About Our Faculty
Environment & Sustainability Department

About Dr. Heidi Steltzer

Dr. Heidi Steltzer is a Professor of Environment and Sustainability and Biology and is the coordinator for the Environmental Science Degree Program. Dr. Steltzer is a co-Principal Investigator on the U.S. Department of Energy’s Watershed Function Scientific Focus Area that is led out of the U.S. DOE Berkeley Laboratory, California, with field studies based at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory in Gothic, Colorado. She is on the board of directors for the Center for Snow and Avalanche Studies in Silverton, Colorado, and the Western Alliance for Restoration Management at Western Colorado University, Gunnison, Colorado.

Dr. Steltzer is a lead author for the chapter on High Mountain Areas in the 2019 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on the Oceans and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate. She is a member of the American Geophysical Union (AGU), and an advocate in AGU’s Voices for Science program launched in 2018 to promote communication about the value and impact of Earth and space science to decision makers, journalists, and public audiences.

Dr. Steltzer is a mountain and Arctic scientist, explorer, and science communicator. She studies how environmental changes affect mountain watersheds and Arctic ecosystems and their link to our well-being. She has spent 25 years conducting field studies on mountain and Arctic hillslopes in Colorado, Alaska, Greenland and recently China. She’s pioneered studies on the impacts of earlier snowmelt through experimentally accelerating snowmelt and monitoring plant and ecosystem responses. Her field studies lead to an experiential approach to higher education, in which she creates opportunities for student-led inquiry into environmental issues. Her experiences engaging with students have influenced her choice to invest in science communication and climate diplomacy. Dr. Steltzer earned her BS in Biology at Duke University. Her doctorate is in Ecosystem Ecology from University of Colorado at Boulder. Find her on social media @heidimountains.

Recent publications

Hock, R., G. Rasul, C. Adler, B. Cáceres, S. Gruber, Y. Hirabayashi, M. Jackson, A. Kääb, S. Kang, S. Kutuzov, Al. Milner, U. Molau, S. Morin, B. Orlove, and H. Steltzer, 2019: High Mountain Areas. In: IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate [H.-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, V. Masson-Delmotte, P. Zhai, M. Tignor, E. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, A. Alegría, M. Nicolai, A. Okem, J. Petzold, B. Rama, N.M. Weyer (eds.)].

Livensperger, C., Steltzer, H., Darrouzet‐Nardi, A., Sullivan, P.F., Wallenstein, M. and Weintraub, M.N. 2019. Experimentally warmer and drier conditions in an Arctic plant community reveal microclimatic controls on senescence. Ecosphere, 10(4), p.e02677.

Scientific editor, Cryosphere 1.5, a report for policy makers that summarizes key findings of the IPCC 1.5C and cryosphere special reports, International Climate Cryosphere Initiative, 2019

Hubbard, S. S., K. H. Williams, D. Agarwal, J. Banfield, H. Beller, N. Bouskill, E. Brodie, R. Carroll, B. Dafflon, D. Dwivedi, N. Falco, B. Faybishenko, R. Maxwell, P. Nico, C. Steefel, H. Steltzer, T. Tokunaga, P. A. Tran, H. Wainwright, and C. Varadharajan. 2018. The East River, Colorado, Watershed: A Mountainous Community Testbed for Improving Predictive Understanding of Multiscale Hydrological–Biogeochemical Dynamics. Vadose Zone J. 17:180061. doi:10.2136/vzj2018.03.0061

Recent Honors

• Witness before the US House Committee Science, Space, and Technology for the U.S. House of Representatives for the hearing on: An Update on the Climate Crisis: From Science to Solutions, 2020
• Powerhouse Science Center Honoree, Durango, Colorado, 2019

In the News

• The Durango Herald, 2022, "Earth Day offers a platform for environmental education in Durango"
• The Durango Herald, 2022, "Water seminar asks what prolonged drought means for Southwest Colorado"
• VICE, 2022, "Climate Researchers on the Most Hopeful Things They’ve Seen Yet"
• The Journal, 2021, "What would Biden’s infrastructure plan do for Southwest Colorado?"
• The Denver Gazette, 2021, "High and Dry: Colorado in Drought — Scientists preparing for 'chaotic weather' future"
• The Durango Herald, 2021, "Rep. Lauren Boebert’s first bill aims to block re-entry into Paris Climate Agreement"
• Inside Climate News, 2021, "Five Years After Paris, Where Are We Now? Facing Urgent Choices"
• Smithsonian Magazine, 2020, "Into Thicker Air and Onto Thinner Ice: How Climate Change Is Affecting Mount Everest"
• Colorado Politics, 2020, "Reach out to counter climate change"
• The Durango Herald, 2020, "Ice Fire west of Silverton grows to 508 acres, 15% contained"
• The Bridge, 2020, "Allies and Community Are Crucial for Science. Here’s why."
• Ensia, 2020, "Opinion: If we want to increase trust in science, we need to direct more research dollars to rural America"
• NPR, 2020, "From Allergies To Declining Business, Warming Winters Affect Everyday Life"
• The Colorado Sun, 2020, "How will Western water be affected by climate change? A tiny Colorado flower may have the answer"
• Eos, 2020, "Scientists Say Land and Ocean Are Key to Tackling Climate Crisis"
• National Geographic, 2019, "Oceans and ice are absorbing the brunt of climate change"
• Berkeley Lab, 2019, "How Does Climate Change Affect Mountainous Watersheds That Give Us Our Water?"
• Inside Climate News, 2019, "In the Mountains, Climate Change Is Disrupting Everything, from How Water Flows to When Plants Flower"