PhD: Remote sensing investigation of how oil palm cultivation is degrading Malaysia’s tropical peatland ecosystem services
Sir Clive Granger Building
University of Nottingham
In 2015, I graduated from the University of Dundee with a BSc (Hons) degree in Geography and Environmental Science. During the course of my studies I became interested in the field of earth observation, exploring this further in my dissertation which focused on the applied use of remote sensing imagery for modelling erosion risk in upland peat environments.
Research Project:
My PhD will be investigating the rapid and large-scale conversion of Malaysia’s pristine swampland to oil palm agriculture. The project aims to combine airborne remotely sensed imagery with in situ field measurements to characterize the ‘process’ of environmental degradation by comparing different stages of land conversion. This will allow me to address the knowledge gap regarding the impacts of the initial vs later stages of oil palm plantation on ecosystem services, with a particular focus on large scale loss of forest tree diversity and the associated impacts on biogeochemical cycling of C and N.