Dr. Heidi Golden works collaboratively with cross-disciplinary research and data-driven models to better understand how species trait evolution might influence ecosystem function and cross-ecosystem exchanges in areas that are experiencing rapid climate change. She is passionate about deepening her knowledge of the factors that facilitate healthy, sustainable ecosystems.
Dr. Golden has expertise in aquatic ecology, genetics, and population dynamics. Her science career began in Waquoit Bay, MA, where she studied coastal eutrophication on estuarine habitats with Dr. Linda Deegan. This experience started Dr. Golden’s life-long journey to better understand the intricate roles species play within and among ecosystems. Since then, she has pursued a wide variety of opportunities to build this understanding, including researching trophic interactions in tundra streams, determining the genetic structure of fish populations across an Arctic riverscape, tracking migratory fish in Arctic and New England streams, and assessing aquatic communities using environmental DNA. All of this has culminated in Dr. Golden’s current work to understand the influence of strong selection on life-history strategies and eco-evolutionary feedbacks.
Dr. Golden leverages her knowledge and expertise to help facilitate a more sustainable future. In her spare time, she passionately promotes healthy, sustainable ecosystems through science education outreach, often leveraging her small eco-farm which is home to gardens, chickens, ducks, rabbits, sheep, and an overflowing compost bin. She also enjoys sharing her field research and educational outreach through her blog.
