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Meet our Fellows

Our UCD Climate Fellows reflect the breadth of academic disciplines and research approaches that are contributing to our understanding of the climate crisis, encompassing environmental scientists, engineers, architects and mathematicians, as well as researchers working in climate finance, social justice, humanitarian action, politics and policy.

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2025-2027 Fellows

Cara Augustenborg profile picture

Dr Cara Augustenborg

School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy

Dr Cara Augustenborg is an Assistant Professor in Landscape Studies and Environmental Policy at UCD. She also serves as a Member of Ireland's Climate Change Advisory Council; a Member of President Michael D. Higgins Council of State; and on the advisory committee for Teagasc's flagship agri-environmental programme, Signpost. Previously, she was appointed to the advisory councils of the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Dialogue for Climate Action by the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment and presented 'Down To Earth with Cara Augustenborg' on Newstalk FM

Dr. Augustenborg holds a Doctorate in Environmental Science and Engineering from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), From 2014-2017, she was Chairperson of the Board of Directors of Friends of the Earth Ireland. From 2017 until June 2019, she served as Chairperson of the Executive Committee of Friends of the Earth Europe based in Brussels.

cara.augustenborg@ucd.ie
Sam Kelley

Dr Sam Kelley

School of Earth Sciences

Dr Sam Kelley joined the School of Earth Sciences in spring 2019 as a Lecturer/Assistant Professor in Quaternary Geology. Previously, he earned a BSc in Geology from Dalhousie University, an MSc in Quaternary and Climate Studies from the University of Maine, and a PhD from the State University of New York at Buffalo in Geology. Before joining the staff at UCD, Sam was a Post Doctoral Fellow and Lecturer at the University of Waterloo in Canada. He currently works on questions surrounding the interaction between climate change and landscape evolution.

sam.kelley@ucd.ie
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Dr Gabriela Martinez Sainz

School of Education

Dr Gabriela Martinez Sainz is an Assistant Professor in Education and an Ad Astra Fellow (2019- 2024) researching and teaching on children's rights, global citizenship and education for sustainable development. Gabriela's overarching research interest is understanding the role of education in creating more just, peaceful and sustainable societies while empowering children and young people as critical and active citizens.

Gabriela is director of the VARiE (Voice, Agency and Rights in Education) Group at University College Dublin. VARiE is an interdisciplinary research group that generates evidence to inform and improve decision-making in public policy and professional practice in education. It focuses on creating knowledge and developing rigorous, interdisciplinary and participatory projects that place the voice, agency and rights of children and young people at the core.

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gabriela.martinezsainz@ucd.ie
Anna Molter

Dr Anna Molter

Schools of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy and Biosystems and Food Engineering

Dr Anna Molter joined UCD in 2020 as a postdoctoral researcher to work on the WeCount project, which was a citizen science study of traffic in five European cities using low-cost traffic sensors. Following WeCount, she worked on the I-Change project, which engages citizens through living labs to address climate change, sustainable development and environmental protection within the framework of the European Green Deal. She is the PI of the SHIFT project (Sustainable and Healthy InFrastructure by reducing stress during active Travel), which provides objective real-world evidence on the effectiveness of cycling infrastructure in Ireland.

She is currently a Lecturer/Assistant Professor in Environmental Modelling in a joint appointment in the School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy and the School of Biosystems and Food Engineering.

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anna.molter@ucd.ie
Tadhg O'Mahony

Dr Tadhg O'Mahony

School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy

Dr Tadhg O'Mahony its Assistant Professor in Environmental Policy at UCD and Adjunct Prof. of Transformations in the Finland Futures Research Centre at Turku School of Economics. As an ecological economist he has over 20 years of experience across public and private roles, applying systems thinking and foresight approaches, to climate action and beyond.

He has led globally pioneering work in producing the first comprehensive transdisciplinary framework for description and implementation of 'sustainable wellbeing,' for a flourishing of individuals, societies and nature (O'Mahony, 2022). His work has led to analytical and policy innovations in diverse fields including; energy and emissions scenario modelling; sustainable economic development, anticipatory governance, political economy, consumption, progress indicators, and Cost Benefit Analysis.

