I am an Environmental Virologist at Bangor University, based within the School of Environmental and Natural Sciences. I currently lead the virology component of the BlueAdapt project, which aims to investigate and mitigate the risks posed by waterborne pathogens in a changing climate. My work operates at the intersection of environmental virology, public health, water quality, and climate resilience.

My research focuses on understanding how climate change affects the occurrence and persistence of sewage-borne human viruses in coastal, estuarine, and river environments. This work is critical for assessing public health risks from viral contamination and guiding evidence-based interventions. I have a strong interest in the challenges surrounding bathing water quality, particularly how risk is assessed and then used to manage human exposure to pathogens.

 Additionally, I also explore the use of emerging molecular technologies to assess viral prevalence, abundance, and diversity in environmental samples. These tools are invaluable for improving our understanding of viral transmission pathways and strengthening pandemic preparedness.

I earned my PhD in Biological Sciences from the University of Salford, Manchester, in 2018, where I investigated resistance to deformed wing virus (DWV) in European honeybees and completed my first Postdoctoral research position at the University of Minnesota USA.

Following this, I joined Bangor University as a Postdoctoral Research Associate during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. My work in the Wastewater surveillance lab focused on developing and optimising methods to concentrate, recover, and detect SARS-CoV-2 and other human-derived viruses from wastewater, using both PCR and next-generation sequencing (NGS) platforms. These efforts contributed to the development of wastewater-based epidemiology tools for tracking community infection trends.