Ivonne Liliana Salamanca Leon
PhD project title: Using ecological theory and data to evaluate and improve industry’s measurement of Biodiversity Net Gain
Location: School of Environmental & Natural Sciences, Bangor University
Email: vns22sbv@bangor.ac.uk
With a deep love for the natural world, I embarked on a journey in ecology, earning my undergraduate degree in Colombia and a master’s from the University of Toronto. For the past decade, I’ve thrived as an environmental consultant, focusing on wildlife surveys in the tropics, particularly on mammals. This firsthand experience has made me keenly aware of the challenges in mitigating the impact of development on biodiversity. One such example is the collaborative publication, “Records of prioritized species of mammals in Colombia, compiled from photo-trapping information” which includes camera trap data from environmental surveys.
However, my desire to make a real difference in conservation led me to explore ways to bridge the gap between development and protecting biodiversity. This is where my PhD research comes in. By examining Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) from a global perspective, with a particular focus on DEFRA’s biodiversity metric, I hope to contribute valuable insights. Using quantitative modeling with this and other metrics, I’ll assess its effectiveness in measuring changes in various aspects of biodiversity. My ultimate goal is to determine if the metric accurately reflects biodiversity outcomes. This knowledge is crucial for both public and private sectors to make informed decisions that promote nature recovery.