Women Advancing River Research: Angela Gurnell

The recording for this seminar is now available.

Abstract: The Importance of Plants for River Geomorphology

Research within the field of fluvial biogeomorphology focuses on the impact of organisms, particularly plants, on physical processes and landform development within river environments. This research field has evolved and matured over 50 years such that strong links between plants and river morphodynamics are now established and are increasingly becoming embedded in river management practices.

In this seminar, Gurnell will track the development of fluvial biogeomorphology, emphasising some of her research contributions to the following temporal sequence of themes:

1. Plants grow where the river permits
2. Dead wood influences river morphodynamics
3. Some large wood sprouts: a spiral of wood and trees
4. River and riparian forest dynamics are linked: combining evidence from field observations, remote sensing, and laboratory experiments.
5. Riparian and aquatic plant species can act as river engineers

Biography: Angela Gurnell commenced her research career with a bachlor's degree and doctoral degree in geography from the University of Exeter. She was appointed to a lectureship at the University of Southampton in 1973 and was subsequently promoted to senior lecturer, and then, reader. In 1994, she moved to the University of Birmingham, where she was awarded a personal chair in 1995. From 2002 to 2009, she was professor of physical geography at King’s College London, serving as the head of the Department of Geography from 2003 to 2006. She then moved to her current post at Queen Mary University of London as professor of physical geography. 

In her early career, Gurnell's research focused on hydrology, with particular interests in hydrological mapping, glacial hydrology and heathland hydrology. The last theme led to an interest in the way that rivers interacted with vegetation, stimulating the central focus of her research over the last three decades on fluvial biogeomorphology. Within this field, her main interests have been to understand how vegetation can influence the morphodynamics of rivers; how vegetation-fluvial process interactions may lead to dramatic changes in river morphodynamics, including the ways in which rivers respond to human pressures and interventions; and how this knowledge can be applied to the sustainable restoration of rivers. 

She was awarded a doctor of science degree by the University of Exeter in 2000; the Royal Geographical Society’s Victoria medal in 2002; the British Society for Geomorphology’s Linton medal in 2012; and in 2021, she was awarded the European GeoSciences Union’s Alfred Wegener medal.

Additional Information:

Lecture begins at 11 a.m. U.S. Eastern time (New York) and will be followed by a question and answer session. Registration is required prior to the free event.