Elmira Hassanzadeh is an Associate Professor at the Department of Civil, Geological and Mining Engineering , Polytechnique Montréal, with a focus on integrated water resource modeling and management under climate and anthropogenic changes. She is affiliated with the Global Institute for Water Security (University of Saskatchewan) and the Experimental and Digital Water Flow Engineering Group (GENIE EAU) . Education: PhD in Civil Engineering, University of Saskatchewan Postdoctoral Fellow, McGill University Research interests include climate change impact assessment, socio-hydrological modeling, stakeholder engagement in water management, and sustainable development of water systems in cold regions. Her work emphasizes decision-making under uncertainty and adaptive strategies for ungauged basins. Recent publications (2024–2020) span coastal flood hazard modeling, climate-driven hydrological changes in tropical and Canadian watersheds, evaluation of agricultural practices under warming climates, and integrated approaches to water quality and system dynamics. Keywords include Hydrology , Climate Change , Water Security , and Socio-Hydrology . Supervision: She has mentored 15+ graduate students in projects related to Lake Urmia, Saskatchewan River Basin, and climate adaptation in Africa and the Pacific.
Christopher Turbill is an Associate Professor in Animal Science at Western Sydney University's School of Science, where he maintains an active research program focused on animal physiological ecology. He is affiliated with the Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment and serves as a Principal Investigator on multiple research projects while accepting HDR candidates for supervision. PhD from University of New England (2006) Thesis: Thermoregulatory Ecology of Tree-roosting Bats Supervised by Prof. Fritz Geiser Postdoctoral fellowships from Austrian Science Fund and Australian Research Council (DECRA) Former ecologist with NSW Government Professor Turbill's research integrates thermal and metabolic physiology with behavioral ecology to understand animal-environment interactions. His work has revealed significant ecological consequences of controlled body temperature variation in mammals and birds, linking these processes with metabolic energy expenditure, activity patterns, and life-history strategies. He specializes in bat biology and investigates conflicts between human environmental change and animal conservation requirements. His research keywords include ecophysiology, thermoregulation, energy expenditure, life-history ecology, body temperature, torpor, hibernation, and wildlife conservation. Analysis of Turbill's recent publications reveals a strong focus on thermal biology and conservation physiology, particularly regarding bats and birds. His work examines how animals manage energy through torpor, respond to climate change through thermal regulation, and adapt to anthropogenic disturbances. The research spans field studies of flying-foxes, microbats, and passerine birds across Australian ecosystems, with increasing emphasis on conservation applications related to white-nose syndrome, fire impacts, and wind energy development. Turbill leads significant research projects including the Ecology of the eastern horseshoe bat and its sensitivity to fire impacts (2024-2027), Vulnerability of Australian bats to white-nose syndrome (2021-2026), and Torpor use and burrowing behaviour in an arid zone passerine (2024). His work attracts funding from diverse sources including the Australian Research Council, Department of Planning and Environment, and various conservation organizations. Professor Turbill directs the BatsLab research group, which maintains a virtual hub for bat research at Western Sydney University. His team employs advanced methodologies including thermal imaging, GPS tracking, and physiological monitoring to study animal responses to environmental challenges. Current work focuses on developing conservation interventions for heat-stressed flying-foxes and assessing vulnerabilities of Australian bat species to emerging diseases.
