Postdoctoral researchers in the School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences 

Postdoctoral researchers

Dr Marija Antanavičiūtė

Dr Marija Antanavičiūtė

Research and Policy Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Marija Antanavičiūtė works in international ethics and organisational studies. She is particularly interested in how ethics is practised in the public sector and international organisations. In her research, she explores how norms and values translate into organisational practices, structures, and professional roles.

Email
m.antanaviciute@bham.ac.uk

Dr David Beddows

Dr David Beddows

NCAS Researcher

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

David is staff member of the National Center of Atmospheric Sciences (NCAS) working at Birmingham University. His interests are in the research and development of scientific instrumentation, novel multivariate data analysis algorithms and atmospheric modelling tools used for the interpretation of data collected from atmospheric aerosols.

Email
d.c.beddows@bham.ac.uk

James Brean

James Brean

Postdoctoral researcher in Environmental Health

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

James is an environmental physical chemist. His research focuses on the nucleation of gases in the atmosphere into nanometre-sized particles, which he studies via mass spectrometry in both pristine polar regions, and polluted urban centers. 

 

Email
j.brean@bham.ac.uk

Dr Manfredo Capriolo

Dr Manfredo Capriolo

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Manfredo Capriolo is a Solid Earth geologist who studies the volatile emissions from Large Igneous Provinces using melt and fluid inclusions. His area of interest and expertise spans Petrology, Geochemistry and Volcanology.

Email
m.capriolo@bham.ac.uk

Dr Swaroop Chakraborty

Dr Swaroop Chakraborty

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Chakraborty, an interdisciplinary researcher with a vibrant academic trajectory, completed his doctorate in Bioengineering at the Indian Institute of Technology, India, in 2021. Dr. Chakraborty has been a member of both the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Royal Society of Biology since 2023, achieving the prestigious titles of Chartered Scientist and Chartered Chemist. His enthusiasm for ...

Email
s.chakraborty@bham.ac.uk

Arijeet Dutta

Arijeet Dutta

Research Fellow

Dr Arijeet Dutta is a postdoc in the School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences. He is working in the NERC funded BRIDGE project lead by Dr Ruth Geen, which aims to understand the dynamics of regional monsoons. Arijeet’s broad research interests include general circulation of atmosphere, atmospheric teleconnection and low-frequency climate variability.

Email
a.dutta.2@bham.ac.uk

Dr Tom Faherty

Dr Tom Faherty

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Tom Faherty is currently a post-doctoral researcher within the school of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of Birmingham. His research is dedicated to exploring the impact of common air pollutants on various aspects of cognitive function throughout the lifespan, particularly focusing on the effects of short-term exposure episodes and cognitive dysfunction. Having ...

Email
t.b.s.faherty@bham.ac.uk

Dr Sarah Greenham

Dr Sarah Greenham

Impact Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Sarah Greenham is an Impact Fellow in the Urban Design and Green Infrastructure strand of the West Midlands Air Quality Improvement Programme, WM-Air. Her interdisciplinary research background primarily focuses on adapting cities and their infrastructure to the impacts of climate change. The research Sarah undertakes is motivated by the opportunity for knowledge exchange and stakeholder ...

Email
s.greenham@bham.ac.uk

Dr Kiya Hurley

Dr Kiya Hurley

Children, Young People & Families Programme Coordinator
Research Fellow for the NIHR School for Public Health Research

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Kiya Hurley coordinates the research undertaken within the Children, Young People & Families programme for the National Institute for Health and Social Care Research (NIHR), School for Public Health (SPHR). Kiya is also a Research Fellow within SPHR with a research interest in how food and feeding contribute to creating a healthy start in life and the wider societal factors that influence ...

Email
k.hurley@bham.ac.uk

Katy Ivison

Katy Ivison

Postdoctoral Researcher

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Katy Ivison carried out her PhD at Durham University on the impact of climate change and biotic interactions on non-native plants in Norway. She is currently working on UK wildfire fuel dynamics, including characterizing the drivers of fuel moisture and investigating modelling techniques to understand and predict fuel moisture. 

Email
k.e.ivison@bham.ac.uk

Dr Liam Kelleher

Dr Liam Kelleher

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Liam Kelleher is a research fellow at the Institute for Global Innovation (IGI) working on the Water Challenges research theme. Liam’s interests are in the area of spectroscopy (Raman and others), data analysis and the study of nano and microplastics.

Please get in touch if you want to chat further.

Telephone
+44(0)1211234220
Email
l.kelleher@bham.ac.uk

Hassan Khalid Ageel

Hassan Khalid Ageel

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Hassan Ageel has 10 years of experience in different Environmental fields, such as Environmental Inspection, Marine Environments, and Environmental Management, in many sectors in Saudi Arabia. To date, he also has three years of Academic experience in the field of microplastics, within indoor air environments.

