Faculty of Social Sciences
Department of Geography
Staff Profile
Jim McGinlay
j.mcginlay@open.ac.uk
Research Student
Geography
Profile
First Year PhD research student, Life Sciences and Geography
Qualifications
BA Natural Sciences (Chemistry) – University College, Oxford
MSc Environmental Sciences – University of Nottingham
PGCE Secondary Science Education – St Cross College, Oxford
Professional affiliations
Member of the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM), and Affiliate Member of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA) and the Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (IEEM).
Research Interests
My interests lie in the conservation of nature and biodiversity, and my project is specifically focussed on the conservation of species-rich floodplain meadows in the UK. Species-rich floodplain meadows are an important biological resource, but owe their species-rich nature to their historical management and the role they played in past agricultural communities. They are therefore also socio/cultural/historical landscapes. They can also potentially fulfil an ecosystem services role for floodplain storage and water quality regulation which can be in conflict with conservation objectives.
As a member of both the Life Sciences and Geography Departments my interests are two-fold. Not only am I interested in the science of conserving these meadows (e.g. hydrology, nutrient status, management, ecology of component species), I am also interested in what constitutes their value, both scientific and non-scientific. Why do we value them and would it matter if they were lost or altered? This is particularly pertinent given the threats to these habitats from climate change and other human-induced environmental impacts such as atmospheric deposition of nutrients and water pollution, as well as socio-economic factors leading to changes in land management and agriculture.
Recent Publications
A repository of research publications and other research outputs can be viewed at The Open University's Open Research Online.
Other Interests
I am interested and actively participate in nature conservation at home in Oxfordshire (no surprise there I guess!) but am also more broadly interested in environmental issues, having worked for many years for both public and private sectors on non-nature conservation topics such as air pollution and contaminated land.