Bridget Livers Gonzalez

Bridget Livers Gonzalez, Fluvial Geomorphologist

Education and Experience

2016-present: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Iowa State University, Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Ames, IA

2013-2016: Ph.D. Candidate in Earth Science, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO

2013: M.S. in Geosciences from Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO

2012: Graduate Teaching Assistant for Intro.to Geology Lab, Dept. of Geosciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO

2008-2011: Assistant Environmental Scientist, Burns & McDonnell Engineering, Kansas City, MO

2008: B.S. in Environmental Science, minors in Geology and Music, University of Kansas

2007: Summer Study Abroad in Australian Biogeography and Environmental History, Duke University and University of New South Wales

My interests

I grew up in the Kansas City area and always had a passion for science and the outdoors. I minored in music in college and played string bass in the University of Kansas Symphony Orchestra. I have been fortunate to do research in Rocky Mountain National Park for my thesis and dissertation research. When I’m not working in mountain streams, I like traveling, skiing, National Parks, family time, good food, cooking, and Kansas Jayhawk basketball.

How I became a scientist

An undergraduate program in environmental science with a minor in geology provided me with a background in multidisciplinary physical sciences and laid the framework for my future as both a scientist and an individual with a passion for environmental education. After three years working as an environmental consultant at engineering company, I realized that I was better suited for an academic and learning environment and wanted to become an educator to share my excitement for science with younger generations. Fluvial geomorphology is a perfect integration of my interests in surface processes, water resources, rivers as a component of a larger landscape ecosystem, and environmental science.

How my work benefits society

My research involves taking a detailed assessment of wood in streams and on floodplains for streams with varied management and disturbance histories in order to evaluate the role that this large wood plays in local channel complexity, habitat potential, biological productivity, channel-floodplain connectivity, and storage of organic carbon. This research benefits society in that it aims to evaluate the role that wood in mountain streams represents in terms of the global carbon cycle as well as inform managers about the ecological importance of instream wood in restoration projects. Click here to learn more about my research.