A model PhD candidate at USC Dornsife<\/p>\n
Lehnen\u2019s research on rewilding Galapagos tortoises to the islands has earned praise from key mentors at USC Dornsife.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s done important and fascinating work,\u201d says Professor of Biological Sciences and Anthropology Craig Stanford<\/a>, who has conducted extensive field research on wild great apes, monkeys and reptiles.<\/p>\n Cameron Egan<\/a>, associate professor (teaching) of biological sciences and director of undergraduate studies for the department, nominated Lehnen for an outstanding teaching assistant (TA) of the year award, which Lehnen won. Only three TAs throughout the entire university win the award each year. As a TA in Egan\u2019s \u201cEcology and Biodiversity\u201d (BISC404) course, Lehnen designed the lab.<\/p>\n \u201cHis expertise, dedication and initiative have been nothing short of essential to the success of this course and the enrichment of our ecological course offerings at USC,\u201d Egan said.<\/p>\n Challenging field work on the Galapagos islands Lehnen\u2019s research while at USC Dornsife involved several three-week field studies on Santa Fe Island, a small land mass in the middle of the Galapagos Archipelago. He and his team \u2014 in conjunction with the Galapagos Conservancy<\/a> and the Galapagos National Park Directorate \u2014 researched the effects of introducing tortoises from a lineage similar to that of another, extinct lineage of the cold-blooded herbivores, which can grow to weigh hundreds of pounds.<\/p>\n Giant tortoises once played a central role in shaping the island\u2019s ecosystems, and the researchers hoped bringing them back would rebalance the ecosystem. For example, just this February, after more than 180 years of absence, giant tortoises returned to Floreana Island, and Lehnen\u2019s studies help researchers predict the impacts of this reintroduction.<\/p>\n Lehnen says the field work is very challenging. Santa Fe Island is treeless and rocky, with almost no flat ground. It\u2019s also home to spiders, snakes and giant venomous centipedes. And rats \u2014 lots of rats.<\/p>\n During each trip to Santa Fe Island, Lehnen and his three or four assistants were virtually cut off from the world save for a satellite internet connection at camp. Many days, the humidity rose to about 90% and temperatures exceeded 90 F.<\/p>\n There is no electricity and no fresh water, so each time a boat dropped them off, Lehnen and his team had to drag about four dozen, 5-gallon jugs up a steep hill to camp.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s extremely challenging to live there \u2014 physically but also mentally,\u201d Lehnen said. \u201cI\u2019ve learned how to guide people through the process.\u201d<\/p>\n Galapagos island research mixes high- and low-tech<\/p>\n Lehnen employs sophisticated technology in his field research, including drones to detect minute changes in vegetation and machine learning to classify drone imagery. AI also is used to analyze images from camera traps set up around the island.<\/p>\n Lehnen and his team also perform low-tech tasks such as sampling the tortoises toenails and shells. By analyzing isotopes from these samples, they\u2019re able to monitor the animals\u2019 diets. They also study the interactions between the tortoises and the island\u2019s iguanas.<\/p>\n The payoff for such research, Lehnen said, has been priceless.<\/p>\n \u201cThroughout the world, it\u2019s becoming more common to translocate organisms to different areas through reintroduction,\u201d he said. \u201cCan we develop standards for measuring the impacts? I see this as the future of conservation.\u201d<\/p>\n A harrowing survival story of his own<\/p>\n In fall 2025, the unimaginable happened to Lehnen and Nadimi. The two were walking home from campus, about a block from home, when they were hit in the crosswalk by a car. They had been discussing dinner plans.<\/p>\n Nadimi rolled onto the car and smashed through the windshield.<\/p>\n Lehnen was flung at least 15 feet and landed in an intersection.<\/p>\n Nadimi had to be cut out of the windshield. It took doctors 16 hours to pluck glass fragments out of her. She suffered serious bruising and muscle atrophy and still is undergoing physical therapy. She may also require surgery.<\/p>\n Lehnen suffered severe back fractures that required emergency spinal surgeries.<\/p>\n \u201cDoctors told me if I had tried to stand up and put weight on my spine, my spinal cord would have snapped and I would have been paralyzed at best,\u201d he said. \u201cThey told me I came inches if not centimeters from death.\u201d<\/p>\n He spent nearly a week in the hospital and underwent two weeks of inpatient rehab. He then spent months receiving at-home nursing and therapy followed by outpatient physical therapy that continues.<\/p>\n As a testament to his dedication, Lehnen was in the classroom this past semester despite the seriousness of his injuries, supporting students without missing a beat, Egan notes.<\/p>\n Nadimi also is graduating this spring with a master\u2019s degree in public administration from the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n The couple are getting married in December. Lehnen\u2019s goal is to have recovered enough to be able to dance at his wedding.<\/p>\n Value in USC\u2019s interdisciplinary opportunities<\/p>\n After the wedding and honeymoon, when he completely heals, Lehnen plans to get back to field work. He is applying for post-doctorate jobs with the goal of someday becoming a professor.<\/p>\n
\n![\"Man](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/charles-lehnen-profile-in-story-a-364x550.jpg\")
Charles Lehnen\u2019s research on the Galapagos islands proved challenging but rewarding. (Photo: Courtesy of Charles Lehnen.)<\/p>\n![\"Man](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/charles-lehnen-profile-in-story-b-364x550.jpg\")
Charles Lehnen and Jilla Nadimi, seen here visiting mountain gorillas, plan to marry this fall. (Photo: Courtesy of Charles Lehnen.)<\/p>\n