2025 PhD Student Symposium

The Bren PhD Student Symposium is held annually to highlight the diverse, cutting-edge research being conducted by Bren School PhD students. The students will present short (3-minute) talks, longer (12-minute) talks, and posters describing their work. The event is open to the entire UCSB and Santa Barbara communities and is free to attend.

The Symposium will be presented in person in Bren Hall 1414, followed by a reception, poster session, and awards ceremony in the Michael J. Connell Memorial Courtyard.

Watch a recording of the PhD Student Symposium here

SCHEDULE

1:00pm: Words of welcome from PhD Symposium Committee Co-Chair Gemma Del Rossi and Bren School Dean Steve Gaines

Session 1: Conservation, Behavior, and Policy 

• 1:10 pm: Nathaniel Grimes, The Behavioral Effects of Index Insurance in Fisheries
• 1:25 pm: Zoe Sims, Environmental and Economic Impacts of Modern Intercropping
• 1:40 pm: Kelly Garvey: Groundwater Wells in the West: Insights from Historical Construction Trends to Inform Sustainable Management Policies 
• 1:45 pm: Leonardo Manir Feitosa, Drivers of Serial Exploitation of Sharks for Fins
• 2:00 pm: Sadie Cwikiel, The Influence of High Frequency Temperature Variability on Coral Community Composition in Moorea, French Polynesia
• 2:15 pm: Mauricio Collado, Bundle Prices Versus Bundle Quantities in Uncertain Fisheries
• 2:20 pm: Session 1 Q&A Panel

2:35 - 3:00 pm: Break and Poster Session in the Michael J. Connell Courtyard

Session 2: Global Shifts: Earth, Climate, and Humanity

• 3:00 pm: Cali Pfleger, The Climatic Implications of Volcanic Eruption Timing and Magnitude
• 3:15 pm: Sadie Cwikiel, Mukta Kellkar, Shay Magahey, Cali Pfleger, and Chen Xing, The Eastern Pacific Biogeochemical Response to Future Climate Scenarios
• 3:30 pm: Aidan O'Neil, Help or Hindrance: An Analysis of Combined Heat and Power in the US Industrial Sector
• 3:35 pm: Anna Pede, Forest Fires and Environmental Law Enforcement: Evidence from the Brazilian Amazon
• 3:50 pm: Fatiq Nadeem, Fires and Air Pollution in the Developing World
• 4:05 pm: Liliana Sierra Castillo, Exploring Blue Transitions and Blue Justice: A Community Lens on Aquaculture Policies in Baja California Sur, Mexico
• 4:20 pm: Session 2 Q&A Panel
• 4:35 pm: Closing remarks

4:40 pm: Reception, Poster Session, and Awards Ceremony in the Michael J. Connell Courtyard

Thank you to our 2025 PhD Symposium Supporter:
 

And thank you to the Bren School's Corporate and Institutional Partners:

Bank of America, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, California Homebuilding Foundation, Deckers Brands, Direct Relief, Donald Bren Foundation, Google, Latham & Watkins, Manitou Fund, Professional Environmental Managers Association (PEMA), Rincon Consultants, Southern California Edison, The Kirby-Jones Foundation, The Natalie Orfalea Foundation, Tillamook Creamery, Toad&Co.