Spring Symposium 2026 Schedule and Abstracts

Please see below for the Spring Symposium Presentation Schedule. All times are in Eastern Standard Time (EST). To view project abstracts, click on the drop down for the presenter(s), and select the project title.

For more information, please visit the Nicholas School Spring Symposium Event Page.

Tuesday, April 7

DEL Virtual Presentations

7:20 PM: Opening Remarks from Dean Lori Snyder Bennear

7:30 PM: Natalie Ip (DEL)

• Can Culturally Relevant Narratives Motivate Climate Change Related Public Policy Reforms and Community Action in Hong Kong?
  • MP Advisor: Kerry Ossi-Lupo

7:55 PM: Mike Franke-Rose (DEL)

• Enhancing U.S.C.G. Maritime Domain Awareness Through Geospatial Intelligence Dashboards
  • MP Advisor: Peter Cada

8:20 PM: Sangeeta Upadhyay (DEL)

• AI’s Hidden Demand — “Where AI Meets the Grid”
  • MP Advisor: Dave Johnston

8:45 PM: Jason Lapidus, Juan Diego Aguilar (DEL)

• Organizational Sustainability: A Resilience Framework for Startups
  • MP Advisor: Dave Johnston

9:05 PM: Michael Durante (DEL)

• Photocatalytic Solutions for Decarbonizing & Depolluting Value Chain Emissions from the Roadway Microenvironment
  • MP Advisor: Dave Johnston, Peter Cada

Wednesday, April 8

DEL Virtual Presentations

7:30 PM: Didra Felix, Liz Sarno, Ky Mundy (DEL, DEL, TFE-CEEJ)

• Bridging the Gap: Mobilizing Investment for Community Resilience in High Point, NC 
  • MP Advisor: Victoria Salinas

7:55 PM: Annemarie Carignan (DEL)

• Nature at Work: CEI’s Habitat and Species Playbook
  • MP Advisor: Jim Toomey

8:20 PM: Bonnie Angermeier (DEL)

• Flexible Interconnection: A Policy Solution to Meet U.S. Energy and Climate Needs
  • MP Advisor: Brian Murray

Thursday, April 9

DEL Virtual Presentations

7:30 PM: Hannah Wagner (DEL)

• Ripples of Resilience: Weaving Disaster Risk Reduction into the Flow of Global Nature Conservation through an examination of WWF’s Recharge Pakistan 
  • MP Advisor: Brian McAdoo

7:55 PM: Robert Hughes (DEL)

• Investigating Historic Industrial Operations as PFAS Sources in New Jersey Drinking Water
  • MP Advisor: Heather Stapleton

8:20 PM: Mark Williams (DEL)

• “A Healthy and Connected Landscape”: A Strategic Vision for The Cumberland Forest, Its Community Fund, and the Outdoor Recreation Economy They Support
  • MP Advisor: Richard Mei

Thursday, April 9

Field Auditorium, Grainger Hall – In Person – Thursday, April 9

9:05 AM: Clara Haxhi, Jeffery Lopez (EE-EEP, EE-EAM)

• Evaluating the Effectiveness of Ten Years of Renewable Energy Siting Guidance in Colorado
  • MP Advisor: Dalia Patino-Echeverri

9:30 AM: Ananya Aggarwal, Arthur Smith (EE-CEEJ, EE-BE)

• Defining Ecovoltaics: A Systematic Review and Framework for Ecologically Integrated Solar Development
  • MP Advisor: Dalia Patino-Echeverri

9:55 AM: Jessalyn Chuang (EE-EAM)

• Who Gets Left in the Dark? A Data-Driven Study of Power Outage Patterns in North Carolina
  • MP Advisor: Dalia Patino-Echeverri

10:20 AM: Yeeun Kim, Lauren Shohan, Yuan Yuan, Lucas Zhou (EE-EAM, EE-EAM, EE-BE, EE-BE)

• Broadband Grid Modernization: A Cost and Technology Landscape Comparison of Distribution-Level Monitoring
  • MP Advisor: Jackson Ewing

10:45 AM: Trudy Jiang, Chih-Chieh Mao, Zhaoxin Zhang (EE-BE, BE-EE, EE-EAM)

• What Can Be Learned from US States and Chinese Provinces about Energy Transitions? 
  • MP Advisor: Jackson Ewing

11:10 AM: Sadie Tetreault (EE-EEP/MBA)

• Data Dashboard: Asia-Pacific Trade Exposure to the European Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism
  • MP Advisor: Jackson Ewing

11:35 AM: Dean’s Remarks in Field Auditorium

• Dean Lori Snyder Bennear will give remarks in Field Auditorium, Grainger Hall. Immediately followed by lunch.

