Graduate student
Program in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

cbarrett@life.uiuc.edu

I am a Ph.D. student at the University of Illinois in the Program of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.  I am currently studying the effect of climate change and vegetation on the fire regime of the Alaska boreal forest through time.  Initially, I am determining the fire regime of the past 2,000 years, through analyzing charcoal in lake sediments.  The second part of the project focuses on the current status of the fire regime by analyzing charcoal dispersion and deposition patterns on currently burning and recently burnt areas.  The third, and final, portion of my study uses the data from the former two portions to create predictive models of the future of boreal forest fires.