Fulbright Proposal - Funded!
I propose to study the hydrologic and biogeochemical evolution of alpine critical zone environments of the Patagonia with Dr. Brian Reid, a biogeochemist at the Centro de Investigación en Ecosistemas de la Patagonia (CIEP) in Coyhaique, Chile. Dr. Reid conducts field studies on Patagonian volcanic ash soils and the ecosystem services they provide, but has not incorporated numerical modeling techniques. My computational skills can complement Dr. Reid’s work by providing novel insights into the underlying physical and chemical processes and predicting how these landscapes will evolve over time. Communities throughout the world rely on alpine watersheds for their water supply. Although there is strong evidence for global climate change, we do not yet understand how local water resources will be affected by shifting regional climate patterns. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (2013) warns that “changes in streamflow and water availability have been observed and projected to co...