Noon – 12:55 PM: Break

• Please join us for lunch on the first floor of Grainger Hall

1:00 PM: Aditi Jackson, David Robinson (EE-EAM/MBA, EE-EAM/MBA)

• Unlocking Capital for Energy Storage: A Scenario-Based Analysis of BESS Degradation on Project Economics in ERCOT
  • MP Advisor: Tim Johnson

1:25 PM: Sumit Dalsania (EE-EEP/MBA)

• Bridging the Operational Gap: An Organizational Design for Commercial-Scale Enhanced Geothermal Systems 
  • MP Advisor: Tim Johnson

1:50 PM: Mara Michel, Amber Wright (EAM-EE/MBA, EE-CEEJ/MBA)

• 100% Great Lakes Fish
  • MP Advisor: Tim Johnson

2:15 PM: Jonathan Joyner (EE-EAM/MBA)

• Alternative Electrochemical Extraction Opportunities of Non-precious Metals
  • MP Advisor: Tim Johnson

2:40 PM: Jingze Dai, Skyler Ju, Kiran Kruse, Joy Wu (EE-EAM, BE-EE, EE-BE, EE-EAM)

• Integrating Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) into Data Centers: Technical, Economic, and Market Analysis 
  • MP Advisor: Tim Johnson

3:30 PM: Jingni Pang, Anli Raymond, Serena Zheng (EE-BE, EEP-BE, BE-EE)

• A Comprehensive Guide to Implement a Mobility Hub for Multifamily Households in Palo Alto, CA to Reduce Vehicles Miles Traveled and Greenhouse Gas Emissions
  • MP Advisor: Tim Johnson

3:55 PM: Samantha Sedar (EE-EAM/MBA)

• A Case Study in Climate Hardware Financing: Navigating Early Commercialization in Power Electronics
  • MP Advisor: Dalia Patino-Echeverri

4:20 PM: Julia Kagiliery (EE-EAM)

• Power Outages and Social Vulnerability: Quantifying Social and Environmental Contributors to Power Outages Across North Carolina
  • MP Advisor: Brian McAdoo

4:45 PM: Jack Killeen (EE-EAM/MBA)

• The Economics of Fusion Energy: From Demonstration to Market Viability
  • MP Advisor: Luana Lima

2102, Grainger Hall – In Person – Thursday, April 9

9:05 AM: MacEva Wright (CaMS-CEEJ)

• Bridging Science and Storytelling: Strengthening Educator Engagement in Coastal Resilience Education
  • MP Advisor: Rebecca Vidra

9:30 AM: Nicolas Davalos (CaMS-BE)

• Designing High-Integrity Environmental Performance Indicators for Sovereign Blue Finance: A Case Study for Fiji
  • MP Advisors: Elizabeth Losos, Richard Mei

9:55 AM: Audrey Kuptz (CaMS-EEP)

• Assessing Effectiveness of Global Preferential Access Areas for Small-Scale Fishers
  • MP Advisors: John Virdin, Tibor Vegh

10:20 AM: Camber Vincent (CaMS-EAM)

• Spatial Tradeoffs and Prioritization for Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement Deployment 
  • MP Advisors: John Virdin, Nico Cassar, Pat Halpin

10:45 AM: Evan Mularo (CaMS-BE)

• AUVs and AI: Automating Data Collection and Imagery Analysis to Inform Offshore Energy Planning
  • MP Advisor: Pat Halpin

11:10 AM: Andrew Barfield (CaMS-EAM)

• Trick or Treet: Analyzing Drivers of Local Ghost Forest Formation Along the Coastal Plain of North Carolina
  • MP Advisors: Ryan Emanuel, Pat Halpin

11:35 AM: Dean’s Remarks in Field Auditorium

• Dean Lori Snyder Bennear will give remarks in Field Auditorium, Grainger Hall.

