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Environmental Science
Undergraduate student explores field of environmental science with research jobs in post-wildfire natural hazards and landscape dynamics
This fall, 天美mv天美 environmental science student Safiya Samji spent the semester learning about the indirect impacts of wildfires through her work as an undergraduate research assistant in the (MWSL).
Having the opportunity to apply her studies to help solve real problems is what drew Samji to the major. 鈥淚 enjoy problem鈥憇olving and thinking through the environmental challenges we鈥檙e facing today,鈥� she says.
Ready to immerse herself in classroom concepts and explore where the field of environmental science could take her, Samji reached out to her professors to learn more about opportunities to get involved with research.
Her first experience as a research assistant was in the at 天美mv天美 led by Shawn Chartrand, an assistant professor in 天美mv天美鈥檚 School of Environmental Science. Here, she studied everything from how landscapes change in response to climate change to river restoration and mathematical modelling, and even helped plan the group鈥檚 field trip to the High Canadian Arctic.
As a research assistant in the MWSL, she contributed to data collection efforts for a post-fire natural hazards database as part of the new led by Brendan Murphy, assistant professor in 天美mv天美鈥檚 School of Environmental Science and director of the MWSL.
Samji worked with a group of students in Murphy鈥檚 lab to review hundreds of academic studies and technical reports published about post-fire natural hazards. Through their careful review of these documents over many months, Samji and the BWARE research team managed to compile essential data about when, where, and under what conditions more than 25,000 post-fire natural hazards have occurred worldwide. This database is already being used by Murphy and members of his lab to advance their research into these hazards, but they have also created an interactive, online map 鈥� the 鈥� so that anyone can explore the data and learn more about these hazards.
鈥淲ith wildfires becoming increasingly common and severe, understanding their impacts is important,鈥� says Samji.
Through her work in the MWSL, Samji also had the opportunity to take her studies into the field 鈥� something she was keen to experience 鈥� and completed a directed studies course with Murphy.
鈥淚 spent my directed studies course testing soil hydraulic properties using a range of field and lab instruments, including a KSAT, HYPROP, SATURO and a mini disk infiltrometer,鈥� explains Samji. 鈥淢ost of my time was spent running experiments, learning how each instrument works and comparing how different methods measure soil health.鈥�
Having had the opportunity to experience both lab- and field-based research, Samji has come to appreciate what both have to offer.
鈥淚 was initially hoping to do more fieldwork but soon came to realize that it can be physically demanding, so having a mix of both in-lab and field work is great!鈥� she says.
Reflecting on her experiences working in research, Samji says it鈥檚 something she鈥檚 looking forward to incorporating in her career after graduation.
鈥淚鈥檓 not entirely sure whether I want to pursue a master鈥檚 degree in this area, but I鈥檝e really enjoyed the research experience and could see myself staying involved in this type of work,鈥� says Samji. 鈥淚 do know now that a research-based career is definitely a path that I would enjoy post-grad.鈥�
For students who may be interested in getting similar experiences and exploring if research may be for them, Samji encourages her classmates to make connections with professors to learn more about the opportunities they may have.
鈥淒on鈥檛 be afraid to reach out to professors from different areas, even ones you wouldn鈥檛 normally consider. Undergrad is the perfect time to explore and figure out what you actually enjoy,鈥� she says.