TSE Faculty
Julian Aherne
Associate Professor
BA, Graduate Diploma (Trinity College Dublin), MApplSc, PhD (University College Dublin)
Research and Teaching Interests
- Using models to improve our understanding of pollutants in the environment
- In lab analysis of biosphere components and using the date to create equations as the basis for computer models
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC B303 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7887 Email: jaherne@trentu.ca
David Beresford
Assistant Professor
Cross-appointed with Biology
BSc (Trent), BEd (Queen's), PhD (Trent)
Research and Teaching Interests
- Role of dispersal in insect and mite populations
- Stable flies as pests of dairy and beef farms, and insect diversity in the Hudson Bay lowlands
- Insects that colonize corpses, such as blow flies and carrion beetles
Further Information and Connections
Office: LHS D217 Phone:705-748-1011 x7540 Email: davidberesford@trentu.ca
Stephen Bocking
Professor
BSc, MA, PhD (Toronto)
Research and Teaching Interests
- The roles of science in environmental policy and politics
- Regional environmental history and biodiversity conservation
- The science and politics of salmon aquaculture
- The history of environmental science in northern Canada
Further Information and Connections
- Stephen Bocking's Website
- Blog: Environment, History, Science
- Stephen Bocking Twitter
- Stephen Bocking on Google Scholar
Office: ESC A132 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7883 Email: sbocking@trentu.ca
Jim Buttle
Professor, Geography
BA (Toronto), PhD (Southampton)
Research and Teaching Interests
- Hydrology
- Streamflow generation
- Land use change
- Forest landscapes
Teaches a variety of undergraduate courses in Physical Geography, including Earth’s Physical Processes and Environments, Hydrology, Hydrogeology, and Large-scale Geomorphology. Each course emphasizes the field work aspects of the subject, as well as the application of and modeling approaches.
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC C125 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7475 Email: jbuttle@trentu.ca
Michael Classens
Assistant Professor, Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems
BA (Western Ontario), MA (Windsor), PhD (York)
Research and Teaching Interests
- Political ecology of food, agriculture, soil and energy
- Environmental history and justice
- Community and social movements
- Indigenous food and energy security and sovereignty
Broadly interested in areas of social and environmental justice, with an emphasis on food, agriculture, soil and energy. As a teacher, researcher and learner, committed to connecting theory with practice, scholarship with social change.
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC A148 Email: michaelclassens@trentu.ca
D. Huy Dang
Assistant Professor
Cross-appointed with Chemistry
BSc, MSc, PhD (Toulon)
Research and Teaching Interests
- Environmental biogeochemistry and analytical chemistry
- Fate and transport of nutrients, metals, and metalloids
- Development of analytical tools for emerging contaminants
- Applications of isotope composition to paleoenvironmental studies and forensic geochemistry
Further Information and Connections
- ENIGMA Lab at Trent University
- D. Huy Dang on Google Scholar
- Research Gate Profile
- Prof. Dang in Trent News, December 15, 2020
Office: CSB E120 Phone: 705-748-1011 x6364 Email: huydang@trentu.ca
Catherine Eimers
Associate Professor
BSc (Toronto), MSc (Trent), PhD (Waterloo)
Research and Teaching Interests
Impacts of climate and land use change on soil and water resources. Teaches a variety of undergraduate courses in Physical Geography, including Water Resources, Soil Science, Applied Geoscience, and Climate Change: the Physical Basis.