Noon – 12:55 PM: Break

• Please join us for lunch on the first floor of Grainger Hall

1:00 PM: Kendall Fitzgerald (CaMS-EAM)

• Assessing Marine Mammal Species Distribution Model Usage & Future Modeling Considerations in the United States Northwest Atlantic 
  • MP Advisor: Pat Halpin

1:25 PM: Natalie Holsclaw (CaMS-EAM)

• Evaluating the Taxonomic Scope of Tuna Regional Fisheries Management Organizations to Identify Management Gaps and Spatial Priorities in the High Seas
  • MP Advisors: Pat Halpin, Guillermo Ortuno Crespo

1:50 PM: Priya Rathod (CaMS-EAM)

• Challenges and Opportunities for Baleen Whale Conservation in the High Seas – A Case Study of Blue Whales in the Thermal Dome
  • MP Advisors: Pat Halpin, Guillermo Ortuno Crespo

2:15 PM: Meredith Langmuir (CaMS-BE)

• Preliminary Marine Spatial Planning to Support Potential Aquaculture Development in the U.S. Caribbean Islands 
  • MP Advisors: Pat Halpin, James Morris

2:40 PM: Amelia McDonald (CaMS-CEEJ)

• Preliminary Marine Spatial Planning for Future Aquaculture Development in the State of Hawaii
  • MP Advisor: Pat Halpin

3:30 PM: Sameer Swarup (CaMS-EAM)

• Predicting Land Cover Change in the Chesapeake Bay Using 30-Meter Resolution Spatiotemporal Data
  • MP Advisor: Pat Halpin

3:55 PM: Ayden Schirmacher (CaMS-EAM)

• Effects of Ice Floe Area and Density on Harbor Seal (Phoca vitulina) Haul-Out Behavior in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska
  • MP Advisor: Dave Johnston

4:20 PM: Eileen Jennings (CaMS-CEEJ)

• Climate Fiction for Climate Change
  • MP Advisor: Shineng Hu and Jodi Psoter

2107, Grainger Hall – In Person – Thursday, April 9

9:05 AM: Ky Mundy (TFE-CEEJ)

• Bridging the Gap: Mobilizing Investment for Community Resilience in High Point, NC 
  • MP Advisors: Lydia Olander, Victoria Salinas

9:30 AM: Emily Yang (TFE-EAM)

• LiDAR-Based Drainage Ditch Mapping for Peatland Restoration Across Low-Relief Coastal Landscapes in North Carolina
  • MP Advisor: Katie Warnell, John Fay

9:55 AM: Shaochong Xue (TFE-EAM)

• Quantifying the Ecological Impact of Baited Bird Blinds on Local Habitats: A Case Study from China 
  • MP Advisor: Nicki Cagle

10:20 AM: Kabryn Mattison (TFE-CEEJ)

• Sacred Nature: The Conservation Status of Herpetofauna in Nusa Penida, Indonesia
  • MP Advisor: Nicki Cagle

10:45 AM: Sujay Dhanagare (TFE-EAM)

• Flood Resilience Through Water Infrastructure: Identifying Opportunities for an Early Stage Investor
  • MP Advisors: Lydia Olander, Elizabeth Losos

11:10 AM: Jonathan Gilman (TFE-EAM)

• Browning or Clearing: Does Recovery of Acidification Consistently Alter Dissolved Organic Carbon Exports from Small Watersheds?
  • MP Advisor: Emily Bernhardt

11:35 AM: Dean’s Remarks in Field Auditorium

• Dean Lori Snyder Bennear will give remarks in Field Auditorium, Grainger Hall. Immediately followed by lunch.

