Climate Change Graduate Research in Canada

I am always looking for curious and motivated students who are interested in climate change research in cold regions. If this is you, especially if you have an exciting project idea, please email me and transcript with the subject line “Climate Change Graduate Research in.”

Right now, my group has the following openings:

PhD Student (Start Summer/Fall 2025):

Current large-scale permafrost models represent soils using a binary frozen/thawed state, lacking rigorous representation of soil freezing through curves (SFCCs). To accurately quantify the ice content of frozen and partially frozen soils in large-scale models, you will derive an extension to a semi-analytical interface model to include partially frozen soils and make it into an ArcMap toolbox. You will run the model using Canadian weather station data, the surficial geology map of Canada, the Ground Ice Map of Canada, and the National Soils Database to define the SFCC. The model will be validated against data collected in the field in three permafrost sites in collaboration with the Guardian program in each region (Indigenous partners in climate change research and monitoring). GIS experience required.

PhD Student (Start Summer 2025):

Members of the community of Whatì, NWT, belonging to the Tłı̨chǫ nation, have reported changes to the quality and health of the fish they rely on. To understand what is driving these changes, we have put together an interdisciplinary team of researchers including biologists, geochemists, hydrogeologists, and hydrologists to study two small lake catchments: one burned and one unaffected by wildfire. In this role, you will quantify water and energy balances for each lake using field data (streamflow and groundwater, environmental tracers, precipitation, net radiation) and model each catchment with the Raven hydrological framework. The model will be validated against data collected in the field. All field data will be collected with Tłı̨chǫ Environmental monitors who will provide key insights into site selection and contextual understanding. Results from this work will inform fish habitat modelling and change detection. Field experience required.

MSc Student (Start Summer/Fall 2025):

The Raven Hydrological Modelling Framework is widely used in Canada for flood forecasting, regulating hydroelectric power generation, and other water management activities, but it does not currently explicitly represent soil freeze/thaw processes. In a changing climate, an integrated representation of freeze/thaw processes is critical for the representation of midwinter melt events, rain-on-snow, and other winter flooding triggers. Your role will be to test the implementation of a semi-analytical interface model of freeze/thaw in Raven, identify model improvements, and generate the first fully integrated freezing hydrologic model directly representing permafrost evolution. You will then apply the model to the La Martre catchment in the NWT to validate the model representation and contribute to understanding the cumulative impacts of climate change on this basin.

To find out more about my research, you can check out my website.