Professor & Curator of Botany

I am an interdisciplinary biodiversity scientist working on plant-pollinator interactions and plant diversity with a particular emphasis on extreme and novel environments. I use a combination of environmental DNA, metabarcoding, genomics and museomics to answer questions about how climate and environmental change impacts species diversity and networks over current and historical timeframes. I conduct fieldwork in arctic, alpine, temperate and tropical environments and use herbarium and museum collections for global change research.

My current research focuses on: 

The impact of climate and environmental change on plant-pollinator interactions and plant diversity. Projects include:

• Greenland plant diversity patterns and pollination networks in a changing arctic (PI).
• Effect of glacier retreat on ecosystem processes and plant-pollinator networks in alpine environments (CoI).
• Changes in solitary bee communities and floral resource use over historical time in Austrian steppe habitats (CoI).

Understanding plant-pollinator interactions in anthropogenic landscapes (e.g. gardens, urban amenity areas and farmland) and how to improve floral resources for pollinators. Projects include:

• Saving Pollinators: the value of gardens and amenity spaces for providing floral resources for pollinators (PI).
• Seed4EU: enhancing biodiversity and nature contributions to people across 4EU+ cities (CoI).

As Curator of Botany, I am responsible for the 1.4 million vascular plant specimens within Herbarium C and the living collection of plants within the Botanical Garden. 

I teach on both undergraduate and postgraduate courses including Plant-Animal Interactions, Origins and Tropical Botany. Using field courses for experiential learning is a particular focus of my teaching practice, I teach on the Field Course in Ecology and Evolution of East African Savannas and Forests based in the Udzungwa Mountains of Tanzania.

Public engagement with science is a key part of my work, especially using art-science to explore how humans connect with the natural world. I am Lead Curator of the Biodiversity Gallery, one of the permanent galleries within the new Natural History Museum of Denmark.

I am passionate about the social role of Museums and Botanic Gardens and have led two major, interdisciplinary projects, on the importance of plants and gardens for the health and well-being of people, biodiversity and the environment. 

My work contributes to the sustainable development goals, focusing on SDG15 Life on Land, SDG13 Climate Action, SDG3 Good Health and Well-being and SDG11 Sustainable Cities and Communities.