Events
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DeFord Lecture | Tianna Bruno
Start:May 2, 2022 at 4:00 pm
End:
May 2, 2022 at 5:00 pm
Contact:
John Lassiter
Environmental Injustice and Ecological Memory in the Biophysical Afterlife of Slavery by Dr. Tianna Bruno, UT Austin’s Department of Geography and the Environment.
Abstract: This talk draws together concepts in Black geographies and critical physical geography to examine the linkages between racial and environmental histories in Black environmental justice communities along the U.S. Gulf Coast. Specifically, this talk considers the notion of ecological memory, a natural science concept that refers to how past states or processes influence present or future responses in ecological communities, and its compatibility with threads within Black geographies and Black studies, in particular the afterlife of slavery. The afterlife of slavery refers to the precarity and devaluation of Black life set in motion by chattel slavery. Heeding calls within critical physical geography to take seriously the biophysical and social co-constitution of landscapes, I put forth the concept of the biophysical afterlife of slavery to describe how the precarity and devaluation of Black life has impacted the natural environments in which these Black lives exist. In this talk, I will discuss a framework I have developed that draws together the reconstruction of environmental histories with analyses of the past, present, and future of the biophysical afterlife of slavery: using dendrochronology and trees as archives of the biophysical afterlife of slavery, as well as witnesses to Black life and sense of place in environmentally precarious spaces over time. This research focuses on a case study of Port Arthur, Texas, a historically Black community nestled in what the US Environmental Protection Agency calls “the largest oil refinery network in the world”.
DeFord Lecture Series
Since the 1940’s, the DeFord (Technical Sessions) lecture series, initially the official venue for disseminating EPS graduate student research, is a forum for lectures by distinguished visitors and members of our community. This is made possible through a series of endowments.
Faculty Meeting
Start:May 3, 2022 at 12:30 pm
End:
May 3, 2022 at 1:45 pm
EPS Awards Ceremony
Start:May 3, 2022 at 4:00 pm
End:
May 3, 2022 at 5:00 pm
Location:
Boyd Lecture Hall
TBD - Bureau Seminar Series
Start:May 6, 2022 at 9:00 am
End:
May 6, 2022 at 10:00 am
Location:
TBD
Contact:
Dena Miller, dena.miller@beg.utexas.edu
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Bureau Seminar Series
WCE Seminar | Nilay Dogulu - RCRC Climate Centre
Start:May 6, 2022 at 12:00 pm
End:
May 6, 2022 at 1:00 pm
Location:
Online
Contact:
Cansu Demir, cdemir@utexas.edu
View Event
Speaker: Nilay Dogulu (Consultant research lead at Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre and independent researcher)
Title: Applications of Clustering Methods in Hydrology
Zoom link: https://utexas.zoom.us/j/93865487444
Bureau Seminar Series - Zoltan Sylvester, PhD, Bureau QCL
Start:May 13, 2022 at 9:00 am
End:
May 13, 2022 at 10:00 am
Location:
TBD
Contact:
Dena Miller, dena.miller@beg.utexas.edu
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Bureau Seminar Series
Doctoral Defense | Anna Turetcaia
Start:May 13, 2022 at 2:00 pm
End:
May 13, 2022 at 4:00 pm
Location:
JGB 4.102 (Barrow Family Conference Room)
View Event
The final doctoral examination for ANNA TURETCAIA has been scheduled for MAY 13; 2:00pm; JGB 4.102 (Barrow Family Conference Room) AND VIRTUAL..
The PhD project “Aerobic Metabolism Of Organic Matter Across The Terrestrial-Aquatic Interface Through The Lens Of Flume Experiments and Models” was supervised by Dr. Bayani Cardenas.
Committee members include:
Adam Kessler
Daniel O Breecker
Philip C Bennett
Matthew H. Kaufman
Zoom link: https://utexas.zoom.us/j/99293373966
The defense is open to all members of the University community and the public.
Hot Science At Home "Finding Ancient Water"
Start:May 13, 2022 at 7:00 pm
End:
May 13, 2022 at 7:40 pm
Location:
Online (YouTube and Facebook)
Contact:
Didey Montoya, didey@austin.utexas.edu, 5124714211
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Caves with their luminous rock formations fascinate both explorers and scientists. But trapped in these glittering crystals are tiny droplets of water that have preserved what rain and snow were like thousands of years ago. Dr. Isabel Montañez shares her fascinating research in creating a timeline for Northern California’s climate history going back nearly 20,000 years.
