Freshwater ecosystems are sentinels of our environment. Now more than ever, lakes, rivers, and wetlands face threats from stressors such as climate change, land-use shifts, and pollutant deposition. Of fundamental importance is the recognition of the timescales of species, assemblage, and ecosystem response to stressors. My research integrates a wide-range of methods from ecology and paleolimnology to understand the effects of human activities and natural processes. The current focus of my research includes: 1) Understanding the cause and impacts of benthic algal blooms in salmon rivers, 2) Advancing knowledge of lake response to shifting conditions, and 3) Quantifying the importance of stressors to shallow lakes in the Athabasca oil sands region, Alberta.
