Ciara Dwyer

My research

I am an ecologist and a postdoctoral researcher at the Centre for Environmental and Climate Science, working in the EU project Safeguard. Safeguard brings together researchers, policy experts, NGOs and industry to contribute to reversing the loss of wild pollinators across Europe. This project will be achieved by increasing our understanding of the drivers of wild pollinator decline and the environmental, economic and social impacts. An integrated assessment framework will also be co-developed which will help to inform management decisions and policy development. My postdoctoral research will focus on the development of this integrated assessment framework.

I am a collaborator on the Disturbance and Resources Across Global Grasslands (DRAGNet) at Ainsdale Sand Dunes National Nature Reserve, England. The aim of the long-term experiment is to understand plant community dynamics and trajectories in dune wetlands.

My background

In 2021, I completed a PhD in plant ecology at Loughborough University, England. My research explored the drivers of plant communities in seasonal coastal wetlands (dune slacks). Dune slacks are rich in biodiversity and expected to be sensitive to environmental changes due to complex interactions between plants and hydrology. I undertook plant and soil surveys across the UK and set up long-term hydrological networks. This research demonstrated the complexity of dune slacks, and the importance of exploring biodiversity over different spatial scales. It also highlighted that ecological indicators may provide a way to understand these complex plant-hydrological patterns. Dune slacks are under threat and in decline, and these findings have important implications for management plans in the UK.

Link to my thesis: https://repository.lboro.ac.uk/articles/thesis/Ecohydrology_of_dune_wetlands/17707289

During my doctoral studies, I undertook a fellowship at the Parliamentary Office for Science and Technology. The research focus was understanding how to manage land use for environmental benefits.