People

I am a postdoctoral researcher with a particular interest to understand the influence of the environment on animal movement behaviour, and how these interactions translate into population level processes (functional population connectivity) and patterns (species distributions). To this end, I make use of field data, statistical approaches (e.g., step selection functions), and individual based simulation models (integrating demography, dispersal, and environment). I have applied these models to address applied ecological questions, for example to compare conservation management scenarios in an Afrotropical biodiversity hotspot, as well as more theoretical ones, for example to investigate the potential role of behavioural plasticity in influencing animal range dynamics under human-induced environmental change. 

In my current position, I am modelling the potential role of linear green infrastructure (railway verges in particular) on range expansion of biodiversity in France with the aim to provide practical management recommendations to the railway company (SNCF).

I am a Forestry Engineer with M.Sc. in Forestry Resources. PhD candidate. I am an analyst in data and public policies in the ICAS – Wild Animal Conservation Institute, Anteaters and Highways Project and a member of the Conservation Planning Specialist Group, IUCN, Brazil.  I have experience with spatial analysis, online data for conservation use, conservation planning, and human dimensions of conservation.  In my PhD thesis, I will apply a socio-ecological framework to analyze the wildlife-vehicle collision threat, aiming tp act more efficiently in the planning and decision-making of mitigation measures.

In my PhD I aim to explore different approaches to improve the planning of mitigation measures to reduce fatalities in roads and railways. I intend to identify the locations to implement these measures in dynamic landscapes and in new infrastructures when we do not have fatalities data.

Inês Gomes is a MSc student in Ecology and Environmental Management by the University of Lisboa within thesis project "Assisted colonization as a tool for adapting to climate change: assessment of environmental conditions for the introduction of Argania spinosa in Portugal".