Emily Edwards

PhD Student, Four Year Doctoral Fellow, Seminar Series Coordinator, 2022-23
IRES Student Society’s co-president, 2023-24

Contact Details

ecedward@student.ubc.ca

Research Interests

Cities, Infrastructure systems, Resource governance and management, Sustainability, Urban Sustainbility, Water governance, Water security

Research Bio

Emily Edwards is a PhD student at the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability supervised by Professor Leila Harris. As a member of the EDGES Research Collaborative, Emily’s research focuses on claims concerning water governance shifts associated with increased use of decentralized water infrastructure in cities, using household rainwater harvesting as a focal point to explore the relationships between municipal government, urban residents, and water infrastructure.

Emily holds a MSc degree in Hydrologic Sciences from the University of California, Davis, and a BSc degree in Earth Science from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her experiences studying water in California during an extended drought and working as a groundwater remediation hydrogeologist at a Superfund site led to a desire to contextualize water quality and quantity concerns beyond what was prescribed through a physical science lens. By building a foundation in qualitative methods and grounding her perspective in urban political ecology and critical infrastructure studies, Emily hopes to understand current and future water issues within their political, cultural, and environmental contexts.

In her free time, Emily enjoys being outdoors (hiking, climbing, and playing soccer), reading and writing fiction, and hanging out with her two dogs.

IRES Student Society Bio

Emily (she/her) is a third year PhD student and served as the IRES Student Society’s co-president alongside Dana. The co-presidents support the other Student Society teams with their events, trips, seminars and socials, and act as liaisons between students and faculty and staff. Emily hoped to foster the open, inclusive, and supportive community already present within IRES, and is always available to answer questions or chat about concerns over email or in the office. In her free time, Emily likes to play soccer, write novels she never finishes, and hang out with her two dogs.

Featured Publications

Edwards, E.C., Nelson, C., Harter, T., Bowles, C., Li, X., Lock, B., Fogg, G.E., & Washburn, B.S. (2022). Potential effects on groundwater quality associated with infiltrating stormwater through dry wells for aquifer recharge. J Contam Hydrol, 246. doi:10.1016/j.jconhyd.2022.103964

Edwards, E. C., Harter, T., Fogg, G. E., Washburn, B., & Hamad, H. (2016). Assessing the effectiveness of drywells as tools for stormwater management and aquifer recharge and their groundwater contamination potential. Journal of Hydrology, 539, 539-553. doi:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2016.05.059

Kristen Eredics

Finance and Administrative Assistant

Contact Details

AERL Building (Aquatic Ecosystems Research Laboratory), Room 428
2202 Main Mall
Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4
Canada

Kristen.Eredics@ubc.ca

work phone: 6048222165

Bio

Processes travel and expense reports on behalf of faculty and students
Performs various finance tasks including preparing journals, invoices, and purchase requisitions, and pulling and analyzing reports
Manages student appointment tracking and processing
Coordinates Faculty Associateship invitation and renewal letters
Monitors IRES email inboxes and responds to general program and admissions queries

Sarah Hartley

Previous Visiting Professor

Bio

Sarah Hartley is an Associate Professor in the Department of Science, Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the University of Exeter Business School where she researches science and technology governance. She is a qualitative social scientist studying efforts to open up governance to new actors through case studies involving global health, sustainable agriculture and conservation. Current research explores the governance of gene drive technology and she has several projects funded by the British Academy and Wellcome exploring collaboration in gene drive development and risk governance in Africa, North America, Australia and Europe.

She publishes in a wide variety of journals including Environmental Science and Policy, Social Science and Medicine, Science, Philosophical Transactions B: Biological Sciences, Science, Technology, & Human Values, and Journal of European Public Policy. She is Associate Editor of the Journal of Responsible Innovation (ranked 3/55 in Ethics and 2/48 in History & Philosophy of Science) and has a PhD in Politics and Environmental Studies (University of Toronto).

IRES Visiting Professor Term: Jan 2022 to Aug 2022.

Joakim Jeppson

Adjunct Professor

Contact Details

Research Interests

Bio

Dr. Joakim Jeppsson has joined the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability as an Adjunct Professor and is collaborating with IRES Professor Dr.Gunilla Öberg. He is working on a research project regarding knowledge needs in a circular construction industry. The research is funded by the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research (https://strategiska.se/en/). He holds a PhD in Structural Engineering from Lund University (Sweden) and a MSc in Civil Engineering from Luleå University of Technology (Sweden).

Dr Jeppsson is currently the head of research and development at Skanska Sweden, the largest business unit in the Skanska group. Skanska is a world leader in construction and project development in select markets throughout the Nordic region, Europe and USA.

Circular solutions are likely a future necessity from an industry with a massive material flow. Mechanisms to fast identify the knowledge needed for a more circular construction industry is of great importance for the sectors’ sustainability transformation.

The question of needed knowledge has been one core aspect for Dr. Jeppsson in choosing research and development projects over the last decade and has fostered his personal interest to learn more.

Projects

Courses

Featured Publications

Yoshitaka Sakata

Previous Visiting Professor

Contact Details

Bio

Dr. Yoshitaka Sakata is an expert in hydrogeology and groundwater engineering with over 17 years of professional experience. After receiving his PhD in Science in March 2013 at Hokkaido University (Japan), he engaged in the university’s Faculty of Engineering for a national research project regarding shallow geothermal energy utilization based on heat pump technology.

