Andrea E. Kirkwood

Last updated

Andrea E. Kirkwood
Born
Andrea Elizabeth Kirkwood

Scarborough, Ontario, Canada
Alma mater
Known for
AwardsOntario Tech Research Excellence Chair, 2023–2025
Scientific career
Fields
Institutions Ontario Tech University
Thesis  (2003)

Andrea Elizabeth Kirkwood is a Canadian environmental microbiologist and aquatic ecologist, and a professor in the Faculty of Science at Ontario Tech University in Oshawa, Ontario. [1] She leads research on freshwater ecosystems, with emphasis on algal ecology, aquatic invasive species, and urban water quality, and serves as Research Excellence Chair in Urban Water for 2023–2025. [2]

Contents

Early life and education

Kirkwood was raised in Scarborough, Ontario. She completed a joint-honours Bachelor of Environmental Studies and Biology at the University of Waterloo in 1994, followed by a Master of Science in aquatic ecology at McMaster University in 1996 and a Doctor of Philosophy in environmental microbiology at the University of Toronto in 2003. [1] After receiving her Ph.D., she undertook postdoctoral research at Oklahoma State University (2002–2004) and the University of Calgary (2005–2008). [1]

Career

Kirkwood joined Ontario Tech University as an assistant professor in 2008. She was promoted to associate professor in 2014 and to full professor in 2022, becoming the first woman to reach that rank in the Faculty of Science at the institution. [3] At Ontario Tech she teaches courses including conservation biology, environmental research methods, and aquatic ecology. [1]

In recognition of her research in urban water systems, she was appointed Research Excellence Chair in Urban Water for the period 2023–2025. [2]

Kirkwood has participated in public science communication and policy discussions related to freshwater protection, including commentary on federal and international water research funding and stresses on the Great Lakes. [4] [5] [6]

Research

Kirkwood directs the Collaborative Laboratory in Environmental Aquatic Research (CLEAR) at Ontario Tech, which investigates aquatic community structure and function across landscapes influenced by urbanization, land-use change, and invasive species, spanning lakes, wetlands, rivers, creeks, and stormwater systems. [7] Projects include community science-based water quality monitoring, ecological responses to invasive macrophytes, and algal biotechnology applications such as biofuel and wastewater studies. [7]

Kirkwood’s research has received funding from national and regional agencies, including the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, and the Ontario Trillium Foundation. [7]

From 2016 to 2019 she served on the International Joint Commission’s Great Lakes Science Advisory Board, providing scientific advice on water quality issues affecting the Great Lakes basin. [8]

Selected publications

  • Harrow-Lyle, T.J. & Kirkwood, A.E. (2022). *The non-native charophyte Nitellopsis obtusa (starry stonewort) influences shifts in macrophyte diversity and community structure in lakes across a geologically heterogeneous landscape*. **Aquatic Ecology**. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10452-022-09950-0 [7]
  • Smith, E.D., Balika, D. & Kirkwood, A.E. (2021). *Nearshore water quality and land-use scale: community science-based monitoring in a large, shallow Canadian lake*. **Lake and Reservoir Management**, 37(4), 431–444. https://doi.org/10.1080/10402381.2021.1989525 [7]
  • Strangway, C., Bowman, M.F. & Kirkwood, A.E. (2017). *Assessing landscape and contaminant point sources as spatial determinants of water quality in the Vermilion River System, Ontario, Canada*. **Environmental Science and Pollution Research**. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-9933-1 [7]
  • Harrow-Lyle, T.J. & Kirkwood, A.E. (2021). *Low benthic oxygen and high internal phosphorus loading associated with Nitellopsis obtusa in a large, polymictic lake*. **Frontiers in Environmental Science**. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2021.735509 [7]
  • Gilbert, N., Fulthorpe, R. & Kirkwood, A.E. (2012). *Microbial diversity and biodegradation potential of urban wetlands with different input regimes*. **Canadian Journal of Microbiology**, 58, 887–897. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjm-2016-0803 [7]

Recognition

Kirkwood has been featured in media on algal blooms and freshwater ecology and was profiled in the Canadian Science Publishing Blog’s “Women in Science” series in 2014. [9]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Andrea Kirkwood". Faculty of Science. Ontario Tech University. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
  2. 1 2 "Transformational research, in your community: Ontario Tech's local R&D enterprise builds global influence". Ontario Tech News. 19 October 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
  3. ↑ "Alumni breaks gender-barrier at Ontario Tech University". University of Waterloo Environment News. 24 August 2022. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
  4. ↑ "Cuts would directly impact freshwater restoration – leaked texts hint that Carney's cuts will target water protection agency". The Regional. 3 September 2025. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
  5. ↑ "Trump's cuts to Great Lakes research threaten freshwater for Ontarians". The Pointer. 22 May 2025. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
  6. ↑ "Ontario's growing environmental crisis: how two major projects are harming the Great Lakes". The Sarnia Journal. 5 February 2025. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Collaborative Lab in Environmental Aquatic Research" . Retrieved 4 January 2026.
  8. ↑ "UOIT biologist to advise IJC on Great Lakes water quality". Ontario Tech News. 28 March 2016. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
  9. ↑ "Women in Science: Dr. Andrea Kirkwood". Canadian Science Publishing Blog. 2 July 2014. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
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