Personal profile
Research overview
My PhD project is titled ‘Montane Mosaics in Scotland: understanding the past to inform the future’.
I am exploring evidence for the ecology of Scotland’s past montane mosaic ecosystems, particularly species and communities of trees and shrubs which are important in ecosystem restoration. This will involve both pollen and macrofossil data, and both primary and secondary research. The aim of the project is to resolve some uncertainties about the past ecology of these environments, informing conservation efforts in Scotland’s mountain landscapes.
The project is funded by the Robertson Scholarship Award (in collaboration with the University’s Handsel scheme, and further funding from the School of Geography and Sustainable Development). It is supervised by Dr Althea Davies and Dr Katherine Roucoux, with support from external mentors: Dr Dmitri Mauquoy (University of Aberdeen), Shaila Rao (National Trust for Scotland Mar Lodge), Sarah Watts (Corrour) and Charlie Davis (Corrour).
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Education/Academic qualification
Bachelor of Science, Physical Geography, 1st Class (Hons.), Durham University
Master of Science, by Thesis, 'The Holocene Ecology of Pinus Sylvestris in Mountain Treelines of the Northern Cairngorms: A Synthesis of Contemporary Ecological Theory and Holocene Research'
Keywords
- GB Physical geography
- Palaeoecology
- Mountain Woodland
- Scrub
- Treeline
- Scotland
- Holocene
- QK Botany
- Macrofossil
- Pollen analysis