Thompson Rivers University

Australian wildfires and climate change

  Posted on: January 6, 2020

Wildfires are burning expanses of Australia. Several TRU faculty members can discuss various aspects of wildfires and their impacts. They include:

Dr. Darlene Sanderson, assistant professor, School of Nursing. She can talk about Indigenous strategies used to prevent/handle wildfires, including some centuries-old methods that can be combined with today’s science. She works with Indigenous communities around disaster preparedness.
Contact: 1-778-678-9932 (cell) | dsanderson@tru.ca

Dr. Thomas Pypker, associate professor, Faculty of Science. He is studying the after-effects of wildfires, particularly as they impact land disturbance and water flows. His project is being done in conjunction with UNBC and UBCO.
Contact: 250-828-5414 | tpypker@tru.ca

Dr. John Church, assistant professor, Faculty of Science Natural Resource Science and BC Regional Innovation Chair in Cattle Industry Sustainability. He studies the use of drones to monitor cattle on rangelands and uses that knowledge to help study wildfires, climate change and landslides.
Contact: 250-828-5150 | jchurch@tru.ca

Dr. Michael Mehta, professor of geography and environmental studies. He can address public perceptions of risk, air quality and health, and disaster preparedness and lessons learned from previous wildfires.
Contact: 250-852-7275 | cell 778-220-3568 | mmehta@tru.ca

Dr. Wendy Gardner, assistant professor, Faculty of Science Natural Resource Science. She is working with researchers at UBCO and UNBC to study wildfires and land reclamation, and is co-ordinator of the Master of Science in Environmental Science program that examines the impact of global issues on the environment, including climate change.
Contact: 250-371-5570 | wgardner@tru.ca