I work on nearshore marine systems with a particular interest in the human-nature interface. Working largely in India and Spain, my primary focus has been on understanding coral reef and seagrass ecosystem dynamics, and how changing human interactions with these systems influence their functioning.

Humans and nature have a fluid, sometimes uncomfortable relationship that changes through time and with circumstance. For marine ecosystems this can strongly determine the trajectories of resilience and decline these systems take. Equally for humans, whose lives and livelihoods are tightly intermeshed with these systems, this relationship informs community identity and tenure, but can equally be a source of significant conflict.

In a world dominated by change, I am interested in how these closely coupled systems evolve and adapt over ecological and historical time frames. On the one hand my focus is on understanding how species interactions influence ecosystem function in the face of rapid ecological change. On the other, I am exploring the role that formal and informal human institutions play in mediating this function – both intentionally, as well as through the many accidents of history.

I work in the oceanic islands and coastal areas of India and in coastal ecosystems in the Spanish Mediterranean.