Samantha Hartzell, PI
Prior to joining Portland State University, I received my PhD in Environmental Engineering from Princeton University under the direction of Amilcare Porporato in 2020. This work received the Lorenz G. Straub award in the same year. Originally a resident of Hudson, WI, I graduated from Hudson High School, received a B.S. in Environmental Engineering with a minor in Biology from MIT in 2015, and received an M.S. in Environmental Engineering From Duke University in 2017. I currently serve as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Hydrology. Curriculum vitae.
Tarannum Khandoker, Ph.D. student
Tarannum is a Ph.D. student in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Portland State University, where her research focuses on urban ecohydrology and green infrastructure. Her current work investigates evapotranspiration dynamics in green roofs by comparing C3, C4, and CAM vegetation to better understand their roles in stormwater management and urban cooling. More broadly, she is interested in plant-water interactions, urban climate resilience, and the application of environmental modeling to sustainable water resource management.
Morgan Thornwell, Ph.D. student
Morgan is a Ph.D. student in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Portland State University, where her research focuses on modeling salinity impacts and hydraulic redistribution through porous media plant hydraulics models. Morgan received her M.S. degree from Portland State University in 2022 and worked as an independent contractor for the US Environmental Protection Agency before returning for her Ph.D.
Josh Gottlieb, M.S. student
Josh researches the impacts of salinity on agricultural systems and techniques for incorporating salt tolerance traits into ecohydrologic models. As a practicing engineer, his focus is developing field studies, designs, and applied models to support holistic strategies for managing watersheds, water supply, and infrastructure. Josh received his B.S. degree from Portland State University in 2022, completing an honors thesis titled Hydraulic redistribution under saline conditions.
Duncan Turley, M.S. student
Duncan’s work focuses on water movement between plants and their environment. He hopes to use his growing understanding of plant-soil-atmospheric interactions to work in environmental restoration and climate resiliency work in the future. Duncan received his B.S. degree from Portland State University in 2024, completing an honors thesis titled Differentiating dynamic system outcomes in CAM photosynthesis through sonification.
Md. Jahidul Islam, M.S. student
Jahid is a current M.S. student in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Portland State University. His research focuses on understanding how salinity and drought affect plants, modeling irrigation demand, and studying hydrological processes and energy transfer in plants in response to environmental and meteorological conditions. Jahid received his B.S. degree from University of Dhaka in 2024.