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Sponsored by the Paleoclimate Program, Division of Atmospheric Sciences, National Science Foundation.

AMS Policy Program underwriters: ITT, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and SAIC.

2008 Participants

This document will be available online only.

Leslie Brandt

Sarah Brennan

David Bright

Wendy Chou

Laura Clemente

Sam Contorno

Keith Dixon

Emily Fischer

Margaret Fowke

Nicki Hickmon

Michael Hudson

Andrea Jackman

Hetal Jain

Kathleen Kaplan

Darshan Karwat

Julie Kiang

Kimberly Klockow

Praj Kulkarni

Brian Lamb

Candace Major

Claus Moberg

Meagan Moore

Richard Moore

Benjamin Preston

Nelsie Ramos

Yevgenii Rastigejev

Ashton Robinson Cook

Aaron Swanson

Armin Sorooshian

Ricardo Todling

Gabriel Vecchi

Maggie Walser

Kevin Werner

Leslie Brandt is currently a PhD candidate in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior at the University of Minnesota. She is broadly interested in controls on carbon and nitrogen biogeochemistry at multiple scales, and has a particular interest in biogeochemical processes in arid environments.  Her dissertation research focuses on the role of photodegradation in the decomposition of plant litter in grassland ecosystems, and the implications of this process for carbon and nitrogen cycling. Prior to coming to the University of Minnesota, Leslie worked in the Chicago Botanic Garden’s conservation science department studying rare and endangered plants. She received her bachelor’s degree in biology from Gustavus Adolphus College in 2002. Upon completion of her PhD, Leslie would like to pursue a career combining environmental science and policy at the state or federal level.

Sarah Brennan is an Assistant Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University. She runs the Lenfest Center for Sustainable Energy, where she is developing a program on policy issues related to carbon capture and storage. She holds a Master of Public Policy from Harvard University and was a researcher at the Harvard Business School, where she published case studies on "Green GDP" and U.S. economic development policy in the 19th century. She has also served as an economic consultant to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, contributing to cost-benefit analyses of pollution regulations and providing litigation support on financial issues.

David Bright has worked for the NOAA/National Weather Service (NWS) since 1990 as a Meteorologist Intern (WFO Salt Lake City), Forecaster (WFO Minneapolis), Science Operations Officer (WFO Tucson), and since 2002 as a Techniques Development Meteorologist at the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) in Norman, Oklahoma.  David's primary interests currently reside in ensemble forecasting, statistical guidance, and operational decision support for high-impact weather events.  His applied research at the SPC earned him a NOAA Administrator's Award (2006) for the creation of innovative forecast guidance that quantifies the risk for hazardous weather and its societal impacts up to a week in advance.  David is also an Associated Editor for the AMS journals Weather and Forecasting (receiving an AMS Editor's Award in 2007) and Monthly Weather Review.   David's formal education is in the Atmospheric Sciences, with a Bachelor's degree from Oregon State University (1987), a Master's degree from the University of Washington (1990), and a PhD from the University of Arizona (2001).
Originally from Portland, Oregon, David now resides in Norman with his wife, Linda, and their two sons (Derek and Devin, ages 5 and 7, respectively). 

Wendy Chou hails from Newton, Massachusetts. She recently began work as a climate change consultant for the Public Interest Energy Research (PIER) program of the California Energy Commission in Sacramento. Two of her tasks are summarizing climate change impacts on California’s ecosystems and economy and identifying appropriate climate change adaptation measures for the state. Wendy received her Ph.D. in December 2007 from the University of California at Berkeley (Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management) with a focus on ecosystem ecology and carbon cycling. From 1999 to 2001 Wendy worked in the private sector, consulting for The Cadmus Group (Greater Boston, MA) on safe drinking water issues. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science and Public Policy from Harvard University. Other interests include native plants, hiking, violin, science writing, and learning more about central Pennsylvania, where she will be moving in August 2008.