Isabel Montañez is a paleoclimatologist whose research focuses on reconstructing past climates, in particular those during major warming periods. Dr. Montañez is a professor at the University of California, Davis. She has been president of the Geological Society of America and currently is the Director of the UC Davis Institute of the Environment.
Time: 7:00 – 7:40 p.m.
The event will be streamed live through our Facebook and YouTube channels and will include a Q&A session with Dr. Montañez!
JSG Graduation Breakfast
Start:May 20, 2022 at 8:30 am
End:
May 20, 2022 at 11:00 am
Location:
Holland Student Center (JGB 2.102)
Please join us for a breakfast for JSG students/ faculty/guests
Jackson School of Geosciences, 2305 Speedway, Holland Family Center, JGB 2.102
JSG Graduation
Start:May 20, 2022 at 12:00 pm
End:
May 20, 2022 at 1:30 pm
Location:
Bass Concert Hall
View Event
Friday, May 20, 2022 – 12:00pm – 1:30pm
Bass Concert Hall
The Jackson School of Geosciences holds commencement ceremonies each May to honor the graduates and candidates of the entire academic year. The May 2022 commencement ceremony includes Fall 2021, Spring 2022 and approved Summer 2022 graduates. Attendance at the school graduation ceremony is optional.
SSL Seminar Series | Tian DongJanuary, 20 2026Time: 3:30 PM - 4:30 PMLocation: Boyd Auditorium (JGB 2.324) Natural and Human Impacts on Coastal Land Building by Dr. Tian Dong Abstract: Sediment and water delivered by rivers build and sustain coastal landforms such as deltas and wetlands, which are densely populated and ecologically vital areas threatened by rising sea levels. In this talk, I highlight theory-driven and field-based research to understand how coastal land building operates across broad deltaic plains and how human activity affects these processes. On the theoretical front, inspired by Hack’s law (the scaling between watershed drainage area and channel length in tributary networks), we analyzed a global dataset of distributary delta networks and discovered a nearly identical scaling relationship between distributary channel length and nourishment area, the land-building counterpart to drainage area. Despite this apparent global scaling, we identified two distinct local land-building patterns: Uniform Delta Networks consistently follow Hack’s law, while Composite Delta Networks exhibit a scale break, transitioning from space-filling growth around the delta apex to quasi-linear growth near the coast. These surprising growth patterns suggest that global simplicity and local variability coexist in how river deltas grow and organize. To assess regional variability and human impacts, we combined remote sensing with field observations from the Lower Rio Grande, finding that the river currently carries about one-third of its median 1900s discharge, and only about 0.3% of its natural flow reaches the Gulf due to human consumption. This reduction leads to channel contraction, higher water levels for the same discharge, and significant shoreline retreat (up to 6 m/yr). I conclude by highlighting three ongoing/future research directions on deltaic land building: (i) sedimentation influenced by human engineering, (ii) wind-driven sediment redistribution, and (iii) the effects of sediment influx from retreating glaciers. |
DeFord Lecture | Venkat LakshmiJanuary, 22 2026Time: 3:30 PM - 4:30 PMLocation: JGB 2.324 Progresses and Challenges in Hydrology by Dr. Venkat Lakshmi, professor at the University of Virginia Abstract: In order to study land surface hydrology, we need to use a multitude of tools, namely, modeling, observations and their synergism. After multiple decades of hydrological modeling, we still have major challenges. However, we have novel observations and mathematical methods that are now available and can be harnessed to achieve progress. These include earth observations that are available at global scales and at high spatial resolutions and frequent temporal repeat. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AI/ML) can be used (specifically Transfer Learning) to determine streamflow in un-gaged or poorly-gaged watersheds. In this talk, I will focus on four major questions and provide examples for each of the questions. These examples will highlight both advances and limitations for each issue. (i) Do earth observations compare well with in-situ counterparts? (ii) How important is rainfall in hydrological modeling? (iii) Can we get higher spatial resolution of earth observations? (iv) How do we study un-gaged/poorly gaged watersheds? |
