I completed my PhD in the Parfrey lab at UBC where I studied the microbiome of kelps and their response to climate change. My research combined field surveys and lab experiments, along with collaborations with the kelp farming industry. This experience prepared me for my work today, growing black seaweed (Pyropia spp.) in Northern BC.
I also have extensive data analysis experience, both through my PhD work (analyzing my own data and re-analyzing published datasets) and my role as a Graduate Academic Assistant at the UBC library, where I provided one on one consults and workshops to help students and staff with data analysis in R.
Current Science
I currently work as a contractor for the Metlakatla Development Corporation where I am the Seaweed Nursery Manager.
My PhD - Kelps and Microbial Ecology
Kelps are vital for the health of temperate coastlines, providing habitat, food, and modifying water conditions within their canopy. Additionally, kelp farming is a growing industry, already worth billions of dollars annually. However, wild and farmed kelps are vulnerable to climate change. Thus, these valuable services kelp provide are at risk.
Microbes, bacteria in particular, have been used as a toolkit to increase terrestrial crop resistance to unfavorable conditions for a long time now, but we have a much more limited understanding of the bacterial community of kelps and other marine life than in terrestrial systems.
Through my PhD thesis worked in the Parfrey lab, I directly addressed this lack of understanding by conducting highly replicated lab and field studies and partnering with the kelp growing industry. I am proud of including data from published studies in all three of my thesis chapters to stress-test my conclusions. Re-analyzing other datasets had the additional benefit of requiring me to me develop highly replicable and efficient workflow in R, which I beleive are valuable skills.
Thesis questions and goals
- How does salinity alter the microbiome of sugar kelp (Saccharina latissima)? Published open-access at the Journal of Phycology.
- How do kelps acquire their microbiome in the wild and throughout the production process?
- Characterizing a kelp disease (pink-spot). Published in the Journal of Applied Phycology.
Community outreach
Throughout my PhD, I had the privilege to work with many community scientists. The project that best showcases this is my work characterizing the diatom, bacterial (16S), and other microeukaryote (18S) community of Eelgrass of Galiano Island.
I collected samples with community scientists (for Illumina and scanning electron microscopy) as part of a research project with IMERSS, a local non-profit organization. I was responsible for the Illumina side of the project and the community partners were responsible for the scanning electron microscopy part of the project. Together, we compared the pros and cons of each technique and present our findings in a manuscript under revision at the Canadian Journal of Botany. We also presented our findings at community events, where community members could view the surface of an Eelgrass leaf live and ask use questions about what they saw.
Publications
See my Google Scholar page for the most up-to-date list. If you are not able to access a publication for any reason, please feel free to ask me for it and I will send it to you.
Professional Interests
Science Communication
I want science to be accessible and useful to everyone, not just academics. I find it very rewarding to lead community events and give talks that are attended by a diverse audience.
One of my favourite things to do is make figures. I really enjoy helping people analyze their own data or make diagrams that convey complex ideas in an clearly understandable manner. If you think I might be able to help you with your own data analysis and communication, please don't hesitate to contact me on LinkedIn. Examples of my work can been seen in my publications, including this one.
Data Science and Open Data Access
A lot of research time and money is spent collecting data. However, these data are often lost, not usable due to poor record keeping/being behind a paywall, or the analysis cannot be replicated. I am determined to change this through my own work and hope to help others do the same.
Formal Data Analysis Consulting Experience
- Data Analysis and Visualization GAA for the UBC Library: I provided one on one consultation for UBC students, staff, and alumni who need help performing their data analysis in R and SPSS. Additionally, I developed and delivered workshops for the UBC Research Commons aimed at beginner and intermediate R users.
- Living Data Project Data Rescue Intern: I cleaned over 20 years of field data, which directly lead to an open access publication in Ecology.
- Illumina Data Analyst for the publication "Manipulation of the seagrass-associated microbiome reduces disease severity".
Projects Addressing Specific Data Gaps
- Gathering baseline macoralgae data at an urban intertidal site: There is a lack of publicly accessible baseline data in ecology in general. My colleagues and I contributed to filling this data gap this for our local macroalgae (big seaweeds) by conducting monthly transect sampling at Stanley Park. We publish our data on an open access database and I developed an RShiny app for easier data visualization.
Contact me on LinkedIn
.