Current Committee Role:
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Co-ordinator (co-opted position)
About Me:
I’m a palaeontology PhD student at The University of Leeds researching regional differences in the impact and intensity of the Toarcian Oceanic Anoxic Event on benthic fauna. I have broad range of interests in palaeontology and specialise in taxonomy, systematics, evolution, biogeography, biostratigraphy, and preparation and conservation of collections.
I’m also a Visiting Academic at The University of Manchester where I graduated with a Master of Earth Sciences degree in 2019. At university I completed two collections-based research projects. My undergraduate project involved documenting the Lower Jurassic marine reptiles at the Yorkshire Museum and Gardens, whilst my Masters investigated the systematics, biogeography, and speciation of endemic Aptian (Cretaceous) ammonites. This also included preparing and caring for a collection of approximately 2000 induvidual ammonites.
I’m currently expanding my previous marine reptiles work and am documenting Lower Jurassic marine reptile specimens from Yorkshire in public British collections. This project aims to increase accessibility and sample size for researchers, and possibly provide funding opportunities for the museums themselves.
My love for palaeontological collections led me to join the GCG in 2021. The pandemic hit just a few months after I graduated, and I found myself navigating hardships which really opened my eyes to the need for more inclusion and diversity in the sector. In my role as the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Co-ordinator I am passionate about supporting everybody who has an interest in geological collections, whether that interest be professional or simply a curiosity.
I would love to hear any suggestions you have as to how the GCG can be even more inclusive and bring about more support, so please do not hesitate to drop me a line.