Gratitude is dedicated to all of my professors and PhD supervisors: Prof. Margaret Insley, Prof. Horatiu A. Rus, Prof. Andrea Brookfield, Prof. Alfons Weersink, Prof. Yuying Li, and Prof. Peter Forsyth.
My interdisciplinary doctoral research examines the farmer's and socially optimal agricultural nitrogen management strategy under uncertainty, which covers a wide range of fields such as crop modeling, the agricultural nitrogen cycle, non-market valuation for water resources, weather uncertainty, and market risk assessment. My research employed a variety of advanced quantitative approaches (numerical computation techniques, stochastic optimization, Monte Carlo algorithms, risk-neutral valuation, and dynamic programming). I am proficient in using Matlab and capable of concentrating on solving complex agri-environmental problems through proper dimensionality reduction.
During the past 5 years doing research in the Canada's largest national water research project, Global Water Future (GWF), at the Water Institute, University of Waterloo, my collaboration with internal colleagues and external specialists from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and OMAFRA has equipped me with reliable communication skills and knowledge and prepared me to be a research-centered team-worker. Novel insights will never come to light by working alone, especially in interdisciplinary research. Participating in the Honorable Bardish Chagger (Member of Parliament) policy-making process, attending international hydro-geological and agricultural water seminars, and presenting my research to a range of audiences—including water practitioners, academics, policymakers, industry leaders, and government specialists—has been a fulfilling experience at GWF. The GWF research team helps me a lot in conducting local surveys and quantifying the environmental impacts of nitrate contamination in groundwater. Some of my research on improving nutrient management efficiency in corn farmland is meaningful for policymakers, such as the subsidies for soil testing prior to making a split side-dressing application plan and encouraging the adoption of nano-tube irrigation systems in sandy-loam soil (GWFNET.net).
