scientist

Leonardo Calle, Ph.D.

Ecologist, modeler, and artist. I study how ecosystems change — from coastlines to the global carbon cycle — build the software and companies that put that science to work, and draw the same curiosity in ink under the name Meiji.

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I'm an ecologist and computational modeler. I study how water, climate, and land use shape ecosystems, from the hours per day a tidal flat is usable by foraging birds to the global carbon cycle, and I build the models and software that put that science to work: process-based ecosystem models, statistical and machine learning methods, and open tools for researchers and managers.

Since finishing my Ph.D. at Montana State University in 2019 as a NASA Earth and Space Science Fellow, I've worked in a series of project-term roles: postdoc at the University of Montana, research scientist at UMD-ESSIC and NASA Goddard, lead model developer at Regrow Ag, and now research scientist at the Harte Research Institute (Texas A&M Corpus Christi). Moving between university, federal, and industry projects has given me broad, hands-on experience with large datasets, high-performance computing, and model development, along with the habit of getting productive quickly on a new team. I've published 30+ peer-reviewed papers along the way.

I also founded CalleEcology Inc. and mewmewmew Inc., taught a course for Ecological Society of America members on AI-assisted programming for data science, coach youth soccer in Missoula, and make art under the name Meiji. I'm open to full-time research, teaching, and applied science roles.

Leonardo Calle
Science

Research Themes & Contributions

Earth System & Carbon Modeling
Integrating forest demography (age/size structure) into global models and reconciling top-down/bottom-up terrestrial carbon budgets.
Land Use & Climate Teleconnections
Quantifying how historical land-use changes and global climate drivers (like ENSO) shift regional carbon and methane fluxes.
Time-Series & Signal Processing
Developing segmentation algorithms to decode complex seasonal environmental data and isolate model biases.
Remote Sensing Synthesis
Fusing multi-sensor satellite data (LiDAR, optical) to track large-scale forest regrowth and shifting vegetation baselines.
Ecohydrology & Habitat Phenology
Modeling physical environmental constraints (e.g., water availability, tidal cycles) as dynamic filters for species behavior and habitat viability.
Behavioral & Coastal Ecology
Analyzing how nutrient availability, physical constraints, and human subsidies influence animal foraging and distribution in coastal zones.
Theoretical & Evolutionary Ecology
Investigating broad conceptual frameworks like evolutionary bet-hedging and the spatial dynamics of positive species interactions.
Disciplinary Leadership & Mentorship
Advancing the field of ecology through student mentorship frameworks, career path structural analysis, and science communication.

Selected 1st-Author Publications

Ecological Monographs — Time-integrated habitat availability is a resource attribute that informs patterns of use in intertidal areas
Geoscientific Model Development — Ecosystem age-class dynamics and distribution in the LPJ-wsl v2.0 global ecosystem model
Environmental Research Letters — Regional carbon fluxes from land use and land cover change in Asia, 1980–2009
Atmospheric Measurement Techniques — A segmentation algorithm for characterizing rise and fall segments in seasonal cycles
View full CV & publication list →

Published Across

  • Aquatic Botany
  • Atmospheric Measurement Techniques
  • Biogeosciences
  • Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America
  • Ecological Monographs
  • Ecology and Evolution
  • Ecology Letters
  • Ecological Indicators
  • Ecosphere
  • Environmental Research Letters
  • Fish and Fisheries
  • Florida Field Naturalist
  • Geoscientific Model Development
  • Geophysical Research Letters
  • Global Change Biology
  • J. of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences
  • Nature Communications
  • Nature Geoscience
  • PNAS
  • The Auk: Ornithological Advances
Some of my latest work

Current Ventures

CalleEcology

CalleEcology Inc.

Data Solutions

Coastal ecology, computed. Ecological research, scientific software, and technical reporting — from open-source inundation modeling to peer-reviewed writing and study design.

Visit Site
mewmewmew

mewmewmew Inc.

Workforce Intelligence Platform

SI-powered workforce marketplace connecting organizations with specialized scientific and environmental consultants, featuring automated project matching, compliance validation, and enterprise workforce analytics for data-driven hiring decisions.

Visit Platform
Calle Arte

Creative Portfolio

Art Studio & Design

My art studio, where I specialize in blue pen drawings and custom murals that invite people to see the world from new perspectives—creating original works, prints, and wall art that challenge perception and foster human connection through accessible, transformative art.

View Gallery
simul.watch
simul.watch

simul.watch

Browser Extension · Real-Time Sync

A privacy-first, frame-perfect video sync engine for watching together across Netflix, Disney+, YouTube, and more — built on client-side AES-GCM encryption and a zero-persistence architecture.

Visit Site GitHub
Overwash Risk Dashboard
Overwash Risk Dashboard

Overwash Risk Dashboard

Science Tool · Coastal Risk

Interactive dashboard for coastal overwash risk on Texas waterbird nesting islands — GAM/Shapley analytics, storm-event decomposition, and sea-level-rise scenarios.

Launch Dashboard
Ecosystems as Information Geometries
Ecosystems as Information Geometries

Ecosystems as Information Geometries

Theoretical Ecology · Interactive Demo

A topological framework treating an ecosystem's identity as the geometric trajectory its drivers trace through time — regime shifts as deformation, coupling as blob topology. In review at Ecology.

Launch Demo
<scientist>

Researcher

I build physics-informed machine learning and ecosystem models that try to keep up with living systems — connecting the global carbon cycle to the fate of a single nesting island.

const research = {
  domain: "Earth System Science",
  methods: ["Deep Learning", "Ecosystem Modeling", "Remote Sensing"],
  affiliations: ["NASA-GSFC", "Montana State", "TAMUCC"],
  output: "30+ peer-reviewed publications"
};
<builder>

Entrepreneur

Founder building SI-powered platforms for environmental science and climate solutions.

const impact = {
  research: "30+ publications",
  ventures: "3 companies",
  mission: "climate.solve()",
  focus: ["ML/SI", "Earth Systems", "Innovation"]
};
About

Research & Impact

I build systems that solve critical environmental challenges. My work bridges cutting-edge machine learning with earth system science, creating tools that matter for our planet's future.

From developing global-scale forest dynamics models to pioneering deep learning applications for ecosystem prediction, my research influences policy at NASA, USFS, and beyond.

30 Publications
3 Companies
∞ Impact

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