I am a senior lecturer in sustainability science with ten years experience in conducting research in forest landscapes. I have knowledge and experience in GIS and spatially explicit modelling tools (Landis-II), which I regularly employ in my research to explore vegetation dynamics and changes in ecosystem services in response to human impacts. My particular interest is to contribute to solutions to environmental problems and to provide tools that inform environmental practice and policy implementation.

I have worked in local, regional and international projects, collaborating with several academic institutions, government bodies and commercial partners in the UK, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Kyrgyzstan and Italy. I have also undertaken regular and extensive fieldwork campaigns, particularly in the New Forest National Park. Since 2011 I have been involved in the development of the materials for the MSc in Green Economy and I am now the Programme Leader.

I have completed my PhD in Forest Ecology in 2007, combining GIS, Earth Observation and field-based approaches to assess the conservation status of forested habitats in Natura 2000 sites (Foresta del Cansiglio in Italy and New Forest in the UK). Under the EU-funded ReForLan project, I have explored the potential for ecological restoration of dryland forests in Mexico under different disturbance regimes. Under the EU-funded TESS project, I have used the ecosystem services approach to examine the effectiveness of ecological networks within the river Frome catchment area, Dorset. Under further projects I have examined the potential impacts of different land use scenarios on carbon storage in SW England, and the human impacts on forest biodiversity in protected areas in Kyrgyzstan.

Research

I worked under the NERC-BESS project 'Dynamics and Thresholds of Ecosystem Services in Wooded Landscapes' https://microsites.bournemouth.ac.uk/new-forest-bess/

I particularly focused on modelling how the New Forest resilience is likely to change in the future, accounting for factors such as climate change, spreads of diseases and grazing animals.

I am also leading on the modelling component of the 'Mapping the Forests of Medieval Novgorod' research project, led by Prof. Mark Brisbane.

I am the WP2 leader of the H2020 project: 101000574, Title: RESONATE: Resilient forest value chains - enhancing resilience through natural and socio-economic responses

Publications

Grants