Andrew

My research focuses on quantifying the ecological resilience of coral reefs to human disturbances, globally. Recognizing environments that bolster coral-reef resilience, where these environments occur, and what conditions cause coral reefs lose resilience or collapse is crucial to identify refugial locations to prioritize for conservation. Historically, our understanding of complex ecosystem dynamics in marine ecosystems and the impacts of humans on these processes have been constrained to local scales for budgetary and logistical reasons. Yet, the impacts of human disturbances occur across a variety of spatiotemporal scales. By utilizing large spatio-temporal datasets compiled by our database technician Chelsey Kratochwill, which I combine with state-of-the-art modeling techniques, I quantify human disturbances, such as pollution and climate change, to shed light on ecosystem resilience and map coral-reef refugia.