Individual research and knowledge exchange
Professor Sophie Calmé is a conservation scientist at the Université de Sherbrooke, Quebec, and El Colegio de la Frontera Sur, Mexico. She holds a PhD and MSc from Université Laval, Canada, and the equivalent of a BSc (biology) from Université de Lille and Université de Caen, France. She has lived and worked in Canada, Mexico and France, and has collaborated on projects in Latin America and Africa. She has 30 years of expertise in animal ecological science and experience of collaborative multi and interdisciplinary research with social scientists to produce knowledge on social-ecological systems and contribute to solving issues of biodiversity loss and habitat degradation in landscapes inhabited mainly by indigenous communities in the global South, mostly in Mexico. Her research lies at the intersection of ecological and social (historical, cultural, political) research that underpins the study of changing ecosystems. Her research revolves around two main axes: (1) Understanding the relationship between animal species and the landscapes in which they live, to predict their vulnerability to changes within these landscapes, and (2) Understanding how smallholders and indigenous peoples respond to and make decisions in relation to nature. She has published more than 70 peer reviewed scientific articles, as well as several books and book chapters and articles for a variety of audiences. She has taught many undergraduate and postgraduate students, graduating 6 doctoral students and over 30 masters students.
Dr Birgit Schmook is an educator and researcher at Ecosur (El Colegio de la Frontera Sur), Mexico. She holds a BSc and MSc in Tropical Agriculture from the University of Hohenheim, Germany, and a PhD in Geography from Clark University, USA. As a social scientist, Birgit specializes in rural development, with a focus on issues related to smallholder livelihood strategies, climate change adaptation and vulnerability, community-based natural resource management, and rural development policies and interventions, land use and environmental sustainability, particularly in Latin America. She has been working in Mexico for 30 years but has also done extensive fieldwork in Guatemala and Nicaragua. Her work examines the drivers and consequences of changes in land use patterns, such as the conversion of forest land to agricultural use and changes in cropping systems, particularly shifting cultivation. She also examines the diverse livelihood strategies adopted by rural households and their implications for household well-being and resilience. She identifies best practices and lessons learned to inform future policy design and implementation, contributing to the advancement of sustainable rural development practices in Latin America and beyond. She has published more than 80 scientific articles in peer-reviewed journals, as well as book chapters and articles for the general public. She has an extensive teaching record and has contributed to the education of many graduate students.
Dr Rehema White is a sustainability generalist at the University of St Andrews, Scotland, and Chair of Scotland’s UNU Regional Centre of Expertise in Education for Sustainable Development. She holds a PhD from University of Adelaide, Australia, MSc from the University of Manitoba, Canada and BSc (Agric) from the University of Aberdeen, Scotland. She has lived and worked in UK, South Africa, Australia, Canada and Mexico so has experienced different perspectives of and approaches to biodiversity conservation and sustainability. Her research focuses on how we co-produce and share knowledge of nature (including learning for sustainability, transdisciplinarity, nature connectedness); governance of natural resources (including regenerative communities); and practice in contested areas (including biosecurity and biodiversity conflicts). She is exploring integrative analysis and novel links across these different fields, drawing on her experiences across the natural and social sciences. Much of her recent work involves gathering together academics, practitioners and policy makers in innovative ways to co-design collaborative solutions to specific challenges. She has an extensive administration and facilitation portfolio, and has taught thousands of students. Research outputs include over50 peer reviewed papers, proceedings, and book chapters, along with over 30 major reports, and a range of policy briefs, handbooks, exhibitions, popular articles and more. She has contributed to over 100 conference presentations and over 60 workshops.