Further Information and Connections
- Environmental Geoscience Research Group Website
- Catherine Eimers on Google Scholar
- Catherine Eimers Research Gate Profile
Office: ESC A142 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7225 Email: ceimers@trentu.ca
Steven Franklin
Professor
BES (Lakehead), MA, PhD (Waterloo)
Research and Teaching Interests
- Using Remote Sensing and GIS to explore and investigate the impacts of humans on the environment, including loss of biodiversity
- Terrain Analysis
- Geomorphometry
- Earth Science, Forest Science
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC A114 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7510 Email: sfranklin@trentu.ca
Chris Furgal
Associate Professor, Indigenous Environmental Studies and Sciences
Cross-appointed with Indigenous Studies
BSc, MSc (Western Ontario), PhD (Waterloo)
Research and Teaching Interests
- Environmental health risk assessment, management and communication
- Indigenous environmental health with focus on Arctic populations
- Indigenous knowledge and science for environment and health research
- Food security and climate change and the health of northern Indigenous communities
Further Information and Connections
Office: GSC 303 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7953 Email: chrisfurgal@trentu.ca
Brendan Hickie
Senior Lecturer
BScAgr (Guelph), MSc, PhD (Waterloo)
Research and Teaching Interests
Teaches in a range of courses including Natural Science Statistics, Environmental Toxicology and Pollution Ecology. Research involves study of fate of contaminants in aquatic ecosystems, their bioaccumulation through food webs and particularly accumulation by wildlife such as marine mammals, mink and river otter. In recent years, has increasingly focused on the fate and bioaccumulation of mercury in aquatic ecosystems through projects supported by the Collaborative Mercury Research Network (COMERN) and the ongoing ArcticNet project "Effects of Climate Change on Carbon and Contaminant Cycling in the Arctic Coastal and Marine Ecosystems”.
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC A128 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7623 Email: bhickie@trentu.ca
Holger Hintelmann
Professor
Cross-appointed with Chemistry
Dean of Arts & Science - Science
BSc, PhD (Hamburg)
Research and Teaching Interests
General interest aims at a better understanding of the factors that control the (bio)availability of metals to develop descriptive models predicting their fate in the environment. Instructs several Chemistry and ERS-Chemistry joint courses.
Further Information and Connections
- Chemistry Department Profile
- Holger Hintelmann Trent Water Quality Centre Profile
- Holger Hintelmann on Google Scholar
Office: CSB F113 Phone: 705-748-1011 x6143 Email: hhintelmann@trentu.ca
Jean-François Koprivnjak
Assistant Professor (LTA)
BSc, MSc (McGill), PhD (Georgia Tech)
Research and Teaching Interests
- interactions of dissolved organic matter (DOM) and organic pollutants and how these interactions will be altered by the proposed effects of climatic change
- aquatic geochemistry
- low molecular weight stable isotope geochemistry
- effect of the oxidation state of DOM on the degradation rates of chemicals
- modeling of freshwater DOM concentrations using absorbance measurements
- importance of the evolution of CO2 gas from boreal lakes
Teaches courses in climatic change and water policy and previously taught courses in aquatic chemistry, geochemistry, and atmospheric chemistry.
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC A135 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7512 Email: jkoprivnjak@trentu.ca
Peter Lafleur
Professor
BSc (Brandon), MSc (Trent), PhD (McMaster)
Research and Teaching Interests
Bioclimatology and hydrometeorology, specifically the atmosphere-ecosystem exchange of carbon dioxide and water in peatland and tundra environments. Current projects include ecosystem carbon measurement and modeling at the eastern peatland station of the Fluxnet Canada Research Network and investigation of carbon exchange variation between tundra types in the central North West Territories. Currently teaches courses in microclimatology, global climate systems, hydrometeorology, and field based research.
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC C127 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7487 Email: plafleur@trentu.ca
Cheryl McKenna Neuman
Professor
BSc (Queen's), MSc (Guelph), PhD (Queen's)
Research and Teaching Interests
- Process Geomorphology
- Mechanics of Sediment Transport
- Experimental fluid dynamics
- Dust emission and air quality
- Wind tunnel simulation
Courses in Process Geomorphology, River Environments and Processes, Sedimentary Processes, and Geosystems at the undergraduate level and the Mechanics of Sediment Transport at the graduate level. A ‘hands-on’ approach to learning is emphasized in many of these courses incorporating both lab and field work. Technology enhanced learning is also used as all courses are supported with Blackboard.
