Richard Fewster

Biography

I am a PGR based in the School of Geography at the University of Leeds working with Dr. Paul Morris, Dr. Ruza Ivanovic, and Prof. Graeme Swindles (Queen’s University Belfast) to research the past, present and future of permafrost peatlands (frozen wetlands). My previous research has included the use of statistical bioclimate models, cutting-edge climate projections, lab analyses of palaeoecological proxies, and peatland-based fieldwork. I previously completed my Undergraduate and Masters by Research degrees in Physical Geography at the University of Leeds. I act as a representative for PGRs in committee meetings for both the NERC Panorama DTP and the River Basins: Processes and Management (RBPM) research cluster.

Qualifications

2018 – 2019: Masters by Research in Physical Geography from the University of Leeds

2015 – 2018: Undergraduate in BSc Geography from the University of Leeds

Research Interests

  • Peatlands
  • Permafrost
  • Environmental Change
  • Climate Change
  • Bioclimate Modelling
  • Palaeoecology

Teaching interests

I have long-term ambitions of a career in higher education, with broad research interests in the past, present and future changes of natural environments, particularly peatlands. I have acted as a demonstrator (teaching assistant) on several undergraduate modules on the BSc Geography course at the University of Leeds, with experience teaching statistics, climate modelling, dendrochronology, palaeoecology, ArcGIS, and field-based investigations.

Project Title

Past, present, and future of permafrost peatlands

Supervisors

Dr. Paul Morris, Dr. Ruza Ivanovic, and Prof. Graeme Swindles (Queen’s University Belfast)

Funding

Panorama NERC DTP, 2019

Project outline

My PhD is focused on three broad themes: 1) The Future Distribution of Northern Permafrost Peatlands; 2) Holocene Vegetation Change in Northern Permafrost Peatlands; 3) Recent Changes in European Permafrost Peatlands. My research has used statistical climate envelope modelling to estimate the modern climate envelopes that support permafrost peatland landforms, and has used cutting-edge future climate projections to project their future distribution. The latter stages of my PhD will include global scale analyses of Holocene ecosystem dynamics, through an investigation of palaeoecological archives; and fieldwork on permafrost peatlands in the European arctic.