Since fall 2025, project team member Ellie Harrison has been working on her BIOL499 thesis project with a focus on tree microbiomes, exploring their connections to wetland and municipal landfill soil methane. Specifically, she is researching the role of trees in the landfill’s methane cycling by identifying tree bark microbes and comparing them to ground and tree methane fluxes. The research she is conducting adds a new dimension to the Mitigation of Methane Emission Hot-spots from Municipal Landfills project.
A fourth-year biology student in the Faculty of Science, Ellie Harrison chose to take on a thesis project in her final undergraduate year to help expand her skill set, connect with UWaterloo’s research community, and prepare her for graduate studies. Her research is cross-disciplinary and she is being co-supervised by Principal Investigator Laura Hug in the Department of Biology, and by Co-Principal Investigator Maria Strack in the Department of Geography and Environmental Management.
As part of her project, Ellie has learned a variety of skills which are essential to a career in environmental microbiology. From field work to DNA extractions and data analysis, her thesis project has allowed Ellie to take the knowledge she learned in class and apply it to research in a practical experience that she describes as “fulfilling” and “meaningful”. Ellie encourages all undergraduate students to explore research opportunities as “a way to challenge yourself and get a first-hand look into what pursuing a career in research could look like”.
A way to challenge yourself and get a first-hand look into what pursuing a career in research could look like.
Ellie Harrison using a sterile drill to collect tree bark samples for analysis.