Biography
Newport Beach, California
Fellow, American Association for
the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Dr. Aicher has studied and worked extensively in the area of environmental science with a specific focus on how global change factors affect native ecosystems. She has collaborated with Dr. Steven Handel of Rutgers University to restore native ecosystems and create public environmental education programs at the Orange County Great Park in Irvine, California. Dr. Handel and Dr. Aicher designed planting programs and management plans that targeted diverse habitats in various ecotones. She coordinated public education courses for the Great Park to inform communities about their local ecosystems; how climate change affects local ecosystems; and strategies for dealing with global climate change. She is concerned with the consequences rising sea levels will have on natural ecosystems, i.e., eroding beaches, swamping wetlands, threatening native species and increased flooding and the economic and social impact of these changes on affected communities, i.e., need to invest public funds in building sea walls, elevating buildings or even relocating structures.
Starting in September 2011, she will be a fellow with the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and she will be placed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, D.C. dealing with policy issues related to climate change and the effects on ecosystems. During the 2010-2011 academic year, Dr. Aicher worked as a visiting professor in the Natural Sciences Department at Baruch College in New York City.
She is interested in being a Climate Change Professional Fellow in order to work with the international community to better understand the worldwide threats associated with climate change. She is eager to learn about the challenges other communities face and to explore the solutions that have been proposed and/or enacted in different areas. She hopes this program will provide her with the opportunity to develop as a leader in this field and to provide her with additional opportunities to develop and implement successful programs related to global climate change and the preservation of our natural resources. This experience will inform her work on government programs at the EPA, the AAAS fellowship program, and with community organizations throughout the Washington, D.C. metro area.