The Team

The Carbonshed Lab welcomes applications from highly motivated students to join our lab at the Ph.D. level. If you have a M.S. degree (or equivalent research experience) and if you are already fluent in GIS, computer programming, and MATLAB, please contact Diego for details. The earlier you contact us (e.g., 6 mo or 1 yr in advance), the better, as it will give us a chance to seek funding together.  Send along your CV and a two-page research statement.

Why get a Ph.D.?
Read this excellent graduate school survival guide written years ago by a former graduate student at UNC-Chapel Hill.

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Diego Riveros-Iregui received his B.S. in geosciences from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia (1999), M.S. in geology from the University of Minnesota (2004), and Ph.D. in ecology and environmental sciences from Montana State University (2008). He was a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Colorado Boulder (2008-2010) and an assistant professor at the University of Nebraska (2010-2013) before relocating to UNC (2013-present).

Riveros-Iregui_CVweb
Google Scholar Profile.

GRADUATE STUDENTS

Kriddie Whitmore, Ph.D. candidate (Geography). Expected graduation, May 2025. Kriddie holds a B.S. in Biology (2011) and a B.A. in Geology (2011) from Guilford College. She holds a M.S. Forestry (2016) from Virginia Tech.

Kriddie’s dissertation is titled “Greenhouse Gas Emissions from the Freshwater Landscape in a High-Altitude, Tropical Ecosystem.” Her work takes place in the Cayambe Coca National Park of Ecuador and is sponsored by the National Science Foundation, the Geological Society of America, and the Society of Wetland Scientists. She is the recipient of the UNC’s Doctoral Dissertation Completion Fellowship.

 

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS

Paige Bowman, B.S. Environmental Science (expected 2025). Paige is originally from Illinois and joined our lab in 2024. Her previous experiences include a NASA STEM Internship at UT Austin and ongoing work with the UNC Facilities Technology Group. Paige is interested in environmental science, public health, and geographic information systems. Her honors thesis is titled: “Implications of Waste Disposal on Growing Populations across the United States.”

Penelope Brocco, B.S. Environmental Science. She is expected to complete her undergraduate degree in December, 2024. Penelope’s professional interests include watershed hydrology, climate change, and environmental law & policy. She is part of our newly funded project, “From Peaks To Slopes To Communities, Tropical Glacierized Volcanoes As Sentinels of Global Change: Integrated Impacts On Water, Plants and Elemental Cycling”

Ellis Clark, B.S. Environmental Science Minors: Geology and American Indian and Indigenous Studies (expected, 2026). Ellis’s professional interests include climate change, water resources, and biodiversity. She has participated in the national outdoor leadership school (NOLS) program. Ellis is an IREU student in the FRES project, “From Peaks To Slopes To Communities, Tropical Glacierized Volcanoes As Sentinels of Global Change: Integrated Impacts On Water, Plants and Elemental Cycling”

Camila Fratta, B.S.P.H. Biostatistics, B.A. in Music (expected 2026). Camilla is interested in applying statistics, computer science, and math to public health and environmental challenges. Her prior experiences include research and learning assistant roles in the infectious disease and ecology lab and the computer science department. She is also a competitive pianist and active member of the music department. Camilla is an IREU student in the FRES project, “From Peaks To Slopes To Communities, Tropical Glacierized Volcanoes As Sentinels of Global Change: Integrated Impacts On Water, Plants and Elemental Cycling”

 

Dylan Martin, B.A. Public Policy, B.A. Environmental Studies (expected 2026). Dylan’s record includes hands-on experience in sustainability initiatives, legal research, and consulting work. She is passionate about collecting and analyzing data to drive  environmental and policy initiatives. Prior internships include UNC Sustainable Business Club, Orange County Solid Waste Management, and UNC School of Law. Dylan is also proficient en Español. She is an IREU student working on our NSF FRES-funded project in Ecuador.

 

 

Jesse Williams, B.S. Environmental, Earth, and Marine Science. Minors: GIS and Study Art (Expected, 2026). Jesse is interested in hydrology, earth surface processes, and environmental science. He is fluent in GIS and Python and is a member of UNC’s Marathon Club. He has made Dean’s List every semester at Carolina. His prior experiences include teaching assistant and camp assistant for summer STEM camps.

Weicheng Xu, B.A. Geography, B.S. Statistics (expected 2028). Weicheng is a first-year undergraduate student interested in geomorphology, geospatial data analysis, geographic information systems, hydrology, and geography and society. He is currently developing and testing various landscape similarity indices across North Carolina. He skills include Python, ArcGIS, and R.

 

LAB MANAGER

  • Penelope Brocco

ALUMNI (Post-Graduate and Graduate)