Noon – 12:55 PM: Break

• Please join us for lunch on the first floor of Grainger Hall

1:00 PM: Gretchen Barbera (TFE-CEEJ)

• Hydrologic Risk and Combined Sewer System Stress: Prioritizing Green Infrastructure for Flood Resilience in Pittsburgh, PA
  • MP Advisor: Jim Heffernan

1:25 PM: Summer Heschong, Ruijie Yang (TFE-EAM, TFE-EEP)

• Vegetation Management Plan for Moores Creek National Battlefield
  • MP Advisor: Rebecca Vidra

1:50 PM: Iman Byndloss, Jeremy Sabol, Rachel Williams (TFE-EAM, EEP-CaMS, TFE-EAM)

• State Wildlife Action Plans: Assessing Plans for Recovery Effectiveness
  • MP Advisor: Dean Urban

2:15 PM: Rosanne Yang (TFE-EEP)

• A Study of Deforestation and Human Land-Use Activities in Alaotra-Mangoro, Madagascar 
  • MP Advisor: Tong Qiu

2:40 PM: Shivani Lakshman (EEP-TFE)

• Comparing U.S. and International Strategies to Address Agricultural Nonpoint Source Pollution
  • MP Advisor: Martin Doyle

3:30 PM: Zhenghao Lin, Weilin Wang, Rosie Wu, Janice Ye (EE-EAM/MPP, EAM-EE, EE-EAM, BE-EE/MPP)

• The Impact of Rate Structures, Incentives, and Financing Mechanisms on the Financial Viability of Residential Solar and Battery Systems: A Five-State Case Study
  • MP Advisor: Luana Lima

3:55 PM: Nicole Gutkowski (TFE-EAM)

• Optimizing Interpolation Methods for National-Scale PFAS Mapping
  • MP Advisors: Luana Lima, Peter Cada

4:20 PM: Simon Heinberg (EAM-TFE/MPP)

• Evaluating Minnesota’s Fall Fertilizer Application Restriction: Effects on Waterway Nitrate Pollution
  • MP Advisor: Ryan Emanuel

1101, Grainger Hall – In Person – Thursday, April 9

9:05 AM: Junyu Wang, Zijie Wang (iMEP)

• From Stage to Strategy: How Major Auto Shows Interpret China’s Auto Industry Transition (2013-2025)
  • MP Advisor: Jingbo Cui

9:30 AM: Jiayue Lyu, Xinxue Wang, Shiyi Zheng (iMEP)

• Policy Iteration and Patent Technology Evolution for Power Battery Recycling of Electric Vehicles in China (2015–2025)​
  • MP Advisor: Jingbo Cui

9:55 AM: Wenqiang Yang, Siyuan Fang, Andrea Lu (iMEP)

• Mapping Solar Technology Development in China: A Policy and Patent Analysis
  • MP Advisor: Jingbo Cui

10:20 AM: Yinuo Yang (iMEP)

• Tide-Driven Soil Respiration: Impacts of Tidally-Induced Water Table
  • MP Advisor: Chuanhui Gu

10:45 AM: Lindsay Bell, Malaika Martis (EEP-TFE, EE-EEP)

• Integrating Environmental Justice into Hydrogen Energy Transitions: Community-Based Analysis and Engagement in the SH2INE Project
  • MP Advisor: Noelle Wyman Roth

11:10 AM: Asreeta Ushasri (EE-EAM)

• Monitoring and Evaluation Strategies for Environmental Education Programs in Zambia 
  • MP Advisor: Noelle Wyman Roth

11:35 AM: Dean’s Remarks in Field Auditorium

• Dean Lori Snyder Bennear will give remarks in Field Auditorium, Grainger Hall. Immediately followed by lunch.

Noon – 12:55 PM: Break

• Please join us for lunch on the first floor of Grainger Hall

1:00 PM: Rachael Stephan (EAM-EEH)

• Forecasting Primary Productivity and Tuna Fishery Biomass in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre with Machine Learning
  • MP Advisors: Nicolas Cassar, Zuchuan Li

1:25 PM: Brock Keller (EEH-EAM)

• Impacts of Glyphosate, AMPA, and Cadmium Co-exposures on Kidney Function in Larval Zebrafish using a Transgenic Proteinuria Reporter
  • MP Advisor: Nishad Jayasundara

1:50 PM: Patricia Kwiatek (EEH-CEEJ)

