Steve Albon

Steve Albon was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's National Academy of Sciences and Letters, in 2008. He has held an Honorary Chair at the University of Aberdeen since 1997.

Steve is part of the team developing the Valuing Nature Network [2] – a NERC funded initiative to support inter-disciplinary partnerships to scope, develop and promote research capacity in the valuation (monetary and non-monetary) of biodiversity, ecosystem services and natural resources and facilitate the integration of such approaches in policy and practice in the public and private sectors.

Since March 2009, Steve has worked as Co-Chair, with Professor Robert Watson, Chief Scientist Defra, on the UK National Ecosystem Assessment (NEA) [3]. By the summer of 2011 the NEA will 1) a synthesis of the state and trends in broad habitats (ecosystems) and provision of ecosystem services, 2) an evaluation of future plausible scenarios to 2050 and possible policy responses to enhance ecosystem services for human well-being.

Steve is also Deputy Director of the Centre of Excellence in Epidemiology, Population health and Infectious disease Control (EPIC) [4]. Funded by the Scottish Government, the EPIC initiative is intended to deliver an evidence base for shaping policy and decision-making, informing industry and business about animal infections, providing practical solutions, and enriching science at all levels. Steve is involved in research on tick-borne diseases in wildlife and liver fluke in domestic livestock.

Between 2006 and 2011 Steve coordinated the Environment - Land Use and Rural Stewardship [5]research programme for the Scottish Government. The programme explored the evidence base needed to achieve a balance between various land uses that shape and sustain multi-functional rural landscapes and communities.