Sara Stymne is a Senior Lecturer in Computational Linguistics at the Department of Linguistics and Philology, Uppsala University, where she has been working since 2012. She initially joined as a post-doc (2012-2015), then worked as a researcher (2015-2017), and served as an assistant professor (2017-2023) before her current position as Senior Lecturer. Prior to Uppsala, she was a researcher at Linköping University's Department of Computer and Information Science. Dr. Stymne earned her PhD in Computational Linguistics from Linköping University in 2012 with the thesis 'Text Harmonization Strategies for Phrase-Based Statistical Machine Translation,' following a Licentiate degree in Computational Linguistics (2009) and a Master's degree in Cognitive Science (2006), both also from Linköping University. During her doctoral studies, she spent the autumn of 2010 and spring of 2009 at Xerox Research Centre Europe in Grenoble, France. Her primary research interests focus on cross-lingual natural language processing and digital humanities, with particular emphasis on multilingual dependency parsing. Dr. Stymne is passionate about applying computational linguistics to solve research questions in other fields, including language history, literary analysis, and political science. Her earlier work concentrated on machine translation, with specific interests in discourse-aware translation, compound processing, and error analysis. She has made significant contributions to the development of language technology tools for analyzing dialogue, narrative, and stylistic features in literature. Analysis of Dr. Stymne's recent publications reveals a strong focus on cross-lingual and cross-domain natural language processing. Her work spans multiple subfields including dependency parsing across genres and topics, discourse relation analysis in low-resource languages like Egyptian Arabic, direct speech identification in Swedish literature, and causality detection in governmental documents. A notable trend is her application of NLP techniques to digital humanities problems, particularly in analyzing literary texts and historical language change. Her research often involves creating and utilizing specialized datasets for specific linguistic phenomena across multiple languages. Dr. Stymne actively supervises graduate students, having guided numerous master's and bachelor's theses on topics ranging from speech recognition to multilingual parsing and causality detection. She leads or participates in several research projects including 'Fictional prose and language change' (funded by VR, 2021-2023) and 'Enabling climate-resilient development' (funded by Marianne and Marcus Wallenberg Foundation, 2023-2027), demonstrating her commitment to interdisciplinary research with practical applications. Her work has resulted in several notable software resources including uuPronPred for cross-lingual pronoun prediction, uuparser for dependency parsing, and Docent for document-level machine translation. Within the Computational Linguistics and Language Technology group at Uppsala University, Dr. Stymne contributes to multiple research initiatives focused on developing language technology tools for digital humanities applications. Her team works closely with literary scholars and historians to create computational methods for analyzing large corpora of literary texts, particularly focusing on Swedish literature across different historical periods. Her research bridges the gap between theoretical computational linguistics and practical applications in the humanities, creating new methodologies for quantitative analysis of literary and historical texts.
Terry C. Lansdown is an Associate Professor in the School of Social Sciences and Department of Psychology at Heriot-Watt University. His expertise lies in Human Factors, particularly focusing on driver safety, workload management, and attentional distraction in transportation contexts. Prior to his academic role, he worked as a senior researcher at the Transport Research Laboratory, contributing to numerous EU-funded and government-sponsored projects. His research integrates ergonomics principles with real-world applications, addressing issues like automated driving systems, social distractions in vehicles, and occupational health in construction industries. Key research interests include: Driver behavior and road safety Human factors in automated systems Workload and attentional demands in complex tasks Health and safety in small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) He has led studies on pandemic response strategies, such as the CHARIS project analyzing behavioral adherence during the COVID-19 crisis. Lansdown’s work frequently bridges psychological theory with practical interventions, including text messaging campaigns to improve construction worker safety and experimental designs to evaluate automation failure responses. Collaborations span academic and industrial sectors, with publications addressing topics ranging from UV exposure in outdoor workers to the cognitive impacts of in-vehicle distractions. His contributions align with UN Sustainable Development Goals related to health (SDG 3) and sustainable cities (SDG 11).
Samir Dani is a Professor of Operations and Supply Chain Management at Keele University’s Keele Business School. He holds Chartered Manager status and is a Fellow of multiple professional bodies, including the Higher Education Academy and Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport. Prior to academia, he worked in India’s automotive industry. His research focuses on supply chain resilience, sustainability, food logistics, and Industry 4.0 technologies like AI and Blockchain. Affiliations: Keele University (current), University of Huddersfield (2014–2019), Loughborough University (2005–2008) Leadership: Former Head of Logistics, Marketing, Hospitality, and Analytics Department at University of Huddersfield Industry Engagement: £5M Leeds City Region LEP Supply Chain Program, UK-India trade advisory roles Research Interests: Supply chain risk and resilience Food supply chain sustainability AI, IoT, and Blockchain applications Industry 4.0 transformations Recent Article Trends: Focus on climate action impacts, blockchain trust mechanisms, and SME net-zero strategies. His work bridges academic theory with industry challenges, emphasizing technology adoption and sustainability. Awards: Prix des Associations (2015), UK Top 100 Logistics Professional (2017/18) Grants: £800K+ from EPSRC, IMCRC, and KTP Advisory Roles: Editorial Board member of Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, Academic Review Board member of International Journal of Operations and Production Management.
