Rachel Pateman

Rachel Pateman is a mixed methods researcher interested in citizen science and the health and well-being benefits of urban green spaces. In 2012 she completed a PhD in the Biology Department at the University of York, which examined how butterfly species are changing the types of host plant and habitat they are using in response to climate change. Much of this research used citizen-generated data which led her into a career at SEI designing, running and evaluating citizen science projects. These were initially focused on UK biodiversity but have since diversified to a range of sustainability-related issues such as waste management, biotechnology, and water and sanitation services and to a range of contexts including Thailand, Kenya and Mexico. She is particularly interested in co-creation, impact pathways, and equality, diversity and inclusion in citizen science.

Rachel also researches the role urban green spaces play in supporting the health and well-being of city residents, using a range of physiological and subjective measures to understand people’s responses to different types of urban space. She is interested in the role citizen science can play in connecting people with nature and improving their well-being, as well as using citizen science to understand people’s well-being.

Career

• 2005 BA Hons (Biological Sciences, Oxford University)
• 2005 – 2008 Conservation Officer, Wildlife Trust of Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire & Northamptonshire
• 2012 PhD (Climate change ecology, Department of Biology, University of York)
• 2013 to present: Researcher, SEI