Core Team

• 

  Nathalie Seddon, PhD

  Director

  I trained as an ecologist and evolutionary biologist at Cambridge University and have over 20 years of field experience working in tropical forests, managing international teams and training students in the UK and abroad. I have published widely on animal communication and the origins and conservation of tropical diversity and have received a number of awards for my work, including a L’Oréal for Woman in Science Fellowship and a Royal Society University Research Fellowship. In 2015, I was made Professor of Biodiversity at Oxford University and a Senior Associate at the International Institute of Environment and Development (London). Since then I have worked at the interface of science, policy and practice. By training the next generation of decision makers and working closely with NGOs, local governments and the United Nations, my ambition is bring the equitable protection of nature to the centre of the sustainable development agenda.
• 

  Alexandre Chausson, MSc

  Senior Researcher

  I have a background in ecology and conservation biology and have worked in Central America and sub-Saharan, including research on bushmeat supply chains in Congo-Brazzaville and human-wildlife conflict mitigation in Kenya. I also hold over two years of editorial experience in publishing, including as a journal manager for Frontiers in Switzerland. I am now based in the Department of Zoology, University of Oxford where I work at the research and policy interface to promote social and ecological resilience in a changing world.
• 

  Cécile A.J. Girardin, PhD

  Technical and Artistic 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.

• 

  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.
• 

  Bailey Anderson

  Researcher

  I use data-driven methods to improve understanding of the effects of land cover changes on hydrology and am interested in ecosystem-based approaches to managing hydrological risk. I am currently a Water Science, Policy, and Management MPhil student in the School of Geography and the Environment at the University of Oxford and will begin the Doctoral Training Partnership program in Environmental Research in Autumn 2019.
• 

  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.
• 

  Elizabeth Daniels, MSc

  Associate

  Liz is a climate change and international development researcher and project manager. She currently works at SEI (Stockholm Environment Institute) in Oxford, UK, as a Research Fellow focused on climate change adaptation, particularly the use of climate information in adaptation decision-making. She has previously managed community-level rainforest conservation projects in Peru and Papua New Guinea and has supported community-based adaptation projects and research in Malawi. Prior to this, she worked as a consultant, predominantly focusing on delivering climate risk and resilience projects for public and private sector clients. She has a Masters degree in Environmental Technology from Imperial College London, UK and a BSc (Hons) in Geography from the University of St Andrews, UK.
• 

  Md Monirul Islam, PhD

  Associate

  I am an environmental scientist with strong expertise and interest in climate change impact and adaptation, and the human dimensions of fisheries and aquaculture. I am a Professor in the Department of Fisheries, University of Dhaka, a visiting research fellow of the University of Oxford and the International Centre for Climate Change and Development, and an Associate of the Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy University of Leeds & LSE.
• 

  Olivia Crowe

  Researcher

  I am a zoologist and environmental scientist interested in the role of nature and biodiversity in tackling socio-environmental challenges at different levels. As a Masters student of Biodiversity, Conservation and Management at the University of Oxford, and in partnership with the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, I am researching opportunities for engagement with the insurance sector on Nature-based Solutions in the context of disaster risk reduction, including a focus on the UK Overseas Territories in the Caribbean.
• 

  Rowan Davis, BSc

  Associate

  I am biologist interested in the interface of development, conservation and human geography and I have a particular focus on the use of nature-based solutions to overcome the challenges of the Anthropocene. I am a current Masters student in the School of Geography at the University of Oxford studying Biodiversity, Conservation, and Management and undertaking research on ecosystem-based adaptation in Mongolia.

Advisory Team

• 

  Kate Raworth

  A “renegade economist focused on exploring the economic mindset needed to address the 21st century’s social and ecological challenges”. Kate’s idea of Doughnut Economics has been widely influential amongst sustainable development thinkers, progressive businesses and political activists, and she has presented it to audiences ranging from the UN General Assembly to the Occupy movement. Her book, Doughnut Economics: seven ways to think like a 21st century economist was published in 2017 and has been translated into 15 languages. The book promotes regenerative and distributive design for humanity and the rest of nature to thrive.
  
• 

  Dr Saleemul Huq

  An expert on links between climate change and sustainable development from the perspective of developing countries. Saleem was lead author of the chapters “Adaptation and Sustainable Development” and “Adaptation and Mitigation” in the third and fourth assessment reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). His current focus is on supporting Least Developed Countries engage in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. He is Director of the International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD) in Bangladesh.
• 

  Professor Colin Mayer, CBE

  A widely acclaimed expert on all aspects of corporate finance, governance and taxation, the regulation of financial institutions and the role of the corporation in contemporary society. Colin sits on the UK Natural Capital Committee and provides advice to the government on the sustainable use of our natural assets including forests, rivers, land, minerals and oceans. He is a Fellow of both the British Academy and the European Corporate Governance Institute, and is the Peter Moores Professor of Management Studies at the Saïd Business School, University of Oxford.
  
  
• 

  Dr Juliet Vickery

  Juliet is Head of the International Research Section in the RSPB Centre for Conservation Science and an Honorary Research Fellow in the Department of Zoology at Cambridge University. She researches the causes of bird species declines and develops political or practical solutions integrating conservation and human development goals. Her team's research underpins the conservation of threatened sites, species and habitats throughout the world and builds scientific capacity of in-country partner organisations. Juliet is President of the British Trust for Ornithology, a member of the Darwin Initiative Expert Committee and chair of the Policy Committee of the British Ecological Society.
• 

  Dr Andrew Norton

  An applied anthropologist who works to promote social and environmental justice with a career spanning research and operational roles in academic and development contexts. Andrew has worked extensively on the social dimensions of climate change, poverty, gender and social analysis, social policy and human rights in development practice. He has experience of working in Africa, Asia and Latin America, and is Director of the International Institute for Environment and Development, London.
• 

  Dr David Nabarro

  A medical doctor with over 40 years experience, David has worked in over 50 countries, in communities and hospitals, governments, civil society, universities, and in United Nations (UN) programs. He is Co-Director of the Imperial College Institute of Global Health Innovation, Advisor at the Global Commission on Adaptation in Rotterdam, and supports systems leadership for sustainable development through his Switzerland based social enterprise 4SD.