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tadhg.omahony@ucd.ie
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Dr Josie Taylor

School of English, Drama and Film

Dr Josie Taylor is an interdisciplinary researcher in the field of environmental and energy humanities. Presently, Josie is the Postdoctoral Research Fellow on the Marine Institute Funded project ENACT which explores communities lived experiences of energy infrastructure and energy transition in coastal regions of Ireland (Co. Clare & Co. Cork), explicitly addressing grassroots energy narratives through community outreach, while using theoretical tools from the humanities, as well as qualitative data analysis.

Her first book, The Nonhuman Narratives of Energy, published with Palgrave Macmillan, is in literary and cultural studies, and focuses on energy extraction exploring its impacts on nonhuman species through a range of literary and cultural sources. She has published in a range of academic and creative outlets on topics such as animal studies, gender studies, affect theory, and energy transition.

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josie.taylor@ucd.ie
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Dr Miguel Angel Trejo-Rangel

School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy

Dr Miguel Angel Trejo-Rangel is a Senior Postdoctoral Researcher and Teaching Assistant in Environmental Policy. His research interests focus on the socioeconomic dimensions of climate change, including adaptation and mitigation efforts, and on enhancing climate action to promote transformational change. He is currently working on the Using Worldviews to Inspire and Scale Climate Action project, which aims to identify the values and worldviews that shape climate change perceptions among the Irish public, and to design and test communication strategies based on those values and worldviews.

He holds a Doctorate in Earth System Science from the National Institute for Space Research in Brazil, an Erasmus Mundus Master’s in Water Science and Engineering with a specialisation in Flood Risk Management from UNESCO-IHE, and a Bachelor’s in Sustainable Management of Coastal Areas from the National Autonomous University of Mexico.

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miguel.trejorangel@ucd.ie

2024-2026 Fellows

Saule Akhmetkaliyeva profile picture

Dr Saule Akhmetkaliyeva

School of Biology and Environmental Science

Saule is a UCD postdoctoral researcher where she researches carbon provenance in Ireland’s blue carbon ecosystems. Previously she worked in geochemistry and organic carbon burial in UK wetlands and researched organic carbon and microbes in newly-developed soils following glacier retreat in northern latitudes during her PhD.

Saule specialises in organic geochemistry specifically using organic biomarkers called bacteriohopanepolyols (a group of membrane lipids) to trace the source of organic carbon in various natural environments such as deglaciating areas in the Arctic and natural and realigned saltmarshes in the UK & Ireland.

Saule is an environmental scientist with an interest in organic geochemistry and environmental microbiology. She has a background in polar and coastal research and is particularly interested in the Arctic and coastal environments. Her experience working with soil and sediment samples has deepened her interest in soil research.

Saule is open to media requests.

saule.akhmetkaliyeva@ucd.ie
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Dr Graham Benham

School of Mathematics and Statistics

Graham Benham completed his PhD in industrial mathematics at Oxford, followed by postdoctoral/lecturer positions at Cambridge, Ecole Polytechnique (France), and Oxford. He joined the UCD School of Mathematics and Statistics in 2023 as an Assistant Professor in Applied and Computational Mathematics.

He is an expert in mathematical modelling of environmental fluid mechanics problems, most notably in the areas of CO2 storage, hydrology, glacier dynamics and water waves. He builds models of these systems based on partial differential equations, which he solves using numerical simulations and asymptotic analysis.

Graham uses applied mathematics to tackle real world problems facing our society in the realm of sustainability, climate change and the global energy transition. The space he occupies is between pure and applied studies, linking theoretical mechanics with real field data/experiments to create predictive tools and gain physical insight.

Graham is open to media requests.

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graham.benham@ucd.ie
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Dr Tomas Buitendijk

Quinn School of Business

Dr Tomas Buitendijk is an interdisciplinary researcher with a background in ecocriticism affiliated with UCD College of Business, Earth Institute & iCRAG SFI Research Centre in Applied Geosciences. In his work, he engages with coastal communities to understand their connection to the landscape. He is also interested in how this relationship is affected by change, for example climate change or the transition to renewable forms of energy. His works plays out at the interface of the blue and environmental humanities and the marine social sciences. He frequently collaborates with colleagues working in fields such as environmental psychology, marine geoscience, and science communication.

He is open to media requests.

