Interdisciplinary team biographies
Professor Mike Wilson
Mike Wilson is Professor of Drama at Loughborough University. His research lies in the field of popular and vernacular performance and he has published extensively on Storytelling, Grand-Guignol and Brecht and his collaborators.
His work on storytelling has led him to research the interface between storytelling and digital technology and the way in which the internet has enabled the telling and sharing of stories of everyday experience. He has recently been researching the use of storytelling as a framework for public policy development, especially in relation to climate change and environmental challenge.
Dr Antonia Liguori
Dr Antonia Liguori joined Loughborough University - School of the Arts, English and Drama as Research Assistant to work with Professor Mike Wilson on DRY Project with a focus on digital storytelling.
She has a PhD in History and Computer Science from the University of Bologna and a Masters in Contemporary History from the University of Rome. She is also a journalist and a Web content and SEO manager.
Since January 2006, she has coordinated the Multimedia Department at BAICR Sistema Cultura with the aim of contributing to the enhancement of the Italian cultural heritage through the use of innovative methodologies and the creation of digital environments. Since September 2012, she has coordinated two European Projects about digital storytelling on behalf of the Luigi Sturzo Institute (Italy).
Professor Joanne Garde-Hansen
Joanne Garde-Hansen is Professor in Culture, Media and Communication, in the Centre for Cultural Policy Studies at the University of Warwick, UK. She directs the MA in Global Media and Communication.
Her research and teaching focus upon two strands:
- Media, memory, archives and heritage
- Media, gender, emotion and ageing.
She has published on (digital) media and memory in a range of books and journal articles. Joanne is co-investigator on the ESRC funded Sustainable Flood Memories project.
She is currently working with colleagues in São Paulo, Brazil on the theory and practice of a social technology of media and memory.
Dr Muhammad Afzal
Dr Muhammad Afzal joined CEH in October 2014 as a hydrological modeller to work on a UK drought project.
Before joining NERC, he worked on his PhD project at UWS, Scotland, where his research work focused on the increasing variability of climate and its effect on the vulnerability of water supplies in Scotland.
Dr Muhammad Afzal is an associate member with the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA) and affiliate member of International Water Association (IWA).
Dr Caitlin DeSilvey
Dr Caitlin DeSilvey is a cultural geographer in the Environment and Sustainability Institute at the University of Exeter.
Her research uses visual imagery and narrative to engage people in imagining changing environments and places, and looks to patterns from the past to try to understand what the future might bring.
She co-directs the Centre for Environmental Arts and Humanities and is a Public Engagement Champion with the University of Exeter Catalyst Project.
Professor Lindsey McEwen
Professor Lindsey McEwen combines experience in hydrology, water resources/flood risk management, water education/ science communication and community-based learning.
Previous funded projects include:
- ESRC Flood Memories project (2011- 2013 with Joanne Garde-Hansen) focused on flood memories/local knowledge for increased resilience, with linked ESRC Knowledge Exchange funding, trialling digital storytelling as a form of adaptive learning, and knowledge exchange for resilience in 'at risk communities' (2013/14)
- NERC FOSTER (Flood Organisation Science and Technology Exchange Research; Co-I; 'cutting edge' flood science communication to local authorities)
- JISC-funded Flood Archive enhancement through storytelling (with Mike Wilson)
- AHRC Hydrocitizenship project (2014).
Lindsey is experienced at interdisciplinary project management and in working across disciplinary boundaries, particularly water science/social science/arts and humanities interfaces.
She led the AHRC Living flood histories network (Learning to Live with Water: Flood histories, Environmental Change, Remembrance and Resilience) and was co-investigator on the AHRC Multi-story water project, engaging the public with changing risk and 'watery sense of place' through water narratives interwoven with performance theatre. Other information about Lindsey's recent projects.
Dr Ragab Ragab
Dr Ragab Ragab is a hydrologist and water resources management specialist. Expert in catchment hydrology, impact of land use and climate change, water and food security and drought management. Vice President H of the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID). Adviser to various organisations including United Nation Development Programme (UNDP). Lecturer and external examiner to various Universities. Recipient of several International Awards. Evaluator for funding organisations. Member of Editorial Boards. Developed two widely used models, SALTMED for field scale as a tool for integrated management of water, soils, crops and N- fertilisers and Integrated Hydrological Modeling System for catchment/basin scale.
