Research Team

Chris Olivares (he/él) - I believe microorganisms are the best chemists in the world. Microbial processes can inspire us to develop new pollutant clean up solutions, helps us become more resilient to climate change disasters, and be powerful environmental health indicators. The very complex issues of pollution and climate change disasters require all of our perspectives, which is why our lab combines all of our strengths, from analytical chemistry and microbiology to data science.

My research journey has taken me finding joy in bench-scale microcosms, small worlds, to study how microorganisms adapt to pollution from nitroaromatics to forever chemicals,  as well as wading and chasing storms after forest fires to evaluate water quality. The best part of it all is to get to do this work with my students and colleagues.  Water always makes me happy, whether is is swimming in it or painting it. CV · LinkedIn · chris.olivares@uci.edu 

Jialin Dong (she/her) - My research interests include analysis of the ‘forever chemicals’ per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) and oil pollution, combining environmental analysis with Data Mining Methods, especially Machine Learning. Hobbies: water sports, playing table tennis, hiking, cooking. Personal Website · LinkedIn jialind2@uci.edu

Lyssa Morgan (she/her)- My research interests are in studying microbes and processes involved in biotransformation/bioremediation of industrial and environmental contaminants. Prior to her start at UCI, she completed her master’s degree in Synthetic Biology and Biotechnology at the University of Edinburgh and a bachelor’s degree in Biotechnology at Cal Poly Pomona. Her master’s thesis involved research into biochar mediated bioaugmentation of a hydrocarbonoclastic consortia of microorganisms for improved bioremediation of hydrocarbon contaminated sediment. Hobbies: reading, crochet, crafting, hiking. LinkedIn · lemorgan@uci.edu

Donghui Ma (she/her) - My research interests are studying microbial biotransformation of per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) and involved microbial oxygenases. Before starting at UCI, she completed her master’s degree at the University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, where her thesis focused on the degradation potential and maternal-infant prenatal transfer of PFAS. Hobbies: photography, dancing, traveling. Publication · donghuim@uci.edu

Allison Tilzey (she/her) - My research interests include water chemistry, WUI fires, and water quality. She has assisted in collecting and analyzing environmental samples from Aliso Creek after the 2022 Coastal Fire, and presented preliminary findings at UCI’s Spring 2023 UROP Symposium in collaboration with Maya El Ajouz. She has participated in on campus tutoring initiatives through the Learning and Academic Resources Center, as well as on campus engineering clubs such as Global Engineering Brigades and ASCE. Hobbies: spend time with friends, go on hikes, and swimming LinkedIn · atilzey@uci.edu

Theodore Jagodits (he/him) is a MS student in the Computer Science Department. His research interests include deep learning and distributed systems. He received is undergraduate degree in computer science from Stevens Institute of Technology in 2021. Before UCI, he worked for two years at the MITRE corporation doing research and development for government systems. Hobbies: running, surfing, triathlons, reading.  LinkedIn · tjagodit@uci.edu

Dylan Lee (he/him) My name is Dylan, and I’m currently a M.S. Computer Science student in my second year here at UCI! As part of the Olivares Lab, I work on data science and machine learning related research concerning the risk levels and types of PFAS within different water sources in the United States. Hobbies: Outside of school, I work as a AI Engineer, and I love to skateboard and watch NBA!  LinkedIn · dylankl@uci.edu

Yooooo! Cameron Daley (he/him) is a junior specialist and postbac alumni of the  UCI CLIMATE Justice Initiative! He graduated Environmental Sciences at UCR with a focus on soil geochemistry and soil remediation through the use of plants and mushroom, focusing on the removal of heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in urban soils. In Dr. Olivares’s lab, he will be assisting in soil remediation of PFAS through the use of microbes. He wants to hone in on relating the PFAS remediation research with the people that would be most affected by it, to help maximize the community effect. Hobbies: watching and analyzing movies, dance, and music mixing. LinkedIn · csdaley@uci.edu