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Carleton Experts Available: Ontario Wildfires

Published on July 21, 2026

Time to read: 2 minutes

Wildfires continue to burn and move quickly in northern Ontario, creating air quality issues and forcing thousands from their homes. Carleton experts are available to discuss a variety of subjects related to the fires.

If you are interested in speaking with the experts below, please feel free to reach out to them directly. If you require other assistance, please email Steven Reid, Media Relations Officer, at steven.reid3@carleton.ca.

For other experts, please visit the Carleton Experts Database: https://experts.carleton.ca/.

Koreen Millard
Professor, Geography and Environmental Studies at Carleton University

Email: koreen_millard@carleton.ca

Millard is available to discuss wildfires in Canada and, more specifically, mapping and monitoring them, and peatland wildfires and the increasing frequency of peatland fires due to climate change and changing precipitation.  This is also related to increased air quality issues as peatlands smoulder for a long time.

Millard’s research sits at a crossroads between geomatics, physical geography and big data science. She focuses on ecosystem monitoring using remotely sensed imagery. By coupling remote sensing with extensive monitoring in the field, her research helps predict the responses of wetlands, northern ecosystems, and other vulnerable areas to change and wildfires.

For more on Millard, visit: https://experts.carleton.ca/koreen-millard

Chris Russill
Professor, School of Journalism and Communication at Carleton University

Email: Chris.Russill@carleton.ca

Russill is available to discuss crisis communications, misinformation, and the AI fabrication nexus of wildfire communication. He can also speak to the way Trump and U.S. politicians speak publicly about the fires to undermine perceptions of Canada in recent years. 

Russill is an academic director at Re.Climate, a centre for climate communication and public engagement at Carleton. His current work focuses on problems of disinformation and denial in their relevance to climate action.

Russill has published a study on climate misinformation that took place during the wildfires of 2023.

For more on Russill, visit: https://experts.carleton.ca/chris-russill

Gabriel Wainer
Professor, Systems and Computing Engineering at Carleton University

Email: Gabriel.Wainer@sce.carleton.ca

Wainer works on modelling methods with various real-world applications, including large-scale evacuations, wildfires and the spread of smoke from fires. He is available to discuss the methods and techniques to model fires, and how to use advanced tools to help control fires.

Wainer is the head of the Advanced Real-Time Simulation lab, located at Carleton’s Centre for Advanced Simulation and Visualization (V-Sim).

For more on Wainer, visit: https://experts.carleton.ca/gabriel-wainer

Media Contact
Steven Reid (he/him)
Media Relations Officer
Carleton University
613-265-6613
Steven.Reid3@carleton.ca

Looking for a Carleton expert?
Visit: https://experts.carleton.ca/

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