Leland is a PhD candidate at the University of Delaware and a marine geochemist. Leland studies the organic matter in deep sea and hydrothermal ecosystems. The deep sea may seem empty, but is teeming with life on the microscopic level. Microbial communities in the deep sea may have a small effect on a local level, but their effort accumulates into significant changes across the entire ocean. Leland uses chemical tools to study the structure and composition of organic matter as microbes degrade and transform it. These deep sea communities have the potential to remove and stabilize carbon, helping to maintain the Earth’s climate. Leland hopes his work will add to the importance of the deep sea and in identifying areas that are necessary for conservation. Outside of science, Leland is somewhere in the forest or playing his viola with the local community orchestra.
