Siefert's work deals with understanding life's origins through microbial ecology and genomic[1] and metabolic evolution.[2][3] She has worked for 20 years in the
Cuatro Ciénegas Basin,
Mexico,[4] a desert
oasis protected by the Mexican government and known to exhibit
endemism equal to the
Galapagos.
She is the first woman to serve as chairman of the Gordon Research Conference on the Origin of Life and the first female president (2008–2011) of
ISSOL: International Astrobiology Society.[5] She is a member of
University of Washington's Virtual Planet Laboratory and was recognized as an Astrobiology Pioneer.[6] Her work has been featured on
Discovery,
National Geographic, and the
History Channel.[7][8] Additionally, she heads up an international team of investigators funded by the National Science Foundation looking at the legacy of human occupation in archaeological sites as reflected in the microbial community.