Dr. Riaz Bibi

Riaz Bibi received her PhD degree in Marine Ecology and Biogeochemistry from the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), South Korea in 2022. After PhD, she worked as Research Professor at OJeong Resilience Institute at the Korea University, Seoul, South Korea. Currently she is working as postdoc at Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Sea (ICBM), University of Oldenburg, Germany.

She is marine ecologist and biogeochemist, whose research is focused on impacts of climate change on biogeochemical processes in estuarine marine ecosystems. During her undergraduate and master’s career, she pursued her interests in environmental sciences through various independent research areas. Her research led her to conduct fieldwork in many unique places and experiences.  

Her primary research interests lie in Climate Change and Estuarine Marine Biogeochemical Biogeochemistry. Her PhD research focused on characterizing sources of Particulate Organic Matter (POM) and impacts of different regional environmental factors on Phytoplankton dynamics (community composition, total biomass and phytoplankton physiology).

Marine ecosystems play a key role in the biogeochemical cycling of elements on our planet. Phytoplankton are the main primary producers in marine ecosystems. So, she is specifically interested in using different proxies such as Particulate Organic Carbon  (POC) and Nitrogen (PN), stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen (δ13C and δ15N), POC:Chla,  and C:N ratio to explore how physical and biological factors, such inorganic nutrients inputs, salinity, temperature, and suspended particulate organic matter (SPM) controls phytoplankton primary production and phytoplankton community composition to better understand the role of the teeny-tiny phytoplankton in marine carbon and nitrogen cycle under natural and anthropogenic climate change.

Her PhD thesis was based to answer the following fundamental questions of marine ecology and biogeochemistry field:

1. What are the main drivers regulating seasonal and spatial phytoplankton dynamics and primary productivity? The relative importance of riverine inputs on along the estuarine-marine continuum.

2. How does resource limitation affect the community composition and physiology of marine phytoplankton and the biogeochemical processes? Changes in marine planktonic community structure and their consequent effect on biogeochemical cycling (C:N:P).

3. What are the characterizing factors for the origin of organic matter sources using stable isotopes under varying riverine SPM inputs in a low turbidity temperate estuary? Contribution of phytoplankton production to organic matter.

To know more about her research please check out list of Publications.