Erin Conlisk

As a quantitative ecologist and conservation biologist, Erin Conlisk integrates field experiments
with quantitative techniques to understand California plant and wildlife responses to climate
change, land-use change, and their interactions with changing wildfire regimes. Her research
ranges from applied land management to academic ecology and is typically multidisciplinary,
focusing on conservation co-benefits in socio-ecological systems. Currently, Erin is interested in
using empirically-driven vegetation and wildfire simulation modeling to understand the influence
of climate change, urban development, and forest management on California wildfire risk.
Previously, Erin has used vegetation simulation models to understand the impacts of wildfire,
examined satellite data to support waterbird management in the Central Valley of California,
modeled landscape connectivity for iconic wildlife in Southern California, created mechanistic
models of species’ distributions and abundances, analyzed data from a treeline warming
experiment, and worked in the social sciences with an emphasis on educational equity and
environmental justice. When Erin is not working you will find her getting outdoors, talking to
young people about newfangled things they didn’t have in her day, and combining these two
pastimes.