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Melinda Daniels, Ph.D.

500 500 Stroud Water Research Center
Melinda Daniels, Ph.D.

Senior Research Scientist

  • Principal investigator, Fluvial Geomorphology Group.
  • Adjunct professor, Department of Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of Pennsylvania.
  • Adjunct faculty, Department of Geography, Kansas State University.
  • Affiliate faculty, Department of Geography, University of Delaware.
  • Affiliate faculty, Department of Geological Sciences, University of Delaware.

Contact

mdaniels@stroudcenter.org
tel. 610-910-0044
970 Spencer Road, Avondale, PA 19311

Interests and Expertise

Melinda Daniels’ research program focuses broadly on the fluvial geomorphology, hydrology, and stream ecosystem ecology of both natural and human-modified river systems, from reach to watershed scales. Her interests include river restoration, watershed management, and stream ecosystem science. Though much of it is theoretically based, all of her research is placed within the context of better understanding our impact on rivers, improving river management, and enabling successful river restoration.

Daniels’ work includes examining how people perceive river environments and the process of communicating science to river managers and stakeholders. Essentially, her research perspective examines rivers as coupled human and natural systems.

Education

  • Ph.D., physical geography, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Illinois.
  • Master of Research in environmental science, University College London, London, United Kingdom.
  • B.S., natural resources and environmental science, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.

Professional Experience

  • Senior research scientist, Stroud Water Research Center, 2023–present.
  • Associate research scientist, Stroud Water Research Center, 2013–2022.
  • Associate professor, Department of Geography, Physical and Environmental Geography, Kansas State University, 2010–2013.
  • Assistant professor, Department of Geography, Physical and Environmental Geography, Kansas State University, 2008–2010.
  • Assistant professor, Department of Geography, Physical and Environmental Geography, University of Connecticut, 2002–2008.
  • Instructor, University of Illinois, 2001–2002.
  • Research assistant and fellow, stream confluence dynamics, river restoration science, University of Illinois, 1998–2001.

Publications

Achieving success with RISE: A widely implementable, iterative, structured process for mastering interdisciplinary team science collaborations

Mather, M.E., G. Granco, J.S. Bergtold, M.M. Caldas, J.L. Heier Stamm, A.Y. Sheshukov, M.R. Sanderson, and M.D. Daniels. 2023. BioScience 73(12): 891–905.

Facilitation strength across environmental and beneficiary trait gradients in stream communities

Tumolo, B.B., L.K. Albertson, M.D. Daniels, W.F. Cross, L.L. Sklar. 2023. Journal of Animal Ecology 92(10): 2005–2015.

Resource modification by ecosystem engineers generates hotspots of stream community assembly and ecosystem function

Tumolo, B.B., L.K. Albertson, W.F. Cross, G.C. Poole, G. Davenport, M.D. Daniels, and L.S. Sklar. 2023. Ecology 104(6): e4052.

Beyond the light effect: how hydrologic and geomorphologic stream features control microbial distribution across pool sequences in a temperate headwater stream

Ouellet V., M.D. Daniels, M. Peipoch, L. Zgleszewski, N. Watson, E. Gibson, S. Krause, and J. Kan. 2022. Ecohydrology 15(2): e2380

Local environment and individuals’ beliefs: the dynamics shaping public support for sustainability policy in an agricultural landscape

Granco, G., M. Caldas, J. Bergtold, J.L. Heier Stamm, M. Mather, M. Sanderson, M. Daniels, A. Sheshukov, D. Haukos,and S. Ramsey. 2022. Journal of Environmental Management 301: 113776.

See all publications by Stroud Center authors

Related News

A Fresh Look at River Algae in the Delaware River Basin

A novel method to evaluate how algal concentration changes during river floods may be key to more accurately predicting how to keep algae under control. 

Saving Streams With Good Science

Building trust in the scientific process starts with communicating our research to non-scientists. To that end, our scientists share snapshots of three long-term experiments.

How Farming Practices Influence Water Quality and Soil Health

Scientists from the Stroud Center and Rodale Institute share what they’re learning from the Watershed Impact Trial on the MOSES Organic Farming Podcast.

Why Is New York City Studying Pennsylvania’s Lehigh River?

Melinda Daniels, Ph.D., was interviewed as part of an NPR story about a study that’s causing concern among Pennsylvanians who depend on the river for their livelihoods.

Dam, Dam Go Away: A Wild and Scenic Vision for America’s Rivers

Learn about the policy and science of dam removal, federal protections for the free-flowing Delaware River, and the story of the Wild and Scenic Musconetcong River.

Patience is the Mother of Science: Long-Term Responses of a Stream to Reforestation

We're studying how White Clay Creek can recover from deforestation and agricultural expansion and to what extent restoration practices can acclerate that recovery.
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