East Side: InnoTech Alberta
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Macroecology is about big processes over big spaces, so naturally the ACME LAB spans both sides of the Canadian Rockies. Much of our research is rooted in the Rocky Mountains, wild boreal forests, and rolling prairie parklands of Alberta.
I am Senior Research Scientist (Wildlife Ecology) with the Ecosystem Management Team at Innotech Alberta. Formerly the Alberta Research Council and then AITF, we are a Government of Alberta agency geared 100% to research and advisory, rather than research and teaching like Universities. We provide research to solve some of the most pressing challenges in Alberta and across Canada. At IA I work closely with scientists Drs. Brian Eaton, Shauna-Lee Chai, Jim Davies, Scott Heckbert, Marian Weber, and Craig Aumann, as well as a team of technicians and support staff. We make applied research happen on topics spanning applied ecology, conservation ecology, restoration ecology, biodiversity monitoring, geosimulation and land-use decision frameworks, and environmental economics. 
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West Side: University of Victoria
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On the Pacific side of the Divide, the ACME LAB works at UVIC's School of Environmental Studies. I am Adjunct Professor there and co-supervise a team of graduate students with Dr. John Volpe's Surf &Turf Lab; together we study marine and terrestrial ecology and conservation. It is a fantastic partnership where we bring expertise from each side of the coastal divide to solve shared conservation problems. It also gets me out on the ocean, one of my great passions.
Our team at UVIC is a small but hand-picked group of dynamic, top-flight students working on several aspects of conservation macroecology such as carnivore ecology, habitat fragmentation, landscape genetics, mammal and bird community composition, and spatial scale concepts in complex ecosystems. Check out their good work. |
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Dr. John Volpe. John is Assoc. Professor in Environmental Studies at UVIC. As co-supervisor he shares his abundant wisdom and keeps the fish swimming in the right direction. He studies everything from marine fish biodiversity, to molecular genetics, to complexity theory in natural systems. Moreover, he's a sommelier and brilliant pizzaiolo.
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Frances Stewart, Ph.D. Candidate and NSERC scholar, is fascinated with all things fisher (the animal), animal behaviour, landscape genetics in complex fragmented landscapes, and rocking a toque. I'm told she's a great highland dancer but have yet to see the evidence.
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Christy James, M.Sc. student and NSERC scholar, models bird and mammal community distribution in mountain landscapes, with a side of ecological scale theory. She TA's statistics classes with flair, Moms with skill, has an impressive vinyl collection, and grows mad garlic.
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Sandra Frey, M.Sc. student, NSERC and UVIC scholar. Sandra studies carnivore community ecology, and how landscape development alters species' spatio-temporal activity patterns. She speaks several languages and has been known to wrangle grizzlies in her spare time. Really.
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Gillian Fraser, M.Sc. student, NSERC and UVIC Scholar. Gillian has been involved in flying squirrel and wetland research. In a subtle switch, she is now interested in large carnivore response to landscape disturbance in the Rocky Mountains. In her international travels she witnessed wild lions mate for 5 consecutive hours - which appeared exhausting.
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Siobhan Darlington, M.Sc. Student, NSERC Scholar. Siobhan is a displaced Maritimer with serious birding skills. Beneath the skies, she's passionate about all aspects of applied conservation, and is studying white-tailed deer expansion in the northeast boreal forest of Alberta in response to climate and landscape change.
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Dr. Joanna Burgar, UVic Post-Doctoral Fellow, made the move back to academia after working as a wildlife biologist for the Government of Alberta. Her interest is wildlife conservation across disturbed landscapes and it transcends a particular species, ranging from lemurs in Madagascan forests, Australian bats in a post-mining restored landscape, and ungulates in the Oil Sands. Joanna loves a challenge, from running up mountains to making sense of Bayesian models.
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Alumni
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