

Folarin Kolawole, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Structural Geology, Columbia University | Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
Hi! I am an Assistant Professor of Structural Geology at Columbia University, New York, U.S.A.
My research involves the integration of field observation of fault deformation zones and fracture systems, structural analyses of mappable features in geophysical datasets, laboratory geomechanics testing of rock samples, and numerical modelling of deformational processes to understand:
1) how the earth’s crust and lithosphere breaks up to form new sedimentary basins and deform existing basins,
2) how industrial subsurface activities 'wake-up' ancient faults in the crust (i.e. anthropogenically induced earthquakes) in areas of wastewater injection, CO2 injection etc., and
3) how ancient faults are 'woken up' by natural tectonic forces in areas far away from active tectonic boundaries (i.e. geogenic intraplate earthquakes).
Current research interests are on 1.) strain accommodation during the early-stages of continental rifting [Natural Laboratories: East African Rift System, Basin & Range, & Rio Grande Rift], 2.) basement structure and reactivation of basement-rooted faults in areas of induced seismicity [Natural Laboratory: Central U.S.], and natural intraplate seismicity [Natural Laboratory: Western & Southern Africa].
I am very passionate about promoting racial and gender diversity in the Geosciences... because it is the right thing to do. When I'm not working or spending time with family, you'll likely find me at a climbing gym or outdoor crag bouldering or sport climbing.
LATEST PREPRINT
Crustal Softening at Propagating Rift Tips, East Africa
Kolawole, F. and R. Ajala (2023). Under review at Geophysical Research Letters. Preprint at ESS Open Archive.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Published in Geoscience Frontiers (August 1, 2023)
Global distribution of geothermal gradients in sedimentary basins
Kolawole, F. and Evenick, J.C.
Doi: 10.1016/j.gsf.2023.101685
TWITTER WALL
UPCOMING EVENTS
Conferences
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Jul. 2023 Southern East Africa Rift System Workshop, Blantyre, Malawi
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Sep. 2023 Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC) Annual Meeting
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Dec. 2023 American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting 2023, San Francisco
Invited Talks:
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December 2023 - AGU Fall Meeting 2023, San Francisco
TBD
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November 2023 - University of Washington, Seattle
TBD
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July 2023 - Southern East Africa Rift System Workshop, Blantyre, Malawi
Tectonic Weakening at Propagating Rift Tips, East Africa
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April 2023 - CU R&D: Research and Diversity at Columbia University
Injection-Induced Fault Reactivation in the U.S. Mid Continent
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March 2023 - McGill University, Canada
How Do Incipient Divergent Plate Boundaries Grow?