Moala is interested in using analytical chemistry to identify how PCB concentrations near the Neponset River, a Superfund site, are transporting to the atmosphere. Moreover, she wishes to use modeling to see if PCB fluxes surrounding the Neponset and similar sites are significant to global transport of PCBs. Moala joins the Selin group as part of the second cohort of the MIT School of Engineering Postdoctoral Fellowship Program for Engineering Excellence. Moala graduated from the University of Iowa with a M.Sc. and PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering, where she characterized polychlorinated biphenyl surface emissions and room air concentrations in schools. She has a B.Sc. in Natural Resources from Delaware State University. In her leisure time she likes to watch reality tv, lift weights, and spend time with her family.

Ari uses process-based and statistical models to analyze how biogeochemical cycles of trace elements have changed in the past and to predict how they will change in the future. At MIT, Ari focuses on quantifying and reducing the uncertainties in global mercury models in order to better understand the sources and fate of this toxic element. Ari graduated from ETH Zurich with a PhD in Environmental Systems Science, where he worked on establishing an atmospheric model of selenium cycling. He has a M.Sc. in Atmospheric and Climate Science from ETH and a B.Sc. in Chemistry from McGill University. Outside of work, Ari enjoys hiking, learning languages, and cooking.

Paolo develops and runs numerical models to understand how the atmosphere works across different scales, from global-scale dynamics to local aspects of weather, climate and air quality. He received his PhD at the University of Notre Dame, where he studied boundary layer turbulence to couple Numerical Weather Prediction models and Large Eddy Simulations. He has worked in different research institutions and contributed to the development of atmospheric models to support policy decisions and provide solutions for current environmental challenges, including air quality, wind energy deployment and climate change. At MIT, he joined the ‘Bringing computation to the climate challenge’ flagship project with the goal of contributing to the development of a digital twin of the Earth and making climate predictions more practical for communities and stakeholders. Outside the lab, Paolo is an enthusiastic soccer player and enjoys playing guitar.

Björn uses machine learning (ML) to tackle climate change, little-by-little. In particular, he is concerned about the computational complexity of climate models. As a solution, he is developing hybrid ML-physics models as fast approximations, or 'emulators', of climate models. He has experience working in ML and climate at IBM, John Deere, and NASA FDL. He has earned his PhD with Dava Newman at MIT in ML for Earth System Modeling, his M.Sc. with Jon How from MIT in robust deep reinforcement learning and his B.Sc. from Technical University of Munich in engineering science. He also windsurfs poorly, switches hobbies every year, and likes learning new languages. For more details see his webpage.

Anthony is interested in investigating how the terrestrial biosphere, nitrogen cycle and climate interact with air quality, and by extension their implications on public policy and resource management. At MIT, he focuses on evaluating the environmental impacts of potential increasing alternative fuel usage in the global shipping industry. He graduated from Boston University with a Ph.D. in Earth and Environment, studying ozone deposition, and how land system changes can affect air quality. He also holds a B.Sc. in Physics from Chinese University of Hong Kong, where he was a research assistant working on atmosphere-biosphere interactions. Outside of work, he enjoys studying history and culture, travelling, and every mountain sports.

Fiona researches the governance of sustainability transitions. Based at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), she is focusing her PhD on the phase-out of chemical pollutants in the agricultural sector, through a collaboration between Miranda Schreurs (TUM) and IAS Hans Fischer Senior Fellows Noelle Selin and Henrik Selin (Boston University). She earned her bachelors degree in Sustainable Development from Columbia University and her Master's in Environmental Policy from Sciences Po, and has worked at think tanks and research institutes in France and in the U.S. on a variety of policy issues relating to biodiversity, agriculture, climate change, and development. In her free time, she loves to play cello and try new types of dance.

Emmie is interested in the fundamental processes that drive air quality and in developing better tools to assess the human health impacts from air pollution and climate change. Before coming to MIT, she worked at Washington University in St. Louis on the laboratory operations for the Surface Particulate Matter Network (SPARTAN) and conducted research at the Carnegie Institution for Science on modeling aerosol-induced changes to monsoon climates. Emmie earned her Sc.B. in Geology-Chemistry from Brown University where her bachelor’s thesis focused on the use of stable isotopes to identify sources of ammonium in urban precipitation. Outside of work, she loves going outdoors and in water, learning languages, trying new food trucks, and being an avid pedestrian.