Further Information and Connections
- Trent Environmental Wind Tunnel Research Group website
- Cheryl McKenna Neuman on Google Scholar
- Cheryl McKenna Neuman Research Gate Profile
Office: ESC A144 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7307 Email: cmckneuman@trentu.ca
Chris Metcalfe
Professor
Director of the Institute for Watershed Science
BSc (Manitoba), MSc (New Brunswick), PhD (McMaster)
Research and Teaching Interests
Determination of the environmental fate and toxic effects of organic contaminants in the aquatic environment, especially in the fate and toxic effects of halogenated aromatic hydrocarbonons, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, alkylphenol ethoxylate surfactants and prescription and non-prescription drugs in the aquatic environment. Research on endocrine disruption in fish as well as international research experience through work in Mexico, Argentina, Ecuador and Indonesia.
Further Information and Connections
- Chris Metcalfe Trent Water Quality Centre Profile
- Institute for Watershed Science Website
- Chris Metcalfe on Google Scholar
Office: SC 205 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7272 Email: cmetcalfe@trentu.ca
Heather Nicol
Professor, Geography
Program Coordinator, Circumpolar Studies Diploma
Director, School for the Study of Canada
BA (Toronto), MES (York), PhD (Queen's)
Research and Teaching Interests
Focused upon exploring the dynamics which structure the political geography of the circumpolar North, with a specific focus on the North American Arctic and Canada-US cross-border relations, tensions, geopolitical narratives and mappings of power and sovereignty. Currently exploring both the history of circumpolar geopolitics in relation to globalization, security, environment, and polar governance. A Fulbright Scholar and the 2015-16 Visiting Fulbright Chair to the University of Washington, at the Centre for Canadian Studies and the Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies.
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC B307 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7107 Email: heathernicol@trentu.ca
Anne Pasek
Assistant Professor
Cross-appointed with Cultural Studies
Canada Research Chair in Media, Culture and the Environment
BA (Alberta), MA (McGill), PhD (New York)
Research and Teaching Interests
Researches how people communicate about the social challenges and material complexities of global warming, particular as they concern the carbon cycle. Interested in the prospects of low carbon research methods across the social sciences and humanities. Teaches courses on environmental media, digital culture, and the politics of climate change.
- Climate change
- Energy/ environmental humanities
- Science communication
- Visual culture
- New materialisms
- Infrastructure studies
- Science and technology studies
Further Information and Connections
Email: annepasek@trentu.ca
Roger Picton
Senior Instructor
BA (Trent), MA (Carleton), PhD (Toronto)
Research and Teaching Interests
- Fieldwork and pedagogy in human geography
- Planning and urban waterfronts
- Brewpubs and post-industrial redevelopment
Takes pride in sparking student interest in critical and practical perspectives on urban life. Teaches courses in human geography: urban geography, urban planning, urban environments, and the rural-urban fringe. Current research investigates how craft breweries are revalorizing historic and industrial architecture. Investigating how to integrate experiential learning into the undergraduate human geography curriculum.
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC A120 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7571 Email: rogerpicton@trentu.ca
Raul Ponce-Hernandez
Associate Professor
BEng (National School of Agriculture Mexico), MSc (Autonoma Chapingo), PhD (Oxford)
Research and Teaching Interests
- Climate change impacts modeling on agriculture, forests and water resources
- Design of adaptation options
- GIS/Remote Sensing modeling for watershed management and natural resource planning
Teaches courses in GIS at the introductory and upper undergraduate levels, soil management and integrated watershed management.