Sam Contorno has been a member of the NOAA/National Weather Service (NWS) since 1995. He is the grant focal point for the NWS and is the manager of the Collaborative, Science, Technology, and Applied Research (CSTAR) Program, which supports research between NWS staff and the university community, and serves as the federal manager of the Cooperative Program for Operational Meteorology, Education and Training (COMET) Outreach Program. In 2007, Sam was awarded the Isaac Cline Award for exemplary management of the NWS grant program. Prior to joining the NWS, Sam worked for the NOAA/Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research where he served as national liaison for several NOAA Research Laboratories and participated in activities such as the initial stages of the NOAA/DoD/NASA Polar Satellite Convergence negotiations.

Sam completed his Bachelor degree in meteorology at the University of Michigan in 1988 and received a Master of Science degree in the same subject from the University of Oklahoma (OU) in 1992 where he concentrated his efforts on determining precipitation type in winter storms. His storm chasing adventures at OU surprisingly landed his derrière on the cover of Time magazine in 1996. A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Sam and his wife, Jenny, have two children--12-year old Paul and 7-yr old Samuel.

Keith Dixon is a research meteorologist at NOAA’s Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) in Princeton, New Jersey. His work involves the use of computer models to simulate the Earth’s global climate, often with an emphasis on the ocean’s role on decadal to centennial time scales. He has participated in climate change assessment projects, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). In 2005, in recognition of his IPCC-related contributions, Keith received both an individual NOAA Research Employee of the Year Award and his second U.S. Dept. of Commerce Silver Medal as a member of GFDL’s IPCC modeling team. Keith regularly participates in outreach activities, giving presentations on the science of climate change, collaborating with museums, and helping develop graphics, animations, and text that have appeared in numerous media outlets. He has also delivered briefings on Capitol Hill. Keith earned undergraduate and graduate degrees in meteorology from Rutgers University and received the AMS' Father James B. Macelwane Award for Undergraduate Research. His early career experiences include working as a radio broadcast meteorologist in the northeastern US and teaching at Rutgers University.

Emily Fischer is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Washington. She is currently making measurements of peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN) and aerosol optical properties at Mount Bachelor, a free tropospheric site in Central Oregon. More frequent episodes of elevated PAN in the Pacific Northwest are expected to accompany the increasing emissions of photochemically active pollutants in Asia. She also currently serves as outreach coordinator for the UW Department of Atmospheric Sciences, and frequently visits area schools and science fairs. Emily holds a B.S. in Atmospheric Sciences from the University of British Columbia and a M.S. in Earth Sciences from the University of New Hampshire (UNH). While at UNH, she worked under the auspices of the AIRMAP project. Prior to moving to Seattle to attend the University of Washington, Emily was a staff scientist with the Mount Washington Observatory. When she is not out measuring air quality in remote places, you can find Emily skiing, gardening, cooking, or shopping at a Seattle farmer's market.

Margaret L. Fowke Education: Bachelor of Science Degree in Community Health Nutrition, 1988, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia Masters in Public Administration, 1999, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia Masters in Economics, 2003, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia

Position: Clinical Dietitian, Grady Health System Diabetes Unit, Atlanta, Georgia 1990-1999 Presidential Management Intern, Division of Diabetes Translation, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, 1999-2001 Program Analyst, Office of Strategic Planning and Policy, National Weather Service, Silver Spring, Maryland, 2001 to present.

Margaret Fowke currently works in the Office of Strategic Planning and Policy of the National Weather Service. Working in this role at the Director’s Office of NWS, she is involved in efforts to establish and create an Office of Public Health at NOAA. This Office is being designed to support weather/health research and economic weather impacts, implement NWS Forecast Data & Product education & training in medical community and create weather curricula in medical schools and rotation/internships for medical/allied health students. Prior to working at NWS, Margaret worked as Registered Dietitian in the Grady Hospital Diabetes Unit in Atlanta, Georgia for 10 years.

Nicki Hickmon is the Coordinator of Capabilities and Interests at the University of Oklahoma. Working for the Vice President for Research Nicki acts as a project manager for large endeavors ensuring accountability and efficient timelines.  One of the current projects she is responsible for is the Radar to be built in Norman over the next 6 months.

