David Rounce

David Rounce is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University, where he joined in Fall 2020. His research quantifies climate change impacts on glaciers, water resources, and hazards to inform adaptation strategies across local to global scales.

Education:

• 2016: Ph.D. in Civil Engineering, University of Texas at Austin
• 2012: M.S. in Environmental and Water Resources Engineering, University of Texas at Austin
• 2010: B.S. in Civil Engineering, Villanova University

Rounce employs computational models integrated with remote sensing and field observations to address critical glaciological challenges. His work spans debris-covered glacier evolution, energy balance modeling for Alaskan glaciers, urban stormwater management under climate change, and forecasting glacial lake outburst floods. Key research thrusts include quantifying hidden ice melt in the Himalayas and projecting glacier contributions to sea-level rise.

Scientific Awards:

• International Glaciology Society’s inaugural Firn Award for pioneering debris-covered glacier research
• Early-career research fellowship for climate change/sealevel rise adaptation in the Gulf of Mexico

Rounce leads the CryoTartans research group and collaborates with PhD students on climate-resilient infrastructure projects. His NASA-funded work on glacier melt projections has informed international climate policy discussions, including presentations at COP28. Current grants focus on developing robust models for glacial flood prediction in Alaska and coastal adaptation strategies.