Rate My Professor Amy Townsend-Small

Dr. Amy Townsend-Small is a Professor of Environmental Science in the School of Environment and Sustainability at the University of Cincinnati. She holds a B.A. in Biology (Environmental Science) and English (Literature) from Skidmore College in 1998 and a Ph.D. in Marine Science from The University of Texas at Austin in 2006. Following her Ph.D., she completed postdoctoral training as a Research Fellow at The University of Texas at Austin from 2006 to 2007, studying biogeochemistry and hydrology of Arctic rivers, and as a Project Scientist at the University of California, Irvine from 2007 to 2010, examining carbon cycling and greenhouse gas emissions in Los Angeles. Notable career appointments include Senior Climate Advisor in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs at the United States Department of State during the Biden-Harris Administration and holder of the UNESCO Chair in Water and Climate Change at the University of Cincinnati.

Townsend-Small's research focuses on the sources and fluxes of methane—a potent greenhouse gas—utilizing stable isotopes of carbon and hydrogen as source tracers. Her studies investigate emissions from oil and gas operations in Ohio, Texas, and Colorado; urban wastewater systems; and lakes including Lake Erie and Arctic water bodies amid hydrological changes and warming. She has co-authored dozens of peer-reviewed publications, including "Assessment of methane emissions from the US oil and gas supply chain" (Science, 2018), "Emissions of coalbed and natural gas methane from abandoned oil and gas wells in the United States" (Geophysical Research Letters, 2016), "Reconciling divergent estimates of oil and gas methane emissions" (2015), "Carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas emissions in urban turf" (2010), and a study on groundwater methane near Utica Shale fracking sites in Ohio (Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 2018). Her work has attracted millions in research funding and supports greenhouse gas emissions reduction policies for governments. Honors include the Science and Community Award from the Ohio Environmental Council, President’s Volunteer Service Award, P.E.O. Scholar Award, NSF GK-12 Graduate Student Fellowship, Phi Beta Kappa, and invitations to speak at American Geophysical Union Fall Meetings, Geological Society of America Annual Meeting, and American Association of Geographers Annual Meeting.