Nicki earned her Bachelors and Masters degrees from the University of Oklahoma in Meteorology, with her thesis on storm scale ensemble numerical weather prediction. Nicki has continued her education in areas of Brokerage Management and Six Sigma/LEAN and is looking forward to a lifetime of learning while gaining the experience to apply new and diverse methods to projects.  Her past career experience includes working for the Warning Decision Training Branch as well as the Oklahoma Climatological Survey.

Outside of her career, Nicki has been involved in instructing Meteorology courses, kickboxing and captaining a local softball team.  She enjoys sharing her life with her family and friends while attempting to keep up with her dog, Casey.  Rarely ever bored, Nicki has worked as an EMT, computer programmer, and volunteers where need arises with neighborhood kids and friends.

Mike Hudson currently serves as the Chief Operating Officer for the National Weather Service Office Central Region Headquarters in Kansas City, MO. In this capacity, Mike helps to steer the daily operations of Central Region Headquarters and its 45 field offices across 14 states. He also serves as the region’s strategic planner and works towards services evolution by helping to infuse new technology and concepts into operations. During his 13 year NWS career, Mike has been involved in numerous strategic planning and service evolution concepts, highlights of which include both the development of an NWS Internet corporate image, as well as the deployment of a modernized NOAA Weather Radio system.
Mike graduated in 1993 from the University of Kansas in 1993 with a Bachelors Degree in atmospheric science. His NWS tour of duty has led him to five different duty stations where he has built a diverse background of experiences.  Mike has been at Central Region Headquarters since October, 2006.
Mike resides in Kansas City, Missouri. He enjoys golf, reading, movies and an occasional storm chase, as well as spending time with his wife and two sons.

Andrea Jackman received her B.S. in Meteorology from Valparaiso University in 2004. She is nearly finished with her Ph.D. from the Texas Tech Wind Science & Engineering Research Center, with a focus on the cost of hazard mitigation planning policy. Andrea is currently working with regional government in West Texas to put into practice the very policy she is researching, by way of creating GIS tools for rural emergency managers. Based on her storm chasing and damage assessment experience, Andrea's career aspirations include the creation/implementation of mitigation and preparedness activities for natural disasters. In her spare time, she likes to read, knit, and go to various sporting events with her husband.

Hetal Jain currently serves as technical advisor to the Climate Program Office (CPO) Director at NOAA. She serves as a liaison for the Director between the office and the other NOAA organizations, in order to facilitate effective communication and identify and resolve programmatic and management issues. She also works on strategic planning for the Climate Program at NOAA. She is a California girl, and grew up in the Los Angeles area. Hetal Jain completed the Presidential Management Fellows (PMF) Program in 2006. Prior to working at NOAA, she worked at the US Environmental Protection Agency. At EPA, she worked in several operational capacities for the National Environmental Performance Track program, which is a partnership program to encourage environmental excellence in industry. She also completed a detail working for the United Nations Foundation on the Climate and Energy team. Her interests range from the intersection of climate science and policy to the environmental dimensions of development to building partnerships between business, government, and NGOs to reduce our environmental footprint from the local to international levels. Hetal holds a Masters from Columbia University in Environmental Science and Policy and a B.S. from the University of Southern California in Environmental Biology with a minor in International Policy and Management. When not working, she enjoys trying new restaurants, reading, and catching up on movies.

Dr. Kathleen M. Kaplan is the Deputy Chief of External Programs for the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Arlington, Va. The External Programs Branch is responsible for over $180M major Air Force and Department of Defense (DoD) programs. Also, as Program Manager for over $50M DoD basic research programs, Dr. Kaplan impacts over 100 principal investigators, 200 universities, and 1000 fellows.

