Science

Science

Understanding and predicting environmental change

Team

Team

Scientists, Engineers, Research Community Leaders

About me

From the icy plains of Antarctica to the forefront of AI research, my career has been driven by a singular passion: protecting our planet. Today, I stand at the intersection of these two worlds, leading a team of brilliant minds at the Alan Turing Institute and British Antarctic Survey. Together, we’re harnessing the power of Artificial Intelligence to create digital twins – virtual replicas of Earth’s systems – that can help us understand, predict, and ultimately solve the challenges of climate change.

It all started with a deep fascination for Earth’s intricate climate system. As a PhD student at Cambridge, I dove into the world of global climate modeling, building complex simulations to unravel the mysteries of our planet’s changing behavior. This journey led me to the British Antarctic Survey, where I established the AI Lab – a hub for exploring the potential of AI in environmental research. Joining the Turing was the logical next step, merging my expertise in environmental science and AI to foster groundbreaking collaborations.

Our projects are as diverse as the ecosystems we study. We’re merging data from satellites and ground sensors to create a real-time pulse of our planet, developing new machine learning algorithms to forecast our weather, and developing AI-powered tools to track wildlife populations and monitor environmental change. I’m particularly excited about our Antarctic Digital Twin programme, which aims to provide near-instantaneous insights for informed decision-making in this crucial region.

My journey has been fueled by incredible collaborations, partnerships, and a dash of recognition along the way. Our research has been featured in Nature Communications, Nvidia, Wired Magazine and our group was acknowledged as an “AI for Good” exemplar by the UK government. But the most rewarding moments are witnessing the impact of our work – informing policies, shaping sustainable practices, and ultimately, giving our planet a voice through the power of AI.

There’s still so much to explore, and I’m excited to continue this journey, one digital twin at a time. If you share my passion for protecting our planet, let’s connect! I’m always eager to collaborate, share knowledge, and inspire others to join the fight for a sustainable future.

P.S. I’m a firm believer in the power of open collaboration. Feel free to join our Slack if you’re interested in joining our mission!

Career History

Other Roles

Recognition

Teaching

  • Waves and geosciences spring school: Infrasound and beyond, l’Ecole Centrale de Lyon and Sorbonne University, 2022
  • Machine Learning and the Physical World, University of Cambridge, 2020-2021
  • AI for Earth and Environmental Sciences, ClimBEco Graduate Research School, Lund University and University of Gothenburg, 2021
  • Environmental Data Analysis, University of Cambridge, 2019
  • Earth System Science Spring School, National Centre for Atmospheric Science, UK, 2010-2014

Funding

I have secured over £25m in grant funding from public and private sectors as both Principal-Investigator (PI) and Co-Investigator (Co-I). These include:

News

2024/05 - Keynote Speaker, Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) Group Innovation Event, UK

2024/04 - Chair, 13th International Conference on Climate Informatics, The Alan Turing Institute, UK

2023/10 - Science Lead (Turing), AI for Numerical Weather Prediction project (AI4NWP), The Alan Turing Institute and Met Office, UK

2023/06 - Secured the role of Co-Director, Turing Research and Innovation Cluster in Digital Twins (TRIC-DT), The Alan Turing Institute, UK

2023/04 - Co-Chair, 12th International Conference on Climate Informatics, University of Cambridge, UK

2023/04 - Joined the Delivery Board for the Future Marine Research Infrastructure (FMRI), NERC, UK

2022/03 - Invited to join the Digital Research and Infrastructure Group (DRIG) to deliver NERC’s 10-year Digital Strategy

2022/03 - Appointed as BAS Science Leader for AI, Joined the BAS Science Strategy Executive Board

2022/02 - Joined the Advisory Group for the UK AI Research Infrastructure Review, a key component of the UK’s National AI strategy

2021/05 - Secured the role of Senior Expert to the NERC Constructing a Digital Environment (CDE) Programme

2021/02 - Principal Investigator (PI) to a multi-institution research programme, Environmental monitoring: blending satellite and surface data

2020/10 - Joined the Steering Committee for the Environment and Sustainability Interest Group, 500+ members, The Alan Turing Institute

2020/09 - Promotion, ~equivalent to Reader/Associate Professor

2020/06 - Invited to join the Steering Committee for The Alan Turing Institute-UK Met Office operational alliance

2020/04 - Started secondment to the Alan Turing Institute under the Data Science for Science programme

2019/09 - Stated role of Co-Director for the UKRI Centre for Doctoral Training in the Application of AI to the study of Environmental Risks (AI4ER), led by University of Cambridge and BAS

2018/06 - Established the BAS Artificial Intelligence (AI) Lab

2017/09 - Awarded The Laws Prize, British Antarctic Survey Club

2016/09 - Promotion, ~equivalent to Lecturer. Changed role to “Environmental Data Scientist”

2016/05 - Appointed as Secretary, Global Environmental Research Committee, The Royal Society

2014/09 - Appointed as Innovation Champion, BAS

2011/01 - Co-founded the Cambridge Centre for Climate Science (CCfCS)

2009/12 - Started at British Antarctic Survey (BAS) as a “Global Climate Modeller”, tenured/open-ended position

2009/09 - Completed PhD, “The impact of deep convection on the structure of, and transport through, the tropical tropopause layer”, University of Cambridge, UK

2005/10 - Started PhD, University of Cambridge, UK .