People

Juli Carrillo (she/her/elle)
Assistant Professor

I am a community ecologist, evolutionary biologist and PI of the PIEE Lab! I completed my B.A. in Economics at Rice University in Houston, TX, with a focus on evolutionary game theory. I continued on at Rice in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology program, completing a master’s thesis focused on insect mating behaviour in houseflies, and a Ph.D. examining the ecology and evolutionary biology of plant-herbivore-predator interactions in invasive and native populations of Chinese tallow tree. I then joined the Entomology department at Purdue University as a NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellow, where I further examined the role of plant evolutionary history in multi-species interactions, focusing on wild-crop relatives in tomato, plant-soil feedbacks, and tri-trophic plant defense against herbivores. I love Texas BBQ, Indiana sweet corn, and BC berries!

Office phone: (604) 827-5039
juli.carrillo[at]ubc.ca

Carly McGregor (she/they)
Lab Manager

I am an ecologist driven by solution-oriented interdisciplinary environmental research, with special interests in agroecology and biodiversity. During my MSc in Resources, Environment & Sustainability at UBC, I evaluated the pollinator conservation potential of farm hedgerows and grassland set-aside fields in the agricultural landscape of Delta, BC. In the PIEE lab, I support researchers in their varied scientific pursuits as lab manager. Outside of research, I enjoy hiking, rock climbing, chatting everyone’s ear off, and baking desserts.

carly.mcgregor[at]ubc.ca

Matthew Mitchell (he/him/his)
CSFS Research Associate

My research focuses on how to manage human-dominated landscapes, including agricultural and urban landscapes, for both people and nature. This includes understanding how the arrangement of different land uses and habitats across these areas affects ecosystem services and biodiversity, how to effectively quantify both the supply of ecosystem services and their demand by people, and identifying key management actions that can lead to win-win situations for multiple ecosystem services and biodiversity. I also lead the long-term biodiversity monitoring program at the UBC Farm and work to develop new tools to effectively monitor agricultural biodiversity on diversified farms and link this to key socio-ecological outcomes. I completed my Ph.D. at McGill University in 2014, a M.Sc. at the University of Alberta in 2006, and a B.Sc. (Honours) at the University of Victoria in 2002. Outside the office you can usually find me spending time outdoors with my two young children, playing ultimate frisbee, and gardening.

matthew.mitchell[at]ubc.ca

하규백 Jimmy Kyu Baik Ha (he/him)
Ph.D. student

I am a Ph.D. student studying the effects of elevated carbon dioxide (CO₂) on tomato-insect interactions. I spent my childhood years chasing after grasshoppers in the muddy rice patties of rural South Korea and have developed a love for nature and living things. As I aged and learned many things along the way however, I became aware of how much damage human activities inflicted on the environment, and how this could eventually put our future at risk. A rapid increase in CO₂ due to human activities can influence the ability of crop plants, like tomatoes, to cope with pest insects and threaten sustainable agriculture. It is my goal to investigate the effects of CO₂ on tomato anti-herbivore defense and contribute to protecting our food systems. As a food lover, I simply refuse to allow a world without tomatoes. I am also a passionate gamer, and you can find me on the glorious battlefields of the Koprulu sector or wandering the High Walls of Lothric.

hgbhgb01[at]mail.ubc.ca

Chelsea Gowton (she/her)
Ph.D. student

I am a Ph.D. candidate studying how plants allocate carbon towards extrafloral nectar through the lens of the Surplus Carbon Hypothesis. My research background involves many interdisciplinary areas of agroecosystem research, including entomology, invasive biology, and microbiology. My MSc research focused on using scents to disrupt host finding behaviour in Drosophila suzukii (Spotted Wing Drosophila), an invasive insect pest of small fruits. After finishing my BSc in Ecology from Susquehanna University, I spent some time as an intern at the MacArthur Agro-ecology Research Center in Lake Placid, Florida. In my spare time, you can find me walking with my dog on local hiking trails, experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen, or attending a yoga class.

cgowton[at]mail.ubc.ca
LinkedIn: Chelsea Gowton

Jennifer Lipka (she/her)
M.Sc. student

I am a 2nd year M.Sc. student in Integrated Studies in Land and Food Systems at the lab. My undergrad is a B.A. in Geography majoring in Environment and Sustainability. My academic interests are biogeography, GIS, and pollinators! In the summer of 2019, I received an NSERC URSA to conduct collaborative research with our lab and the PCIGR to study how trace metal pollution is distributed across bumble bee populations in the lower mainland. I am interested in researching the relationships between plants and pollinators and how they are affected by environmental pollution, climate, and land use change. My favourite activities are gardening, snowboarding and eating chocolate!