Dr. Kaplan was hired by AFOSR in August 2005. She was a professor for many years prior, six years at Howard University, one year at the Oklahoma City University, and one year at Oklahoma State University. Dr. Kaplan has a bachelor of science, computer science, from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, a master of science, computer science, from the Florida Institute of Technology, and a doctorate of science, computer science, from the George Washington University. Dr. Kaplan is also a registered Patent Agent, licensed to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and a Professional Engineer in training.

Darshan Karwat Born in New Jersey, grew up in Mumbai, India. Studied Aerospace Engineering as an undergraduate (graduated April 2007) at the University of Michigan, and currently pursuing a PhD in Aerospace Engineering and Environmental Policy at the University of Michigan. I love football (soccer, that is), juggling, coffee roasting, cooking and learning.

Julie Kiang is a hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey where her work focuses on the bureau's surface water programs. Previously, she was a water manager for the D.C. metropolitan area, focusing on drought management and long term planning. She has also been a consultant to water suppliers in the western U.S. She holds a B.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Stanford University, an S.M. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a Ph.D. in Hydrology and Water Resources from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Kim Klockow is completing a Master's of Professional Meteorology at the University of Oklahoma, and will transition to an advanced interdisciplinary degree in the fall (disciplines yet to be determined, all that is set is there will be more than one!). She graduated from Purdue University with degrees in Meteorology and Economics. Her research work has included the study of economic impacts of tornadoes (changes in broad consumption and financial distress), and social/economic responses to, as well as benefits of, meteorological information. Kim is primarily a meteorologist at heart, but with her strong economics background and broad specialties in psychology and communication, she generally finds herself in the position of bringing experts of very different fields to the same table to try to tackle the problems she's interested in. Her career goal is to help the scientific and social communities share information (i.e., understand/listen to each other) in order to better define risk and vulnerability, to mitigate, and to develop incentives for economic players to make sustainable choices.

Praj Kulkarni is a 5th year Stanford University applied physics graduate student who works at the Space, Telecommunications and Radioscience Laboratory.  He graduated from Penn State University in 2003, with degrees in electrical engineering and physics.  During his first 4 years at Stanford, Praj volunteered with an after-school science enrichment program in a low-income charter school in East Palo Alto.  In fall 2006, Praj took a leave of absence from his studies to work in education policy at a Washington, D.C. think tank.  He designed, initiated and taught a student seminar on science in society, is currently teaching a graduate level course in plasma physics.  Praj's future goals lie on the intersection of science, politics and policy, and he is especially interested in fostering more citizen input at all levels of the scientific enterprise.  In his spare time, Praj trains for and competes in triathlons.  In September 2007, he successfully completed a half-ironman distance: 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike and a 13.1 run. 

Dr. Brian Lamb is on the faculty in the Laboratory for Atmospheric Research in the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering at Washington State University.  Dr. Lamb has been involved in atmospheric pollutant transport and dispersion studies for more than twenty five years.  This has involved a combination of atmospheric tracer field studies and the development, evaluation, and application of a variety of air quality models.  Currently, Dr. Lamb is directing the development of a real-time regional air quality forecast system for the Pacific Northwest as well as an investigation of the effects of global change on regional air quality.  Dr. Lamb is also involved in research concerning biogenic trace gas emissions and their role in atmospheric chemistry.  The EPA Biogenic Emission Inventory System (BEIS) was originally developed under his direction at WSU.  Most recently, WSU participated in the MCMA2003 and MILAGRO 2006 field campaigns in Mexico City and conducted direct flux measurements of VOCs and aerosols from the urban landscape.

Candace Major is a paleoceanographer who studies the relationship between abrupt climate change and ocean circulation. Candace received a BA in Earth Sciences from Wesleyan University in 1994, and her PhD from the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University in 2002. She was an NSF International Research Post-doctoral Fellow at the Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l’Environnement in Paris, France, and a Comer Post-Doctoral Research Scholar at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. She recently was associate producer of a documentary film about kids and climate change, and looks forward to more opportunities to integrate her expertise in climate change science with policy and public outreach.