Dr Liz Roberts
Liz Roberts is a research associate on the Drought Research and You (DRY) project, working with local stakeholders in the project's river catchment areas to develop narratives for a utility that can be used to inform decision making about drought.
She has previous experience working as a human geographer in a project looking at stakeholder co-design of new digital technologies for enhancing rural resilience. Her PhD looked at how geographers work with and think about visual images and methods, using an auto-ethnographic and creative writing approach.
Dr Virginie Keller
Dr Virginie Keller is an environmental modeller specialised in the fate and behaviour of point source chemicals in UK, European and international contexts.
She also has experience in hydrological modelling, with particular emphasis on modelling daily and monthly rainfall across the UK for the time period (1890-2012).
Dr Yan Weigang
Dr Yan Weigang is a data scientist and researcher with a background in science and business management.
Her current research interest is focused on developing novel concept and tools for the acquisition, management, analysis and synthesis of ecological/environmental data so as to inform decision on environmental issues like sustainability, climate change and biodiversity.
Dr James Blake
Dr James Blake has ten years' experience in numerical catchment hydro-ecological modelling.
Previous research has included:
- identifying environmental impacts of drought on wetlands
- quantifying impacts of climate change on wetlands
- assessing the feasibility of large scale wetland restoration including drought mitigation
- assessment of drought effects on ecosystem services.
Dr Philip Staddon
Dr Philip Staddon is an ecologist by training with over 13 years in environmental change research.
He is currently working on the impacts of climate change, including drought, on human health and wellbeing.
He has published widely in ecology and climate change including articles in Science and Nature Climate Change.
Dr Martina McGuinness
Dr Martina McGuinness is a Senior Lecturer in Risk Management and Strategy at the University of Sheffield's Management School.
She carries out research into the governance and strategic management of climate-related risks, and the impact of these risks upon public, private and third sector organisations.
She is currently working on an EPSRC funded project, SESAME, which examines flood risk in the UK SME sector and is also a NERC Policy Placement Fellow with the UK's Environment Agency.
Dr Colin Booth
Dr Colin Booth has been the Associate Head of Department for Research and Scholarship since joining UWE Bristol in early 2012 and he is also the Director of the Construction and Property Research Centre.
He was previously a Reader in Construction Management, a Reader in Civil Engineering, an Overseas Tutor (Hong Kong), a Senior Lecturer in Civil and Environmental Engineering, a European Research Project Manager and he also held several Post-doctoral Research Fellowship posts.
Dr Mark Everard
Dr Mark Everard is associate Professor of Ecosystem Services at UWE Bristol, a proponent of ecosystem services since the 1980s with experience in international development and resource management (particularly catchments) spanning academic, NGO, private and public sectors, including research, advisory and policy roles and significant contributions to published and broadcast media.
Dr Andrew Black
Dr Andrew Black is a physical hydrologist with interests in floods, water resources and hydrological monitoring networks. Most of his career to date has focused on the hydrology and management of Scottish rivers, including secondments into industry and government.
Andrew comments: "I've been privileged to meet and work with a lot of people who use water as a resource - for irrigation, power generation and for public supplies; this project will be a fascinating opportunity to explore peoples' attitudes to water shortage."
Dr Sarah Ayling
Dr Sarah Ayling is a plant physiologist. She has studied the effects of drought and the root environment on plant growth in the UK, USA and Australia.
Sarah is experienced in nutrient transport, ion-imaging and water relations.
In her spare time, she is actively involved with local conservation groups and environmental education activities.
Dr Tim Taylor
Dr Tim Taylor is Lecturer in Environmental and Public Health Economics in the European Centre for Environment and Human Health, part of the University of Exeter Medical School.
Tim is an expert in the valuation of the impacts of climate change and was involved in the valuation work on the first UK Climate Change Risk Assessment.
Tim is currently involved in the EC FP7 funded project BASE, where he is using cost-benefit analysis to assess adaptation strategies for the health sector. Tim has recently published in journals such as Ecological Economics and Public Health.
Dr Adam Corner
Dr Adam Corner directs the Talking Climate programme for the Climate Outreach and Information Network (COIN), a charity which specialises in climate change communication. He is also a Research Associate in the School of Psychology at Cardiff University.
