Jennifer Kissinger
I am a graduate student in Biology at the University of Ottawa, specializing in Chemical and Environmental Toxicology, under the supervision of Dr. Jules Blais. I completed my undergraduate education at the University of Indiana Bloomington, United States, with a degree in Forensic Pathology, with a focus on forensic mycology, taphonomy, and human physiology. I have a research background in neuroscience and in the start-up sphere finding unique solutions to problems in biology and applied medicine. As a former deputy coroner, I am interested in finding novel ways in which paleoenvironmental methods can be used to resolve issues of legal and historical significance. My research is focused on reconstructing environments longitudinally through physiological biomarkers in sediment which can remain stable for decades up to hundreds of years. Utilizing paleolimnological techniques, these biomarkers can be used to create a ‘fingerprint’ of sediment nutrients which can, in conjunction with multi proxy methods, provide past and present snap-shots of environmental states and provide clarity on the relevant impacts on ecology and society.