Process

Assistant Professor

San José State University

Dr. Adam Kochanski is an assistant professor working at the San José State University as part of the Wildfire Interdisciplinary Research Center. He received his M.Eng in Chemical Engineering and MBA from Technical University of Lodz (Poland) and Ph.D. in Atmospheric Sciences from the University of Nevada, Reno. His main research interests include fire-atmosphere interactions including air quality impacts of wildland fires. He is a modeler with extensive experience in running numerical simulations of fire, smoke, and regional climate on high-performance computing platforms. He is a co-developer of the coupled fire-atmosphere model WRF-SFIRE, the integrated fire and air quality system WRF-SFIRE-CHEM, as well as the fire forecasting system WRFX. He is one the modeling leads for the Fire and Smoke Model Evaluation Experiment (FASMEE), a member of the Rocky Mountain Center for Fire-Weather Intelligence (RMC) steering committee and an author of over 30 scientific publications.

Assistant Research Professor

University of Michigan / University of Oregon

Heidi Huber-Stearns is a Visiting Associate Professor of Practice at the University of Michigan in the School for Environment and Sustainability, focused on engaged research for the Western Forest and Fire Initiative. She is also an Associate Research Professor and Director of the Ecosystem Workforce Program, in the Institute for Resilient Organizations, Communities, and Environment at the University of Oregon. Heidi is an interdisciplinary social scientist, with expertise in environmental governance and linking science to action through strategic and diverse partnerships. Her work focuses on organizations and boundary spanning to address wildfire risks and watershed vulnerabilities in at-risk communities, particularly in the western United States.

Pacific Economic Cooperation Chair in International Economic Relations

University of California, San Diego

Graff Zivin is an economist whose broad research interests include the environment, health, development, and innovation economics. He has published numerous articles on a wide range of topics in top economic, policy and science journals. Much of his current work is focused on three distinct areas of research: the relationship between the environment, health and human capital, the economics of innovation and productivity, and the design of health interventions and their economic impacts.

Professor Graff Zivin received both his Ph.D. and M.S. from UC Berkeley and a B.A. from Rutgers University. Prior to joining UC San Diego in 2008, he spent 11 years on the faculty at Columbia University, where he served as professor of economics in the Mailman School of Public Health and the School of International and Public Affairs and directed the Ph.D. Program in Sustainable Development. From 2004-05, Graff Zivin served as Senior Economist for Health and the Environment on the White House Council of Economic Advisers.

Professor and Graduate Director of the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health

University of California, Irvine

Dr. Jun Wu is Professor and Graduate Director of the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health in the Program in Public Health at UC-Irvine. She received her Bachelor of Engineering degree in Environmental Engineering from Tsinghua University, China in 1997, M.S. degree in Environmental Engineering from Penn State University in 2000, and Ph.D. degree in Environmental Health from University of California, Los Angeles in 2004.

Dr. Wu's interests focus on population-based research of environmental exposure assessment, environmental epidemiology, and environmental health disparity. She has extensive experience and knowledge in examining the influences of various environmental exposures (e.g. air pollution, climate, and built environment such as green space, neighborhood resources, walkability) on reproductive outcomes (e.g. maternal and fetal health), children's health, and other health endpoints. She also has strong interest in research on environmental justice and environmental health disparity, particularly working in partner with communities.

Forest and Natural Resources Advisor for Plumas, Sierra, and Lassen counties

University of California Cooperative Extension

Ryan Tompkins is the UC Cooperative Extension Forest and Natural Resources Advisor for Plumas, Sierra, and Lassen counties and is a California Registered Professional Forester (No. 3108). His research interests include forest & fire ecology and management in the Sierra Nevada, silviculture for ecological restoration, and post-fire reforestation. His 18 year federal career included working as a forester and certified silviculturist with the USDA Forest Service and working in the Fire Effects program at the National Park Service. When he's not thinking about forested landscapes, he might be helping firewise communities or just enjoying a quiet moment in the Sierra Nevada backcountry.