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tomas.buitendijk@ucd.ie
Grace Cott profile picture

Dr Grace Cott

School of Biology and Environmental Science

Dr Grace Cott is an Assistant Professor in the School of Biology and Environmental Science in UCD. Dr Cott has a BSc in Environmental Science and PhD in Saltmarsh Ecology from University College Cork. She completed her Marie Curie postdoctoral fellowship at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Maryland, USA. She is a recipient of a Science Foundation Ireland, Starting Investigator Research Grant and currently leads a Marine Institute funded project (BlueC) investigating Ireland’s blue carbon potential.

Grace’s research primarily focuses on understanding carbon cycling in saltmarsh ecosystems and how these ecosystems respond to climate change. Dr Cott has expertise in saltmarsh ecology, plant physiology, GHG analysis, stable isotope techniques, and carrying out global change experiments.

Grace's broader areas of knowledge include vegetation ecology, carbon and nitrogen cycling in wetland ecosystems and environmental analysis.

Grace is open to media requests.

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grace.cott@ucd.ie
Shauna Creane profile picture

Dr Shauna Creane

School of Civil Engineering

Dr Shauna Creane is a UCD Climate Fellow and multidisciplinary postdoctoral researcher based in UCD School of Civil Engineering. She specialises in offshore and coastal hydrodynamic processes, sediment transport, morphodynamics and offshore renewables. She has extensive industry experience working as a consultant in the offshore renewable energy sector.

Her research primarily focusses on the interaction between meteorological, oceanographic and sediment transport processes over different time spans, to answer complex research questions that aims to support the sustainable use of marine and coastal resources during the energy transition.

Shauna is a leading member of the UCD Marine and Seabed (MarSea), a new Earth Institute strategic priority project which explores the complex interaction between geological, oceanographic, environmental and biological factors that control the evolution of the seafloor. Shauna is also an active member of the UCD MESSAGE research group.

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shauna.creane@ucd.ie
Soumyabrata Dev profile picture

Dr Soumyabrata Dev

School of Computer Science

Dr Soumyabrata Dev is an Assistant Professor at UCD and an SFI Funded Investigator. His work focuses on leveraging machine learning and remote sensing technologies to tackle climate challenges, including solar energy forecasting, atmospheric monitoring, and sustainable agricultural practices.

Soumyabrata specializes in applying advanced machine learning algorithms to remote sensing data for environmental monitoring. Soumyabrata has a broader understanding of climate resilience, environmental sustainability, and the impacts of climate variability on agriculture. He can provide insights on topics such as water resource management, weather prediction, sustainable farming practices, and the role of AI in addressing environmental challenges.

Soumyabrata is open to media requests and available for interviews or discussions on topics related to climate change, environmental monitoring, and the application of machine learning in climate science.

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Orla Kelly profile picture

Dr Orla Kelly

School of Social Policy, Social Work, Social Justice

Dr Orla Kelly is an Assistant Professor in Social Policy at the UCD School of Social Policy, Social Work and Social Justice. She specialises in studying sustainable human well-being, eco-social policies, sustainable development, and the social dimensions of climate change. She has expertise in quantitative research and mixed methodologies.

Orla is the Principal Investigator of a research pilot exploring the economic, social and environmental impacts of reduced worktime in Ireland. She is also part of the international academic research team investigating the impacts of reduced worktime trials being led by the 4-day Week Global campaign across the UK, USA and Australia.

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orla.kelly1@ucd.ie
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Assoc. Prof. Oliver Kinnane

School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy

Oliver Kinnane is a researcher and an educator focused on achieving a more sustainable built environment. He has various roles at the School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy including lead academic at the Building in a Climate Emergency Research Group and PI on eight different international and national research projects including the EU Green Deal H2020 Probono project, three Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland projects and the Whole Life Carbon in Irish Construction Sector and Built Environment with the Irish Green Building Council.

Oliver is a member of the UCD Energy Institute and leading research through the Nexsys programme and a member of the Earth Institute.

Oliver works with industry to innovate new low carbon concretes and concrete products. He reports research findings to government departments on a regular basis including, primarily to the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and Department of Environment, Climate and Communications.

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oliver.kinnane@ucd.ie
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Dr Ronan McDermott

School of Agriculture and Food Science

Dr Rónán McDermott is an Assistant Professor and Ad Astra Fellow based at the Centre for Humanitarian Action within UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science.

