Thomas Lavanchy

My research interests are in hydrology and social vulnerability and adaption to water insecurity. I use geographic information systems, qualitative, participatory and quantitative methods in my research to integrate perspectives of hydrology, political ecology, and human ecology across spatial and temporal scales.

I completed a PhD in 2015 in the Department of Geography & the Environment at the University of Denver as an Environmental Protection Agency STAR Fellow. My dissertation research involved groundwater monitoring of 72 wells, geological mapping, qualitative interviews with local well owners and tourism developers, and establishing a meteorological monitoring network to improve data supported groundwater decisions in rural Nicaragua. Those collective efforts were aimed at supporting equity of water access for local communities and promoting sustainability within the tourism industry.

I have published on a range of water topics, including the geology and hydrogeology of southwest Nicaragua, the political ecology of water governance in Nicaragua, the "Day Zero" water crisis in Cape Town, South Africa, and equitable access to water in a township in Cape Town.

Research Interests:

Human-Environment Interactions
Sustainability
Hydrogeology
Water Security
Environmental Justice
South Africa
West African Sahel