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC B304 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7646 Email: rponce@trentu.ca
Ian Power
Assistant Professor, Environmental Geoscience
Canada Research Chair in Environmental Geoscience
BSc and PhD (Western Ontario), Professional Geoscientist (British Columbia)
Research and Teaching Interests
Studies carbon sequestration and tailings management, natural analogues for carbon mineralization, and geobiological approaches to carbon management. Takes an interdisciplinary approach to science that crosses conventional research boundaries to discover, understand, and harness geochemical processes to address environmental challenges. Courses include Field Methods and Introductory Mineralogy.
Further Information and Connections
Office: CSB E114 Laboratory: CSB F107 Phone: 705-748-1011 x6257 Email: ianpower@trentu.ca
Stephanie Rutherford
Associate Professor
BA (Toronto), MSc (Guelph), PhD (York)
Research and Teaching Interests
- Animal studies
- Nature and nation
- Political theory and the environment
- Environmental justice
An interdisciplinary scholar who researches in the area of human-animal relations. Teaches courses in environmental ethics, environmental politics, and animal studies.
Further Information and Connections
- Stephanie Rutherford's Website
- InsightOut: Letting go of the treadmill of productivity; or how to finish a book in a pandemic (article via St. Michael's College, University of Toronto)
Office: ESC A112 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7187 Email: srutherford@trentu.ca
Mark Skinner
Professor, Geography
Dean of Arts and Science - Social Sciences
Canada Research Chair in Rural Aging, Health and Social Care
BA (Wilfrid Laurier), MA (Guelph), PhD (Queen's)
Research and Teaching Interests
- Health, rural and social geography
- Qualitative methods and community-based research
- Aging rural communities
Teaching and research emphasizes a community-based approach, examining how rural people and places respond to the challenges and opportunities of an aging population, particularly the role of the voluntary sector and volunteers in supporting older people and sustaining rural communities. Courses in qualitative methods, rural community sustainability and community-based research. Founding Director of the Trent Centre for Aging & Society.
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC B315 Phone: 705-748-1011 x6142 Email: markskinner@trentu.ca
Karen Thompson
Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems
BSc (Western Ontario), PhD (Guelph)
Research and Teaching Interests
- The role of soil microbial communities in ecosystem functioning, including SOM stability and GHG fluxes
- Microbial measures as biological indicators of soil health
- The functional resilience and recovery of soil microbial C- and N-cycling communities to agricultural management, industrial disturbance, climate change, and land use change
Further Information and Connections
- Trent Environment Gives Researcher’s Work a Boost (April 2018)
- Two Trent Professors Awarded $322,193 in Federal Funding for Research Labs, State-of-the-Art Equipment (March 2019)
- Karen Thompson on Twitter
Office: ESB A118 Phone: 705-748-1011 x6756 Email: karenthompson@trentu.ca
Dirk Wallschläger
Professor and Director of the Trent Water Quality Centre
Cross-appointed with Chemistry
MSc (Bochum), PhD (Bremen)
Research and Teaching Interests
Development of analytical methods for the speciation of trace elements in natural and industrial environments; study of cycling and fate of trace element species in impacted ecosystems; behavior of trace element species during industrial water and waste treatment procedures.
Further Information and Connections
Office: CSB F114 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7378 Email: dwallsch@trentu.ca
Tom Whillans
Associate Professor
BA (Guelph), MSc, PhD (Toronto)
Research and Teaching Interests
Conservation and management of wetlands, impacts of marsh land management on aquatic biota, ecological constraints to lake level management and to wetland habitats, renewable resource management, Great Lakes and Kawartha area fisheries.
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC B310 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7789 Email: twhillans@trentu.ca
Susan Wurtele
Associate Professor
BSc (Trent), PhD (Queen's)
Research Interests
- Feminist and cultural geography
- Participatory citizenship
Teaches a range of courses including human geography and upper year courses on urban environments and feminist geographies.Classes are dynamic involving small group seminars and opportunities for field work and alternative assignment structures.
Further Information and Connections
Office: ESC B306 Phone: 705-748-1011 x7454 Email: swurtele@trentu.ca