Claus Moberg is a graduate student at the University of Wisconsin – Madison’s Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment and is currently pursuing his M.S. in the UW’s department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science.  His research focuses on interdisciplinary questions involving atmospheric chemistry, policy and energy economics.  He uses a large array of research tools to examine these questions, including dynamic climate (CAM, WRF) and Atmospheric Chemistry and Transport (MOZART, WRF-Chem) models, as well as advanced statistical climatological analysis methods.

Claus earned his B.S. from the University of Wisconsin in 2007, graduating with a major in political science and a second, independent major entitled “the Political Economy of Environmental Policy.”  His senior thesis was comprised of a policy evaluation of Wisconsin’s Green Tier law and was supported by a Wisconsin Idea Undergraduate Fellowship.

Claus has completed several internships that have augmented his formal academic training.  He has worked in the Office of the Hon. Jennifer Schilling as a legislative intern, has assisted with satellite-based observations of hurricane intensity with the Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies, and has worked as a research intern at the Hurricane Research Division of the NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory.

Upon completion of his M.S., Claus plans to continue research in policy-relevant atmospheric chemistry and composition while pursuing his Ph.D. through the Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies’ Environment and Resources Program at the University of Wisconsin.

Claus lives with his wife and two dogs in Madison, WI.  He enjoys cycling, mountaineering and most other outdoor sports.

Meagan Moore is currently a 3^rd year PhD analytical chemistry graduate student in the department chemistry at UC San Diego with Prof. Kimberly Prather. Her research focuses on the ability of various different types of atmospheric aerosols to nucleate clouds and the impact they can have on climate. Her scientific interests include atmospheric chemistry, air quality, climate change, environmental policy. In addition to scientific research, Meagan is on the UC San Diego Advisory Committee on Sustainability, the Transportation Policy Committee and has helped facilitate one of the campus shuttles running on 100% biodiesel. In addition, she has helped organize the UC San Diego participation in Focus the Nation this past January. Meagan has a B.S. in Chemistry from the Pennsylvania State University and grew up in Mystic, CT.

Richard Moore is a second-year Ph.D. candidate in Chemical Engineering at Georgia Tech, working with Dr. Athanasios Nenes. His research focuses on the role of atmospheric particles in absorbing water to form clouds, which are known to have a significant impact on the Earth's climate, and he has just returned from a month-long field study of such particles in the springtime arctic haze of Alaska. In addition to this work, Rich is interested in how science influences policymaking and has co-authored a book chapter examining the role of scientific training in defining policy problems.

Benjamin Preston is a research scientist with Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).  Within CSIRO, he is part of the Climate Change Research Group of the Division of Marine and Atmospheric Research and is also active with CSIRO’s inter-disciplinary Climate Adaptation Flagship research initiative. 

Benjamin’s research focuses on the development and application of methods for assessing the spatial dimensions of climate change vulnerability and risk, particularly the use of geographic information systems to integrate biophysical and socio-economic data.  He is also active in the development of probabilistic tools for managing climate uncertainty in decision-making and the assessment of the capacity of communities to adapt to the effects of climate change. 

In 2007, Benjamin was awarded CSIRO’s Julius Career Award to support international research experience among exceptional early- to mid-career scientists.  He was also recognized for his work with Australia’s Energy Futures Forum on assessing the costs and benefits of climate policy. 

Prior to joining CSIRO, Benjamin was a Senior Research Fellow with the Pew Center on Global Climate Change in Washington, DC.  There he managed the Pew Center’s report series on the science and impacts of climate change and provided scientific advice to policy-makers, the media and the general public. 

