Dr Alison Johnston
Alison is an ecological statistician who has made significant advances in the field of ornithology, applying and developing techniques to a rage of datasets to further public understanding of the avian world. Alison completed her PhD at the University of Cambridge and soon after joined the BTO’s staff as the Trust’s Ecological Statistician. She worked at the BTO for 8 years and led or co-authored dozens of peer reviewed papers. Alison has pioneered new approaches to analysing the datasets generated by BTO-led schemes and surveys. She has made important contributions to understanding the impacts of climate change and land use on birds and has applied innovative statistical approaches to analysing birds at sea. She was an influential and well-liked participant in several BTO collaborations and plays an important role in research and organising training. Her publication output has only accelerated, leading to a number of invitations for key and plenary talks at international conferences, and further noteworthy collaborations. Alison continues to be a fantastic ambassador for women in science and has sat on discussion panels and published popular articles, blogs and peer reviewed papers. She is an outstanding scientist leading innovative work on harnessing the value of citizen scientists in understanding and conserving the natural world.