  • Andrew Murray (Ph.D. 2023). Dissertation Title: Groundwater Vulnerability in the United States: Identifying Inequitable Contaminants and Water Sources. Now: Scientist, Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
      • Schneider et al. including Murray, 2020 JGR Biogeosciences 
      • Murray et al., 2024 Environmental Justice
      • Murray et al., 2024 Journal of Environmental Engineering
      • Murray et al., 2025 Water Research
  • Jayne Willard, M.A. (2023). Thesis Title: Leave it to Beavers: A Comparison of Nutrient Export between Beaver Ponds and Human-Engineered Retention Ponds in Southeastern Urban Watersheds. B.S. Environmental Science (2022), B.A., Biology (2022), UNC-Chapel Hill. Now: Hydrologist, National Park Service
  • Joseph Delesantro (Ph.D. 2021). Dissertation Title: Urbanization controls on nutrient loading along the rural to urban gradient of the NC Piedmont. Now: Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Virginia.
      • Delesantro et al., 2021 Hydrological Processes
      • Delesantro et al., 2022 Water Resources Research
      • Delesantro et al., 2024 Water Resources Research
  • Sarah Schmitt (Ph.D. 2018, NSF Graduate Research Fellow). Dissertation Title: The Role of Fog in the Hydrological Functioning of Tropical Island Ecosystems. Now Senior Scientist, Applied Research Associates
      • Schmitt et al., 2018 Hydrological Processes
      • Percy, Schmitt et al., 2016 WIRES Water
  • Camilo Peña (M.S. 2015, National University of Colombia). Now Soil scientist, Colombian state agency
  • Theresa (Tracie) Lorenzo (M.S. 2014, University of Nebraska-Lincoln). Thesis Title: Hydrologic Mediation of the Spatial and Temporal Variability of the Soil CO2 Stable Isotopic Composition in a Subalpine Watershed. Now Ph.D. student, Arizona State University
  • Colin Peake (M.S. 2014, University of Nebraska-Lincoln). Thesis Title: Evaluation of Evaporative Drivers and Hydrologic Influences using Energy and Water Budget Techniques at a Shallow Saline Lake in the Western Sandhills of Nebraska, USA. Now Hydrologist, USGS – Urbana, IL.
  • Dr. Liyin Liang Post-doctoral Research Associate (2011-2013, University of Nebraska-Lincoln). Now Senior Scientist at Landcare Research, New Zealand

ALUMNI (Undergraduate)

  • Jamil Andrade (B.S. 2024 in Chemistry, minor in Geology) at UNC
  • William Avery (B.S. 2013, UNL). now Ph.D. student, University of Wisconsin
  • Morgan Betcher (B.S. Honors 2014)
  • Emily Browning, (B.S.P.H. Honors 2018), M.S. (2019) at University of North Carolina. Now Fulbright Scholar in Spain
  • Rebecca Chaisson, (B.A. 2018). Now at U.S. Forest Service
  • Wesley Collier, (B.S. Student, 2018) transferred to NC State
  • Tessa Davis, B.S. Environmental Science (2021), Biology (minor), Spanish (minor). Now Lab Manager (UNC) and NC Museum of Natural Sciences
  • Meredith Emery, B.A. (Honors), Studio Art (2020), Geography (minor), now MFA student and Beineke Scholar
  • Megan Essig, B.S. Environmental Science (2022)
  • Anayancy Estacio-Manning, B.A. Global Studies (2020), Environmental Studies (minor). Now grad school at Penn State University
  • Kayla Emerson, B.S. 2023 Environmental Sciences (major), Geographic Information Systems (minor), Food Studies (minor). Graduated Highest Honors. Now intern at US Fish and Wildlife Service
  • Elizabeth Farquhar, B.S. 2021 Environmental Science (major), Marine Science (minor), Spanish (minor). Now graduate school UNC Wilmington
  • Catie Finkenbiner (B.S. 2014, UNL). now Ph.D. student, Oregon State University
  • Natalie Gauger, B.A. (2021) Environmental Studies (major), Urban Planning (minor). Now Venture for America Fellow
  • Adam Gold (B.S. 2015), now post-doctoral researcher at University of North Carolina
  • William Hamilton, (B.S. 2019), Environmental Science, Computer Science (minor). Graduated with Highest Honors. Now U.S. Geological Survey
  • Chloe Hall, B.S. (2024) Environmental Science
  • Maribel Herrera, B.S. (2020) Environmental Science, B.A. Geography
  • Amy Madrigal, B.A. (2023) Environmental Studies
  • Quentin McCalla, B.S. (2022) Geosciences. Now Graduate School, Arizona State University
  • Katie McMahon, B.A. (2021) Geography and Global Studies (double major). Graduated Highest Honors. Now NSF GRFP fellow in the Ph.D. program at UC Santa Barbara
  • Sarah McQueen, (B.S. 2019). Biology. Graduated with Honors. Now Medical School
  • Dylan Morgan, B.S. Environmental Science (2022). Now GIS analyst, City of Raleigh
  • Jordan Moseley, B.A. (2024) Biology, B.A. (2024) Latin American Studies
  • Haley Moser, (B.S. Environmental Science, B.A. Geography 2018) now Research Analyst at Wine Intelligence
  • Tianzhen Nie, (B.S. 2019) Environmental Science
  • Shreeya Patel B.A. Geography and B.A. Global Studies.
  • Megan Raisle, B.A. Environmental Studies (2020), Geography (minor)
  • Chloe Schneider, B.S. (2020) Environmental Science, B.A. (2020) Geography. Now at Environmental Defense Fund
  • Catherine Schumak (B.S. 2016), now Ph.D. student at Colorado State University
  • Courtney Scogging (B.S. 2016), now researcher at LabCorp
  • Nehemiah Stewart, B.S. (2021) Chemistry, B.S. Math. Now M.D./Ph.D. program at University of North Carolina
  • Rhyan Stone, (B.S. 2019) Environmental Science, now Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
  • Erin Vanderjeugdt (B.S. 2016), now at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
  • Aleah Walsh, B.S. (2016), now M.S. student University of North Carolina
  • Daniela Zarate, B.S. (2023) Environmental Sciences