Graduate Studies is pleased to announce and recognize the postdoctoral scholars who have been awarded a 2024 Postdoctoral Excellence Award.

Offered by the UC Davis Postdoctoral Scholars Association, this annual award recognizes the vital role that postdoctoral scholars play in maintaining excellent research, mentoring and outreach at UC Davis – and beyond. This year, four postdocs received the award, with the intent to expand the award to recognize more deserving postdocs in subsequent years. 

Each award comes with a certificate and a $500 prize. The 2024 winners are listed below.

Nathalie Aoun

Dr. Nathalie Aoun is a postdoctoral scholar in the Department of Plant Pathology. She obtained her Ph.D. in plants-microorganisms interactions at the Laboratory of Plant-Microbe Interactions of INRAE (Toulouse, France). Nathalie is driven to uncover how the evolution of plants and bacteria shapes the quantitative scale of plant disease. Her research lies at the intersection of plant-microbe interactions, molecular genetics, and population genetics. Nathalie’s current research investigates infection mechanisms of devastating plant pathogenic bacteria, Ralstonia. 

Gina Chaput

Dr. Gina Chaput completed her PhD at University of Massachusetts Amherst as an EPA STAR Fellow. As a postdoc at UC Davis, under the guidance of Drs. Jonathan Eisen, Jay Stachowicz, and Maggie Sogin, she works with California native seagrass, Zostera marina, as a model organism to understand plant-microbe interactions. She developed tools and molecular methods catered towards marine plant systems and has designed projects that give independent research opportunities to over twenty undergraduates.

Nitin Kumar

Dr. Nitin Kumar is a postdoc at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. His research focuses on engineering earth block construction (primarily made of soil) for affordable, eco-efficient, and hazard-resistant dwellings. He is currently leading large-scale field tests on a small earth block structure to demonstrate its resilience to wildfires. Additionally, Dr. Kumar is working on developing earth blocks for block-based 3D printing of structures and compressed Martian regolith blocks for extraplanetary construction.

Garfield Kwan

Dr. Garfield Kwan is a UC Davis Delta Science Fellow and postdoctoral researcher with Dr. Nann Fangue. Garfield is currently generating metabolic index models to determine viable salmon and smelt habitats across the San Francisco Estuary, while simultaneously examining fish physiological responses to post-wildfire ash exposure. Garfield has provided experiential learning opportunities to 11 UC Davis undergraduates, and he intentionally guides students to learn critical research techniques and to provide intellectual input for ongoing research.