Bureau of Economic Geology Seminar SeriesJanuary, 23 2026Time: 1:00 PM - 2:00 PMLocation: BEG VR Room 1.116C BEG Seminar presented by Dr. Bridget Scanlon, BEG in person. Topic: Remote sensing, hydrology |
SSL Seminar Series | Kristin BergmannJanuary, 27 2026Time: 3:30 PM - 4:30 PMLocation: Boyd Auditorium (JGB 2.324) Temperature and the earliest animals: Quantitative climate reconstruction across the Neoproterozoic–Phanerozoic transition by Dr. Kristin Bergmann Abstract: The Neoproterozoic–Phanerozoic transition records the emergence of complex animals, the origin of biomineralization, and the establishment of modern marine ecosystems—yet the climate context for these evolutionary milestones remains poorly quantified. Reconstructing ancient temperatures requires integrating sedimentology, carbonate petrography, and isotope geochemistry. Our field-based stratigraphic analysis establishes depositional context and identifies the most promising sampling targets; detailed petrographic screening and microstructural analyses constrain diagenetic paragenesis. Clumped-isotope thermometry (Δ47–Δ48) reconstructs temperature signals within this sedimentological framework, resolving the ambiguity between temperature and seawater composition that limits traditional δ¹⁸O approaches. This rocks-first workflow reveals large, directional climate shifts with ecological consequences. In the Tonian and Cryogenian, data from Oman and elsewhere indicate near-modern tropical temperatures before and after Snowball Earth glaciations, suggesting dynamic hydrologic and climatic transitions. During the Ediacaran, post-glacial warming followed by ≥20 °C cooling likely expanded oxygenated habitats and set the stage for early animal diversification. In the Ordovician, ~15 °C of long-term tropical cooling over ~40 Myr culminated in brief but extensive glaciation, providing the climate context for the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event. By grounding geochemical data in sedimentological and petrographic observations, we build a quantitative framework linking climate and habitability and provide evidence that temperature change guided life\'s evolutionary trajectory in deep time. |
SSL Seminar Series | Ted PresentJanuary, 29 2026Time: 3:30 PM - 4:30 PMLocation: Boyd Auditorium (JGB 2.324) Biogeochemical Signals of Seafloor Oxygenation by Dr. Ted Present Abstract: Earth’s oxygenation transformed the atmosphere, oceans, and ultimately the seafloor, establishing the carbon and sulfur cycles that govern our planet today. When and how did oxygen penetrate into marine sediments, shifting where organic matter was recycled and setting up the biogeochemical architecture we recognize in modern oceans? I approach this question by studying how microbial and chemical processes at the sediment-water interface leave lasting signatures in sedimentary rocks. Using sulfur isotopes and detailed sedimentology, I will show how Paleozoic carbonates and evaporites track the reorganization of ocean redox structure through critical evolutionary transitions like the Late Ordovician glaciation and mass extinction. The Permian Reef Complex of West Texas demonstrates how cementation and dolomitization patterns archive ancient sulfur cycling, with insights grounded in observations from modern tidal systems where diagenetic processes govern carbon storage along our changing coasts. I will close with how I envision training UT Austin students in integrated field and laboratory approaches to pursue future research leveraging evaporite basins, novel phosphatic archives, and terrestrial carbonates. By extracting environmental signals from the diagenetic processes that create the rock record, this work builds a framework for understanding how Earth’s oxygenation reshaped life and its environment. |
Bureau of Economic Geology Seminar SeriesJanuary, 30 2026Time: 1:00 PM - 2:00 PMLocation: BEG VR Room 1.116C BEG Seminar presented in person by Dr. Todd Halihan, Oklahoma State University, and Chief Technical Officer for Aestus, LLC in person Topic: Subsurface hydrogeology |
