Local Luminary: Catherine O'Reilly

Leading Lights of the Community

by Brian K. Mahoney and photographs by Matt Petricone, November 26, 2007

Bard assistant professor of biology Catherine O’Reilly grew up mostly in South Africa, but also lived in Kenya, Papua New Guniea, and Tanzania as a child. She moved to the US when she was 13. O’Reilly, a freshwater ecology specialist, credits her strong interest in studying aquatic environments to an extended period of drought she experienced while living in South Africa, when she and her six siblings were allowed only one bath (each) a week.

O’Reilly contributed to a section in the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Working Group II report, “Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability,” which was released this past April, summarizing research on the impact of climate change on freshwater environments. The report cited strong evidence that recent climate changes, particularly increases in temperature, are having a substantial impact on lakes and rivers around the world. The work of the IPCC was recognized for the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize, which the group shared with former Vice President Al Gore.

O’Reilly’s work on climate change in East Africa has been published in the scientific journal Nature and was featured on PBS and on Public Radio International’s “Living on Earth” program.