogeoclimatic control of water quality; Inferring hydrologic flowpath from geochemical indicators; Optical properties of natural waters; Interaction of metals and natural organic ligands; Scavenging of nutrients and trace elements in biogenic calcite; Fate and transport of endocrine disrupters. Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science Earth, Environmental and Geographic Sciences Freshwater Systems, Pollution
Mitch D'Arcy UBC Vancouver How climate change affects landscapes, surface processes, and terrestrial sedimentary deposits; Sensitivity of surface processes to climate; How climate change affects all parts of these systems, from erosional processes (like weathering, landslides and debris flows), to the ways climate signals are transmitted through landscapes and ultimately recorded by terrestrial sediments and landforms (for example moraines, alluvial fans, rivers and basin stratigraphy); Understanding how terrestrial sediments and landforms record climatic information; Palaeoclimate reconstruction. Faculty of Science Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences; Disaster Resilience Research Network Paleoclimate, Terrestrial Ecosystems, Freshwater Systems, Climate Modelling and Data Analysis
Joe (Joseph) Dahmen UBC Vancouver Technical methods and cultural effects of resource use at the scales of architecture and territory; Emergent materials derived from regionally specific biological and geological processes. Faculty of Applied Science School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture; Bioproducts Institute Buildings and Sustainable Infrastructure Design, Urban Planning and Cities, Sustainable Materials and Composites
Gregory Dake UBC Vancouver Organic synthesis; Use of shelf-stable dienes in multicomponent cycloaddition reactions to form highly functionalized heterocycles; Construction of medicinally relevant heterocycles using transition metal catalysis; DMAP catalyzed cyclizations to form tetrahydroxanthones; Metal catalyzed annulation; High yielding, mild, multibond forming processes to form complex heterocycles; Total synthesis of natural products and natural product-like molecular structures; Simpler analogs of natural products to examine bioactive mechanisms and/or medicinal chemistry. Faculty of Science Department of Chemistry; Dake Group Bioprocesses and Biotechnology
Lori Daniels UBC Vancouver Impacts of natural and anthropogenic disturbance and climate variation on temperate forest dynamics using a combination of permanent research plots and historical reconstructions based on tree rings; Wildfire coexistence; Partnerships with First Nations, local to national governments, environmental organizations, forest management companies, and community forests. Faculty of Forestry Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences; Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions; Centre for Wildfire Coexistence; Tree Ring Lab; Climate Change Health Effects, Adaptation, and ResiLience (HEAL); Disaster Resilience Research Network Forestry, Wildfires and Forest Fires, Land Use, Indigenous Relationships and Reconciliation, Natural Hazards and Disaster Response
Peter Dauvergne UBC Vancouver Refugee law; Immigration law; Citizenship law; Global governance and emerging powers; Environmental politics. Faculty of Arts Department of Political Science; Institute for Resources, Environment, and Sustainability; Microplastic Cluster; Green Shipping Project Policy and Governance, Climate Activism and Social Movements, International Negotiations and Treaties, Business Processes and Corporate Governance, Waste and Waste Management
Jonathan Davies UBC Vancouver Ecology and evolutionary biology; Distribution of biodiversity and the challenges posed to its conservation through recent changes to the environment. Faculty of Forestry, Faculty of Science Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences; Department of Botany; Biodiversity Research Centre; PhyloEcology Lab Biodiversity, Terrestrial Ecosystems, Policy and Governance
Wade Davis UBC Vancouver Biological and cultural diversity and the forces that threaten both; Ethnobotany; Photography and filmmaking. Faculty of Arts Department of Anthropology Climate Education and Environmental Literacy, Social Dimensions of Climate and Systems Change, Indigenous Ways of Knowing
Susan Day UBC Vancouver Below-ground systems of urban forests and how they affect ecosystem service provision; Contemporary challenges faced by cities in managing their urban forests; Stormwater management as mediated by the below-ground system; Soil carbon; Managing urban soils during land development; Manufactured, blended and engineered soils; Sustainability standards for soils during site development; Linking design and ecological processes to solve urban problems. Faculty of Forestry Department of Forest Resource Management Urban Planning and Cities, Forestry, Water Resources and Supply, Carbon Cycle, Policy and Governance, Carbon Management
