Dr Alison Karley appointed as Head of Ecological Sciences at The James Hutton Institute
The James Hutton Institute is delighted to announce that Dr Alison Karley has been appointed as Head of the Ecological Sciences department, effective from April 1st.
She takes over from Professor Rob Brooker, who will be leaving the role at the beginning of March to join the Hutton’s executive team as Executive Director of Science.
An agroecologist with more than 25 years of experience in sustainable agri-food systems research, Dr Karley currently leads the Integrated Cropping Systems team within the Agroecology Group and previously led the Institute’s cross-cutting Science Challenge of supporting sustainable and resilient communities through social, economic and technical innovations.
Her research focuses on testing and deploying practices to diversify crop systems (e.g. legume-based intercropping, novel crops, non-cropped habitats), with the aim of reducing inputs and the environmental impact of crop production and increasing agroecosystem resilience to environmental stresses.
Through her research, Dr Karley works across a diverse range of disciplines and sectors, including with farmers, agricultural industries, policy advisors and knowledge transfer organisations. She leads collaborative research testing crop diversification practices with farmers and other stakeholders in the UK and internationally, bringing together knowledge from these different perspectives.
Along with her work for the Hutton, Dr Karley chairs the Committee for the annual Arable Scotland event and recently acted as Coordinating Expert for the EU-CAP Network Focus Group on ‘Crop Associations, including protein crops and milpa’. She is currently an advisor to the European N2Crop project, a member of the Impact Advisory Board for the University of St Andrews School of Mathematics, co-convenor of the Ento’ 25 conference, and an Associate Editor for the journal Ecological Entomology.
“I’m incredibly excited to begin my new role as Head of the Ecological Sciences department. During my time at The James Hutton Institute, I’ve enjoyed working with many colleagues on a diversity of fascinating research, and I look forward to continuing to do so while supporting them in this new role.”
Dr Alison Karley, Head of Ecological Sciences
Commenting on her recent appointment, she said: “I’m incredibly excited to begin my new role as Head of the Ecological Sciences department. During my time at The James Hutton Institute, I’ve enjoyed working with many colleagues on a diversity of fascinating research, and I look forward to continuing to do so while supporting them in this new role.
“Rob did a fantastic job of leading the department during his time as Head of Ecological Sciences, and I hope to continue where he left off and help the team progress even further.”
Professor Deb Roberts, Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Science at the Hutton, added: “On behalf of the Institute, I would like to thank Rob for his commitment throughout his tenure as Department Head and congratulate Ali on her appointment. “With her skills, experience, and enthusiasm, I have no doubt that she will excel in this role and I very much look forward to working with her as part of the Institute’s senior management team.”