• The Relative Exposure to PFAS from Well Water for Firefighters in North Carolina
  • MP Advisor: Lee Ferguson

2:15 PM: Anna Clauer (EEH-CEEJ)

• A Participatory Approach Towards Reporting and Mitigating Air Pollution and Heat in Durham, NC
  • MP Advisors: Anais Roque, Danielle Wagner, Mike Bergin

2:40 PM: Emily Burghart (TFE-CEEJ)

• Community Approaches to Sustainable Infrastructure Placement for Small-Scale Wool Producers in North Carolina
  • MP Advisor: Anais Roque

3:30 PM: Fiona Price (TFE-CEEJ)

• Land Management in Madagascar: Balancing Forest Protection and Local Livelihoods
  • MP Advisor: Anais Roque

3:55 PM: Ariel Kimberley (CEEJ-TFE)

• Reducing Lead Ammunition Exposure: Educational Outreach and Harm Reduction Strategies for the Coharie Tribe and Indigenous Communities in North Carolina
  • MP Advisor: Ryan Emanuel

A158, LSRC – In Person – Thursday, April 9

9:30 AM: Tessa Nyhan (BIO-GWD)

• GWD Title
  • GWD Advisor: Juliet Wong

9:55 AM: Dhruv Rungta (GWD Outside the Major)

• GWD Title
  • GWD Advisor: Chris Sims

10:20 AM: Chibuike Okafor (ENV-GWD)

• Isotopic Analysis of Tree Water and Surface Water from Ghost Forests in Coastal North Carolina
  • GWD Advisor: Ryan Emanuel

10:45 AM: Gabrielle Moreau (ENV-GWD)

• “Stewards of Our Own Destiny”: How Tribal Nations Pursue Self-Determination through Oil and Gas Development
  • GWD Advisor: Ryan Emanuel

11:10 AM: Ella Tallett (ENV-GWD)

• A Two-Way Fixed Effects Framework to Estimate the Impacts of Urbanization, Vegetation, and Aerosols on Air Temperature in North Carolina
  • GWD Advisor: David Carlson

11:35 AM: Dean’s Remarks in Field Auditorium

• Dean Lori Snyder Bennear will give remarks in Field Auditorium, Grainger Hall. Immediately followed by lunch.

Noon – 12:55 PM: Break

• Please join us for lunch on the first floor of Grainger Hall

1:00 PM: Jean Chung (ENV-GWD)

• Investigating Genetic Susceptibility to Ozone Exposure
  • GWD Advisor: Robert Tighe

1:25 PM: Joshua Goozman (ENV-GWD)

• Ghost Forest Forensics: What Drives Variation in Soil Carbon Emissions in Coastal Forested Wetlands?
  • GWD Advisor: Emily Bernhardt

1:50 PM: Sarah Kuhlman (ENV-GWD)

• Assessing Toxicological Impacts of Chronic Exposure to Low Density and High Density Polyethylene Nanoplastics
  • GWD Advisor: Jason Somarelli

2:15 PM: Chloe Young (ENV-GWD)

• Investigating the Validity and Utility of Anticipatory Insurance for Oyster Aquaculture in North Carolina 
  • GWD Advisor: Brian McAdoo

2:40 PM: Ella Weinstein (ENV-GWD)

• Assessing the Environmental, Social, Economic, and Political Barriers to Mining in Greenland
  • GWD Advisor: Jackson Ewing

3:30 PM: Abby Walden (ENV-GWD)

• Increasing Microbial Activity and Nitrogen Availability Into the Deeper Soil-Rooting Zone on the Duke Campus Farm Through 15 years of Regenerative Agriculture
  • GWD Advisor: Dan Richter

3:55 PM: Michael Kiel (ENV-GWD)

• Neurobehavioral Effects of Embryonic Exposure to Lead and Benzo[a]pyrene in Zebrafish Models
  • GWD Advisor: Edward Levin

Friday, April 10

Field Auditorium, Grainger Hall – In Person – Friday, April 10

9:05 AM: Manjiri Deshmukh, Hazal Maral, Terry Uranbold, Daniel Whitehead, Judy Zhu (EEP-EE, EEP-EE, BE-EE, EE-EAM, EAM-EE)

