Dr Fiona Gell, marine biologist, environmental policy specialist and writer, was the inaugural recipient of the UCM Honorary Fellowship award.
Her path began in 1995 with a first-class honours degree in Biology, which she then followed with a PhD in Biology in 1999 that focused on seagrass ecology and fisheries in the Quirimba Archipelago, Northern Mozambique. PhD’s are often viewed as not just qualifications, but a commitment to a lifestyle of research and learning in an area of your interest. In the area of Dr Gell’s interest, or indeed passion – how we live in harmony with and manage our precious marine environments, she has published over forty reports, papers and book chapters. She has written for The Guardian and her passion for marine science and writing were recently brought together when she published Spring Tides: Exploring Marine Life on the Isle of Man, a memoir of her marine conservation work and lifelong love of the sea.
Dr Gell was the Senior Marine Biodiversity Officer for the Isle of Man Government for 13 years and she subsequently headed the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture’ Ecosystem Policy team leading the island’s work on biodiversity and UNESCO Biosphere IOM. In 2019 she was appointed to lead work to develop the Isle of Man’s first net zero climate change action plan and the new Climate Change Act, supporting the work of independent Chair Prof James Curran and bringing together a multidisciplinary team from across government to work on climate change.
Fiona’s has also worked internationally on marine conservation and Marine Protected Areas, as a researcher in the Irish Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Caribbean, and as a practitioner. In the Isle of Man she worked tirelessly and successfully in bringing stakeholders together as full partners in managing the health and diversity of our marine environment, establishing the Island’s first Marine Nature Reserve in Ramsey Bay. This work was a key component in the Isle of Man’s successful UBIOM submission and has received international recognition.
As a friend of UCM, Fiona has, for many years, shared her expertise through lectures, tutorials, talks and presentations to hundreds of students, and has hosted and supervised placement students on a range of projects. We were extremely pleased and proud to present Fiona with this highly prestigious award.
At our 2022 Research Festival Fiona presented her research entitled Spring Tides: creative approaches to communicating the ecological & climate crises you can view this presentation below: