![](https://www.grad.ubc.ca/sites/default/files/styles/card_vertical_767/public/students/miah_godek.jpeg?itok=Gbvi9RMf&c=b02791ec517bba54e0d61dd98a63e208)
Miah Godek
Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD)
Wildfire resilience and Indigenous cultural burning in the Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
The Faculty of Forestry is one of the top institutions globally in forest-related education and research. The unique breadth of expertise we possess allows us to integrate new knowledge across many disciplines. Offering both master’s and doctoral programs, our graduate students learn from a dynamic and diverse group of researchers from around the world.
The Forest Sciences Centre is a showcase for construction using Canadian forest products, and was architecturally designed to mimic the landscape of British Columbia: towering trees, mountains, and blue-green waters. The 17,505-square-metre Forest Sciences complex has 11 classrooms, 2 lecture theatres, teaching laboratories, office space, computer labs, study areas, and a cafeteria, and houses the Faculty’s three departments.
Built alongside the Forest Sciences Centre is the 3,730-square-metre Centre for Advanced Wood Processing. It is Canada’s national centre of excellence for education and research related to wood products processing and advanced wood products manufacturing, and works to advance knowledge that fosters job creation, stabilizes forest-dependent communities, encourages increased value recovery, and ensures the sustainable management of Canada’s forests. This building includes two 25-seat classrooms, a machine lab, a simulator lab and a computer lab.
Within the Faculty of Forestry, there are also several research groups. Visit the website of each project to find out more.
Off-campus facilities include two Research Forests: the Malcolm Knapp Research Forest in Maple Ridge and the Alex Fraser Research Forest near Williams Lake. These are working forests located throughout the province where students and faculty can study in an outdoor setting. Fish and wildlife, silviculture, forest harvesting, forest ecology, forest management, and resources management figure prominently in these field studies.
UBC Forestry is turning out a new generation of foresters, and faculty are committed to meeting future challenges in forestry through in-depth, cutting edge research. In fact, UBC Forestry receives the highest level of forestry research funding of any forestry faculty in Canada.
In the 2017/2018 fiscal year, members of the Faculty Forestry were awarded a total of over $12 million in research funding.
Our wide breadth of research includes topics such as tree rings, integrated remote sensing, bioenergy, forest conservation genetics, landscape visualizations, African forest conservation and development, alpine studies, climate change, and advanced wood processing.
Name | Academic Unit(s) | Research Interests |
---|---|---|
Aitken, Sally | Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences | forest genetics, climate change, Climate change, conservation, ecology, genetics, genomics |
Alila, Younes | Department of Forest Resources Management | Hydrology, Flood, Water Resources, Water Structures, Forest Hydrology, Forest management, hydrological engineering |
Arcese, Peter | Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences | Global change biology; Ecology; Conservation Biology; Evolutionary Biology; conservation finance |
Atleo, Tara | Department of Forest Resources Management | sustainable forest management; Communities and Indigenous Knowledge |
Avramidis, Stavros | Department of Wood Science | Other natural sciences, n.e.c.; Wood-water relations and sorption thermodynamics.; Fluid flow, heat transfer, and molecular diffusion; Modeling steady-state and dynamic non-isothermal diffusion in wood.; Application of fractals and machine learning to modeling wood physical properties.; Molecular modeling of the wood nano-pore network in the cell wall.; Industrial wood kiln drying optimization and development of new drying strategies.; Radio frequency vacuum (RFV) heating and drying of wood and wood products.; Dielectric wood phytosanitation.; Wood thermal modification. |
Barbeito Sanchez, Ignacio | Department of Forest Resources Management | refining novel silvicultural practices; establishment and management of forests under global change |
Benson-Amram, Sarah | Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences, Department of Zoology | |
Boedhihartono, Agni | Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences | Forestry sciences; biodiversity; Communities and Livelihoods; conservation; Forest management; Land-use Change; social science; sustainability; Tropical Landscapes and Livelihoods |
Booker, Thomas | Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences | population and quantitative genetics |
Bulkan, Janette | Department of Forest Resources Management | aboriginal forestry, biodiversity, climate change, communities and livelihoods, conservation, corporate responsibility, forest management, forest policy, international trade, social impact, social science |
Bull, Gary | Department of Forest Resources Management | international forest policy, environmental services markets, carbon markets, Government and economic systems |
Burton, Cole | Department of Forest Resources Management | Forestry sciences; Ecology and Quality of the Environment; Ecological Trends; Animal; Biodiversity and Biocomplexity; Landscape and Restoration; Environment Management and Protection; Biodiversity conservation; Ecological Monitoring; Landscape ecology; Mammal Ecology; Population and Community Ecology; Wildlife Management |
Cardinal-McTeague, Warren | Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences | Earth and related environmental sciences; Forestry sciences; plant biodiversity; Indigenous environmental management and food systems; monitoring of ecosystem health and function |
Carroll, Allan | Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences | climate change, mountain pine beetle, bark beetles, forest disturbance, integrated pest management, insect ecology, population dynamics, insect-plant interactions, Climate change, conservation, ecology, ecosystems, forest biology, forest management |
Chanway, Christopher | Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences | Soil microbiology |
Cool, Julie | Department of Wood Science | modelling, wood products, wood science, wood |
Coops, Nicholas Charles | Department of Forest Resources Management | Forestry sciences; Telemetry (Remote Sensing, Radar); Space Techniques; Forestry Technology and Equipment; Plants and Forests |
Cranston, Emily | Department of Wood Science, Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering | Nanoparticle synthesis, properties and applications; Bio-based materials and nanocellulose; Atomic force microscopy (forces, adhesion, friction, imaging); Colloid and interface science; Polymer chemistry; Cellulose nanocrystals; Bioproducts; Foams, emulsions, aerogels |
Dai, Chunping | Department of Wood Science | Forestry sciences; Bamboo; Bio-products; Wood Products; Wood Science; Wood Technology |
Daniels, Lori | Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences | forest plants and trees; forest history; forest management; environmental protection and natural resource use, Climate change, ecology, fire regimes |
Devisscher, Tahia | Department of Forest Resources Management | Forestry sciences; adaptation; climate change; Human Health; Human Well-being; Nature Recovery; Social-Ecological Resilience |
El-Kassaby, Yousry | Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences | Forestry sciences; Applied Genetics; conservation; genomics; Seed orchards’ genetics; Tree breeding; Tree domestication |
Eskelson, Bianca | Department of Forest Resources Management | Natural resource management; Forest Biometrics; Forest Modelling; Disturbance Effects; Management Effects; Climate Effects |
Evans, Philip David | Department of Wood Science | Wood anatomy, wood durability, wood products, wood technology |
Feng, Haibo | Department of Wood Science | Forestry sciences; BIM; Construction; LCA; sustainability; Wood Products; Zero energy / caron building |
This is an incomplete sample of recent publications in chronological order by UBC faculty members with a primary appointment in the Faculty of Forestry.
Year | Citation | Program |
---|---|---|
2024 | Dr. Dort studied the genetics and genomics of plant pathogens. She used comparative genomics to discover patterns of plant pathogenicity in fungi and established CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing in an oomycete forest pathogen. Her research provides a foundation for future studies of forest pathogens and the improvement of disease surveillance strategies. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
2024 | Coexisting with flood-adapted forests can be a challenge for communities that are built within historical floodplains. Dr. Moran's research revealed conditions under which cottonwood forests might thrive in the presence of flood control infrastructure, and suggested workable restoration strategies for highly developed riverscapes. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
2024 | Dr. Wertman discovered a unique, putative mutualism between the alder bark beetle and a newly described species of fungus. Her research expands upon known bark beetle-fungus symbioses to include a hardwood tree-killing system and has implications for the future health of nitrogen-fixing red alder throughout the Pacific Coast of North America. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
2024 | Dr. Chadwick developed methods for deriving critical assessment data for regenerating post-harvest stands in Alberta, Canada from drone imagery. His methods provide a basis to increase the efficiency with which monitoring can occur and offer a level of wall-to-wall detail that cannot be practically obtained with traditional methods. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
2024 | Dr. Lane studied changes in tidal marsh vegetation and seed germination potential in coastal conservation areas of BC. She found evidence for loss and limited germination of native species, and high risk of invasion by non-native species. This research highlights a need for active management and restoration in coastal ecosystems in BC and beyond. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
2024 | Dr. Loughnan studied climate change impacts on the timing of life history events, including the start of spring in forests. She found important relationships with environmental cues, like temperature, and evolution in how native woody species are responding. Her work has applications in conservations and management of forests across North America. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
2024 | Dr. Zhao developed ecological models to predict forest tree species' fundamental climate niche and productivity. Her innovative studies offer essential insights into forest adaptation strategies such as conservation or assisted migration in response to climate change. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
2024 | Dr. Wang estimated the pattern and changes in wildland fires and their ecological effects in Canadian forests. Her research contributes to a better understanding of how climate and vegetation interact with fires, thereby enhancing our capabilities for future coexistence with wildfires. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
2024 | There is a need for spatially explicit and accurate information regarding fish habitat in forested watersheds. Dr. Dakin Kuiper's doctoral studies examined the ability of airborne laser scanning to characterize stream habitat features important to salmon. His research will help forest and fisheries managers to better conserve these keystone species. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
2023 | Dr. Lyall studied peoples' relationships with the forests with the Kwakwaka'wakw of the West Coast of Canada. The research approach was collaborative and inclusive of Indigenous Knowledge. The research explained the cultural and heritage significance of the forests, from ancient stories, traditional foods, forest practices, and western red cedar. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |