Sasha Wilson

Area of Study / Keywords

economic geology geobiology geochemistry mineralogy sedimentology

About

I am a mineralogist and biogeochemist whose work focuses on environmental aspects of economic geology and on naturally occurring chemical sediments.

Employment History

2022– Professor and Canada Research Chair in Biogeochemistry of Sustainable Mineral Resources, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada

2018– 2022 Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Biogeochemistry of Sustainable Mineral Resources, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada

2016–2017 Senior Lecturer (=Associate Professor), Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia

2015–2017 Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) Fellow, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia

2011–2015 Lecturer (=Assistant Professor), Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia

2010–2011 NASA Astrobiology Institute Postdoctoral Fellow, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, U.S.A.

Research

My research team and I use mineral behaviour (with a focus on crystal chemistry, isotope geochemistry and mineral–fluid–microbe interactions) to understand and manage environmental change in engineered and natural landscapes. Much of my work uses carbonation of mine wastes to remove CO2 from air while enhancing recovery of the critical metals we need to produce clean energy. My team and I study analogous natural systems, and draw upon ideas from chemical sedimentology and soil science, to inform our applied work.

Our technical strengths are in applied and environmental mineralogy (including clay mineralogy), quantitative X-ray analytical techniques, aqueous and sediment geochemistry, and stable isotope geochemistry. Our research employs field sampling and laboratory analyses as well as experiments in the field, laboratory and at synchrotron light sources.

You can learn more about our work and the research team here.

Teaching

I currently teach in the Environmental Earth Sciences and Geology programs at the University of Alberta. I teach EAS 224, which gives an introduction to minerals and their essential role in the formation and biogeochemical evolution of planets. I co-teach EAS 354 in the Canadian Rocky Mountains, which provides advanced training in environmental monitoring, sampling and mapping within the fields of quaternary geology, environmental geochemistry and geobiology.

Teaching qualification

2014 Graduate Certificate in Academic Practice (Higher Education), Monash University

EAS 224 - Mineralogy I

Principles of crystallography, physical and chemical properties of minerals, determinative mineralogy. Prerequisite: EAS 101, 105, 210 or SCI 100. [Faculty of Science]

EAS 354 - Environmental Earth Science Field School

Introduction to fieldwork in geomorphology, biogeography and microclimatology. Elementary field mapping, the use of electronic field instrumentation for hydrological, water quality and micro-climatological monitoring, mapping and analysis of vegetation patterns, and techniques for the field description and laboratory analysis of soils and sediments. Introductory lectures and ten days of fieldwork. Requires payment of additional student instructional support fees. Refer to the Tuition and Fees page in the University Regulations section of the Calendar. Prerequisites: EAS 225, 250 and either 270 or 327, or consent of Instructor. [Faculty of Science]

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