Publications, peer-reviewed (*asterisk denotes undergraduate author)

2001    Ismat, Z., Mitra, G., Folding by cataclastic flow at shallow crustal levels in the Canyon Range, Sevier Orogenic Belt, west-central Utah. Journal of Structural Geology 23, 355-378.
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2001    Mitra, G., Ismat, Z., Microfracturing associated with reactivated fault zones and shear zones: What can it tell us about deformation history. Geological Society (London) Special Publication 186, 113-140.
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2005    Ismat, Z., Mitra, G., Fold-thrust belt evolution expressed in an internal thrust sheet: the role of cataclastic flow.  Geological Society of America Bulletin 117, 764-782. 
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2005    Ismat, Z., Mitra, G., Folding by cataclastic flow: Evolution of controlling factors during deformation.  Journal of Structural Geology 27, 2181-2203. 
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2007    Ismat, Z., Benford, B.*, Deformation in the core of a fold: Unraveling the kinematic evolution of tight, multilayer folds developed in the upper crust. Journal of Structural Geology 29, 497-514. 
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2008    Ismat, Z., Folding kinematics expressed in fracture patterns: An example from the Anti-Atlas fold belt, Morocco. Journal of Structural Geology 30, 1396-1404.  
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2009    Ismat, Z., Energy budget during fold-tightening. Journal of Structural Geology (Special volume in honor of Rick Groshong and Richard Nickelsen) 39, 972-988.
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S 2010 – F 2011, Maternity leave followed by 1-year sabbatical

2012    Ismat, Z., Evolution of Fracture Porosity and Permeability During Folding by Cataclastic Flow: Implications for Syntectonic Fluid Flow.  Rocky Mountain Geology 47, 133-155.
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2013    Ismat, Z., Block supported cataclastic flow in the upper crust. Journal of Structural Geology 56, 118-128. 
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2014    Sak, P., Gray, M. B., Ismat, Z., Significance in the deformation history within the hinge zone of the Pennsylvania Salient, Appalachian Mountains. Journal of Geology 122, 367-380.

2015    Ismat, Z., What can the dihedral angle of conjugate faults tell us? Journal of Structural Geology 73, 97-113.
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2015    Ismat, Z.,Toeneboehn, K.*, Deformation along a salient-transverse zone junction: An example from the Leamington transverse zone, Utah, Sevier fold-thrust belt (USA). Journal of Structural Geology 75, 69-79.  
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2016    Ismat, Z., Toeneboehn, K.*, Kinematic history of a salient-recess junction explored through a combined approach of field data and analog sandbox modeling. JoVE, doi: 10.3791/54318.

2016    Ismat, Z., Herbert, J.*, Deformation history expressed within the Juniata culmination. Pennsylvania Geology 46 (1), 4-15.  

2016    Ismat, Z., Riley, P.*, Lerback, J.*, What do fault patterns reveal about the latest phase of extension within the Northern Snake Range metamorphic core complex, Nevada, USA?. Journal of Structural Geology 89, 88-100.
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F 2017 – F 2018, 1-year sabbatical (Columbia University) followed by maternity leave

2022    Ismat, Z.,The role of plate geometry and boundary type in global plate ductility and mantle convection. Journal of Structural Geology 159, 104580.
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2022    Ismat, Z.,Putera, H.*,Patzkowsky, S.*, Internal deformation of the Gorda plate and its tectonic significance within the Cascadia subduction zone. Journal of Structural Geology 161, 104643. 
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S 2026 – F 2027, 1-year sabbatical (Fulbright Scholar, Pakistan)

2026    Ismat, Z.,What can the NW Syntaxis and western lateral margin tell us about IND-EUR convergence history?. Arabian Journal of Geosciences, 19, 87.
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2026 Mitra, G., Boyer, S.E., Kwon, S., Mukul, M., Ismat, Z., Sussman, A.J., Lateral variations in evolution of a fold-thrust belt hinterland: Passive versus active behavior of dominant internal thrust sheets, Habitable Planet
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2026 In Press  Ismat, Z., The role of slab coupling in crustal deformation within the NW Syntaxis of the IND-EUR convergence zone, Asian Journal of Earth Sciences

In Review Ismat, Z., Khadka, S.*, Shah, M.A.A., Khan, D., From Tectonics to Water Security: A Hybrid Framework for Fractured-Rock Groundwater Exploration and Community-Based Water Governance in Pakistan,Discover Geoscience March 2026

In Review Ismat, Z., Khadka, S.*, Shah, M.A.A., Beyond Political Boundaries: A Distributed Hydrologic Resilience Framework for Mountain Water Security, with insights from Pakistan’s Water Security Challenges,Water Security

In preparation Ismat, Z., Earthquake potential and the role of Coulomb stress in the NW Syntaxis of the IND-EUR convergence zone

External Grants (selected)

2025 Fulbright US Scholar (Pakistan) 2025 – 2026

2024 SHERR (Supporting Higher Education in Refugee Resettlement) (w/ L. Wolfe (lead P.I.), G. Faleschini-Lerner, S. Dicklitch-Nelson)

2022 Mira Lloyd Dock Partnership Diversity award, Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s Keystone's 10 million Trees Partnership – Blackbirds Environmental Justice

2022 Hourglass Foundation, Food for Thought, Lancaster Changemakers – Blackbirds Environmental Justice

2019 CSEwL Seed Grant (P.I.: Z. Ismat) Energy Security & Environmental Justice

2016 Convergence Grant (P.I.: Z. Ismat) Biogas generator construction.

2005 Career Enhancement fellowship from Woodrow Wilson foundation (P.I.: Z. Ismat). Fold development in the Anti-Atlas, Morocco

2003 National Science Foundation-SGER, 2003-2005, EAR-0318906 (P.I.: Z. Ismat). Buckle vs. bend folding: their progressive development in the Anti-Atlas mountains, Morocco.