Clarence De Silva UBC Vancouver Multi-robot systems and applications including homecare; Intelligent systems and automation; Mechatronics; Integrated and automated design; Control sensors; Actuators and instrumentation; Automated machine monitoring, diagnosis, and repair; Telemedicine and health monitoring; Environmental monitoring. Faculty of Applied Science Department of Mechanical Engineering; Institute for Computing, Information and Cognitive Systems; Industrial Automation Laboratory Oil and Gas
Jessica Dempsey UBC Vancouver Environmental politics; Political ecology; How biodiversity loss continues despite the proliferation of international, national and regional conservation laws, policies and advocacy efforts; How environmental politics is shaped by and shapes economics, science, culture, history, gender, racism, colonialism, social movements and more. Faculty of Arts Department of Geography; Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice; Biodiversity Research Centre; Interdisciplinary Biodiversity Solutions Collaboratory (IBioS); Centre for Climate Justice Policy and Governance, Climate Justice, Biodiversity, Poverty, Climate Finance and Investment
Tahia Devisscher UBC Vancouver Managing forests and other greenspaces in and around cities to support human well-being and build social-ecological resilience to climate change; Developing practical strategies to address the increasing disconnect between people and nature caused by rapid urbanization. Faculty of Forestry Department of Forest Resource Management; Urban Forests Research Hub; Climate Change Health Effects, Adaptation, and ResiLience (HEAL) Health and Wellbeing, Urban Planning and Cities, Forestry, Social Dimensions of Climate and Systems Change, Climate Justice, Policy and Governance
David Dixon UBC Vancouver Hydrometallurgy process analysis and design; Mathematical modelling; Heap leaching; Fluid flow and mass transfer; Leaching kinetics; Fixed bed processing fixed-bed leaching; Fundamentals of hydrometallurgical reactors. Faculty of Applied Science Department of Materials Engineering Mining, Waste and Waste Management
Michael Doebeli UBC Vancouver Mathematical ecology and evolution; Evolution of diversity; Adaptive speciation; Evolution of cooperation; Adaptive dynamics; Game theory; Experimental evolution in microorganisms. Faculty of Science Department of Zoology; Department of Mathematics; Biodiversity Research Centre Biodiversity, Terrestrial Ecosystems
Simon Donner UBC Vancouver Climate changes and impacts; Prediction and climatic Modeling; Marine environment; Climate change science, Climate policy; Science communication; Coastal ecosystems; Coral reefs. Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Science Department of Geography; Institute for Resources, Environment, and Sustainability; Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries; Climate and Coastal Ecosystem Laboratory; Clean Energy Research Centre (CERC); Decision Insights for Business & Society (DIBS) Carbon Cycle, Oceans and Coastal Systems, Policy and Governance, Climate Modelling and Data Analysis, International Negotiations and Treaties
Hadi Dowlatabadi UBC Vancouver Energy; Policy and Decision-making; Resource governance and management; Climate change and its related response strategies; Zero carbon economy; Environmental protection & development; Carsharing; Built environment; Assuming responsibility for intergenerational transfers. Faculty of Science Institute for Resources, Environment, and Sustainability; Clean Energy Research Centre (CERC) Electricity, Clean Energy and Energy Transitions, Transportation, Business Processes and Corporate Governance, Social Dimensions of Climate and Systems Change, Policy and Governance
David Duff UBC Vancouver Tax law and policy; Corporate and international taxation; Environmental taxation; Distributive justice; Tax avoidance; Interpretation of tax legislation and tax treaties; Comparative law; Environmental law, natural resources, and climate change; International law; Law and social justice. Peter A. Allard School of Law Centre for Business Law; Allard School of Law History Project Environmental Law, International Negotiations and Treaties, Policy and Governance, Clean Energy and Energy Transitions, Climate Finance and Investment
Aleksandra Dulic UBC Okanagan Visual art, new media, video, drawing 2D; Media for social change; Climate change; Interactive art; Experience design. Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies Department of Creative Studies; Centre for Culture and Technology; Okanagan Institute for Biodiversity, Resilience, And Ecosystems Services (BRAES); Cool Tools Warm World Research Cluster Climate Activism and Social Movements, Climate Education and Environmental Literacy, Social Dimensions of Climate and Systems Change
