Dr. Conor Waldock

Biography

I am an ecologist interested in understanding global change impacts on species and communities. My research forms a bridge between biogeographical theory and local predictions of biodiversity under global environmental change. I develop new concepts and methods that help quantify the geographical structure of species niches and distributions and apply these to inform systematic conservation planning of aquatic biodiversity. In this context, I have experience at the science-policy interface and incorporating on biodiversity models in spatial conservation plans.

I work primarily on aquatic ecosystems with a recent focus on freshwater fish that form an exceptional system of study: a particularly imperilled and extraordinarily diverse group acting as key protagonists in the relationship between nature and people. I use statistical and mechanistic macroecological approaches, combining large-scale insights with field campaigns using electrofishing and eDNA metabarcoding. In understanding the connections between global society and biodiversity change, I draw on perspectives from political ecology and ecological economics - fields adjacent to my ecological training - to spotlight the underlying drivers of biodiversity loss. This interdisciplinary perspective drives my work toward transformative change - fostering just and decolonial people-nature relationships as the foundation of a sustainable society.