Ming Hu is a Professor and University of Toronto Distinguished Professor of Business Operations and Analytics at Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto. He serves as Area Coordinator for the Operations Management & Statistics Area and holds editorial leadership roles including Editor-in-Chief of Naval Research Logistics and Associate Editor for multiple top journals. MS in Applied Mathematics, Brown University (2003) PhD in Operations Research, Columbia University (2009) His research focuses on sharing economy , social operations , and platform economics , examining how operational decisions can maximize societal benefit. Key areas include crowdfunding , two-sided markets , crowdsourcing , and group buying , with applications to DEI , sustainability , and AI-empowered operations . Recent work analyzes spatial operations in delivery systems, algorithmic fairness , and climate change adaptation in agricultural supply chains. His publications span top journals like Management Science and Operations Research , covering topics from blockchain traceability to quantum-inspired optimization . Scientific recognitions include: Wickham Skinner Early-Career Research Award (2016) Best Operations Management Paper in Management Science (2017) 2018 Poets & Quants Best 40 Under 40 MBA Professors As an Amazon Scholar (2022–) and Chair of Chain Analytics Institute (2023–), he bridges academic research with industry applications in AI-driven logistics and sustainable operations.
Oleksandr Kapranov is an Associate Professor of English at NLA University College's Teacher Education program. His work intersects discourse analysis, climate change communication, and English language teaching (ELT), with a focus on sustainable development education and intercultural communication. Research areas include political speeches (e.g., Keir Starmer, Rishi Sunak), corporate disclosures (Bank of England, Vedanta Resources), and media framing (Greenpeace branches, King Charles III). Key pedagogical interests: digital competence, beginner EFL training, and discourse markers in academic writing. His recent publications analyze climate change discourse through syntactic structures, metonymy, modality, and evidentiality, emphasizing institutional and political narratives. While no formal awards are listed, his work spans interdisciplinary collaborations with NGOs, governments, and universities.
Dr Dominic McCafferty is a Senior Lecturer in Physiology, Ageing & Welfare at the University of Glasgow, based at the Scottish Centre for Ecology and the Natural Environment. He holds academic roles including Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Thermal Biology and previously Ibis . His research focuses on thermal adaptation, behavioral thermoregulation, and urban wildlife ecology, particularly using thermal imaging techniques. He has a Ph.D. and BSc in Ecological Science from the University of Edinburgh (1989–1993 and 1985–1989). His work spans physiological studies in mammals, birds, and marine species, emphasizing conservation applications. Notable projects include habitat suitability modeling for urban water voles and thermal physiology studies in elephant seals. His educational background includes advanced studies in ecological science, complemented by post-doctoral research at institutions like the British Antarctic Survey (1993–1998). He has contributed to over 99 publications, advancing methodologies in non-invasive wildlife monitoring and ecological field studies. His editorial roles reflect expertise in thermal biology and avian science. McCafferty has led projects on carrion dynamics, stress physiology, and behavioral adaptations in diverse species, with a focus on applying findings to conservation challenges. Labs/Teams: Scottish Centre for Ecology and the Natural Environment (SCENE), part of the broader University of Glasgow's ecological research network. Collaborations include the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle in France and the National Trust for Scotland.
David Stradling is the Zane L. Miller Professor of Urban History and Interim Director of the School of Environment and Sustainability at the University of Cincinnati. He has held academic positions since 1999, progressing from Assistant Professor to his current full professorship. His research focuses on urban and environmental history, with notable works including Where the River Burned and The Nature of New York . Stradling earned his PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (1996) following degrees from Colgate University. His research interests span urban development, environmental policy, and Cincinnati's historical narrative. He co-authored a global history of dredging and has explored topics like climate justice, sustainability frameworks, and the interplay between cities and natural systems. Stradling actively participates in interdisciplinary projects, including a 2024 NSF-funded conference connecting Earth and health scientists. His scholarship emphasizes historical analysis of environmental challenges, from air quality regulation to modern sustainability strategies. Recent work addresses urban resilience, equitable development, and the moral dimensions of environmental decision-making. Stradling’s academic leadership includes roles in faculty governance and institutional reform initiatives.