• Advancing a Framework for Grid Reliability Incentives in Low- and Middle-Income African Countries
  • MP Advisors: Jonathan Philips, Alix Peterson Zwane

9:30 AM: Kimberly Ludeña Acevedo (BE-EE/MBA)

•  State Applications of Responsible Sourcing Frameworks: Banco Central del Ecuador’s ASGM Purchasing Program
  • MP Advisor: Alex Pfaff

9:55 AM: Nicholas Sommer (BE-EE/MBA)

• Burying the Problem – Partnerships Pathways & Development Strategies for CO2 Mineralization in U.S. Markets Amidst Regulatory Uncertainty 
  • MP Advisor: Holly Emerson

10:20 AM: Hanna Rush (BE-TFE/MBA)

• Sustainable Sourcing of Edible Oils in a Changing Climate: Risk Assessment, Corporate Benchmarking, and Strategic Recommendations for U.S. Food Companies
  • MP Advisor: Holly Emerson

10:45 AM: Sriya Gottumukkula, Lalie Marie, Daichen Shi (BE-TFE, BE-EE, EE-EEP)

• Setting SBTi-Aligned Targets for Motion Industries
  • MP Advisor: Holly Emerson

11:10 AM: Adiya Jumagaliyeva (BE-EE)

• From Baseline to Future Scenarios: Evaluating GridSeer Technology and Avoided Emissions at Duke University
  • MP Advisors: Holly Emerson, Mauricio Hernandez

11:35 AM: Jeffrey Chu, Lauren Xu, Nicole Yaw (EE-EEP, BE-EE, BE-EE)

• Scope 3 Upstream Emission Factor (EF) Analysis & Computation for Product Carbon Footprinting (PCF)
  • MP Advisors: Holly Emerson, Shannon Parker

Noon – 12:55 PM: Break

• Please join us for lunch on the first floor of Grainger Hall

1:00 PM: Peyton Fitts, Shraddha Sharma, Wonder Wei, Olivia Wuttke (BE-TFE, BE-EE, BE-EE, BE-TFE)

• Phase 2: Assessment of Sustainable Procurement Alternatives for Duke Student Affairs (Facilities Planning and Operations and Sustainability Offices)
  • MP Advisor: Shannon Parker

1:25 PM: Jessica Stubbs (TFE-BE)

• Crossing the Translation Gap: Positioning Academic Innovation for the Business World
  • MP Advisors: Shannon Parker, Jesko von WIndheim

1:50 PM: Haonan Pei, Aisha Shen, Shiyu Zhu (EE-EEP, EE-BE, EE-BE)

• Strategic Energy Planning for Enfield, NC: Reducing Energy Costs and Enabling an Affordable Transition Beyond 2027
  • MP Advisor: Jesko von Windheim

2:15 PM: Ryan Sidawi (BE-EE/MBA)

• Energy Market Structure and the Limits of LNG as a Tool of Geopolitical Coercion
  • MP Advisor: Jesko von Windheim

2:40 PM: Jacqueline Wittich (EAM-TFE/MBA)

• Assessing Heat Stress Tolerance of Native and Exotic Urban Planted Tree Species Under Future Climate Scenarios in New York City
  • MP Advisor: Luana Lima

2102, Grainger Hall – In Person – Friday, April 10

9:05 AM: Rebecca Cox (CaMS-EAM)

• In the Belly of the Beast: A Cell Culture Model to Study the Impacts of Plastic Additives on Stress in Marine Mammals
  • MP Advisors: Jason Somarelli, Tom Schultz

9:30 AM: Ryan Meshanko (CaMS-BE)

• Rack n’ Roll: Assessing the effects of acute and chronic mechanical agitation on farmed eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica)
  • MP Advisor: Tom Schultz

9:55 AM: Kelly Gallagher (CaMS-EEP)

• Light Pollution, Human Activity, and Sea Turtle Nesting at Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina
  • MP Advisors: Grant Murray, Dave Johnston

10:20 AM: Alice Daeschler (CaMS-CEEJ)

