Chad is a graduate student in the Atmospheric Sciences department at the University of Washington. He is broadly interested in better understanding which phenomena cause rainfall extremes that translate into significant flooding events. In particular, his interests include looking into the teleconnections between tropical phenomena (like the Madden Julian Oscillation) and midlatitude rainfall events, and how the biosphere might impact these tropical phenomena.

Before moving to Seattle, Chad worked as a civil and environmental engineer, and then as an environmental journalist in New York City. He has an undergraduate degree in Environmental Engineering from Yale University, and a graduate degree in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences from the City College of New York.