Contact Dr Will Rust
- Email: Will.Rust@cranfield.ac.uk
Background
Dr Will Rust is a chartered Scientist and Environmentalist with a focus in fields of flooding, drought, modelling and data science. Will spent over ten years in consultancy where he specialised in flood hydrology and climate analyses; working with a range of clients including the UK Environment Agency, the Danish Government and the World Bank.
In 2021, Will completed his PhD assessing multi-annual periodic relationships between ocean/atmosphere systems such as the North Atlantic Oscillation and UK water resources and its potential for forecasting future water resources droughts. This research was the first to quantify the spatiotemporal footprint of an approximate 7-year cycle found in UK water resource records, and to identify its implications for water resource and hydrological management in the UK and western Europe.
In 2023, Will joined Cranfield as a Research Fellow in Environmental Data Science.
Current activities
Restoring Resilient Ecosystems (RestREco)
This project aims to unpick and examine the essential elements required for ecosystem restoration, focusing on UK woodlands and grasslands. Will is focusing on the use of remote sensing data to develop Early Warning Systems (EWS) for ecosystem state change.
Defragmenting the urban landscape (DEFRAG)
This project aims to connect the green and blue spaces that support biodiversity and ecosystem functioning for healthier, more resilient towns and cities. Will is developing modelling approaches to test the benefits of connecting fragmented green and blue spaces in an urban environment.