Goran Strbac is a Professor of Energy Systems at Imperial College London's Faculty of Engineering, holding the Chair in Electrical Energy Systems. He leads the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering and directs the joint Imperial-Tsinghua Research Centre on Intelligent Power and Energy Systems. His roles include IPCC WG 3 Leading Author, OFGEM RIIO-2 Challenging Group Member, and member of multiple EU energy platforms. Strbac's research focuses on multi-energy systems integration, energy market design, renewable integration, distributed energy resources, and grid resilience. Notable contributions include whole-energy system modeling across operation and investment scales, market mechanisms for flexibility services, and security assessments for low-carbon infrastructure. His work emphasizes resilience and decarbonization, with over 500 publications and 4 co-authored books. He advises governments and regulatory bodies on energy policy, including contributions to UK Smart System Forum and European Technology and Innovation Platforms. His recent articles explore AI-driven grid optimization, hydrogen integration, and transactive energy systems. Strbac leads major initiatives like the UK Centre for Grid Scale Energy Storage and chairs resilience-focused research clusters. His research bridges academia and industry, informing policy through rigorous systems analysis and innovative modeling frameworks.
Barbara J. Turpin, PhD, is a Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. She specializes in aerosol science, atmospheric chemistry, and environmental engineering, with a focus on linking air pollution emissions to human exposure risks. Her research integrates laboratory experiments, chemical modeling, and field studies to advance public health protection strategies. Dr. Turpin holds a BS from the California Institute of Technology and a PhD from OGI at Oregon Health and Science University. Her work has contributed to understanding organic particulate formation, indoor-outdoor air pollution dynamics, and the health impacts of PM2.5. She currently serves on the EPA’s Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) and is an Associate Editor of Environmental Science and Technology . Her research highlights include studies on aerosol chemistry in clouds, PM2.5 exposure disparities, and regulatory model development. Key awards include the Haagen-Smit Prize (2009) and AAAS Fellowship (2011). She actively advises on EPA air quality standards and collaborates with faculty in atmospheric chemistry and public health at UNC.
Chris Chesterfield is a Professor of Practice at Monash University's Monash Sustainable Development Institute (MSDI), specializing in water governance, urban planning, and sustainable development. He joined Monash in 2014 as part of the executive team at the Cooperative Research Centre for Water Sensitive Cities, leading strategic research on water system transformations. His work focuses on developing tools like the Water Sensitive Cities Index, adopted globally to drive policy and practice changes. He has held senior roles at Melbourne Water and the Office of Living Victoria, contributing to Melbourne's leadership in water-sensitive urban design. Chris chairs key committees including the Victorian Environmental Water Holder and the Birrarung Council (Yarra River advisory body). He leads projects on integrated water management and urban sustainability, collaborating with government agencies and international stakeholders. His research emphasizes governance frameworks for water-sensitive cities, policy reforms, and nature-based solutions. Chris has contributed to over 20 research outputs since 2002, with recent work focusing on urban water governance, river management, and policy integration. He actively advises government bodies such as the Victorian Planning Authority and Infrastructure Victoria, shaping legislative reforms and urban development strategies.
Mark Lewis is the Kennedy Chair in Mathematical Biology at the University of Victoria, holding joint appointments in the Departments of Mathematics and Statistics and Biology. His research focuses on spatial ecology and mathematical modeling, addressing ecological challenges such as animal movement, invasive species, and disease dynamics. Lewis earned his D.Phil. in Mathematical Biology from the University of Oxford and has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society UK. His work integrates mathematical analysis, field studies, and interdisciplinary approaches to solve ecological problems. Current projects include modeling polar bear populations, cyanobacteria dynamics, and the impact of climate change on wildlife. Lewis supervises students across both UVic and his former University of Alberta lab. Education: D.Phil. in Mathematics (Mathematical Biology), University of Oxford Awards: Royal Society Fellowship, CRM-Fields-PIMS Prize, and Okubo Prize Key Research Areas: Animal movement modeling, aquatic ecology, wildlife disease, and invasive species management Publications highlight his contributions to understanding disease spread, parasite dynamics, and ecological responses to environmental changes. Lewis collaborates widely, applying mathematical tools to real-world conservation and health challenges.
