Hamish has more than 20 years’ experience working in the water resource industry in the UK and the US, particularly in the areas of catchment management and river restoration. He has worked extensively in the field of fluvial geomorphology, both in research and consulting capacities. Hamish has academic training to Masters and PhD level, the former in Water Resources Engineering and Management (including coastal engineering, river engineering and hydraulic structures). Much of his subsequent work has been linked to river restoration projects, both to provide scientific support and in the design of specific projects. The three years he spent working in the USA provided valuable training in river restoration strategies, hydrodynamic modelling and state-of-the-art surveying methodologies.

Hamish has considerable experience in project delivery, initially in the delivery of large academic research projects and, more recently, in a consultancy capacity. In his previous post as a senior research scientist he led an international workshop on ‘Defining Hydromorphological Condition and Links to Ecology’ (March, 2009) that was attended by leading scientists from around the world. This workshop led to the setting up of a research group on ‘Biophysical Linkages in Riverine Systems’ with annual sessions held at the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting that Hamish co-convenes. He has also been active in promoting more sustainable approaches to catchment management, recently co-authoring two high profile papers on the new concept of ‘process-based restoration’.

Hamish also holds an adjunct research fellow position within the Rivers and Lochs Institute at the University of the Highlands and Islands, a role that is specifically aimed at assisting in the development of practical tools for assessment and regulation of freshwater resources.