Katherine M. Gorman, PhD
ORCID: 0000-0002-8323-8430
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
I am a conservation scientist with 6+ years of experience leading interdisciplinary projects on endangered species, biodiversity monitoring, and conservation policy recommendations in collaboration with U.S. and international agencies. I am skilled in research design, data analysis, and stakeholder engagement, with a strong record of mentoring, outreach, and leadership in research and gender equity in STEM.
I am exploring the effects of climate change and habitat fragmentation on biodiversity and subcommunities. In future research, I hope to use natural history collections, conduct field work, and build meaningful, ecologically sound models to aid in species conservation and to add to our body of knowledge about wildlife.
Thus far, my research has included genetic analyses of subpopulations, analyzing social networks, micro- and macro-habitat associations, spatial analyses of migratory species, and projected effects of climate change/human development on wildlife and their habitats. My focus has been primarily on endangered or at-risk small mammals (bats and flying squirrels, but also woodrats and shrews) and birds, though I am always expanding my taxonomic repertoire and learning new analysis/modeling techniques.
I enjoy collaborating with other researchers whose strengths complement my own and will continue to seek out projects that draw on the expertise of my colleagues and myself. My goal is to conduct research that combines field work with statistical analyses or modeling with an emphasis on climate change, anthropogenic disturbance, and disease ecology.
(Fluent in English and Spanish; conversational in Catalán; working knowledge of Italian, Portuguese, and French.)
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Climate change and infrastructure effects on biodiversity · Wildlife conservation · Metacommunity ecology · Wildlife social dynamics · Subpopulation response to natural and anthropogenic barriers · Spatial analyses · Natural history collections · Biogeography and subpopulations
katiegorman [at] vt [dot] edu
katie.gorman2 [at] gmail [dot] com