About

I am a carbon biogeochemist in the Sustainable Agroecosystems Group at ETH Zurich. My research centers on the fate of globally significant soil carbon reservoirs—specifically within tropical and permafrost ecosystems—that are increasingly mobilized by human activity. I investigate the "plumbing" of the global carbon cycle, studying whether these vulnerable terrestrial stocks leak into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide (CO2) through river networks, thereby accelerating the greenhouse effect.

Currently, I focus on the Congo Basin, analyzing how agricultural expansion in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo influences carbon mobilization in watersheds. To capture these complex processes, I utilize a suite of advanced analytical tools, including stable and radiocarbon isotopes (13C, 14C, FT-ICR mass spectrometry, fluorescence spectroscopy, and bioincubations. By characterizing both organic and inorganic carbon in streams draining pristine versus impacted catchments, I strive to link the isotopic signatures of riverine inorganic carbon to their potential organic sources. My work contributes to a growing body of evidence highlighting headwaters not merely as passive pipes, but as active "vents" for respired terrestrial carbon.