Bio
Dr. Esther S. Parish has been a staff Researcher with ORNL's Environmental Sciences Division for 15 years and currently leads interdisciplinary research projects for the US Department of Energy's BioEnergy Technologies Office and Water Power Technologies Office. Esther's primary research interests include utilizing geographic information science and integrated models and datasets to assess potential environmental and economic benefits and tradeoffs of energy systems at landscape scales. With a Ph.D. in Energy Science & Engineering, a Masters in Geography from The University of Tennessee, and B.S. in Geology & Geophysics from Yale University, Dr. Parish has expertise in landscape ecology, GIS, sustainability indicators, watershed hydrology, and pollution prevention. She has published ~40 articles in a variety of peer reviewed journals, including Applied Energy, PNAS, Landscape Ecology, Journal of Environmental Management, Computers & Geosciences, and Biofuels, Bioproducts & Biorefining.
Professional Experience
Esther began her career in the oilfields of Oklahoma as an open hole well logging engineer for Schlumberger. She moved to Oak Ridge, TN in 1995 to become an environmental consultant for the DOE Pollution Prevention Program and helped minimize radioactive and toxic waste generation during cleanup of the former K-25 Site. Esther also supported the US Army Corps of Engineers' Environmental Division at Fort Campbell. After getting a master's degree in Geography, Esther became a GIS Analyst for the Tennessee Valley Authority in Norris, TN. She taught geology and geography courses for Roane State Community College and worked as a part-time environmental consultant while raising her two children. Esther joined ORNL as a post-master's research associate in the Computational Sciences & Engineering Division in 2007 and became an ORNL staff researcher for the Environmental Division in 2009. Since earning her doctorate in 2017, Dr. Parish has led a variety of ORNL research projects sponsored by the US Department of Energy.
Awards
- Stanley I. Auerbach Award for Distinguished Achievement presented to Esther Parish by the ORNL Environmental Sciences Division “For creative scientific analyses and spatially explicit tools to help renewable energy stakeholders and the nation meet sustainability goals” (October 2022)
- UT-Battelle 2017 Award for "Science Communicator" (October 2017)
Education
- Ph.D. Energy Science & Engineering, Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee (December 2017)
- M.S. Geography, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee (May 2002)
- B.S. Geology & Geophysics, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut (May 1994)