Postdoc and Student Spotlight

Our undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral researchers play an enormous role in the transition to a sustainable, resilient, and affordable energy future that is centered on social and economic equality. From lab experiments to field work to classrooms, these leaders of today and tomorrow are our catalysts for energy discovery. In this series, we learn more about what inspired these talented researchers, what brought them to their field of study, and the questions that drive their work at the Wisconsin Energy Institute.

  • Graduate Student Spotlight: Daven Khana

    Today we spoke to Daven Khana, a Ph.D. candidate in the DAN Lab led by Daniel Amador-Noguez at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Daven obtained his bachelor's in microbiology and genetics at the University of Georgia. Currently, he studies metabolism and bioenergy.

  • Graduate Student Spotlight: Clare Dietz

    Clare Dietz is a Ph.D. student in the Jackson Lab at UW–Madison, where she studies soil carbon and agricultural systems. She tells us about her research, background and the importance of storytelling in science.

  • Postdoctoral Researcher Spotlight: Jaime Garibay Rodriguez

    Jaime Garibay Rodriguez is a postdoc in the Morgan Edwards' Climate Action Lab studying sustainable energy transition systems. He got his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering at Instituto Tecnológico de Celaya, Mexico. He provides insight on the importance of mentors and interdisciplinary collaboration.

  • Graduate Student Spotlight: Ciaran Gallagher

    Ciaran Gallagher is a graduate researcher in the Holloway lab studying air quality models. Ciaran studied environmental chemistry at Wellesley, but has since used her analytical skills outside of the laboratory to assess science policy and environmental justice.

  • Undergraduate Student Spotlight: Megan Mader

    We spoke with Megan Mader, an undergraduate student in Trey Sato's lab at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, to talk about what led to her interest in climate change, her research on modifying yeast to sustainably produce biofuels, and the value of collaboration in research.

  • Graduate Student Spotlight: Amy Enright

    This week we spoke with Amy Enright, a graduate student in Jason Peters' lab at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, to talk about why she came to UW-Madison, her research on the microbe Zymomonas mobilis, and her advice for interested graduate students.

  • Postdoctoral Researcher Spotlight: Yanhua Xie

    This week we spoke with Yanhua Xie, a postdoctoral researcher in the Holly Gibbs lab at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, to talk about why he came to UW-Madison, his recent publications on cropland and irrigation distribution in the U.S. and his plans for the future.

  • Undergraduate Researcher Spotlight: Leta Landucci

    This week we spoke with Leta Landucci, an undergraduate researcher in John Ralph's lab at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, to talk about her research into popular tree enzymes, how her research connects with plant engineering, and her experience working with talented scientists.

  • Postdoctoral Researcher Spotlight: Sae-Byuk Lee

    This week we spoke with Sae-Byuk Lee, a postdoctoral researcher in Chris Hittinger’s lab at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, to talk about his research into training yeast to turn xylose into fuel, how biofuels research connects with food microbiology, and what led him to UW–Madison.

  • Postdoctoral Researcher Spotlight: Balendra Sah

    This week we spoke with Balendra Sah, a postdoctoral researcher in Robert Landick’s lab at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, to talk about his research into engineering bacteria to make biofuels and what led him to UW–Madison.

  • Graduate Student Spotlight: Patricia Tran

    This week we spoke with Patricia Tran, a graduate student in Katherine McMahon’s lab at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Patricia is from Montreal, Canada and studied environmental science and bioinformatics for her Bachelor of Science with Honors at McGill University.

  • Postdoctoral Researcher Spotlight: Jun Feng

    This week we sat down with Jun Feng, a postdoctoral researcher in Ophelia Venturelli's research group at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, to talk about engineering microorganisms for biomanufacturing and what led him to UW–Madison.

  • Graduate Student Spotlight: Surajudeen Omolabake

    This week we sat down with Surajudeen Omolabake, a graduate student in Shannon Stahl’s lab at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, to talk about creating useful chemicals from wood, his dogs Sky and Cecille, and what led him to UW–Madison.

  • Graduate Student Spotlight: Derek Ho

    We spoke with Derek Ho, a graduate research assistant in Troy Runge’s lab at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Derek is from Singapore and studied biological systems engineering for both his undergraduate and master’s degrees at UW–Madison.

  • Graduate Student Spotlight: Shannon Goes

    We checked in with Shannon Goes, a graduate student assistant in Shannon Stahl’s lab at the UW–Madison, to learn more about what inspires her, the questions that drive her work at the GLBRC, and more.

  • Postdoc Spotlight: François Alberge

    We checked in with François Alberge, a postdoctoral research associate in Tim Donohue's lab at UW–Madison to learn more about what inspires him, and the questions that drive his work at the GLBRC.

  • Graduate Student Spotlight: Ashley Becker

    This week we check-in with Ashley Becker, a graduate research assistant in Randy Jackson's lab, to talk about how livestock management impacts plants and soil carbon and what brought her to the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

  • Graduate Student Spotlight: Manar Alherech

    We checked in with Manar Alherech. Prior to successfully defending his thesis in January 2021, Dr. Alherech spent six years as a graduate student in Shannon Stahl’s lab at UW–Madison.