Camille Gaillard
Postdoctoral Fellow at Northern Arizona University

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Camille Gaillard is a Post-doctoral researcher at Northern Arizona University, working jointly in the School of Earth and Sustainability and the School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber-Systems under the mentorship of Dr. Duan Biggs and Dr. Christopher Doughty. He is an interdisciplinary researcher with focus on biogeography, ecological modeling, and ecosystem dynamics, particularly in semi-arid and tropical regions. His research centers on understanding and predicting the impacts of environmental and climatic drivers on ecosystems across scales (continental, regional and local) in a changing world of increasing human impacts, with the aim to contribute to sustainable management strategies.

Camille Gaillard’s interdisciplinary approach delves into traits, trade-offs, and key mechanisms that explain ecosystem states and behavior. In a recent NASA funded project he integrated animal community interactions, vegetation structure, and advanced technologies such as LIDAR, TLS data, and HPC computing to address how climate change and land use affect ecosystems.

In addition to their focus on ecosystem dynamics, Camille Gaillard's interests extend to trans-disciplinary research, including social, economic, and political sciences. Specifically, this focuses on conservation, citizen science, and remote sensing, bridging the gap between theoretical insights and practical applications in ecosystem management. This broader perspective underlines his commitment to producing science that is not only academically rigorous but also socially relevant, contributing to both theoretical understanding and practical solutions for ecosystem management.

Camille Gaillard holds a PhD in Ecological Modeling and Biogeography from Goethe University Frankfurt (2014-2020), where they worked with and contributed to the Global Dynamic Vegetation Model aDGVM2—an advanced individual-based, trait-based, and process-based model. As part of an international, multi-disciplinary research consortium, his thesis contributed to predict and understand the combined effects of land use and climate change on vegetation, biodiversity, and rural livelihoods, contributing to sustainable management strategies.

Gaillard's obtained a Master’s (MSc) degree in Environmental Resources Management from University College Dublin (2008-2010), where they specialized in sustainable environmental management. His Master’s thesis provided valuable insights for policymakers on sustainable agriculture. Earlier, he earned a Licence (BSc) in Sociology and Anthropology from Université de Bordeaux (2007-2008), where he worked on traditional knowledge and local policymakers perspective on Nature and a Master 1 (MSc) in Biodiversity and Tropical Ecosystems from Université de La Réunion (2006-2007), where he researched the speciation and evolution of Psiadia species in La Réunion. His educational foundation was grounded by a Licence (BSc) in Biological Sciences from Université de Bordeaux (2003-2006), focusing on genetics, ecology, and plant biology.

Throughout his career, Camille Gaillard has been actively involved in scientific communities, co-founding the Leibniz PhD network and the N2 Network of Doctoral Researchers, and serving as a speaker for Young Scientists @ Senckenberg.