Battling Climate Change with Satellite Data • Christine Lee, PhD

(Research Scientist, NASA JPL || CA USA)

“I feel so lucky in my current role. I get to work with NASA satellite datasets and partner with those on the frontlines battling climate change while meeting the needs of our communities — and see how our assets can be of use in managing limited natural resources in a sustainable way. Currently, my projects span coastal resources management in Belize to reservoir management and ecosystems assessment in California. In California, we’ve seen the thermal habitat conditions for endangered aquatic species in the San Francisco Bay Delta worsen, especially since the 2000s. We hope to further explore linkages between harmful algal blooms, temperature, and drought. In Belize, we saw an improvement in coastal water clarity during the COVID shutdown period and are working to implement Sustainable Development Goal targets with Belizean agencies.

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Early on, I had some professors in undergrad who were not concerned about climate or environmental pollution issues. That really did not resonate with me. One of the best things about working in STEM is choosing what problems you want to work on and, for me, switching into a STEM environmental field, with an amazing mentor, was really the start of my professional career.

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I had a moment of clarity last year — during a women in tech workshop, I began to train myself to acknowledge and respond to those negative internal voices in my head saying that I wasn’t good enough: ‘Even if this proposal or change doesn’t pan out, pursuing them is a good experience and you will learn from the sheer act of going through it.’ That said, there are so many barriers that are external, and having a network of mentors, colleagues, and peers has given me opportunities that I hope to pay forward.”