Yanna Alexia Fidai

PhD Studentship entitled: The assessment of the spatial and temporal distribution and impact of Sargassum seaweed across the tropical Atlantic basin

Hi, I'm Yanna Fidai and I am studying within the Southampton Marine and Maritime Institute, University of Southampton.

Sargassum in the Caribbean and West Africa, bushfires in Australia, is this the new norm under climate change?” – Prof. Emma Tompkins

I graduated from the University of Southampton with a BSc in Geography (dissertation title: Mt. Merapi: A Volcanic Risk Assessment) and an MSc in Applied Geographical Information Systems and Remote Sensing (dissertation title: An Investigation into Flight Path Optimisation and their Interaction with Aviation Events).

I have a keen interdisciplinary interest in areas where physical and human geography overlap, in particular how the physical world interacts with anthropogenic communities. This interest is the foundation of my research and events that cross this boundary are my focus.

My PhD topic explores the impact sargassum seaweed has on the livelihoods of varying communities across the Tropical Atlantic Basin. In recent years, large floating matts and mass strandings of seaweed on beaches have affected communities in different ways with notably negative impacts on tourism, aquaculture and biodiversity. Through this research I aspire to aid communities in managing and planning for these sargassum related events. Additionally, I would like to encompass the skills I have acquired through my undergraduate and masters degree through exploration of how GIS and remote sensing based methods can be utilised to support the affected communities in monitoring and management of sargassum. Due to the interdisciplinary nature of this project, I am jointly supervised by Prof Jadu Dash who is a Professor in Remote Sensing, and Prof Emma Tompkins who is a professor of Geography, Environment and Development.