I am a social scientist at the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, where I have been working since 2002. I initially trained as an ecologist at Queen Mary and Westfield, University of London (BSc) and the University of Leeds (MSc), spent time rehabilitating chimpanzees in Sierra Leone and chasing fig wasps in the Cook Islands before joining CEH to work on an EU-funded project on biodiversity conflict (BIOFORUM). This led to the realisation that most of my work involved people with differing, often conflicting, perceptions of biodiversity and its management. As a result I did a PhD in political science at the University of East Anglia to develop my knowledge of social science theories and methodologies in order to understand how different people view the natural world and to develop sustainable solutions to complex problems. Within the context of examining the social dimensions of nature conservation, I now carry out research on public attitudes towards biodiversity, including views on how it should or is managed, and the values associated with biodiversity; the communication between scientists and decision-makers (SPIRAL and EKLIPSE projects); the understanding and management of human conflicts over nature conservation; and the role of stakeholder engagement in nature conservation, particularly in the context of protected areas and species.