Meet EPA Research Ecologist, Cathleen Wigand, Ph.D.

EPA research ecologist Dr. Cathy Wigand works on coastal resiliency, climate adaptation, and wetland restoration and frequently collaborates with local, state, and federal partners in her work. Dr. Wigand started her career with EPA over 25 years ago and has applied her skills to studying a variety of environmental issues including assessment methods for monitoring wetland health, evaluating climate change impacts on wetlands, implementing coastal resiliency restoration projects, and examining interactions between oyster aquaculture and eelgrass meadows. Her EPA research has included field surveys, field manipulations, and laboratory mesocosm experiments. And, her work has taken her throughout the USA, including Puerto Rico, and to distant shores, including Australia, China, Argentina, Uruguay, Mexico, Brazil, and Spain.  

Tell us about your background.

I have a Bachelor of Science in biology from Iona College and a Master of Science in ecology from Adelphi University. After I received my master’s degree, I taught high school chemistry for two years. Then, I was a lab assistant at Stony Brook University, and subsequently received a Ph.D. in marine sciences from the University of Maryland. After my doctorate, I did two postdocs, one at the University of Southern Denmark in Odense working on lake studies and the second at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Milbrook, N.Y. working on wetland ecology.

When did you first know you wanted to work in environmental science?

I first identified science as an area I wanted to pursue for a career during my ninth-grade biology class. I also loved my tenth-grade chemistry and geometry classes. In Biology I loved learning about all living organisms including microbes, fungi, plants, and animals. In the chemistry and geometry classes, I enjoyed the challenge of learning different formulas, equations, and theorems that helped explain structure and processes in nature.

What do you like most about your job?

I really enjoy contributing to the implementation of scientifically sound approaches to build coastal resiliency and restore degraded habitat. Climate adaptation and wetland restoration efforts require the participation of many stakeholders, and I often meet with multi-disciplinary teams and partners representing local communities, environmental groups, and with local, state, and federal agencies. The enthusiasm of the different stakeholders and volunteers fuels my energy to develop and implement restoration projects. I find that the multi-disciplinary scientific team contributes to the success of attaining planned goals and helps identify lessons-learned to improve future restoration projects. I also really enjoy mentoring interns and graduate students in my work and have served on many graduate thesis and dissertation committees and worked with numerous undergraduate and graduate students on research projects.

What advice would you give a student interested in a career in science?

Students who are interested in environmental sciences are welcome to volunteer with coastal resiliency and wetland restoration projects. Volunteering is a great way for students to gain experience and see restoration science in action!

If you weren’t a scientist, what would you be doing?

If I wasn’t a scientist, I might be an artist. Luckily, planning and implementing research lab experiments and field projects takes a lot of creative energy! I’ve always enjoyed my career as a Research Ecologist at EPA. Perhaps, during the next chapter of my life, for example during retirement, I might pursue more art classes. Perhaps, more gardening and cooking classes, too!

If you could have one superpower, what would it be and why?

If I had a superpower, I’d be able to fly! Wouldn’t it be nice to fly over the beautiful landscapes of the earth and share the sky with birds and stars? I’m inspired by Dr. Jane Goodall’s amazing chimpanzee research as well as her outreach efforts. In Dr. Goodall’s recent talks and writings, she emphasized that people have the power to overcome extreme adversity and global climate problems, and that there is hope to overcome the difficult climate and global circumstances people face on the earth, and move toward a better and healthier future. That gives me hope as well.