Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability
Showing 61-80 of 119 Results
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Benjamin Maki
Postdoctoral Scholar, Earth System Science
BioBen joined Stanford's Earth System Science department as a postdoctoral scholar in February 2026. He is currently working on a series of projects related to the sustainable management of groundwater resources in California's Central Valley, where his work is focused within the context of managed aquifer recharge (MAR). MAR is a suite of methods used to redirect excess surface water into groundwater systems and has emerged as a key strategy to bank freshwater and restore groundwater levels throughout California. More specifically, his work focuses on better understanding the potential risks to groundwater quality posed by naturally occurring geogenic contaminants during recharge efforts, where changes to native geochemical conditions during recharge can result in the inadvertent mobilization of toxic naturally occurring contaminants, such as arsenic, uranium, chromium, and manganese. Current work funded through the Stanford Sustainability Accelerator, and in partnership with the Madera Irrigation District among other community partners, aims to establish a simple, functional multi-user focused toolkit to aid in effectively and safely scaling groundwater recharge efforts throughout the state. Importantly, this work focuses on both understanding community level concerns during local groundwater recharge projects, while simultaneously establishing effective groundwater quality monitoring protocols and designing simple, scalable, and effective field-scale management solutions to protect long-term groundwater quality.
Prior to joining Stanford, Ben completed his Ph.D. in Environmental Toxicology, with a designated emphasis in Public Policy, at the University of California Riverside (UCR). His dissertation research focused on assessing the mechanistic controls driving inadvertent geogenic metals solubilization and transformation within MAR systems designed to infiltrate untreated stormwater runoff using recharge basins on agricultural lands in the Pajaro Valley, CA. These systems were uniquely designed to remediate nitrate contamination within infiltrating stormwater via the application of carbon based (e.g., woodchips, almond shells, etc.) horizontal permeable reactive barriers, installed within basin surface soils, where carbon solubilization effectively stimulated native microbial communities to reduce and remediate excess nitrate during infiltration. However, the conditions that promote denitrification (e.g., excess organic carbon and shifts to oxygen depleted conditions) can also result in the solubilization of geogenic metals from soils. Ben’s dissertation work employed novel methods to assess how these processes were influenced by excess organic carbon availability and redox cycling, representative of the cycling wet and dry condition in basin soils during recharge, to better understand the balance between water quality tradeoffs and consider system management strategies to maximize water quality benefits while reducing risks. Preceding his time at UCR, Ben received a BS in Environmental Science from Western Washington University, where he studied the influences of amorphous iron oxyhydroxides and biological amendments on arsenic and iron bioavailability, fate, and transport in soils.
When not thinking about groundwater replenishment, Ben enjoys time with friends, family, and his partner Al and dog Rupert. He spends the bulk of his free time surfing on the California coast, exploring the Bay Area by bicycle and campervan, traveling to as many new places as possible, and enjoying live music, and good food and company along the way! -
Eric Mayer
Postdoctoral Scholar, Earth System Science
BioEnding catastrophic wildfires by making biochar.
Eric Mayer earned a PhD in Environmental Engineering from Stanford University (2020), where he studied fluid mechanics and published research parameterizing lee-wave drag for ocean circulation models, tangentially improving global climate simulations.
Graduating in the early months of the pandemic and eager to act on the implications of his research, Eric went looking for a more immediate way to effect the climate crisis. Upon learning of biochar’s potential for rapidly-scalable carbon sequestration and the simple technologies already developed for on-site biochar production, Eric founded the biochar-as-a-service company Napachar. Today, you can find Napachar in the vineyards and forests of Napa and Sonoma, California, diverting pulled vines and forestry slash from burn piles to bake in flame-cap biochar kilns, returning "waste" carbon to the soil.
Beginning in the spring of 2026, Eric returned to Stanford in a postdoctoral position with the Woods Institute for the Environment and the Doerr School of Sustainability Accelerator, with the mission of ending catastrophic wildfire in fire-adapted forests by making biochar. -
Josheena Naggea
Postdoctoral Scholar, Environmental Social Sciences
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsJosheena's community-engaged research focuses on small-scale fisheries, disaster impacts and recovery, marine protected area management, and the valorization of natural and cultural heritage in ocean governance. She has a keen interest in understanding people-ocean connections and how that influences pro-ecological behavior and local environmental stewardship.
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Alireza Namayandeh
Postdoctoral Scholar, Earth System Science
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsAlireza Namayandeh’s research focuses on the formation, transformation, and environmental impacts of metal-bearing nanoparticles in soil, water, and air, with a particular emphasis on their role in wildfire-generated pollution. His work investigates how wildfires contribute to the release and transport of toxic metal nanoparticles, assessing their chemical and physical properties and their implications for human health and ecosystem contamination.
His current research, supported by the NSF Earth Science Postdoctoral Fellowship, explores the mechanisms by which biomass burning generates toxic airborne nanoparticles and how soil mineralogy influences their formation. By combining laboratory experiments, synchrotron-based spectroscopy, electron microscopy, and field studies, he aims to better understand the pathways of metal mobilization during wildfires. He is also leading efforts to analyze ash and soil samples from recent wildfires in California, including the Eaton and Palisade fires in Los Angeles, to assess the risks associated with airborne metal nanoparticles.
Beyond wildfire-driven pollution, he is interested in the fundamental geochemistry of nanoparticle formation and transport. His previous work on precursor clusters of iron oxy-hydroxides provided new insights into the formation of metal-bearing nanoparticles and their role in controlling contaminant mobility in the environment. He continues to explore how ultrafine particles interact with toxic metals, organic matter, and microbial communities in both terrestrial and atmospheric systems.
His broader scholarly interests include wildfire geochemistry, atmospheric particulate matter, environmental mineralogy, and the intersection of environmental geochemistry and public health. His goal is to develop a deeper understanding of how natural and anthropogenic processes influence the formation and dispersion of hazardous nanoparticles, ultimately contributing to improved air quality standards, risk assessment models, and environmental policies in wildfire-prone regions. -
Mark Nikolic
Postdoctoral Scholar, Earth and Planetary Sciences
BioI study large scale processes of evolution through earth history using the fossil record. In doing so, I make use of computational and phylogenetic approaches along with large datasets. I also lead the History of Life and Biodiversity summer internship through the Stanford Young Investigators program. Aside from fossils, I'm also a big fan of riding my bike and disco music.
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Marcus Nobrega Gomes Jr
Postdoctoral Scholar, Earth System Science
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsBy recreating high-resolution flood maps for the last 50 years in California, my research aims to cross-correlate flood hazard maps with medical records to investigate whether a causal relation exists.
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Carolina Olguin Jacobson
Postdoctoral Scholar, Oceans
BioMy research focuses on socio-ecological systems within fishery cooperatives in Baja California, Mexico, exploring their resilience and adaptation strategies to climate change and COVID-19 impacts through oceanographic and ecological monitoring. Working with marine protected areas and climate refugia areas.