Trevor Dummer UBC Vancouver Health geography; Environmental exposures; Health inequalities; Geographic information science; Environmental epidemiology and environment and health interactions, with specific emphasis on cancer etiology and cancer prevention. Faculty of Medicine School of Population and Public Health Health and Wellbeing, Pollution, Urban Planning and Cities, Policy and Governance, Rural and Northern Communities
Scott Dunbar UBC Vancouver Development of advanced mining and mineral processing methods; Mining; Mineral processing; Risk; Mineral exploration. Faculty of Applied Science Norman B. Keevil Institute of Mining Engineering Mining, Waste and Waste Management, Climate Education and Environmental Literacy
William (Bill) Dunford UBC Vancouver Electrical power conversion; Electric vehicles; Alternative energy and sustainable development; DC systems with load and battery management; Clean Energy. Faculty of Applied Science Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering; Power Group; Clean Energy Research Centre (CERC) Electricity, Clean Energy and Energy Transitions, Solar Energy
Brett Eaton UBC Vancouver Rivers and climate change; How rivers respond to land use and environmental change; Stream channel morphology; Fish habitat; Impacts of hydropower generation on stream channel processes. Faculty of Arts Department of Geography Freshwater Systems, Natural Hazards and Disaster Response, Fisheries
Wilson Eberle UBC Okanagan Enabling technology for advanced energy applications through power electronics; Developing power conversion and smart-grid technologies for advanced industrial energy applications. Faculty of Applied Science School of Engineering (Electrical); Energy Systems and Power Electronics Lab Electricity, Clean Energy and Energy Transitions
Joel Edward Saylor UBC Vancouver Paleoaltimetry; Paleoclimatology; Tectonic basin analysis; Quantitative sediment provenance analysis; Rivers; Tectonics; Sedimentary basins; Structural geology; Field geology; Sedimentology; Stratigraphy; Sequence stratigraphy; Sediments; Geology. Faculty of Applied Science Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences Paleoclimate
Yousry El-Kassaby UBC Vancouver Tree breeding; Biodiversity; Conservation; Tree domestication; Tree improvement delivery system; Seed orchards’ genetics; Tree breeding; Association genetics and genomic selection. Faculty of Forestry Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences Forestry, Biodiversity, Biofuels and Biomass
Naoko Ellis UBC Vancouver CO2 capture and utilization; Thermochemical conversion of biomass; Biomass utilization; Fluidization and multiphase Systems; Sustainability and environmental education; Transdisciplinary research and learning. Faculty of Applied Science Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering; Institute for Resources, Environment, and Sustainability; D|N Education Design; Systems Being Lab; Fluidization Research Centre; Clean Energy Research Centre (CERC) Biofuels and Biomass, Clean Energy and Energy Transitions, Carbon Management, Climate Education and Environmental Literacy, Social Dimensions of Climate and Systems Change
Shona Ellis UBC Vancouver Sustainability teaching & learning; Biodiversity; Botany; Flexible learning; Moss phylogeny; Medicinal plants; Nitrogen cycling. Faculty of Science Department of Botany; Centre for Sustainable Food Systems Biodiversity, Climate Education and Environmental Literacy
Lindsay Eltis UBC Vancouver Bacterial catabolic enzymes and pathways responsible for the degradation of aromatic compounds and steroids; Development of novel biocatalysts for more sustainable processes. Faculty of Medicine Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Department of Microbiology and Immunology; Eltis Lab Bioprocesses and Biotechnology, Biofuels and Biomass, Sustainable Materials and Composites, Health and Wellbeing
Peter Englezos UBC Vancouver CO2 capture and storage; Water treatment; Novel materials from forest bio-resources; Clathrate (gas) hydrates: thermodynamics, kinetics, impact on climate change and technological applications; Optimization and machine learning in process engineering. Faculty of Applied Science Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering; Bioproducts Institute; Clean Energy Research Centre (CERC) Carbon Management, Oil and Gas
Bianca Eskelson UBC Vancouver Biometrics; Ecological monitoring; Ecology; Ecosystems; Forest measurements; Modelling; Sampling design; Stand dynamics. Faculty of Forestry Department of Forest Resource Management; Forest Measurements and Biometrics Forestry, Wildfires and Forest Fires, Climate Modelling and Data Analysis, Biodiversity, Water Resources and Supply
