addressing earth’s biggest challenges.
Where the oceans, atmosphere, and land meet.
The straights of Jabal Al Tariq (Gibraltar), viewed from the African side.
We live in a coastal world. Nearly half of humankind lives somewhere near the sea. Many of earth’s largest cities are coastal cities, and much of global commerce travels the world through coastal ports. Our coasts are also some of the most beautiful places on earth.
These places are challenged by climate change, storms, sea level rise, and many local human impacts. My work involves the study of coastal systems through field research, data analytics, and collaborations with colleagues in a wide variety of fields. I also provide public commentary on how coasts are changing, and what we can do to sustain our coastal societies.
I’d love to talk with you about my work – I can be reached via any of the platforms below.
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Dr. Alex Kolker is an oceanographer, geologist, and climate scientist. He has worked across the world – in the Gulf of Mexico and Florida Everglades ecosystem, along the Atlantic coast, across North Africa, and in Jordan. He is interested in how sea level changes locally and globally; how greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution overlap in industrial zones; the role of groundwater dynamics in large river deltas; the interactions between rivers, coasts, and estuaries; and in the natural processes that inform coastal restoration and protection.
Dr. Kolker received his PhD in Marine and Atmospheric Sciences from Stony Brook University. He has served on a panel run by the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine, the Science Advisory Group for Louisiana’s Climate Initiatives Task Force, and the Framework Development Team for the Louisiana 2017 Master Plan. Dr. Kolker has appeared in media outlets across the world, including the New York Times, Washington Post, the New Orleans Times-Picayune/Advocate, NPR, Le Monde, Der Spiegel, France24, and Al Ahram. He was featured in the award-winning documentary “Last Call for the Bayou,” and was the consulting producer on the documentary “Iron Sharpens Iron.” During the 2019-2020 academic year he served as a Fulbright Scholar in Morocco.
ALEX KOLKER, PhD 