Benjamin received a BS in Biology from the College of William and Mary and a PhD in environmental biology from the Georgia Institute of Technology. He subsequently held a position as a Carolina Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Nelsie Ramos I am currently enrolled in the Howard University Program in Atmospheric Sciences as a PhD student. I have a M.S. degree in Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology from Howard University (2004-2007). My B.S. degree was in Mathematics in Computer Sciences with a minor in Geographic Information System (GIS) and Remote Sensing (RS) from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez Campus. The area of interest during my mater’s degree was the research of the tropical cyclogenesis through the use of the NCAR Advanced Research WRF regional model and for a Cape Verde type hurricane. During my PhD I am continuing my studies in the modeling of tropical cyclogenesis but in collaboration with NOAA AOML/HRD and using the WRF-NMM model. Actually, I am member of the Howard University Graduate Student Association for Atmospheric Sciences (GSAAS) for which I will serve in the executive board for the school year 2008-2009 as the Secretary.

Yevgenii Rastigejev currently holds a joint appointment as a faculty in Mathematics Department and Energy and Environmental Studies at North Carolina A&T State University. His research interests have been in the areas of advanced multi-scale numerical analysis, applied mathematics, and scientific computing with applications to global atmospheric chemical transport, atmospheric fluid dynamics, and combustion modeling. Currently his research focuses on computational modeling of hurricane dynamics and severe windstorm generated by stratified airflow over mountains. His other work is devoted to development of numerical methods for global chemical transport in the atmosphere. Presently he is actively working on graduate curriculum for Energy and Environmental Studies by developing and teaching courses in Dynamic and Physical Meteorology, and Atmospheric Chemistry.

Hi, I’m Ashton Robinson Cook and I am a Ph.D. student in the School of Meteorology at the University of Oklahoma. I am currently pursuing advanced degrees in the field and researching topics pertaining to severe convection. In the future, I am interested in working for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration someday, establishing myself as a leader in the field and continuing work on topics and policies associated with thunderstorms and tornadoes.

Currently, I am a student employee at the Storm Prediction Center, studying mesoscale processes related to severe convection and issues related to operational forecasting. My ultimate career goal is one that includes a blend of research and operational meteorology with NOAA. My hope is that my degrees and my abilities will allow me to make an impact on NOAA and significantly help NOAA in its efforts to protect and serve the American People.

Armin Sorooshian I was born in Cleveland, Ohio, but spent most of my life in Tucson, Arizona. After completing my undergraduate work at the University of Arizona (B.S., 2003, Chemical and Environmental Engineering), I then moved to Pasadena, California. I have spent five years at the California Institute of Technology, supported by a Betty and Gordon Moore Fellowship, and just received a PhD in the Department of Chemical Engineering (Advisors: John H. Seinfeld and Richard C. Flagan). My thesis work has been devoted to studying the role of aerosols in shaping climate and environmental change through a combination of instrument development, aircraft measurements, and modeling. My next stop is a one-year CIRA (Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere) postdoctoral fellowship in Boulder, Colorado to learn more about aerosol-cloud-precipitation interactions via satellite remote sensing (technical advisor: Graham Feingold at NOAA). In August 2009, I will return to Tucson as an assistant professor at the University of Arizona in the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering. A goal of mine is to effectively bridge the gap between politics, policy, and science at the university level.

Aaron Swanson is an atmospheric and analytical chemist at Northrop Grumman Space Technology.  Aaron supports the civil space division at Northrop Grumman in the design and analysis of remote sensing technology for projects focused on atmospheric composition and climate change.  Aaron joined Northrop Grumman in 2005 after a 2 year post-doctoral position, jointly served, at the NOAA Aeronomy Laboratory and NCAR Atmospheric Chemistry Division in Boulder, CO, where he worked with Dr. Frank Flocke and Dr. Jim Roberts building new instrumentation to study peroxyacetyl nitrates (PAN) and ozone chemistry in the atmosphere.  He completed his PhD in Physical Chemistry at the University of California, Irvine, in 2002 under advisors Dr. Donald Blake and Dr. Sherwood Rowland.  His PhD dissertation focused on the study of atmospheric compositional changes and post-depositional processing of trace gases in the surface snowpack conducted over four field seasons at Summit, Greenland.  Throughout the course of his graduate work and post-doctoral studies, Aaron has participated on multiple aircraft campaigns (NASA, NOAA, and NCAR lead) and multiple ground field projects.  Prior to attending graduate school at UC-Irvine, Aaron worked for four years at DOE’s Los Alamos National Laboratory performing mobile laboratory organic analysis in support of environmental site remediation.  Aaron acquired a B.S. in Chemistry and Environmental Science from UC-Santa Barbara in 1993. 

