People

Alice Malcolm-McKay

Graduate Laboratory Assistant
School of Life Sciences
Postgraduate Research Student
School of Life Sciences
 Alice Malcolm-McKay

Profile

Ask me about
  • The wonders of seagrass
  • Blue carbon
  • ...and how one links to the other!

Biography

I am a current PhD student researching intertidal seagrass spatial dynamics, their role as a blue carbon habitat and potential as a nature-based solution. I am interested in the active efforts the scientific community can make to provide effective solutions to the climate crisis. My current work contributes baseline data to the carbon cycle of coastal habitats and how they could be used to mitigate climate change. In the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2020-2030), understanding the ecosystem services provided by coastal habitats, including those we aim to protect and restore, has become increasingly important. After completing my undergraduate degree in Marine Biology at the University of Essex in 2020, I spent the next 18 months working as a research supervisor in Greece with a marine non-governmental organisation (NGO), Archipelagos Institute of Marine Conservation. After building my marine-based field work and management skills, I returned to the University of Essex for my PhD in 2022.

Research and professional activities

Thesis

Intertidal seagrass dynamics, recovery and role in nature-based solutions

Supervisor: Professor Tom Cameron , Dr Natalie Hicks , Professor Corinne Whitby , Professor Graham Underwood , Dr Richard KF Unsworth

Contact

a.malcolmmckay@essex.ac.uk

Location:

Colchester Campus