Rónán focuses on the intersection between governance and the fields of disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation. His publications have appeared in journals including Disasters, Progress in Disaster Science, Disaster Prevention and Management, Development Policy Review, Development in Practice, International Journal of Disaster Risk Science, and Journal of International Humanitarian Action.

Rónán is engaged in the broad fields of climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction. He is interested in how the assessment of disaster- and climate-related risks help to inform responses from the international to the local levels. His interests extend also to a range of governance-related aspects of humanitarian action and disaster management.

Rónán is open to media requests.

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ronan.mcdermott@ucd.ie
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Dr Shane McGuinness

School of Geography

Dr Shane Mc Guinness is a conservation biologist by training specialising in human-wildlife conflict and restoration finance. He is currently a Coordinator of the WaterLANDS project, a prestigious restoration project seeking to upscale the restoration of wetlands across Europe. Shane is also the Founder and Director of Peatland Finance Ireland, an initiative to establish and manage blended finance for wetland restoration in Ireland.

Shane has specific knowledge and expertise in the realm of human-wildlife interactions and the financing of restoration. Shane’s broader knowledge includes nature conservation more generally, community efforts towards this, and the challenges of finding support and funding to achieve protection and restoration. Shane’s background in environmental NGOs and science education lends a pragmatic approach to his work which remains grounded in real-world impact.

Shane has extensive experience in science communication and media. He is open to media requests.

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shane.mcguinness@ucd.ie
Lorcan McLaren profile picture

Lorcan McLaren

School of Politics and International Relations

Lorcan McLaren is a PhD researcher and Iseult Honohan scholar in computational social science at the UCD School of Politics and International Relations. He is also a member of the Connected_Politics Lab, where he is advised by Dr James Cross.

His work seeks to understand how political communication can drive climate action, focusing on strategies to increase and sustain public engagement. His current project analyses moral and emotional appeals in European Parliament climate debates (2014-2024) using advanced machine learning and natural language processing tools, helping inform more effective climate advocacy.

Lorcan's broader knowledge includes climate politics; EU politics; European Green Deal; political rhetoric and persuasion; environmental psychology; political communication; machine learning; natural language processing; artificial intelligence; large language models.

Lorcan is open to media requests.

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Fiachra OLoughlin profile picture

Dr Fiachra O'Loughlin

School of Civil Engineering

Fiachra O'Loughlin is an Assistant Professor in the School of Civil Engineering specialising in the area of Hydrology and Remote Sensing. He is director of the UCD Dooge Centre of Water Resources Research and co-lead of the Earth Institute Water theme.

His research expertise is the use of remote sensing and hydrology. The aim of his research is how we can use remote sensing to improve our understanding of how water moves through our environment and the impact that has on people and property (risk) and the environment (eco-hydrology) over short (forecasting) and long-term (climate change). As a hydrologist he is interested with all things related to water and how we interact with it and how it impacts lives in Ireland and globally.

Fiachra is open to media requests. He has been on Ear to the Ground talking about droughts and the impact of climate change. He was also in a podcast with An Fóram Uisce (the Water Forum) discussing the impact of climate change on water quantity in Ireland.

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fiachra.oloughlin@ucd.ie
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Dr Fabiola Schneider

Quinn School of Business

Dr Fabiola Schneider is Assistant Professor in Accountacy at the UCD Quinn School of Business. As an Ad Astra Fellow, her research is dedicated to creating a sustainable global society. She focuses on accountability through corporate sustainability reporting. Fabiola's current research addresses the climate emergency and sustainable transitions, with papers on fossil fuel financing published and publications on ESG reporting and impact investing in progress.

Her research is complemented with engagement on the European Commission's Platform on Sustainable Finance, working on the EU Green Taxonomy. Fabiola is part of the Scope 3 Technical Working Group at the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. She co-leads GreenWatch, which applies AI to detect Greenwashing in financial markets.

Fabiola is happy to broadly engage with media, as evident in her Financial Times opinion piece, contributions to Irish Times reports, multiple podcasts, radio interviews and DW broadcast interview.

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fabiola.schneider@ucd.ie

Contact the Earth Institute

O'Brien Science Centre, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.
E: earth.institute@ucd.ie