As a marine biologist with over 30 year’s research and management experience, I now have my dream job as MBA Chief Executive. My vision is to make the MBA a career destination that scientists and support staff alike aspire to work at.

Through our membership, I am also passionate about encouraging marine biology enthusiasts to lend their voice to some of the most pressing environmental issues on the planet. With a Marine Biology/Biochemistry degree from Bangor University (1990), PhD from University of Warwick (1994), I also had positions at Plymouth Marine Laboratory; Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences (USA); Sir Alister Hardy Foundation for Ocean Science (SAHFOS).

As a self-confessed ‘virus evangelist’, my personal research interests focus on the multiple roles of marine viruses “lubricants of the great engines of planetary control”. I have expertise revealing interactions between viruses and phytoplankton, with an emphasis on understanding the genetic basis of virus infections and their ecological and evolutionary consequences for ocean life. In short, why are viruses essential for life, as we know it!

My research has contributed to over 130 publications. My favourite sport is curling and I spend a lot of time hiking on Dartmoor (though not at the same time!).