Staff profile

My PhD project is part of the NETGAIN doctoral focal award, funded by NERC. I will be assessing the potential for Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) to align with Durham's Local Nature Recovery Strategy. This will involve evaluating the viability of BNG funding to support landowner management. I will be monitoring newly designated sites (with acoustic, camera trap, and drone data) to document changes and identify possibilities for local nature recovery despite BNGs broad and simplistic metrics. 

I have research experience across disciplines including in using eco-acoustics for monitoring soil macrofauna presence in grasslands, and social research on motivations for agri-environmental scheme uptake. Practically, I am interested in how to best align existing policy and funding frameworks with local socio-ecological needs. Conceptually, I am interested in how environmental governance manifests ecologically, and how to monitor and interpret the ecological implications of policy and management decisions.

• Ecosystem health monitoring
• Anthropogenic disturbance and management
• Environmental policy and governance