Jianting “Julian” Zhu, Ph.D. was just named the Maki Chair in the Division of Hydrologic Sciences. Zhu has been with DRI since 2004 and is an accomplished researcher with numerous articles published.

“I came to Las Vegas to study how large scale hydrological processes operate, particularly in relation to desert ecosystems and in response to climate change. Water is an important and scarce resource in the desert southwest and it’s important to provide planners with the information so that they can make educated decisions,” Zhu said.

Zhu’s focus of study is scale issues in hydrology related to ecosystem functioning, upscaling of hydrological and ecological processes, evapotranspiration estimates, and remote sensing applications.

The Maki award will also benefit UNR/UNLV students; Zhu says that he hopes to use the award to attract eager and hard working students to work his research group.
Zhu earned his Ph.D. in civil engineering at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada and his master’s degree in fluid mechanics at Peking University in Beijing, China.

The Maki Chair of Hydrologic Sciences is designed as a rotating position with duration of one to three years and an annual budget of $50,000. All DHS full-time Rank III or IV research faculty with at least five years of service at the Rank II or above level, and who have not held this position for a time equal to at least twice the duration of the prior award, are eligible for consideration.

DHS created the Maki Chair of Hydrologic Sciences from a donation by Mr. and Mrs. Sulo and Aileen Maki. The Maki’s donated the Rebel Carwash to the then Water Resources Center. The Maki's philanthropic spirit, focused in southern Nevada, continues to provide significant benefits to DHS and DRI in general.