Dr. Sakata is currently an Associate Professor in the College of Science and Engineering at Kanazawa University (Japan) since October 2021. During his 10 year research career, Dr. Sakata has delivered approximately 100 scientific papers and conference proceeding., He has also received numerous awards from the Japan Society of Civil Engineering, the Geothermal Research Society of Japan, Asia Oceania Geosciences Society, and other associations.

Dr. Sakata is a Visiting Scholar for international research collaboration with IRES Professor Hadi Dowlatabadi. His research at UBC is supported by JSPS Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (19KK0370).

IRES Visiting Professor Term: December 1, 2021 to March 2, 2022. July 23, 2022 to September 24, 2022.

Sophia Murphy

PhD with Hannah Wittman, 2021
Executive Director of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy

Contact Details

sophia[at]foodresilience[dot]net

https://www.iatp.org/about/staff/sophia-murphy https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophia-murphy-phd-54852b14/ https://twitter.com/foodresilience

Bio

Sophia is the Executive Director of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy and lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She came to IRES to do a PhD with Dr. Hannah Wittman. In her research, she developed a new framework for assessing public food security policies from the perspective of adaptive governance. She calls her framework resilient global food security. She has 30 years of professional experience as a policy expert and advocate, focused on resilient food systems, agriculture and international trade. Sophia has worked primarily with civil society organizations, but also has also worked with governments, intergovernmental organizations and universities.

Last updated January 2022

Sara Nawaz

Adjunct Professor

Contact Details

sara.a.nawaz [AT] gmail [DOT] com

sara.nawaz [AT] ires [DOT] ubc [DOT] ca

snawaz[AT]american[DOT]edu)

https://sara-nawaz.github.io/

Bio

Sara is the Director of Research at American University’s Institute for Carbon Removal Law and Policy and an adjunct professor at the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability at the University of British Columbia (UBC IRES). She is an environmental social scientist who studies social dimensions of emerging climate and environmental technologies, particularly carbon removal. Using a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods, she investigates how these technologies and related policies might be designed in just, equitable and responsible ways, including how to involve societal groups (e.g., local groups, Indigenous communities, experts, the public) in these processes. Her research sits at the intersection of science and technology studies, perceived risk, and decision sciences, and she is particularly interested in understanding how political economic contexts and conditions shape judgment on novel technologies. Sara completed her PhD at UBC IRES, and postdoctoral work at the Institute for Science, Innovation and Society at the University of Oxford. Prior to her PhD, she worked at Environmental Resources Management and the World Resources Institute. She also holds an MPhil in Development Studies from the University of Oxford and a BA in economics from Swarthmore College.

Last updated January, 2024.

Graham McDowell

IRES Adjunct Professor

Director of Science and Knowledge, Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative

Founder and Leader, Canadian Mountain Assessment

PhD in IRES with Leila Harris and Michele Koppes, 2020 (Vanier Scholar)

Contact Details

grahammcdowell[at]gmail[dot]com

grahammcdowellresearch.com

Google Scholar Profile

Bio

Dr. Graham McDowell is the Director of Science and Knowledge at the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative (Y2Y). He specializes in climate change impacts and adaptation in mountain regions, as well as knowledge co-creation activities, particularly with Indigenous Peoples. He has led community-engaged projects in the Nepal Himalaya, Peruvian Andes, Rocky Mountains, Greenland, and the Canadian Arctic, and was the founder and leader of the Canadian Mountain Assessment. In addition, he is a two-time Contributing Author with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), an Editorial Board member for the journal Mountain Research and Development, and a Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. Dr. McDowell holds numerous advisory roles related to climate change in cold regions, including with the UN International Year of Glacier Preservation, the Canada in a Changing Climate assessment report, and the Science and Knowledge Advisory Committee of UN Mountain Partnership.

Dr. McDowell completed a Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Zurich and holds degrees from the University of British Columbia (PhD, Vanier Scholar), the University of Oxford (MSc with Distinction), and McGill University (BA Honours 1st class).

David Righter

MSc with Stephanie Chang, 2021
Climate Action Planner, Introba

Contact Details

righter[dot]david[at]gmail[dot]com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidrighter/

Bio

David graduated from IRES in May 2021, where he studied climate change adaptation and hazard risk reduction. His master’s research focused on the implementation of Municipal Climate Change Action Plans in coastal communities of Nova Scotia. While at IRES, David worked as a Research Assistant on the Resilient-C Project with Dr. Stephanie Chang and also held a Work Learn position as an Environmental Impact Specialist for UBC’s Green Labs Program. David now works as an Environmental Planner in his home state of Massachusetts, where he supports municipal efforts on climate change adaptation, mitigation, and resilience.

Last updated January 2022

Harold Eyster

PhD with Kai Chan, 2021
Gund Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Vermont

Contact Details

hneyster[at]alumni[dot]ubc[dot]ca

http://eyster.com/ https://twitter.com/haroldeyster https://www.instagram.com/eysterart

Bio

Harold is currently a Gund Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Vermont, where he works with Rachelle Gould and Brian Beckage. He is studying relationships between birds, trees, and people in cities. In Summer 2021, Harold completed his PhD at the University of British Columbia with Dr. Kai Chan. Before coming to UBC, he received a BA from Harvard University in Environmental Science and Public Policy.

Last updated September 2022