SSL Seminar Series | Mackenzie DayFebruary, 03 2026Time: 3:30 PM - 4:30 PMLocation: Boyd Auditorium (JGB 2.324) From sand to stratigraphy: How dunes record the changing landscape of Earth and other planets by Dr. Mackenzie Day Abstract: Desert dune fields preserve rich sedimentary records of environmental change, providing insight into both past climate and modern landscape evolution. This presentation explores three desert systems on Earth and Mars, using dune fields as a lens to examine how landscapes, both ancient and modern, respond to shifting environmental conditions. These investigations address the longevity of Earth’s dune fields, the interplay between wind and water, and the applicability of aeolian sedimentology to planetary bodies beyond Earth. Together, they highlight how dune fields serve as dynamic archives of change, and how Earth, Mars, and other bodies can be studied in tandem as natural laboratories for generalizing aeolian sediment transport to arbitrary fluid-gravity conditions. |
SSL Seminar Series | Marjorie CantineFebruary, 05 2026Time: 3:30 PM - 4:30 PMLocation: Boyd Auditorium (JGB 2.324) Human, climate, sediment and geobiological history of a rapidly-growing carbonate island by Dr. Marjorie Cantine Abstract: You may have heard the line that real estate is valuable because \"they aren\'t making more land\"; in this talk, I\'ll show you that that\'s not true. I\'ll use the sedimentary and radiocarbon records of a carbonate island in the Caribbean, Little Ambergris Cay, to describe its formation over the last millenium, how its growth relates to past climate, and what it means for mechanisms potentially capable of protecting shorelines in the near future. I\'ll leverage geobiological field experiments to help explain the mechanisms of island growth. Finally, I\'ll share how ongoing work in my group is leveraging geoarchaeological archives to better understand the human and climate histories of the Common Era and inform hazard predictions in the region through testing climate models. I will also briefly describe other work ongoing in my group, which tackles questions at the nexus of time, sedimentary processes, and geochemistry from the Precambrian to the Common Era. |
15th Annual Jackson School of Geosciences Student Research SymposiumFebruary, 06 2026Time: 12:00 AM - 12:00 AM |
Bureau of Economic Geology Seminar SeriesFebruary, 06 2026Time: 1:00 PM - 2:00 PMLocation: BEG VR Room 1.116C BEG Seminar presented by Stacy Timmons and Mike Timmons, New Mexico Bureau of Geology & Mineral Resources, in person. Topic: New Mexico Geological Survey |
SSL Seminar Series | Vamsi GantiFebruary, 10 2026Time: 3:30 PM - 4:30 PMLocation: Boyd Auditorium (JGB 2.324) From Dunes to Channel Belts: How Rivers Organize and Move Across Scales by Dr. Vamsi Ganti Abstract: Rivers are Earth’s arteries: they transport water and sediment from uplands to oceans, sustain ecosystems and agriculture, and build the stratigraphic record of past environmental change. Yet rivers are far from static—they are dynamic systems that evolve across scales, from ripples and dunes on the riverbed to entire channel belts. In this seminar, I will present three discoveries that reveal the mechanisms shaping alluvial river form and motion across these scales. (1) Laboratory experiments and theory identify a previously unrecognized transition in river-dune organization at the onset of significant suspended sediment transport. This transition influences flow roughness, flood-driven dune reconfiguration, and the nature of preserved fluvial strata. (2) Using a new image-processing tool, we analyzed 36 years of satellite imagery from 84 rivers to uncover the origins of single- versus multithread channels. Single-thread rivers achieve a balance between lateral erosion and accretion, maintaining equilibrium width, while multithread rivers arise when erosion outpaces accretion, causing individual threads to widen and split. This mechanistic insight informs both planetary geomorphology and cost-effective river restoration. (3) Finally, I’ll show how human activity and climate change are already altering the way rivers flow and evolve. Dams dampen river motion and reduce the number of active threads, whereas increased sediment supply from land-use change and glacial melt are making rivers in the Global South and High Mountain Asia more dynamic. Together, these discoveries provide a mechanistic view of river evolution across scales and highlight why understanding river behavior is essential—not only for managing water, life, and landscapes they sustain today, but also for decoding the history of environmental change recorded in sedimentary strata. |
DeFord Lecture | Jake JordanFebruary, 12 2026Time: 3:30 PM - 4:30 PMLocation: JGB 2.324 |
DeFord Lecture | Daniel MinisiniFebruary, 19 2026Time: 3:30 PM - 4:30 PMLocation: JGB 2.324 |