Madelyn Maffia, PhD Student Water Resources Science
Maddie received her B.S. in Environmental Science with concentrations in Aquatic Biology and Environmental Water Resources from Oregon State University in 2020. In 2021, Maddie returned to Oregon State for her PhD in Water Resources Science. Her dissertation work is broadly investigating the response of channel morphology, hydraulics, and native coho salmon populations to large wood restoration activities. In addition to her dissertation work, Maddie is involved in side projects such as studying the impact of decoupled drought conditions (low-flow and increased stream temperature) on cutthroat trout and coastal giant salamanders, assessing the effects of low-intensity fire on trout and salamanders, investigating the impacts of mixed burn severity on these species, and examining how geomorphology and wood recruitment in streams with different hydrologies differ after a high-intensity fire. Outside of her research, Maddie enjoys running, rock climbing, and spending time with friends..
Zachary Perry, PhD Student in Water Resources Science
Zach grew up in Corning, a small town in the Finger Lakes region of NY. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Rochester in 2015. In 2021, Zach began his PhD with Catalina with an interest in improving community resilience to the impacts of climate change. He studies how mountain streamflow is influenced by the landscape and how these interactions may shift with a changing climate. Primarily working in the HJ Andrews Experimental Forest, he is using water stable isotopes, among other techniques, to evaluate stream response to storm events, baseflow conditions during dry periods, and hillslope/stream connectivity. His overall objective is to improve our understanding of how the landscape stores and transports water through a watershed. These findings may have implications for ecosystem health, water resource availability, and flood risk mitigation. In his free time, you can find Zach in the kitchen, reading a novel, or exploring the natural world.
Jesse Attias, Masters Student Water Resources Science
Jesse’s research interests center around the connectivity between surface waters – especially the upper reaches of streams and rivers – and their surrounding landscapes. By disentangling this connection, he hopes to better our understanding of how climate change and anthropogenic disturbances influence the water quality, water quantity, and ecosystem health of surface waters. Jesse received a B.S. in Environmental Science with a concentration in Environmental Biology from the University of Vermont in 2018. Before starting at OSU, he worked for the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, and the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Lutz Klein, PhD Student in Hydrology, University of Bonn
Lutz is from Bonn in Germany, where he received his Masters of Science in Geography – Water and Global Change in 2024. Since May of 2024 he is working as a research assistant and PhD student in the Fire-Stream project with Catalina as the co-supervisor. In the project Lutz investigates the impact of wildfires on hydrological processes at a catchment scale based on the Lookout Fire in the HJ Andrews Experimental Forest. Using water isotopes and SAS functions he focuses on changes in water transit times and in water quality. He previously gathered experience in working with stable water isotopes by investigating the influence of planted forests in New Zealand on hydrological processes in the critical zone. In his free time Lutz enjoys biking, bouldering, and pretty much any other outdoor sport.