We develop state-of-the-art models to quantify Earth surface processes in a variety of environments, including fluvial, glacial, hillslope and marine processes. We define new parameterisations (equations) and numerical methods and algorithms to solve them in the most efficient way. This allows us to address problems on extended spatial and temporal scales and to perform large ensembles of simulations to validate the parameterisation and assess the relevance of our models. Recently, we have developed a speciation model to predict the emergence of biodiversity in an evolving landscape. We are also developing tools to promote modularity of model components and to make our models interoperable with other relevant software.

We study the contribution of extreme climatic events to surface erosion processes, with a focus on volcanic islands where these effects are more readily measurable. We also investigate how topographic evolution on geological time scales can inform us about deep mantle processes, in particular mantle plumes. More recently, we have also contributed to the understanding of cascading geohazards on volcanoes.

We investigate the landscape record of the earthquake cycle and long-term tectonic deformation in areas where existing models and concepts fail. We focus on the near-coast domain where land is periodically emerged, and on carbonate landscapes where water disappears in the subsurface. We complement this research with a commitment to education and research in zones of hardship.

We develop digital twins and data-driven models to study and monitor the response of the Earth's surface to climate change over a range of time scales and in a variety of environments. We have a particular focus on the monitoring and prediction of geomorphological hazards such as debris flows and landslides.