Dr Lydia Cole

Dr Lydia Cole

Lecturer

Researcher profile

Phone
+44 (0)1334 46 1788
Email
lesc1@st-andrews.ac.uk

 

Research areas

I am a conservation ecologist with a keen interest in how tropical ecosystems can be managed sustainably in the face of agricultural expansion and the other pervasive impacts of globalisation. I am particularly interested in peat-scapes, and how they can be responsibly managed through an understanding of their unique hydrological requirements. Past projects of mine, involving time in both academia and industry, have included: creating a mapping and monitoring system for peatlands in the UK, Malaysia and Indonesia; reconstructing past vegetation change and assessing future prospects for the coastal peatlands of Malaysian Borneo; exploring the dynamics of human-wildlife interaction in northeast India; and training Government, research and NGO partners in Ghana, Indonesia and Malaysia on the use of a decision support tool for restoring connectivity in landscapes for biodiversity under climate change.

I'm currently working on a range of research projects with various (fantastic!) interdisciplinary teams, which have a unifying focus on exploring human-environment interactions at different scales:

  • An exploration of the local value of intact tropical peatlands in the lowland Peruvian Amazon, led by Dr Katy Roucoux (Geography & SD)
  • An examination of local perceptions of peatland restoration in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, co-led with Dr Cornelia Helmcke (Geography & SD)
  • An interdisciplinary exploration of the value and parameters of volumetric literacy for natural resource and environmental management, led by Dr Ariadne Collins (International Relations)
  • A pilot project to understand the local to regional implications of peat-fired power generation in Rwanda, under development with Professor Hans Joosten (Greifswald Mire Centre)

In my teaching, I explore the following themes:

  • Environmental management, introducing students to topics including ecological science, social-ecological systems approaches, local ecological knowledge, multistakeholder engagement, ecological literacy
  • Environmental Geography
  • Interdisciplinary approaches
  • Sustainable development in relation to environment
  • Research methods (including field data collection & working with secondary data) in Physical and Environmental Geography
  • Data literacy for social and environmental justice (new digital Masters course, to go live in January 2024)

In order to engage with the next, and multiple generation(s), with industry and with the wider scientific community, I am engaged in the following roles:

PhD supervision

  • Chau Cong Anh Nguyen

Selected publications

  • Open access

    La industria petrolera en la cuenca del Pastaza-Marañón y sus impactos ambientales y sociales

     Lawson, I. T., Laurie, N., Schulz, C., Roucoux, K. H., Andueza, L., Cole, L. E. S., Davies, A. L., Honorio Coronado, E. N. & Wheeler, C., 1 Sept 2023, Donde habitan los neba: naturaleza, cultura e impactos ambientales en los territorios del pueblo Urarina. Martín Brañas, M., Fabiano, E. & Del Castillo Torres, D. (eds.). Iquitos: Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonía Peruana, p. 89–110 22 p.

    Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter

  • Open access

    Los humedales y turberas en los territorios indígenas urarinas: usos, manejo y carbono almacenado

     Honorio Coronado, E. N., Schulz, C., Martín Brañas, M., del Águila Pasquel, J., del Aguila Villacorta, M., Dávila Cardozo, N., Córdova Oroche, C. J., García Mendoza, G., Ríos Paredes, M. A., Cole, L. E. S., Charpentier Uraco, E., Valdivia Alarcón, S., Vargas Bernuy, V., Delgado Amasifuen, D., Paima Roque, R., Marín Reyna, W., Isla Reátegui, G. M., Dávila Tuesta, W., Baker, T. R., Reed, M. S., & 1 others Roucoux, K. H., 1 Sept 2023, Donde habitan los neba: naturaleza, cultura e impactos ambientales en los territorios del pueblo Urarina. Martín Brañas, M., Fabiano, E. & Del Castillo Torres, D. (eds.). Iquitos: Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonía Peruana, p. 57-87 31 p.

    Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter

  • Open access

    Navigating shifting waters: subjectivity, oil extraction, and Urarina territorial strategies in the Peruvian Amazon

     Andueza, L. M., del Águila Villacorta, M., Cole, L. E. S., Davies, A. L., Fabiano, E., Honorio Coronado, E. N., Laurie, N., Lawson, I. T., Martín Brañas, M., Mozombite Ruíz, W., Núñez Pérez, C., Roucoux, K. H. & Wheeler, C., Nov 2023, In: Geoforum. 146, 13 p., 103867.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Promise of private finance is blocking peatland restoration

     Cole, L. E. S., Helmcke, C. & Jenkins, E., 14 Nov 2023, In: Nature. 623, p. 483

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate

  • Open access

    The three-peat challenge: business as usual, responsible agriculture, and conservation and restoration as management trajectories in global peatlands

     Girkin, N. T., Burgess, P. J., Cole, L., Cooper, H. V., Honorio Coronado, E., Davidson, S. J., Hannam, J., Harris, J., Holman, I., McCloskey, C. S., McKeown, M. M., Milner, A. M., Page, S., Smith, J. & Young, D., 31 Dec 2023, In: Carbon Management. 14, 1, 13 p., 2275578.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review

  • Open access

    From ‘Muddy glee’ to muddy reflections on fieldwork and writing

     Thornton, S. A., Cook, S., Cole, L., Hapsari, K. A., Zawawi, N. Z. & Page, S. E., 1 Dec 2022, In: Area. 54, 4, p. 525-530 6 p.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Open access

    Risks to carbon storage from land-use change revealed by peat thickness maps of Peru

    Hastie, A., Honorio Coronado, E. N., Reyna, J., Mitchard, E. T. A., Åkesson, C. M., Baker, T. R., Cole, L. E. S., Oroche, C. J. C., Dargie, G., Dávila, N., De Grandi, E. C., Del Águila, J., Del Castillo Torres, D., De La Cruz Paiva, R., Draper, F. C., Flores, G., Grández, J., Hergoualc’h, K., Householder, J. E., Janovec, J. P., & 8 others Lähteenoja, O., Reyna, D., Rodríguez-Veiga, P., Roucoux, K. H., Tobler, M., Wheeler, C. E., Williams, M. & Lawson, I. T., 14 Apr 2022, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Nature Geoscience. First Online

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Open access

    The vulnerability of tropical peatlands to oil and gas exploration and extraction

     Lawson, I. T., Honorio Coronado, E. N., Andueza, L., Cole, L. E. S., Dargie, G., Davies, A., Laurie, N., Okafor-Yarwood, I., Roucoux, K. & Simpson, M., 1 Dec 2022, In: Progress in Environmental Geography. 1, 1-4, p. 84-114 31 p.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Open access

    Tropical peatlands in the Anthropocene: the present and the future

     Girkin, N. T., Cooper, H. V., Ledger, M. J., O’Reilly, P., Thornton, S. A., Åkesson, C., Cole, L. E. S., Hapsari, K. A., Hawthorne, D. & Roucoux, K. H., 1 Dec 2022, In: Anthropocene. 40, 16 p., 100354.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Open access

    Tropical peatlands in the anthropocene: lessons from the past

     Cole, L. E. S., Åkesson, C., Hapsari, K. A., Hawthorne, D., Roucoux, K., Girkin, N. T., Cooper, H. V., Ledger, M. J., O'Reilly, P. & Thornton, S. A., Mar 2022, In: Anthropocene. 37, 17 p., 100324.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review

 

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