Telephone
+44 7723 674194
Email
dr.hassan.ageel@gmail.com

Dr Owen King

Dr Owen King

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Owen King is a human geographer with particular interests in environmental governance and political ecology with an emphasis on extractive industries and water resources. He is a post-doctoral research fellow with the ESRC Future Research Leaders project ‘Geo-logics and geo-politics: the collective governance of European shale gas development.’

Email
o.king@bham.ac.uk

Dr James Levine

Dr James Levine

Senior Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr James Levine’s focus is on air quality, spanning the conventional boundary between natural and built environments. His background is predominantly in atmospheric science, developing numerical models of atmospheric chemistry and transport for innovative applications. However, drawing on experience of architectural practice (qualified to RIBA Part I), James increasingly couples ...

Email
j.g.levine@bham.ac.uk

Kerryn Little

Postdoctoral Researcher

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Kerryn Little is a postdoctoral researcher in PyroGeography. Her research focuses on the spatiotemporal controls on wildfire danger, with a view towards developing practical wildfire management tools. She is interested in using a combination of field-based experiments and modelling approaches to understand fuel moisture dynamics, wildfire behaviour, fire weather, and large-scale atmospheric ...

Email
k.e.little@bham.ac.uk

Chang Liu

Chang Liu

Postdoctoral Researcher

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Chang is an urban and regional researcher in human geography in school of Geography, Earth & Environmental Sciences. Researching the internal migrants' engagement with public spaces in Chinese cities, her research focuses on how public space solves the social problems caused by the antagonism between rural-urban and urban-rural migration; she explores this topic both globally, as there are ...

Telephone
+44 7393588214
Email
cxl029@student.bham.ac.uk

Dr Joseph Mallalieu

Dr Joseph Mallalieu

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Joseph Mallalieu is a glaciologist, specialising in contemporary glacier and ice-sheet dynamics, and how these are influenced by a range of phenomena, including climate change, ice-marginal lakes and volcanism. Joe uses remote sensing, GIS and field techniques to monitor glaciers at a range of spatial and temporal scales, with a particular emphasis on Arctic glaciation. Methodologically, he is ...

Email
j.mallalieu@bham.ac.uk

Nadezhda (Nadia) Mamontova

Nadezhda (Nadia) Mamontova

Newton International Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Nadezhda Mamontova is a human geographer and social anthropologist specialising in Siberian and Arctic Studies and indigenous people.

Email
n.mamontova@bham.ac.uk

Dr. Carolina Mayoral

Honorary Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Carolina Mayoral is a leading researcher in forest ecology and tree physiology, with nearly 8 years of postdoctoral experience at prestigious institutions such as the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and the Birmingham Institute of Forest Research. Renowned for contributions to climate change experiments like BIFoR-FACE. Carolina's work has significantly advanced understanding of ...

Email
c.mayoral@bham.ac.uk

Dr Kelvin Ng

Dr Kelvin Ng

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Kelvin Ng is an atmospheric scientist who focuses on meteorological and climatological extremes.

Email
k.s.ng@bham.ac.uk

Zichuan Qin

Zichuan Qin

Postdoctoral Fellow

Zichuan Qin got his PhD at the University of Bristol and now he is a postdoctoral researcher fellow in University of Birmingham. He specializes in the functional and morphological evolution of bizarre dinosaurs. He is also an active paleontological science writer and translator on Chinese Internet community.

Email
z.qin.1@bham.ac.uk

Dr Katie Reilly

Dr Katie Reilly

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Katie Reilly is an environmental scientist with a focus on ecotoxicology and anthropogenic stressors in aquatic environments. Katie also has a keen interest in science communication and public engagement centered in environmental issues, often with a focus on microplastic pollution effects, and has experience working with a range of audiences.

Email
k.reilly.1@bham.ac.uk

Roosa Rytkönen

Roosa Rytkönen

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Roosa Rytkönen is a social anthropologist specialised in the study of truth and knowledge contestations. In her PhD project, she explored how natural scientists and environmental activists in Western Siberia seek to discern truth in the uncertain epistemic landscape of contemporary Russia. Currently, she is working as a Research Fellow in a project exploring knowledge controversies around ...

Email
r.k.rytkonen@bham.ac.uk

Dr Uwe Schneidewind

Dr Uwe Schneidewind

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Uwe is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow funded by the German Research Foundation. His research at UoB focusses on the fate and transport of microplastics in freshwater sediments. His main research interests are related to unravelling water flow and contaminant transport processes in streambeds and near-stream shallow aquifers.

