​About

I use mathematical modelling to study the dynamics of ecosystems to predict mechanistic relationships among ecosystem processes and then use that knowledge to inform management policies. I aim to work with local stakeholders to develop and parameterize mathematical models to answer pertinent questions about local ecosystems that may inform management policy and design.

I am currently a postdoc with the Shea and Ferrari labs at Pennsylvania State University and with the MCEM lab at Oxford University modelling Foot and Mouth disease dynamics (in collaboration with ILRI and the Tildesley and Jewell labs) and coral reef dynamics to inform management strategies. My PhD focused on modelling coral reef larval dispersal networks to determine how larval dispersal among reefs might change the stability of the coral-dominated state (link) and to delineate present-day larval dispersal networks and assess the capacity of natural re-seeding to re-seed present-day reef networks (link). My final chapter was in collaboration with the Wildlife Conservation Society of Fiji and modelled a Fijian reef network and assessed the efficacy of various different management strategies. I have also worked on projects modelling SARS CoV-2 dynamics in Canada, assessing human impacts on worldwide genetic diversity, determining pigeons capacity to learn efficient routes in travelling salesman (or salespigeon) problems and writing guidelines for graduate students working with mathematical models for the first time.

I am the lead author of the paper that was the Canadian National Champion in the Inaugural Frontiers Planet Prize competition in 2023.
Learn more about my work from coverage in Hakai Magazine and Conservation Corridors.