Profile
Helen Roy
My CV
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Education:
My family moved to the Isle of Wight when I was 5 years old and I went to school near the sea. My secondary school was called Cowes High School and every year we could chose to go camping to study animals on a small nature reserve in a place called Newtown. For my first degree I studied Biology at Southampton University and completed my masters and PhD at Nottingham University.
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Qualifications:
I have 11 O’levels and 3 A’levels – I studied for art O’level by myself alongside my A’levels in Biology, Chemistry and Physics because I enjoy the arts as well as science. I have a bachelors degree in Biology. My masters is in Environmental Science. For my PhD I studied insects and the ways in which they interact with fungal diseases of pest insects such as aphids (greenfly). These fungal diseases are amazing! They only infect aphids and do all kinds of quirky things to change the behaviour of aphids to help themselves spread from one aphid to another.
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Work History:
As a student I had lots of different jobs – I worked in a library (including reading stories in the children’s section on a Saturday morning), in bars and restaurants, I taught English as a foreign language to summer school students visiting the Isle of Wight. I also worked in offices including one summer as a personal assistant to my sister who works in law.
After I finished my PhD I began working as a University Lecturer and enjoyed this immensely. I particularly enjoyed teaching students out in the wilds – so called fieldwork – where ecology comes alive. I began working for the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology in 2007 and have been there ever since. I love it!
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Current Job:
I am an ecologist and group leader at the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology. I am also a visiting professor at the University of Reading. I work on lots of different projects mainly on the ways in which are changing world is affecting plants and animals. I really enjoy finding out new things and sharing my excitement for ecology. All my projects involve working in teams and we have lots of fun as well as working hard. We are always laughing lots!
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About Me:
I am an ecologist and particularly fascinated by insects. I enjoy sharing my enthusiasm for entomology whenever I can. I live in Oxfordshire with my husband, two daughters (when they are not at University) and three rescue cats – who are always up to mischief.
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Read more
I live just around the corner from the research institute where I work in Oxfordshire. I lead a research group and lots of projects involving many people from around the world. I spend lots of my free time studying insects and I run a citizen science project – the UK Ladybird Survey – which I really enjoy too. I also enjoy being outdoors and exploring the countryside – but my daughters will tell you that I am always stopping to take a close look at everything that creeps or crawls.
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Read more
I lead a research group and we are all fascinated by ecology – particularly community ecology. I have the privilege of working with people from all around the world to unravel questions about how environmental change – such as the arrival of invasive non-native species and climate change – will affect wildlife and what this will mean for the way ecosystems work. Recently I have visited lots of small islands to make predictions about which non-native species might arrive in the future and cause problems for wildlife and people. From this work we can develop plans to reduce the chances of these troublesome non-native species arriving and protect the unique and magical plants and animals found in these remote places- very exciting! I enjoy swimming and snorkelling so getting into the sea at the end of a working day is just perfect.
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My Typical Day:
I get up and take my breakfast into the garden to see what moths have appeared in my light trap. I meet with lots of people to share exciting discoveries and plan the next things that need to be done. Every day is different – sometimes I’ll be talking lots about the work we are doing with many people and other days I might be working within a team to answer new questions about ecology. This often involves working together to analyse large datasets and then explaining the patterns we see in the data.
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Read more
I get up and take my breakfast into the garden to see what moths have appeared in my light trap. If I’m working in the UK I then walk around the corner to my research institute and often begin my day meeting with others in my group to talk about the different projects we are working on and what we have done so far. I often find the time to do some writing. I send some tweets to let people know what has been reported to the UK Ladybird Survey. If I’m overseas then I will be working with lots of different people and we often find time to get outdoors and explore.
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What I'd do with the prize money:
Link school children in Africa and the UK to share stories about insect encounters
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My Interview
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How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
Excitable, Chatty, Insect crazy
What did you want to be after you left school?
I knew I wanted to study biology but I wasn't sure of all the different jobs that would be possible using a science degree
Were you ever in trouble at school?
Not really - I was incredibly fortunate to have amazing biology teachers who inspired and encouraged me - I was hopeless at team sports and certainly frustrated the PE teachers with being distracted by everything other than the game on the sports field
Who is your favourite singer or band?
Belle and Sebastian
What's your favourite food?
Halloumi
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
See a 13-spot ladybird. Dive more. Walk the Cornish coast
Tell us a joke.
Q: What did one flea say to the other flea when they came out of the cinema? – A: Should we walk home or take a dog?
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