Heather L. Fair, Ph.D.

National Science Foundation NSF Postdoc
University of Minnesota College of Biological Sciences
Columbus, Ohio, United States

I am a postdoctoral researcher in the lab of Professor Trinity Hamilton at the University of Minnesota. My research interests include microbial and invertebrate ecology of glaciers and periglacial environments, stream ecology, and traditional ecological knowledge. I have been traveling and working in China and Asia for most of my career and have recently begun glacier ecology work in Alaska. During my PhD, I researched and lived in a Kham Tibetan village in the upper reaches of the Mekong River and at Mt. Gongga, both in monsoonal southeastern Tibet of the Three Parallel Rivers region. My teaching and research interests are interdisciplinary - biology, ecology, and sustainability issues at the nexus of business and the environment: circular economy, product life cycle assessment, and sustainable ways of living to mitigate biodiversity loss and climate impact. I am also an advocate of learning lesser-learned languages such as Mandarin Chinese, American Sign Language, and diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice issues. I would especially like to thank the National Science Foundation for supporting me in making my leap from an international corporate career to a career in science.

Presentation(s):

• COS 205-1 - Best predictors of supraglacial pool microbial community structure on a debris covered glacier in Tibet

  Wednesday, August 9, 2023
  3:30 PM – 3:45 PM PDT