Speaker Bios (Current Season)

December 4th, 2025

   The Ediacaran–Cambrian transition (~580–520 Ma) begins with the protracted radiation of metazoans and ends with the proliferation of animals in the Phanerozoic, all of which occurs against a backdrop of geochemical and environmental volatility. Our understanding of this interval relies on sedimentary successions that are largely depauperate in radiometric age constraints and confined to isolated paleoenvironments, a combination that often acts to limit our understanding of the Earth system. Here, I will explore new sedimentary, geochemical, and paleontological datasets generated from well-exposed sedimentary successions in northwestern Canada, particularly in the Mackenzie and Wernecke Mountains of Yukon and Northwest Territories. Through three geo-vignettes, I will highlight our recent work on regional subsidence modeling, the Shuram carbon isotope excursion, and macroevolutionary patterns in the Ediacara Biota.