Yuang is interested in understanding and solving issues in climate change, air quality and energy systems with mathematical and modeling approaches. At MIT, he is working toward efficient and rigorous climate and air pollution predictions, also setting ground for relevant policy analysis. Before joining MIT, Yuang earned his bachelor's degree in environmental science at Peking University. Yuang loves badminton and traveling in his free time.

Lexia’s research interests involve the atmospheric transport of pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and learning to model and understand the relationships between anthropogenic influences, atmospheric cycling, and chemical properties. She earned a B.A. in Chemistry and a B.A. in Earth and Environmental Science from Boston University. While there, she worked with Lucy Hutyra and the Campus Climate Lab investigating the impacts of the COVID-19 shutdown on the university’s CO2 and CH4 emissions, concentrations, and energy use. She was also a member of the Coker group at Boston University where she used QM/MM modeling techniques to understand the down conversion of light in algae for applications in solar panels. During her free time she enjoys cooking vegan food, reading nonfiction, playing board games, hiking, and obstacle course racing.​

Eric is interested in improving the representation of observational datasets and meteorological uncertainty within global mercury models. Prior to attending MIT, Eric earned dual B.S. degrees in Atmospheric Science and Mathematics from UMass Lowell, where his honors thesis investigated the linkages between mercury concentrations, fluxes, and the planetary boundary layer from observations measured over two forest sites. As an undergrad, Eric also interned with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Air Resources Lab through the NOAA Lapenta Internship Program (2020) and with the NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Lab as a NOAA Hollings Scholar (2021). When outside of the lab, Eric enjoys hiking, mountain biking, and golfing.

Charikleia Gournia is an Early Stage Researcher at the “Global Mercury Observation and Training Network in Support to the Minamata Convention” (MSCA ITN H2020 GMOS-TRAIN). Charikleia’s study focuses on constructing policy scenarios for mercury emission reductions in line with the Minamata Convention. Using global 3-D chemical transport models, she simulates scenarios that reflect future mercury reduction policies worldwide and evaluates their impacts and effectiveness. Charikleia is a doctoral researcher in the European project GMOS-train (www.gmos-train.eu) funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. She performs research in the Italian National Research Council's Institute of Atmospheric Pollution Research at the Division of Rende and is a Ph.D. student in the Ecotechnologies study programme of the Jožef Stefan International Postgraduate School in Ljubljana, Slovenia. She is supported and scientifically supervised by Prof. Noelle Selin and Dr. Aryeh Feinberg and is frequently seconded at MIT. She also collaborates with the European Commission-Joint Research Centre (Ispra, Italy) and other European institutes. Charikleia holds a four-year degree in Mathematics combined with a two-year master's degree in Environmental Sciences. Outside of work, she loves digital and traditional painting.

Chris is interested in improving numerical methods for climate simulations while focusing on the interface between research and policy-making, investigating how different stakeholders influence model development. He is currently pursuing dual S.M. degrees in Aerospace Computational Engineering and Technology and Policy. Prior to joining the group, he worked with David Darmofal in the Aerospace Computational Design Laboratory (ACDL) studying the impacts of curved meshing on higher-order, adaptive finite element methods (FEM). He earned his B.S. from MIT in Aerospace Engineering with a focus in numerical methods for partial differential equations, researching the accuracy and convergence of stabilized FEM as an undergraduate research assistant in the ACDL. He is an active member of MIT’s Ballroom Dance Team and in his free time he enjoys watching movies, playing video games, and spending time outdoors.

Amy Kaczur is our group administrator at the Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, beginning her career at MIT in January 2017. Prior to coming to MIT, she has worked administratively in education, the arts, and culinary industries. Her accomplishments include: helped to achieve Green Business Certification for US Foods, Los Angeles as a member of their Go Green Committee; cooperatively established processes and advocacy in the newly created Dean of Faculty’s office at School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and developed media workshops and technical demonstrations at UC Irvine. In her free time Amy also produces video art, grounded in environmental concerns, food production, and local economies. Amy is a graduate of Tufts University and University of California, Irvine, and has lived in the Ohio Rust Belt, Cambridge and Los Angeles. She’s also a foodie, gardener, bicyclist, and hiker. Her email is akaczur at mit.