Ricardo Todling is a senior research scientist working for SAIC under a NASA contract. His work involves developing mathematical and computational techniques to combine models of the atmosphere with atmospheric observations for weather prediction and climate studies through a process called atmospheric data assimilation.  Over the years, he has supported a number of NASA Missions and Programs by providing data assimilation systems to: process observations from the NASA Terra (EOS AM-1); generate hurricane forecasts for the NASA Modeling, Analysis and Prediction Program; and create consistent and reliable data sets for climate research through the NASA Modern Era Retrospective-Analysis for Research and Applications Project. Ricardo has also been leading the development and implementation of the NASA next generation data assimilation system. For the past three years, he has been serving as the liaison coordinating technology exchange between NASA and NOAA in the area of atmospheric data assimilation.

Ricardo earned a B.S. in Chemistry in 1983, and an M. S. in Physics in 1986 from the Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  In 1986, he joined the Atmospheric Sciences Department of the University of California, Los Angles, where he earned an M. S. in 1991 and a Ph.D. degree in 1992.  He then received a National Academy of Sciences Scholarship as a Post-Doctoral Researcher at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center working at the Data Assimilation Office (DAO).  He joined SAIC over ten year ago and continues to work at NASA, now for the Global Modeling and Assimilation Office. He enjoys biking, walking, and visiting the museums in DC; he loves to dancing.

Gabriel (Gabe) Vecchi is a Research Oceanographer at the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) in Princeton, New Jersey, where he has been working since 2003. GFDL, which is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), is one of the world's leading climate modeling centers. Gabe received a B.A. in Mathematics from Rutgers University, and an M.S. in Oceanography, an M.S. in Applied Mathematics and a Ph.D. in Oceanography from the University of Washington. His scientific research focuses on the interactions between the atmosphere and oceans on timescales from weeks to centuries, including the El Nino-Southern Oscillation phenomenon and the Asian-Australian monsoon. His recent research has focused on understanding long-term changes to tropical circulation and variability, including characterizing possible impact of climate change on hurricanes and global patterns of rainfall and drought. Gabe currently serves on the Climate Variability and Predictability (CLIVAR) Indian Ocean Panel, and is an Associate Editor of the Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences. His awards include the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), NOAA-OAR Outstanding Paper of the Year Award, the American Geophysical Union’s Editor's Citation for Excellence in Refereeing for Geophysical Research Letters, and the Cook College, Rutgers University Marine Sciences Student of the Year.

Maggie Walser, originally from Eureka, CA, completed her Ph.D. in atmospheric chemistry with the Aerosol Photochemistry Group at the University of California, Irvine. Maggie is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at the National Council for Science and the Environment in Washington, DC. She works on a variety of projects, including the US Forest Service Research Outlook project, the Wildlife Habitat Policy Research Program, and EnvironMentors, an environmental science-based mentoring program for under-served high school students. Maggie is also a contributor to the Earth Portal, a free, global resource for comprehensive information about the environment. She has played a leading role in creating a collection of climate change information within the Earth Portal. In September, Maggie will begin an American Geophysical Union Congressional Science Fellowship.

Kevin Werner is the Service Coordination Hydrologist for the National Weather Service Colorado Basin River Forecast Center. In this new position, Kevin helps to manage the Center with a particular focus on working with forecast users to use the forecasts as effectively as possible. The Colorado Basin River Forecast Center provides water related forecasts for time scales ranging from hours to years.

Over his 9 year NOAA career, Kevin has worked on NOAA research ships in the tropics as well as managed programs spanning the western United States. Kevin holds B.S. and M.S. academic degrees in mathematics and atmospheric science from the University of Washington. He is currently pursuing an M.P.A. from the University of Utah.

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