With a background in the Environmental Sciences, I have devoted much of my research career to modelling spatial interactions between human activity and the natural environment.  Those spatial skills were initially developed during my PhD research into the risk of groundwater contamination by agricultural pesticides.  In collaboration with economists and social scientists, I subsequently worked on highly interdisciplinary policy-driven projects underpinning recommendations for improving water quality in rivers, long-term protection of water resources, and land management options for reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

In 2011, I joined Cefas as a GIS Analyst, applying my terrestrial modelling skills to problem-solving in marine and freshwater environments.  This work included evaluating the efficacy of marine closures; mapping fishing activity and seabed integrity; assessing the influence of offshore energy production on marine ecosystems; assessing coastal vulnerability to storm surge and sea level rise in small island states.  More recently I have focused on terrestrial influences on water quality in rivers, estuaries and coastal waters, with applications to food safety and food security, including microbiological risks in shellfish growing areas.  This builds on my interest in the interconnectivity of terrestrial and marine systems, and the need to consider how climate change is likely to affect those relationships in the short, medium and long term.

I have led stakeholder workshops across the range of my research interests, and have authored and delivered training in cartographic design, spatial analysis and hydrological modelling.  I am a professional member of the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM), through which I hold Chartered Water and Environmental Manager (C.WEM) and Chartered Environmentalist (CEnv) status.