• The Role of Markets and Socio-economic Factors in Shaping the North Carolina Aquaculture Industry
  • MP Advisor: Grant Murray

10:45 AM: Elizabeth Kroger (CaMS-CEEJ)

• Piloting a Fisheries Data Collection Method and Scoping a Sourcing Strategy for a Sustainable Seafood Startup in Sonora, Mexico
  • MP Advisor: Grant Murray

11:10 AM: Diandre’ Richie (CaMS-EEP))

• Evaluating Long-Term Resilience: A Case Study Analysis of the North Carolina Resilient Coastal Community Program
  • MP Advisor: Grant Murray

11:35 AM: Cole Roxbury (CaMS-BE)

• ESG Benchmarking of US-Origin Aquaculture Companies Using the Seafood Stewardship Index
  • MP Advisor: Grant Murray

Noon – 12:55 PM: Break

• Please join us for lunch on the first floor of Grainger Hall

1:00 PM: Maryam Krauss (CaMS-CEEJ)

• Fishermen’s Perceptions of Harbor Seals in the Outer Banks, North Carolina
  • MP Advisor: Andy Read

1:25 PM: Tori Newton (CaMS-CEEJ)

• Evaluating the Effectiveness of Northeast Gear Marking Scheme for Aerial Detection of Large Whale Entanglements: Implications for North Atlantic Right Whale Conservation
  • MP Advisor: Andy Read

1:50 PM: Kayla Emerson (CaMS-EAM)

• Remote Sensing Based Modeling of Salt Marsh Stability Under Sea Level Rise
  • MP Advisor: Brad Murray

2:15 PM: Samantha Jensen (CaMS-EAM)

• Framework for Evaluating Coastal Vulnerability to Guide Wavebreaker Stakeholder Engagement 
  • MP Advisor: Brad Murray

2:40 PM: Megan Dear (CaMS-CEEJ)

• Situating the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network in Coral Reef Governance
  • MP Advisors: Lisa Campbell, Emily Melvin

3:30 PM: Mason Ibrahim (CaMS-EAM)

• Oh Shoot! Lessons Learned from Gelatin Adhesive Attachment of Eelgrass Seeds to Clams
  • MP Advisor: Brian Silliman

3:55 PM: Graham Gaither (CaMS-EEP)

• Transmission Loss of Fin Whale Vocalizations in the North Atlantic: Ground Truthing a Mathematically Derived Transmission Loss Mode
  • MP Advisor: Doug Nowacek

2107, Grainger Hall – In Person – Friday, April 10

9:30 AM: Cammie Moore, Jaclyn Narleski, Vedaansh Uberoi (TFE-EAM, EEH-EAM, EEP-TFE)

• Replicate and Expand Ongoing Research on WOTUS Over Time: An Examination of Potential Impacts on Wetlands/Streams Over Different Definitions of Waters of the United States (WOTUS)
  • MP Advisor: Betsy Albright

9:55 AM: Beatrix Liu, Scout Yokley (CEEJ-EEH, EEP-CaMS)

• Identifying and Communicating Health Risks from Subsistence Fish Consumption along the Lower Cape Fear River
  • MP Advisor: Liz Shapiro-Garza

10:20 AM: Diana Bachiller, Hannah Naehring (TFE-CEEJ/MF, TFE-EEP)

• Participatory Biodiversity Monitoring and Biological Corridor Planning with Indigenous Communities in Oaxaca, Mexico
  • MP Advisors: Nicki Cagle, Liz Shapiro-Garza

10:45 AM: Jake Frietze (GWD Outside the Major)

• GWD Title
  • GWD Advisor: Meagan Dunphy-Daly

11:10 AM: Hannah Baetge (MARSCI-GWD)

• Altered Lipid Metabolism Pathways Enable Hypoxia Tolerance in Goose-Beaked Whales
  • GWD Advisor: Jason Somarelli

11:35 AM: Kira Lichtenfeld (MARSCI-GWD)

• Predicting Future Distribution of Tamanend’s Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops erebennus) Based on Thermal Tolerance and Prey Shifts
  • GWD Advisor: Andy Read