Prof. Richard L. Peters is a Professor and Head of the Chair of Tree Growth and Wood Physiology at the Technische Universität München (TUM) since 2024. His research focuses on tree physiology, wood formation, and climate-forest interactions. He holds a doctorate summa cum laude from the University of Basel (2018) and has conducted postdoctoral research at the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest Science (WSL) and Ghent University. His work integrates forest ecology, dendrochronology, and ecophysiology to address climate change impacts on forests. Education: B.Sc./M.Sc. in Biology at Utrecht University, Ph.D. from University of Basel (2018). Key career steps include a Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) fellowship at Ghent University and coordination of the Swiss Canopy Crane II project (2021). Research Interests: Tree water-use strategies, drought tolerance mechanisms, carbon allocation dynamics, and the physiological basis of tree growth. He leads interdisciplinary projects to monitor forest responses to environmental stress using tools like the TreeNet network. Awards: Early Postdoc Mobility Fellowship (SNSF, 2019), Doctorate summa cum laude (2018). Contributions: Authored >180 publications, co-developed the datacleanr R package for ecological data processing, and pioneered methods linking tree-ring data with climate models. His work emphasizes the need for better observational data to improve vegetation models.
Michael J. Aziz is the Gene and Tracy Sykes Professor of Materials and Energy Technologies at Harvard University's John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS). He serves as Area Chair for Materials Science and Mechanical Engineering and is a Faculty Associate at the Harvard University Center for the Environment. His research focuses on electrochemical engineering for energy and environmental applications, including redox flow batteries, carbon capture, and sustainable energy technologies. Aziz leads the Aziz Group, which develops grid-scale energy storage solutions and innovative methods for CO₂ removal. He holds equity in Quino Energy, a startup commercializing his battery research, and serves as Chief Scientist and Board Member. His work bridges fundamental materials science with practical engineering, emphasizing ClimateTech solutions. Key contributions include aqueous organic redox flow batteries, quinone-based carbon capture systems, and wearable energy storage devices. Education & Affiliations: Affiliated with SEAS since joining Harvard, his academic roles include coordinating the Graduate Consortium for Energy and Environment (2009–2018). His lab (Materials Science Group) is located at McKay 504, with administrative support from Sabrina Azinheira. Research Interests: Aziz's group investigates electrochemical energy storage, CO₂ capture via electrochemical systems, and novel materials for sustainable technologies. They employ advanced techniques like operando electrochemical fluorescence microscopy to study porous electrode dynamics and battery degradation mechanisms. Their work emphasizes scalability and real-world applicability, such as grid-scale battery infrastructure and decarbonization strategies. Recent Trends in Publications: Aziz's recent work emphasizes carbon capture innovations (e.g., acid-base concentration swing methods), hydrogen storage under ambient conditions, and electrochemical synthesis of industrial chemicals like hydrogen peroxide. His group also develops open-source tools like RFBzero for battery modeling and explores bioinspired materials (e.g., self-gelling hydrogel batteries). Awards & Recognition: While no personal awards are explicitly listed in the text, his team members (e.g., Dawei Xi) have received accolades such as the 2025 Carbon Future Young Investigator Award. Aziz's contributions have been recognized through industry partnerships and startup ventures. Advising & Industry Impact: Aziz advises PhD students focusing on electrochemical systems (e.g., Jordan Sosa, Tommy George). His industry engagement includes licensing intellectual property to Quino Energy, which achieved a manufacturing milestone in 2024 for grid-scale battery systems. His research bridges academia and industry, addressing climate challenges through technological innovation. Labs & Teams: The Aziz Group includes interdisciplinary researchers from electrochemistry, chemical engineering, and materials science. Collaborators include institutions like MIT and industry partners. Current projects target next-gen batteries, CO₂ removal systems, and scalable energy storage solutions.
