James Jawitz, Ph.D., Professor, Soil, Water, and Ecosystem Sciences Department, University of Florida

Join us for the livestream March 5th, 11:45am ET: https://youtube.com/live/ZPGDH-pJVvI?feature=share

(Please visit our YouTube channel main page for the stream if there are any issues with the direct link.)

ABSTRACT

This presentation will explain how important questions related to water, wetlands, and watersheds can be addressed using simpler methods than conventional wisdom suggests. I will explain the concept of ‘reduced complexity’ models and their potential advantages. The main take home messages will be to reconcile the intersection of model complexity with a hierarchy of scientific disciplines. These ideas will be illustrated with a series of example applications related to water, wetlands, and watersheds, including 1) a global model of water availability, 2) water quality archetypes, 3) fractal wetlands, 4) fractal watersheds, and 5) continental-scale stream ecological status.

BIO

Dr. Jawitz is a professor at the University of Florida in the Department of Soil, Water, and Ecosystem Sciences. His research seeks to minimize human impacts on ecosystems, with emphases on hydrology, water quality, and climate change consequences at the landscape scale. His work is relevant across diverse ecosystems, addressing questions related to groundwater quality protection, urban resilience, wetland ecology, and stream ecology. He has been recognized as a UF Research Foundation Professor, UF Water Institute Fellow, UF/CALS Graduate Teacher/Advisor of the Year, and Dresden Senior Fellow at Technical University-Dresden (Germany). He served on the National Academy of Sciences review panel for Everglades restoration and was a founding member of the United Nations Global Water Quality Alliance. His degrees are in Environmental Engineering from the University of Florida. He is a licensed Professional Engineer.

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