Background

I have worked with over 40 ecosystem service experts to build a manual that guides non-specialists through state-of-the art methods for the rapid assessment of some critical ecosystem services at their site of interest. This toolkit also emphasizes the importance of making the same estimates for the most likely alternative state of the site (say, after conversion to agriculture) so that decision-makers can assess the net consequences of such change. Early field tests in Nepal, Montserrat and the UK have been extremely promising, but have also underscored the immense demand for the tool.
My research interests – besides ecosystem services – range from forest ecology to urban wildlife in respect to diversity and distributions. I am interested in all areas of wildlife-human conflicts and wildlife ecology in human-dominated landscapes, and in the application of my research results to the conservation/management of biological resources.