Nathalie Seddon, PhD

Director

I am Professor of Biodiversity in the Department of Zoology at the University of Oxford with broad interests in understanding the origins and maintenance of biodiversity and its relationship with global change. An evolutionary ecologist by training, my research now focusses on determining the ecological and socioeconomic effectiveness of nature-based solutions to societal challenges, and how best to increase the influence of robust biodiversity and ecosystem science on the design and implementation of climate and development policy. In 2017, I founded and now direct the Nature-based Solutions Initiative. I am also is a Senior Associate of the International Institute for Environment and Development, a Senior Fellow of the Oxford MartinSchool and an official "Friend of CoP26".

Alexandre Chausson, MSc

Senior Researcher

I have been conducting and applying social and ecological research over the past 7 years for conservation science and now nature-based solutions. At the Nature-based Solutions Initiative, I manage research and knowledge-exchange projects, focusing on nature-based solutions for climate change adaptation. I am particularly interested in interdisciplinary research at the nexus of biodiversity, development, and climate change issues. I am also currently focusing on capacity strengthening at the individual, and organizational level to bridge research, policy, and practice gaps on nature-based solutions and research on social and environmental trade-offs in development.

Cécile A.J. Girardin, PhD

Technical Director

I combine years of experience in climate change policy analysis with a background in tropical ecology and forest ecosystem functioning, and have a passion for data analysis, design/illustration and science communication. My current research focuses on ecosystem functioning and carbon dynamics in tropical forests, and their responses to a rapidly changing climate. I am based in the Oxford University School of Geography and the Environment (Ecosystems Lab, Global Ecosystems Monitoring network).

Pam Berry, PhD

Senior Associate

I am a geographer by training, but I have worked on environmental issues throughout my academic career. Firstly, on climate change impacts on biodiversity and conservation and policy responses. More recently on assessing ecosystem services in various contexts, including urban green infrastructure, before extending this to nature-based solutions, which I see as vital for addressing the environmental challenges that we face. I am a Senior Research Fellow in the Environmental Change Institute, University of Oxford and I was the Rapporteur for the EU report on Nature-based solutions.

Megan MacGillivray

Master's Student

I am currently in the 4th year of my integrated Master’s course in Biological Sciences at the University of Oxford, during which I have developed a keen interest in ecology and conservation. I am working on a project with NbSI focusing on the effects of different management practices on biodiversity and soil carbon in floodplains around Oxford. I have previously worked with NbSI as an intern, helping organise the webinar “Digital Dialogues”, and helping with the research for the paper “Can nature-based solutions deliver a win-win for addressing the biodiversity and climate crises?”.

Nicole Chabaneix, MSc

Researcher

I am a biologist, specialized in ecology and conservation (BA) and in social-ecological resilience (MSc). I have 6 years of professional experience working on climate change and sustainable development research, policy and project management, with roles at WWF and the Ministry of Environment in my home country of Peru. My current work is focused on advancing ecosystem-based adaptation and other nature-based solutions for enhanced social-ecological resilience in the face of climate change.

Aline Soterroni, PhD

Research Fellow

Aline Soterroni is a Research Fellow at Oxford Net Zero Initiative based in the Department of Zoology where she will investigate the socioeconomic and ecological outcomes of different pathways to net zero with a particular interest in understanding the value and the limits of nature-based solutions in achieving net-zero over the long term. Aline is interested in understanding the timeframes and spatial scales over which restoration, protection and sustainable management of working lands can enhance carbon stocks and reduce GHG emissions whilst supporting biodiversity, human adaptation to climate change and food security.

Isabel Key, BA

Research Associate

My research interests lie in how coastal ecosystems can be protected, managed and restored to support biodiversity whilst also contributing to climate change adaptation and mitigation. I previously worked as a researcher and coordinator at NbSI, focusing on the effects of NbS on the health of ecosystems. I am continuing to collaborate with the NbSI on research projects, alongside pursuing a PhD at the University of Edinburgh investigating the potential for seagrass restoration in Scotland. I am equally passionate about science communication, through art, writing and hands-on activities.

Ebba Mark

Research Assistant

I am a recent graduate of the MSc in Environmental Change and Management at the Oxford Environmental Change Institute, hold a BA in Economics from Harvard College, and completed the School for International Training’s Honors Program on Climate Change: the Politics of Food, Water, and Energy in Vietnam, Morocco, and Bolivia. I have experience with international policy-making in multilateral institutions as a former policy advisor at the OECD. From an academic perspective, my research focuses mainly on the social justice and equity implications of environmental change, having framed much of my research through the lenses of political ecology and ecological economics.

Georgia Melodie Hole, PhD

Researcher Coordinator

As NbSI Researcher Coordinator, I work on evidence synthesis and the communication of NbSI's work on solutions to societal challenges that deliver benefits for people & biodiversity. I am a geologist and geographer by training, and with a PhD in past Arctic sea ice and climate dynamics. I am passionate about using my love for the natural world and our climate by combining robust science, creative communication and community engagement.

Audrey Wagner

Researcher

My interdisciplinary background blends nature-based solutions, plant ecology and biology with sustainable food systems expertise. I hold a BSc in Environment and Food Production, with a minor in International Agriculture from McGill University in Canada, and am currently completing an MSc at the University of Oxford in Environmental Change and Management. Particularly interested in Latin America, I focused my Masters dissertation research on payments for ecosystem services and indigenous sovereignty in the Peruvian Amazon. Previously, I completed research and internships in Panama, Cuba, Belize, among others, with organizations such as the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD).