Noon – 12:55 PM: Break

• Please join us for lunch on the first floor of Grainger Hall

1:00 PM: Ruth Havener (MARSCI-GWD)

• Using the Sea Urchin Lytechinus variegatus to Mitigate Biofouling in Oyster Aquaculture
  • GWD Advisor: Juliet Wong

1:25 PM: Jane Curry (MARSCI-GWD)

• Investigating Larval Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea virginica) Mortality and Sublethal Responses to Acute Heat Stress
  • GWD Advisor: Juliet Wong

1:50 PM: Thomas Tan (MARSCI-GWD)

• Temperature and Symbiotic Status Drive Rates of Sediment Removal by the Temporate Coral, Astrangia poculata
  • GWD Advisor: Brian Silliman

2:15 PM: Lizzy Glazer (MARSCI-GWD)

• Disturbing the Sanctuary: Anthropogenic Noise Disrupts Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) Song and Alters Dive Behavior
  • GWD Advisor: Meagan Dunphy-Daly

3:00 – 4:00 PM: GWD Poster Session in Hug Commons, LSRC

1101, Grainger Hall – In Person – Friday, April 10

9:05 AM: Judy Song (iMEP)

• Mangrove Restoration in Zhanjiang: Impact on Small-Scale Fisheries and Aquaculture from a Socioeconomic Lens
  • MP Advisors: Wumeng He, Binbin Li

9:30 AM: Shuyi Shen (iMEP)

• Walking as Biocultural Action: Infrastructure(s) of hope at the China’s Miao Borderland
  • MP Advisors: Robin Rodd, Wumeng He

9:55 AM: Juanying Huangfu (iMEP)

• Natural and Cultural Capital Dynamics: A Theoretical Framework and Empirical Evidence on Cultural Landscape Formation
  • MP Advisor: Wumeng He

10:20 AM: Jiahao Zhang (iMEP)

• From Birth to Death Among the Trees: Life-Cycle Rituals and Forest Governance among the Yi People
  • MP Advisor: Wumeng He

10:45 AM: Xinran Yin (iMEP)

• Co-variation Between Global Sea Surface Temperature and MODIS Ocean Color (2002–2025): A Time-Series Regression Analysis
  • MP Advisor: Zuchuan Li

11:10 AM: Yueyang Ma, Shi Feng (iMEP)

• Opportunities and Challenges in the Current Aquaculture Practices on  Waterbirds, from Local Fish Farmers’ Perspective –Taking Coastal Jiangsu as an Example
  • MP Advisor: Jimmy Choi

11:35 AM: Shihao Fu (iMEP)

• MP Title
  • MP Advisor: Jingbo Cui

Noon – 12:55 PM: Break

• Please join us for lunch on the first floor of Grainger Hall

1:00 PM: Yangsen Zhang, Yiting He, He Gao (iMEP)

• The Impact of Carbon Market Expansion on Steel Enterprises: A Case Study in Changzhou
  • MP Advisor: Junjie Zhang

1:25 PM: Tianyue Wei, Cong Qiao (iMEP)

• Managing Climate-related Risks in Chinese Commercial Banks: Insights from Regulatory and Operational Alignment
  • MP Advisor: Junjie Zhang

1:50 PM: Erchi Luo, Yihao Yu, Haochuan Zhan (iMEP)

• Tech-EVA: A Technology-Adjusted Valuation Model for the Solar Photovoltaic Industry
  • MP Advisor: Junjie Zhang

2:15 PM: Han Zhang (iMEP)

• Environmental Conflict, Citizen Perceptions, and Digital Narrative Dynamics: An LLM-assisted NLP Study of Lithium Mining Protests in Serbia
  • MP Advisors: Andrew Cheon, Jiahua Yue 

2:40 PM: Bochao Zhang (iMEP)

• From Extraction to Equity: Institutional Learning and Justice in China’s Resource-for-Infrastructure Deals
  • MP Advisor: Andrew Cheon

Graduation with Distinction Poster Session – In Person – Friday, April 10

• Join us in the Hug Commons (LSRC) from 3:00–4:00 PM to explore GWD student project posters, learn more about their work, and engage with the students by asking questions. All are welcome!