Alejandra C. Ortiz

My research focuses on the ecogeomorphic evolution of coastal landscapes. I study how different coastlines evolve over 100-1,000s of years using numerical modeling, remote sensing, lab-based physical models, and site-specific field validation. In particular, I am interested in understanding the impacts of climate change and the feedbacks inherent in these systems between plants, humans, and landscapes (CV). 

I earned a B.A. in Geosciences and Classical Civilizations from Wellesley College in 2010, with honors from an undergraduate thesis studying the wave climate around Vieques, Puerto Rico. I have a Masters in Civil and Environmental Engineering from MIT investigating the impact of vegetation on flow and sediment deposition in 2012. I received a Ph.D. in Marine Geology from the MIT-WHOI Joint Program in 2015 working on coastal evolution of sandy-wave dominate shorefaces and understanding motu formation on atolls. I then moved to Indiana University Bloomington to complete an NCED2 Synthesis Postdoctoral Fellowship investigating pond expansion driving marsh collapse in the Mississippi River Delta Plain in 2016. I am now an Assistant Professor of Geology at Colby College in Waterville, Maine.