Derek Gray
Areas of Expertise
- Hydrology, Water Systems and Water Quality
- Invasive Species and Weeds
Biography
I completed my PhD at Queen's University in 2011 where I studied how lakes on the eastern shore of Georgian Bay have recovered after being damaged by acidification. I then conducted my postdoctoral training at the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis at the University of California, Santa Barbara. My postdoctoral research examined the impacts of climate change on one of the world's largest and most fascinating lakes, Lake Baikal, Siberia. Prior to coming to Laurier, I worked at California University of Pennsylvania in the Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences.
Aquatic communities are facing a variety of environmental stressors including climate change, increased nutrient levels, pollution, acidification, and invasive species introductions. While the impacts of these interacting stressors are being studied extensively, our ability to accurately forecast the response of communities to environmental change remains poor. My research aims to understand and predict the impacts of short- and long-term environmental change on aquatic communities. I use a mix of field and laboratory experiments, synoptic surveys, and time-series analyses in my research.