jennifer.lipka[at]ubc.ca
Personal Website

Rebecca Pain (she/her)
M.Sc. student

I am a M.Sc. student in the Plant Science Program. I completed my undergraduate degree at the University of Alberta in Biological Sciences. During my time there, I developed a love for insects and biological pest management. My project is interested in how habitat enhancements influence pests and biological control across agricultural landscapes in the Delta region. Spotted-wing drosophila is a common pest of multiple cultivated fruits in the area and will be of particular interest in my project. In my spare time, I like to do needlework crafts and knitting, run, and ski when I can! 

rpain[at]mail.ubc.ca

Jade Sherwood (she/her)
M.Sc. student

Currently completing my Undergrad at UFV in Agricultural Science, I am now working towards my MSc in Plant Science at UBC. Here I plan to explore the distribution of the invasive strawberry blossom weevil (Anthonomus rubi) and associated parasitoids in the invaded ranges of Canada and their native ranges in Europe. Using molecular identification tools and collaboration with specialists’, habitats will be sampled to determine the identity, phenology and impact of parasitoids for use as potential biological control options for A. rubi in Canada. My background into plant/entomology research began in 2019 while working with the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug and Trissolcus japonicus. In 2020, working with Spotted-winged Drosophila (SWD) and their associated parasitoids, Leptopilina japonica, exploring enemy risk effects from lingering chemical cues of L. japonica on food substrate of SWD. Concluding BOTH male and female parasitoids elicited a response in SWD who avoided ovipositing in substrate previously exposed to L. japonica parasitoids. During my free time you can find me in the mountains!

Daphne Chevalier (she/her)
M.Sc. student

I am a M.Sc. student in the Plant Science program. After graduating with a degree in biomedical engineering in 2020, I took a year of unclassified studies at UBC to learn more about the links between health, the environment, and society. I also moved to a rural area and started learning to recognise some native plant species. These experiences motivated me to pursue applied research in ecology, which led me to the PIEE lab, where I am co-supervised by Dr. Juli Carrillo and Dr. Quentin Geissmann. I am working on Sticky Pi, an open-source “smart trap” that provides novel insight into insect biodiversity and daily patterns. I aim to scale Sticky Pi beyond the lab for use by community members, including growers, by making it more usable. I am also using Sticky Pi to examine the effects of artificial light at night (ALAN) on insects. In light of precipitous insect declines, I am glad that I can apply my engineering background and passion for ecosystem health to identify key threats and improve monitoring techniques. In my spare time, I love hiking, making art, mending, woodcarving, and construction/DIY!

Hannah Anderson (she/her)
M.Sc. student

I am a MSc. student in the Plant Science program. I completed my BSc. undergraduate degree in 2022 from Carleton University in Biology with a focus in ecology and evolution. I developed an interest for insects and incorporated them in my honours undergraduate thesis where I studied a biomarker commonly used to study insect (and vertebrate) physiology. My background in biology led me to work with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada as a research assistant in plant breeding. This motivated me to pursue further research in agriculture, where I can dive into subjects I’m passionate about. I’m generally interested in pollination ecology and supporting our pollinators which led me to my current project in the PIEE lab! I’m studying nocturnal pollination by moths in highbush blueberries. I am aiming to create a better understanding of the nocturnal pollinators that are working hard in our agroecosystems, and how we can support them. In my free time you can find me listening to music, hiking, or crocheting.

Melody Sizer (she/her)
M.Sc. student

I am a M.Sc. student in Plant Science. I became interested in plant ecology in agriculture and forestry while completing my B.Sc. in Biology at the University of Victoria. My background is mainly in integrated pest management, sustainable pesticide development, and invasion biology. My project will focus on agricultural pest insects and their natural enemies at different trophic levels to explore how the success of one pathogen, parasite, or predator impacts the success of another on the same host. I’m otherwise mostly interested in horror movies and learning how to sew.

Nisa Chavez (she/her/hers)
Computational Entomology Technician

I got my start in the PIEE Lab as an undergraduate summer work-learn in 2022, aiding various Master’s students on their projects and falling in love with creepy crawlies! I stayed on board through the fall of 2022 to do a directed studies project on click beetle populations at UBC Farm, assessing their spatiotemporal patterns and presenting results at an undergraduate conference. Now, I’m a computational entomology technician and I help train AI models to recognize and identify target insect species, like spotted wing drosophila, from yellow sticky cards to understand their abundance and distribution across Canada.

Outside of the lab, you can find me gaming, baking sweet treats, or listening to silly tarot readings!