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Leverhulme Centre for Anthropocene Biodiversity
HomeLeverhulme Centre for Anthropocene BiodiversityPeopleNikki Paterson

Nikki Paterson

PhD topic title: Exploring the intersection between biodiversity, nature connectedness, and human health & wellbeing over the lifecourse

PhD supervisors: Dr Peter Coventry, Professor Piran White, Dr Teresa Kittler and Dr Sarah Blower 

Biography and research

I'm in the final year of my PhD. My research draws on more-than-human and ecofeminist theory to take a critical look at the idea of 'nature connection'. I'm thinking about porosity and interdependency between humans and 'nature', and about where the boundaries of the human might be. I'm interested in how experiences of the living world affect human wellbeing, and in mutualistic conceptions of wellbeing.

My ethnographic fieldwork explores the experiences of outdoor swimmers in freshwater bodies – rivers, lakes and reservoirs – across Yorkshire. I'm interested in the experience of being embodied in this context, and in how encounters with cold water, nonhumans, and pollution affect swimmers. 

Prior to my time at LCAB, I completed a BA (Hons) in History at the University of Birmingham, followed by an MSc in Biodiversity, Conservation and Management at the University of Oxford's School of Geography and the Environment. Between the two, I spent a number of years in the private sector, including advising businesses on how to decarbonise and transition towards a circular economy in sustainability consulting.

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