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Bio
Fjords, rivers, deltas, estuaries, particle dynamics, sediment transport and stratigraphy, continental margins, gravity flows, animal-sediment interactions, global change.
Professor Jaia Syvitski received doctorate degrees (Oceanography & Geological Science) from the University of British Columbia in 1978, where she developed a quantitative understanding of particle dynamics across the land-sea boundary. She held a variety of appointments within Canadian universities (1978-1995: U. Calgary, Dalhousie U., U. Laval, Memorial U., and INRS-oceanologie) and was a Senior Research Scientist within the Geological Survey of Canada at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography (1981-1995). Jaia served as Director of INSTAAR from 1995-2007, and held faculty appointments in in Geological Sciences, Applied Mathematics, Atmospheric and Ocean Sciences, Hydrological Sciences, and Geophysics. She has over 500 publications, including authorship or co-authorship of 65 peer-reviewed books, and has served in various editorial positions for many international journals. Jaia had leadership roles in several large international projects (SAFE, ADFEX, SEDFLUX, COLDSEIS, STRATAFORM, EuroSTRATAFORM, CSDMS), and served as an advisor for NSF, ONR, ARCUS, LOICZ, IGBP, IUGS, INQUA, SCOR, GWSP, and various energy, mining, and environmental companies.
Education
- PhD: University of British Columbia, 1978
Awards
- Honorary Doctorate of Science in Sustainability, Newcastle University, 2016
- Francis Shepard Medal, Society for Sedimentary Geology, 2016
- Fellow, American Geophysical Union, 2010
- Huntsman Medal, Royal Society of Canada, 2009
Research
Jaia works in the forefront of computational geosciences: sediment transport, land-ocean interactions and Earth-surface dynamics. She was formerly Executive Director of the Community Surface Dynamics Modeling System, an international effort in 68 countries to develop, support, and disseminate integrated computer models to the broader geoscience community. Jaia chaired ICSU’s International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (2011-2016) that provides essential scientific leadership and knowledge of the Earth system to help guide society onto a sustainable pathway during rapid global change.
Publications
Latest publications
CLIMATE-CHANGE - NUMERICAL MODELING OF SEDIMENTATION AND COASTAL PROCESSES, EASTERN CANADIAN ARCTIC
Publication Date: 1994-08-01
Type: Journal Article
SLOPE READJUSTMENT - A NEW MODEL FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF SUBMARINE FANS AND APRONS
Publication Date: 1994-06-01
Type: Journal Article
Sediment fluxes along high-latitude glaciated continental margins: Northeast Canada and eastern Greenland
Type: Chapter
Numerical simulation of basin sedimentation affected by slope failure and debris flow runout
Type: Conference Proceeding
GRAIN2 - PREDICTIONS OF PARTICLE-SIZE SEAWARD OF RIVER MOUTHS
Publication Date: 1993-03-01
Type: Journal Article
QUATERNARY SEDIMENTATION AND MARINE PLACERS ALONG THE NORTH SHORE, GULF OF ST-LAWRENCE
Publication Date: 1993-03-01
Type: Journal Article
GLACIOMARINE ENVIRONMENTS IN CANADA - AN OVERVIEW
Publication Date: 1993-02-01
Type: Journal Article
SEDIMENTARY ENVIRONMENTS AND FACIES IN AN ARCTIC BASIN, ITIRBILUNG FJORD, BAFFIN-ISLAND, CANADA
Publication Date: 1992-11-01
Type: Journal Article
DELTA2 - DELTA-PROGRADATION AND BASIN FILLING
Publication Date: 1992-08-01
Type: Journal Article
SUSPENDED SEDIMENT CHARACTER AND DISTRIBUTION IN MCBETH FJORD, BAFFIN ISLAND
Publication Date: 1992-03-01
Type: Journal Article
THE SEASONAL DISTRIBUTION OF SUSPENDED PARTICLES AND THEIR IRON AND MANGANESE LOADING IN A GLACIAL RUNOFF FJORD
Publication Date: 1992-03-01
Type: Journal Article
MARINE GEOLOGY OF BAIE-DES-CHALEURS
Publication Date: 1992-01-01
Type: Journal Article
TOWARDS AN UNDERSTANDING OF SEDIMENT DEPOSITION ON GLACIATED CONTINENTAL SHELVES
Publication Date: 1991-08-01
Type: Conference Proceeding
Principles, methods and applications of particle size analysis
Type: Book
LAND SEA CORRELATIONS AND EVOLUTION OF THE CAMBRIDGE FJORD MARINE BASIN DURING THE LAST DEGLACIATION OF NORTHERN BAFFIN-ISLAND
Publication Date: 1991-01-01
Type: Journal Article
BAFFIN ISLAND FJORD MACROBENTHOS - BOTTOM COMMUNITIES AND ENVIRONMENTAL SIGNIFICANCE
Publication Date: 1989-09-01
Type: Journal Article
ON THE DEPOSITION OF SEDIMENT WITHIN GLACIER-INFLUENCED FJORDS - OCEANOGRAPHIC CONTROLS
Publication Date: 1989-01-01
Type: Journal Article
SEA-FLOOR GOUGES AND PITS IN DEEP FJORDS, BAFFIN-ISLAND - POSSIBLE MAMMALIAN FEEDING TRACES
Publication Date: 1989-01-01
Type: Journal Article
BASIN SEDIMENTATION AND THE GROWTH OF PROGRADING DELTAS
Publication Date: 1988-06-15
Type: Journal Article
ARCTIC LAND-SEA INTERACTIONS
Publication Date: 1986-12-01
Type: Journal Article
DNAG .2. ESTUARIES, DELTAS AND FJORDS OF EASTERN CANADA
Publication Date: 1986-06-01
Type: Journal Article
SEDIMENTOLOGY OF ARCTIC FJORDS EXPERIMENT (SAFE) - PROJECT INTRODUCTION
Publication Date: 1985-12-01
Type: Journal Article
THE PRODELTA ENVIRONMENT OF A FJORD - SUSPENDED PARTICLE DYNAMICS
Publication Date: 1985-01-01
Type: Journal Article
CORALS MOVE BOULDERS - AN UNUSUAL MECHANISM OF SEDIMENT TRANSPORT
Publication Date: 1983-01-01
Type: Journal Article
THE INTERACTION OF PLANKTON AND SUSPENDED SEDIMENT IN FJORDS
Publication Date: 1983-01-01
Type: Journal Article
Pages
Teaching
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