A summary of his current research project can be found here: https://gep ...

Email
u.schneidewind@bham.ac.uk

Dr Lisa Schnetz

Dr Lisa Schnetz

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Lisa Schnetz is a vertebrate palaeobiologist whose main research interests are on the (macro-)evolution and diversification of Palaeozoic fossil fishes, specifically the cartilaginous fishes including sharks, skates, rays and chimaeras. Her current research uses x-ray imaging (CT scanning) and quantitative methods to unravel the diversity of feeding structures in heterostracans, early armoured ...

Email
l.schnetz@bham.ac.uk

Dr Roberto Sommariva

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

My research is focused on halogens and radical chemistry in the troposphere, combining measurements and modelling. My main research project is about the processes that form and destroy ozone, and other pollutants, in the lower atmosphere.

Personal website: www.robsom.org

Telephone
+44 (0)121 414 2558
Email
r.c.sommariva@bham.ac.uk

Dr Inga Ulnicane

Dr Inga Ulnicane

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Inga Ulnicane is an interdisciplinary social scientist working at the intersection of policy research, political science and social studies of science and technology. She has published extensively on topics such as politics and policy of Artificial Intelligence, governance of emerging technologies, Grand societal challenges and Responsible Research and Innovation.

Email
i.ulnicane@bham.ac.uk

Pam Vervoort

Pam Vervoort

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Pam Vervoort is a paleoclimatologist who uses Earth system models to understand the role of carbon cycle feedbacks in driving Earth's climate and environmental changes throughout Earth's history. She studies past episodes of global warming, such as the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum and other hyperthermal events to understand what caused past global warming in the first place and to ...

Joseph Wayman

Joseph Wayman

Post Doctoral Research Associate

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Joe Wayman studied Zoology at Bangor University before moving to the University of Birmingham for his PhD in Physical Geography, looking at changes in biodiversity through time and space. From 2021 – 2023 he also worked as a research associate on the project MEFA which aimed to use staring radar technology to track and monitor bird activity above the city of Birmingham. In 2023 he completed ...

Dr James Christopher White

Dr James Christopher White

Research Fellow in Water Sciences

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

James is an interdisciplinary research scientist whose research broadly entails characterizing freshwater ecosystem dynamics and pressures in the context of global change ecology. He works closely with non-academic partners including water companies, charities and volunteer groups to deliver applied research on managing freshwater ecosystems to benefit wildlife and people.  

 

Email
j.c.white.1@bham.ac.uk

Emma Widdop

Emma Widdop

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Built upon a foundation of art practice and educated in architecture, landscape and urban design, Emma’s work crosses disciplinary boundaries to place the human experience at the center of the design rationale. She has spent the past decade as a design practitioner, delivering projects in healthcare, education, and heritage sectors across the UK. 

Email
e.widdop@bham.ac.uk

Dr Chee Yap Chung

Dr Chee Yap Chung

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Chee Yap Chung is an ambitious and enthusiastic research fellow at the University of Birmingham, specialising in environmental health, air quality, and climate change. Chee Yap is dedicated to advancing knowledge in these areas through his innovative research and collaboration, aiming to improve public health and mitigate climate change impacts.

Email
c.y.chung@bham.ac.uk

Tahmina Yasmin

Tahmina Yasmin

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Tahmina is an excellent interdisciplinary researcher situated at the intersection of society and environment, sustainable transition, policy and governance. She is currently involved with the Centre for Environmental Research and Justice (CERJ) and the Birmingham Institute for Sustainability and Climate Action (BISCA). In various research roles within Birmingham, previously she worked as a ...

Email
t.yasmin@bham.ac.uk

Dr Peng Zhang

Dr Peng Zhang

Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Zhang is considered a leading researcher with a broad vision and innovative ideas in developing solutions for sustainable nanotechnology and nano-enabled agriculture. He pioneered the use of synchrotron-radiation based techniques to study the transformation of nanomaterials in plants. He specifically established an isotope labeling approach for tracing the fate of nanoscale CeO2 in plants and ...

Telephone
07398598427
Email
p.zhang.1@bham.ac.uk

Dr Jian Zhong

Dr Jian Zhong

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Dr Zhong's current research focuses on modelling the flow and thermal structures of the urban atmospheric boundary layer using a Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) model and a Large Eddy Simulation (LES) model. Favourable weather conditions for measurement campaigns (i.e. the deployment of the biotelemetry/bio-aerial-systems) will be identified via pre-deployment modelling, primarily using a ...

Telephone
+44 (0)121 414 5523
Email
j.zhong.1@bham.ac.uk