Cigdem Eskicioglu UBC Okanagan Wastewater and sludge treatment; Pretreatment technologies for enhanced biomethane and biohydrogen production from organic waste; Side-stream nutrient removal; Fate and transformation of micropollutants during biological treatment processes; Modeling, simulation and optimization of biological wastewater/sludge treatment processes; Waste minimization and resource recovery. Faculty of Applied Science School of Engineering (Civil); UBC Clean Energy Research Centre (CERC); UBC Bioreactor Technology Group Waste and Waste Management, Biofuels and Biomass, Water Resources and Supply
Tamara Etmannski UBC Vancouver Sustainability; Engineering leadership; Entrepreneurship; Impact metrics; sustainability metrics including LCA and PAM methodologies; Water management and treatment; Water treatment technologies; Curricula design and assessment; Experiential teaching and learning in engineering. Faculty of Applied Science Department of Civil Engineering Climate Education and Environmental Literacy, Business Processes and Corporate Governance, Water Resources and Supply, Waste and Waste Management, Pollution
Matthew Evenden UBC Vancouver Environmental history and water history, with a regional specialization in Canada, particularly Alberta and British Columbia; History and politics of large rivers, including controversies over dams, fisheries, as well as water supply and quality. Faculty of Arts Department of Geography Freshwater Systems, Policy and Governance, Electricity, Urban Planning and Cities, Water Resources and Supply
Gerald Fallon UBC Vancouver Notions of sustainability in educational policies in in Canada; Policy and Indigenous education; Legal issues in education; Education finance; Inclusive education and educational administration and leadership; School improvement and notions and processes of change. Faculty of Education Department of Educational Studies Climate Education and Environmental Literacy, Indigenous Relationships and Reconciliation, Policy and Governance, Social Dimensions of Climate and Systems Change
Anthony Farrell Integrative and comparative animal physiology; Salmon migratory passage, exercise / handling stress and recovery; Sustainable aquaculture; Aquatic toxicology. Faculty of Land and Food Systems, Faculty of Science Department of Zoology; Applied Animal Biology Program Freshwater Systems, Oceans and Coastal Systems, Fisheries, Alpine, Arctic and Antarctic
Mahmudur Fatmi UBC Okanagan Travel demand forecasting; Transportation and land use interaction; Travel behaviour analysis; Smart and shared mobility; Urban system microsimulation, Activity-based modelling; Transportation and residential emissions and energy modelling; Econometric modelling; Agent-based microsimulation, Survey design and methods. Faculty of Applied Science School of Engineering (Civil); UBC Clean Energy Research Centre (CERC); UBC Integrated Transportation Research Laboratory Transportation, Economic Modeling and Data Analysis, Environmental Psychology, Urban Planning and Cities, Buildings and Sustainable Infrastructure Design, Indigenous Relationships and Reconciliation
Haibo Feng UBC Vancouver Green building; Building information modeling; Life cycle assessment; Building energy performance; Building rating systems; Mass timber. Faculty of Forestry Department of Wood Science; Sustainable Built Environment Lab; Clean Energy Research Centre (CERC); Bioproducts Institute Product Lifecycle or Circular Economy, Buildings and Sustainable Infrastructure Design, Manufacturing and Heavy Industry, Forestry
Jonathan Fink UBC Vancouver Urban geoengineering; Cascading natural and climate-driven hazards; Wildfire and urban smoke; Campus decarbonization; Climate-related startup company innovation; Carbon removal technologies; Urban thermal energy systems; Geothermal energy; Climate communications; Urban tree canopy conservation. Faculty of Science Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences Carbon Management, Climate Education and Environmental Literacy, Social Dimensions of Climate and Systems Change, Natural Hazards and Disaster Response, Urban Planning and Cities, Wildfires and Forest Fires
Alexandra Flynn UBC Vancouver Municipal law and governance; Administrative law; Property law; Administrative law and regulatory governance; Law and cities; Law and society; Property, housing and real estate; Urban and municipal law; Governance of personal property of precariously housed people; Human rights and tent encampments. Peter A. Allard School of Law Centre for Feminist Legal Studies; Centre for Law and the Environment; Indigenous Legal Studies Housing, Environmental Law, Urban Planning and Cities, Indigenous Relationships and Reconciliation
Adam Ford UBC Okanagan Wildlife ecology and conservation; Mammals; Temperate forests, grasslands, and tropical savannas. Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science Department of Zoology; Department of Biology; Biodiversity Research Centre; Okanagan Institute For Biodiversity, Resilience, And Ecosystems Services (BRAES); Wildlife Restoration Ecology Lab Terrestrial Ecosystems, Livelihoods and Traditional Economies, Wildfires and Forest Fires, Alpine, Arctic and Antarctic, Biodiversity, Indigenous Relationships and Reconciliation
