Professor Randy Chambers specializes in wetlands ecology. He has been the Director of the Keck Environmental Field Laboratory since arriving at William & Mary in 2001. Serving as a faculty link between the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) and the William & Mary main campus, he teaches and researches in marine science, geology, and environmental science in addition to biology.
Dr. Chambers has guided more than 90 student (predominantly undergraduate) research endeavors in his role as Director of the Keck Environmental Field Lab, around which he has built a strong sense of community. With an impressive body of published journal articles — many co-authored with students — Chambers’ research focuses on nutrient dynamics, invasive species, and turtle ecology in wetlands. In 2009, he won an Outstanding Reviewer award from the Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation for one of his many editorial referee roles (for the journal Estuaries and Coasts). He is a project collaborator on the Florida Coastal Everglades Long-term Ecological Research (LTER) project and has obtained external funding from NSF, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Department of Defense, and Virginia Environmental Endowment. He has also been instrumental in three successful Andrew W. Mellon Foundation grants to build the Environmental Science and Policy (ENSP) program; he has served on the program’s executive committee since its launch.
Chambers remains eagerly engaged in service to the College and local and professional communities. Keenly committed to local environmental health, he has directed the College Creek Alliance since 2005 and consulted with planners and regulators on local water quality issues.