His research focused on the psychology of climate change communication and he works with a range of academic, policy and civil society stakeholders on projects to engage the public.
He writes regularly for the Guardian, New Scientist and other national media.
Dr Jill Thompson
Dr Jill Thompson is a plant ecologist interested in ecosystems, disturbance, land use history and environmental stress.
Her PhD involved plant communities growing on metal contaminated soil in Wales.
Most of her research has involved studies into the effect of environmental conditions and hurricane disturbance on the dynamics of tropical forests.
Dr Margarida Sardo
Dr Margarida Sardo is a Research Fellow in the Science Communication Unit (SCU) and brings to the project specialist skills in science communication and in project evaluation. Her research interests include the routes by which environmental science and research are used and embedded in policy-making, informal learning, science communication impact and evaluation and innovative strategies for public engagement. Margarida's current role is to develop ideas for collaborative projects with other researchers and academics.
Margarida has done research/consultancy work for the Wellcome Trust, the British Academy, DG Environment (EU), the BBSRC and others. She is part of the SCU, which has run large projects such as Talking robots: examining strategies for engaging publics with robotics (funded by the ECRC), Walking with Robots (funded by the EPSRC), etc.
Margarida has a first degree in Biology and a PhD in Environmental Toxicology. In 2009 she moved into science communication, from a background in the natural sciences. She teaches occasionally on the MSc modules in Science Communication and supervises students.
Dr Mathew White
Dr Mathew White is a social/environmental psychologist at the European Centre for Environment and Human Health in the University of Exeter Medical School.
He completed his PhD at the University of Sheffield (2004) on the topic of public understanding of environmental and health related risks and trust in risk communicators.
More recently he has been focusing on how people cope when faced with multiple decision options and the potential well-being effects of exposure to natural, especially aquatic, environments.
Dr Ann Grand
Dr Ann Grand is a Research Fellow in the Science Communication Unit, UWE Bristol.
Her research focuses on how the practice of open science can support public access to and involvement in the process of science and how public engagement with research can be supported and facilitated through digital technologies.
Dr Ivan Grove
Dr Ivan Grove is a Principal Lecturer at Harper Adams University in Shropshire, specialising in agronomy, the science of crop and soils, and in particular crop and soil water interactions and nematode pests.
Recent projects include:
- precision irrigation in horticultural crops (HortLink)
- use of anti-transpirants in wheat (HGCA).
Current research includes:
- irrigation interactions with soil cultivation
- anti-transpirants on oilseed rape
- remote sensing for crop stress
- several nematology projects.
This project will be a very interesting cross-disciplinary approach to drought management.
Dr Emma Weitkamp
Dr Emma Weitkamp is a Senior Lecturer in Science Communication at UWE Bristol. Her research focuses on the ways that narratives engage a range of audiences from children to policy makers.
Current projects include Butterflies, a narrative journey through chaos theory (funded by the STFC) and Boron Mon Amour, a non-linear documentary (funded through the REACT scheme). She has recently written Cosmic Comics (funded by the STFC) and ScienceComics (funded by the EPSRC).
Dr Natasha Constant
Dr Natasha Constant recently joined UWE Bristol as a Research Associate in Citizen Science.
Natasha's research involves engaging a diverse group of stakeholders on a range of drought risk science initiatives in order to promote learning opportunities and to understand drought impacts on plant, crop and tree ecology and water use in homes and gardens.
Previous to her employment at UWE Bristol she completed an interdisciplinary PhD in Anthropology which explored the socio-ecological drivers influencing conflict between leopards (Panthera pardus) and farming communities in a multi-use land system in South Africa.
Natasha has worked on a range of forest and marine mammal conservation projects and community development initiatives in South Africa and Kenya. She has also completed a Research Masters in Conservation and Biodiversity at the University of Leeds and a BSc in Zoology at the University of Nottingham.
Mhari Barnes
Physical and numerical hydrologist specialising in natural flood management, water resources and hydrometry.
Having completed an MSc in Catchment Hydrology and Management at the University of Dundee, Mhari is currently working on a PhD at Newcastle University on the effects of upland and riparian afforestation to reduce downstream flood risk and the potential reduction of water resources to agriculturally prime land. Most of her work focuses on data collection and interpretation for use in large scale hydrological models.