Darinka Szigecsan

NbSI Intern

I am currently completing a 2-month-long summer internship at Nature-based Solutions Initiative, updating the NBS Policy Platform with the revised National Development Contributions (NDCs) and summarising the recent changes and their extent. I am a 3rd year undergraduate student at the University of Cambridge, reading Natural Sciences. I specialise in ecology and ecological politics, exploring how knowledge about the natural world can be translated into practical solutions used to mitigate the climate crisis.

Robyn Haggis

DPhil Student

I am a DPhil Student in the School of Geography and the Environment at the University of Oxford, under the supervision of Professor Jim Hall and Professor Nathalie Seddon. My interests span climate, sustainable development and nature, and I am bringing these together through a focus on nature-based solutions (NbS). My research centres on optimising nature in decisions on national-scale development and resilience in order to progress the SDGs and the Paris Agreement. This includes quantifying and visualising geospatially the potential for NbS to substitute and complement built infrastructure service delivery across sectors including energy, water and transport, as well as their ability to deliver protective services in order to build resilience to climate change. My research focuses on developing countries and small island developing states, and I am currently applying it to an FCDO-funded project in Jamaica.

Katie Hutchinson

DPhil Student

My research interests in biodiversity, ecology and conservation stem from my time completing my BSc in Biology at University of Nottingham. My DPhil research, supervised by Professor Nathalie Seddon, will look into the biodiversity outcomes of Nature-based Solutions, and how these can be interpreted to contribute to the mitigation of climate change. This topic marries perfectly with my research interests in biodiversity, ecology and conservation, which stemmed from my time completing my BSc in Biology at University of Nottingham.

William Thompson, PhD

Knowledge Exchange Fellow

William Thompson is a Knowledge Exchange Fellow with NbSI, where in collaboration with international research institutions, NGOs and industry, he leads the development of the High Agricultural Reforestation Potential (HARP) Toolkit. HARP will be a set of tools designed to facilitate sustainable reforestation in tropical agricultural landscapes, with a particular focus on cocoa and coffee producing landscapes at forest frontiers. In addition, William is collaborating on the ETH Zurich led Sustain-Cocoa project to evaluate the impacts of forest focused supply chain policies on West African cocoa producers and the remnants of the Guinean forests.

Katrina Kendall

DPhil Student

I am pursuing a DPhil at Oxford University on how to measure the effectiveness of nature-based solutions. Through my research I aim to support leadership decision-making and financing to scale the adoption and successful implementation of nature-based solutions, with a focus on the Philippines and wider ASEAN region. My research interests include interdisciplinary approaches that explore the nexus of social, economic and ecological systems to achieve sustainable development. I am passionate about biocultural conservation, inclusive scientific communication, and technology for conservation.

Beth Turner, MSc

Researcher

I am a biologist with expertise in tropical biodiversity and ecosystems, community ecology and human-ecological relationships. I am particularly interested in how to apply this knowledge to support ecosystem integrity and societal wellbeing. For these reasons I am happy to be a part of the Nature-Based Solutions Initiative, to contribute towards promoting the use of healthy ecosystems to increase our resilience to anthropogenic changes.

Lucy Scruton

Master's Student

I have just completed the first three years of my integrated Master's course in Biology at Oxford, so far broadly specializing in ecology and conservation. For my Master's project I am very excited to be working with NbSI, and am conducting a meta-analysis looking into the effectiveness of agroforestry practices as Nature-based solutions. Outside of biology I enjoy sport, and do Modern Pentathlon for the university team

Alifa Bintha Haque

DPhil Student

I am an aspiring marine biologist trained in zoology, biodiversity conservation and management. Since 2019 I have been pursuing doctoral studies under the supervision of Prof Nathalie Seddon (NbSI, Oxford) and Dr Rachel Cavanagh at the British Antarctic Survey (Cambridge). My developing thesis focuses on management of sharks and ray fisheries in Bangladesh to achieve a conservation model rooted in biological sustainability. My goal is to initiate evidence-based marine conservation in Bangladesh that embraces and incorporates the insights of fishers.

Alison Smith, MSc

Senior Associate

I am a natural scientist with 20 years of experience as an environmental consultant, specialising in climate policy. For the last five years I have been a researcher at the Environmental Change Institute in the School of Geography and the Environment, where I am developing and testing practical methods of mapping and measuring natural capital and the ecosystem services it provides. My main interest is in the synergies and trade-offs between different approaches to tackling societal challenges, and I see nature-based solutions and green infrastructure as having a strong role to play in providing multiple benefits for climate adaptation, mitigation, biodiversity and human well-being.

Dan Seddon

Senior Developer & Communications officer

I have been working on interface and web design for many years and design and develop all of the NbSI's online platforms. I have fundamental love and passion for all things nature.

Rachel Cavanagh, PhD

Senior Associate

I am a senior research scientist at the British Antarctic Survey, with almost twenty years’ experience in scientific research, international programme management, and the provision of technical advice for policy. An ecologist by training, my research is cross-disciplinary linking climate science and ecology to address the challenges in understanding and managing changing marine ecosystems.

Stephen Woroniecki, PhD

Research Associate

Stephen Woroniecki is finalising his PhD at LUCSUS - Lund University Centre for Sustainability Studies, in Sweden. The focus of his thesis is Nature-based Solutions to Climate Change Adaptation in Sri Lanka. Specifically he explores the potential of such solutions to facilitate the empowerment of the most climate-vulnerable groups.