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Research project

Science by the Sea

Project overview

'Science by the Sea' is an engaging and immersive STEM outreach project designed for students from local Poole schools. The initiative offers students a unique opportunity to engage with environmental science through an educational visit to Upton Country Park's Natural Reserve during the last week of the school term. The visit will include a guided walk and a hands-on STEM activity focused on topics such as organic pollution, invasive species, and algal blooms. By targeting schools with diverse backgrounds, the project promotes cultural exchange and understanding, fostering a more equitable learning environment for all participants. We value the input of teachers and students in shaping the project's content and activities and, as such, we are co-producing the educational materials and the planning of the visit with the schools involved.

Staff

Lead researchers

Dr Vicky Dominguez Almela

Lecturer

Research interests

  • Her work has included the use of individual-based models (IBMs), geographical information systems (GIS) and stable isotopes to increase understandings of invasion patterns and evaluate invasive species eradication programmes. She also uses citizen science tools to co-produce knowledge with the general public and increase adaptation pathways to climatic risks.
  • Champion of the Nature-Based Solutions Special Interest Group at the Southampton Marine and Maritime Institute.
  • Postgrad Rep and Social Media Lead of the British Ecological Society Invasion Science Group.
Connect with Vicky

Email: V.Dominguez-Almela@soton.ac.uk

Other researchers

Dr Sien Van Der Plank PhD

Senior Research Fellow

Research interests

  • Multi-scale analysis using mixed methods of coastal flood risk management across policy domains, organisational stakeholders and households.
  • Risk attitudes and behaviours to the natural environment in relation to perceived, expected and experienced social and physical changes.
  • Mixed methods analysis of the form and evolution of stakeholder perceptions toward mining, expected impacts of mining, and experiences of consultation process.
Connect with Sien

Email: sien.vanderplank@soton.ac.uk

Research outputs