Biographical Information

Kate graduated Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude from Columbia College, Columbia University in 2000. At Columbia she was an independent major in Science and Religion with a science emphasis primarily in biology and a humanities focus on comparative religion and religious philosophy. Kate has always been interested in why people ask certain kinds of questions, and she wrote her senior thesis about the influence of Medieval Christian conceptions of the physical world on modern experimental science. Kate’s independent major helped pave the way for a Center for the Study of Science and Religion, founded by her advisor and still thriving in Columbia’s Earth Institute.

After graduation, Kate spent three years working for the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a non-profit, national environmental advocacy organization. As NRDC’s Public Education senior associate, Kate responded to inquires about environmental issues and helped develop, write, and produce educational materials.

After quitting her job and driving around the US for five months, reveling in both natural wonders and homegrown Americana (yes, she has seen the world’s largest ball of twine), Kate arrived at Stanford. She came to E-IPER in the fall of 2004 with both a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation Stanford Graduate Fellowship.

Research Interests

Land cover plays an integral role in the water cycle. Kate’s dissertation quantifies the impact of land cover on water availability and explores ways in which water users can manage their water supply – quantity, quality, location, and timing – by identifying optimal land-cover types and creating incentives for best management practices. She is leading a field study on the Big Island of Hawai’i to gather primary data and illustrate the practical application of ecosystem services to land management.

Teaching Activities

Kate has TA'ed for undergraduates new to thinking about science in Professor Rosemary Knight’s Water Course (GeoPhys/EarthSys 104) and for advanced undergraduates and beginning graduates interested in hydrology in Professor David Freyberg’s Wetlands and Watersheds (CEE 166A/266A). She has also developed courses for a variety of workshops, including a class on Watersheds and the Water Cycle for 7th and 8th grade girls at the Sally Ride Festival and a session introducing Ecology and Ecosystem Services to 6th Grade Teachers for the Stanford School of Earth Sciences Geoscape Bay Area program.