COPE People

Group Leader

Karen E. Kohfeld, Asst Professor email

Karen E. Kohfeld is a native of St. Louis, Missouri, who moved to the East Coast of the USA and started her undergraduate career as a combined English / Music major before discovering her love of geology, biology, oceanography, and climate science. After getting her Ph.D. in Earth Sciences at Columbia University (New York), she continued moving eastward, and spent seven years as a research scientist in Europe, first in Lund, Sweden, and then at the Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry in Jena, Germany. Her research involved using geologic and paleo-climate data as a means of evaluating Earth System Model simulations. In 2004 the pendulum started moving back towards the west, and she returned to the USA as an assistant professor in the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Queens College in New York City. She joined the School of Resource and Environmental Management as a Tier II Canada Research Chair in Climate, Resources, and Global Change in July, 2006.

Current Students

Celeste Barstow, Undergraduate

Celeste is an SFU undergraduate majoring in Environmental Science and was lured into joining the the COPE lab to assist with laboratory preparations, organic carbon measurements, and GIS data processing.

Brian Bylhouwer , Masters Student email

University of Prince Edward Island

Brian hails from University of Prince Edward Island where he studied physics and economics. He has worked in a variety of roles ranging from wind to polymers to submersible imaging technology research. He will pursue a project examining historical changes in upwelling winds off the coast of Vancouver Island, and their potential impact on coastal acidification.

Ben Cross, Masters Student

Ben joined the COPE lab in Fall, 2010, and is interested in evaluating the ability of regional climate models and re-analysis datasets to reproduce the spatial and temporal distribution patters in typical and extreme winds in the Pacific Northwest.

Carolyn Duckham, Masters Student

Carolyn started her masters in REM in Fall, 2010, and is interested in studying the effects of coastal acidification and climate change on survivorship of oyster larvae. She is an alum of SFU and joins REM and the COPE after a couple of years of excitement in the "real world."

Thomas (Tommy) Rodengen , Masters Student email

B.S.Geology; B. A. Environmental Studies, University of St. Thomas (St. Paul, Minnesota, USA)

Tommy previously has worked as a paleolimnologist for IREE and the state geological survey. Initial work demonstrated the capacity of shallow lakes as net carbon sinks. Enjoys building for the geological sciences in the area of advanced core extruding technology and practical core extraction apparatuses. Tommy's masters work used an Earth System model (GENIE) to evaluate liquefied CO2 injection in the deep ocean as a means of mitigating the buildup of atmospheric CO2. His doctoral research wil examine historical and potential changes in carbon storage in Canadian Park regions. Tommy enjoys his time in both the wet and dry labs. When not in the COPE lab he enjoys ultimate frisbee, flying kites, hiking and watching clouds.

Christina (Christie) Spry , Masters Student email

B.Sc. Environmental Science, St. Francis Xavier University (Nova Scotia, Canada)

I am originally from Ottawa, Ontario, but have spent the last 5 years living on the East Coast. There, I completed my Bachelor's Degree in Environmental Science at St. FX and became deeply involved in research, as well as local sustainability initiatives. After my undergrad, I worked at X as a lab instructor before moving to BC to continue my academic career. I love hiking, swimming, snowboarding and anything adventurous, and I can't wait to see what BC has in store for me! = ) My research at SFU looks at the frequency of “Pineapple Express” storms. These winter storms draw warm, moist air from the tropics and deposit it as intense precipitation along the West Coast of North America, often resulting in floods and debris flows. I would like to develop a long term chronology of these events, based on oxygen isotope concentrations present in the alpha cellulose of tree rings.

Elizabeth (Liz) Sutton , Masters Student email

B.Sc., Geography, Biology, Memorial University of Newfoundland

I am from Barrie, Ontario and my academic interests have involved working with soils and climate change in low arctic zones, coastal geomorphology, and natural hazards. Non-academically, I enjoy camping, hiking (so does my dog), riding, and generally not being behind a desk.

Former Students

Brad Griffin , MRM '10 email

B.ASc., Geological Engineering, University of British Columbia

After monopolizing computer time in the COPE lab and leaving little paper notes forbidding others to access these resources, Brad completed his MRM in April, 2010. Brad currently works for the EMRG research group.

Jerry Mo

Jerry started working in the COPE laboratory in Fall, 2007, analysing meteorological data from the mid-Continental USA to understand how maximum wind speeds have changed over the last 50 years. Jerry excels at Excel.

Lauren Rebar, 2007-2008 email

B.A. '08, Geography, Simon Fraser University

Lauren began in the COPE laboratory in Fall, 2007, and rapidly took over the role as foraminifera guru. Her work has involved identifying polar species of foraminifera in order to reconstruct surface temperatures in the North Pacific over the last 140,000 years.

Britt Rogers, 2007-2008 email

B.Sc. '08, Environmental Science, Simon Fraser University

Britt is a charter member of the COPE lab, who began work here in January, 2007, and rapidly became the one who knows where everything is. Britt can now be found hanging out in Australia, no doubt still dropping words like "Swagelok" into normal conversation.

Kinson Yu. B.A. '10, Economics, SFU

Kinson Yu was an undergraduate work study student in the COPE lab from 2009-2010, and could be found at anytime of night or day lurking over the microbalance weighing fossils that were too small to see with the naked eye.

High School Interns

High School Students Lea Lewis (far right) and Marie Lane (to the left of Lea) worked in the primordial version of the COPE laboratory in Summer, 2007, and were among the first students to process sediment samples, spending countless hours in front of the microscope identifying planktonic foraminifera.

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