Laurel Lynch
Assistant Professor
Department of Soil & Water Systems
University of Idaho
Research Interests: ecosystem ecology, metabolomics, biogeochemistry, terrestrial-aquatic connectivity, effects of landscape disturbance (fire, drought, climate change) on ecosystem resiliency, carbon cycling
Current Lab Members
Torrey Stephenson
PhD Student
Environmental Sciences Program
University of Idaho
Torrey graduated from Colorado State University in 2017 with a B.S. in Human Dimensions of Natural Resources. After working for several years as an environmental educator in Colorado and Montana, he earned an M.S. in Environmental Sciences in the Soil and Water Systems Department at the University of Idaho in 2022. Torrey is currently focusing on biogeochemical cycling and soil microbial communities as part of a multinational interdisciplinary research project examining the effects of Tasmanian Devil decline on ecosystem function. He is excited about emphasizing the importance of soil in ecosystem health and conservation, and further developing his skills in science communication to make his research engaging to diverse audiences.
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Research Interests: biogeochemistry, stable isotope techniques, ecosystem ecology, carbon and nitrogen cycling, microbial ecology
Ellen Incelli
MS Student
Environmental Sciences Program
University of Idaho
Ellen started University of Idaho’s M.S. in Environmental Science program in 2020. After graduating from Oregon State University in 2016 with a B.S. in Natural Resources with an emphasis on fisheries and wildlife conservation, she worked in watershed restoration and fisheries management for various state and federal agencies. Ellen currently works for the Jackson Hole Land Trust, coordinating conservation easement acquisitions within the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. She is excited to further her studies by focusing on the unique physical and biological characteristics that influence watershed health to best manage and ensure resilient stream ecosystems for future generations. Ellen’s research interests include stream ecology, geomorphology, and the use of beaver dam analogues to restore low-order lotic systems on working lands.
Research Interests: river restoration, beaver dam analogs, geomorphology
Josie Brown
MS Student
Water Resources Program
University of Idaho
Josie earned a B.S. in Environmental and Ecosystem Sciences from Washington State University in 2019 and was a four-year student-athlete in cross country and track for WSU. Josie joined University of Idaho’s M.S. program in 2021 and is currently partnering with local agencies to monitor nutrient levels and develop a nitrogen budget for the Lindsay Creek Watershed within the Lewiston Basin in Nez Perce County, Idaho. She looks forward to the opportunity to connect communities to watershed nutrient management to improve and maintain water quality.
Research Interests: watershed nutrient management, watershed restoration, lake management, invasive species
Lab Alumni
Heather Neace
MS Student
Water Resources Program
University of Idaho
Heather graduated with a B.S. in Geoscience, Hydrology, and Water Resources from Boise State University in 2018 and worked for several years as an Associate Hydrologist at SPF Water Engineering. She began her MS research in the Water Resources Program at the University of Idaho in 2020 where she examined how beaver dam analogs influence water quality and soil health in an intermittent stream. She is now working with Boise State University and the Idaho Department of Water Resources as a Recharge Hydrogeologist.
Research Interests: river restoration, hydrologic modeling
Cooper Moon
Undergraduate Researcher
Environmental Sciences Program
University of Idaho
Cooper joined the lab in the Summer of 2021 as an undergraduate research assistant where he assisted with multiple projects. He spent two months in Tasmania, Australia testing how disease-induced declines in Tasmanian devil populations influence soil function and forest resilience under novel climate. He is currently pursuing a MS degree in the Hydrologic Science and Engineering Program at the Colorado School of Mines.
Research Interests: hydrology, watershed science, statistics