Roger Francois UBC Vancouver Climate change; Application of geochemistry to problems of paleoceanography; Carbon and nitrogen isotope geochemistry; Trace element proxies; Water column radiochemistry to constrain abyssal circulation and scavenging. Faculty of Science Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences; UBC Microplastic Cluster; ArcTrain Oceans and Coastal Systems, Alpine, Arctic and Antarctic
Tim Frandy UBC Vancouver Indigenous sustainabilities; Eco-relationality; Indigenization of ecological management, education, and health care systems. Faculty of Arts Department of Central, Eastern and Northern European Studies; Centre for Climate Justice Climate Justice, Indigenous Ways of Knowing, Indigenous Relationships and Reconciliation, Livelihoods and Traditional Economies
Ian Frigaard UBC Vancouver Cementing of wells; Preventing leakage and techniques for the eventual abandonment; Issues related to GHG emission control and long-term environmental protection. Faculty of Applied Science, Faculty of Science Department of Zoology; Department of Mechanical Engineering Carbon Management, Manufacturing and Heavy Industry, Oil and Gas
Andrea Frommel UBC Vancouver Climate change, fisheries and sustainable aquaculture, with a focus on early life stages of finfish; Effects of climate change on commercial fish species in fisheries and aquaculture; Alternative sustainable feeds in hatcheries; Fish welfare in aquaculture. Faculty of Land and Food Systems Applied Biology Program; Aquaculture and Climate Change Lab; Centre for Sustainable Food Systems Fisheries, Oceans and Coastal Systems, Sovereign or Sustainable Food Systems
Joséphine Gantois UBC Vancouver Ecological footprint of humans in natural and agricultural landscapes; Reconciling private land use incentives and conservation goals, especially in agricultural areas; Monitoring biodiversity outcomes and ecosystem functions at large scales; Estimating the causal impact of land use choices and conservation policies on biodiversity. Faculty of Land and Food Systems, Faculty of Science Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability; Food and Resource Economics; Interdisciplinary Biodiversity Solutions Collaboratory (IBioS); Food and Resource Economics Biodiversity, Land Use, Agriculture, Policy and Governance
Suliman Gargoum UBC Okanagan Infrastructure Digitization; Virtual Transportation Infrastructure Management; Automated LiDAR Data Processing; Road Safety Analytics; Roadway Design; Smart Cities; Resilient Transportation Infrastructure. Faculty of Applied Science School of Engineering (Civil); Disaster Resilience Research Network; Institute of Transportation Engineers; Consulting Engineers of Alberta; Intelligent Transportation Systems Canada. Natural Hazards and Disaster Response, Buildings and Sustainable Infrastructure Design, Urban Planning and Cities, Transportation
Greg Garrard UBC Okanagan Climate scepticism; Climate fictions; Climate change cinema; Anthropocene culture; Ecocriticism; Climate models as cultural and ethical actors. Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies Department of English and Cultural Studies; Okanagan Institute for Biodiversity, Resilience, And Ecosystems Services (BRAES); Cluster of Research Excellence in Living with Wildfire in the BC Southern Interior Social Dimensions of Climate and Systems Change, Climate Education and Environmental Literacy, Climate Activism and Social Movements

First Nations land acknowledegement

We acknowledge that UBC’s campuses are situated within the traditional territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh, and in the traditional, ancestral, unceded territory of the Syilx Okanagan Nation and their peoples.

Climate Solutions Research Collective

UBC receives support for managing its research enterprise from the federal Research Support Fund.

UBC Crest The official logo of the University of British Columbia. Urgent Message An exclamation mark in a speech bubble. Caret An arrowhead indicating direction. Arrow An arrow indicating direction. Arrow in Circle An arrow indicating direction. Arrow in Circle An arrow indicating direction. Bluesky The logo for the Bluesky social media service. Chats Two speech clouds. Facebook The logo for the Facebook social media service. Information The letter 'i' in a circle. Instagram The logo for the Instagram social media service. External Link An arrow entering a square. Linkedin The logo for the LinkedIn social media service. Location Pin A map location pin. Mail An envelope. Menu Three horizontal lines indicating a menu. Minus A minus sign. Telephone An antique telephone. Plus A plus symbol indicating more or the ability to add. Search A magnifying glass. Twitter The logo for the Twitter social media service. Youtube The logo for the YouTube video sharing service.