GCC Welcomes Five New Faculty Affiliates
December 1, 2025
The Global Change Center is excited to welcome a new group of faculty affiliates whose work spans a wide range of disciplines and research interests. These scholars bring fresh perspectives and innovative approaches to addressing some of the most pressing environmental and societal challenges of our time. We’re excited to have them join the GCC community and contribute to this important work.
Join us in welcoming these new faculty affiliates to the GCC community!
Dr. Mateo Acosta
Geosciences
Dr. Mateo Acosta is an assistant Professor of geomechanics. His research focuses on understanding the coupling between mechanical deformation and fluid flow in the subsurface, with the goal of mitigating natural hazards and developing clean energy activities. He uses a variety of techniques, including experimental methods, theoretical and numerical modeling, and natural observations, to study how fluids flow through rocks and how this flow can affect the mechanical deformation of Earth's crust.
Dr. Natasha Bell
Biological Systems Engineering
Dr. Natasha Bell is an assistant professor of ecological engineering. Her research program advances ecologically engineered water treatment technologies to enhance water quality, climate resilience, and environmental health. Her work integrates ecological design principles with engineering approaches to develop nature-based solutions for nutrient pollution, emerging contaminants, and decentralized wastewater challenges across rural, urban, and coastal landscapes.
Dr. Yanghui Kang
Biological Systems Engineering
Dr. Yanghui Kang is an assistant professor in the Department of Biological Systems Engineering where she leads the Ecosystem Intelligence Lab. The lab advances the predictive understanding of terrestrial ecosystem dynamics and develops data-driven tools that support adaptive land and resource management under a changing climate. Bridging ecology, artificial intelligence (AI), and data science, our mission is to deliver actionable insights that improve ecosystem resilience, land stewardship, and long-term sustainability.
Dr. Ashleigh Kirker
Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation
Dr. Ashleigh Kirker is an assistant professor of hydrologic sciences. Her research focuses on the legacy of human modifications on the hydrologic cycle and combines modeling and monitoring of streams, wetlands, and stormwater control measures. Additionally, Dr. Kirker has a partial appointment at the Virginia Water Resources Research center and teaches undergraduate courses on Forest Soils and Watershed Management and Watershed Assessment, Management, and Policy.
Dr. Yonfa "Jay" You
School of Plant and Environmental Science
Dr. Jay You’s research program focuses on how agricultural management practices interact with environmental factors to shape the productivity, resilience, and sustainability of agroecosystems under multiple stressors. By integrating process-based agroecosystem modeling, remote sensing, machine learning, and field observations, Dr. You develops science-based strategies and decision-support tools that guide management practices to enhance productivity while reducing environmental degradation.
