AI UK 2022
Tuesday 22 Mar 2022 - Wednesday 23 Mar 2022
Time: 09:30 - 17:00
Bio
I am a Professor of Evolutionary Systems Biology and Environmental Omics at the University of Birmingham, with affiliations in both Biosciences and the Institute of Interdisciplinary Data Science and AI. Additionally, I hold the position of an Alan Turing Fellow at the UK Alan Turing Institute, where I co-lead the ‘Biodiversity monitoring and forecasting’ interest group.
At the core of my work lies a steadfast commitment to advancing environmental health through groundbreaking research and innovation. Utilizing cutting-edge high throughput sequencing technologies, data science methodologies, and artificial intelligence, I aim to comprehensively understand the ramifications of environmental change on freshwater ecosystems.
I bridge research and innovation using ghost DNA and resurrected crustaceans. Through these unconventional approaches, I strive to pinpoint the root causes of biodiversity loss and elucidate the evolutionary mechanisms that enable species resilience.
Driven by a passion for multidisciplinary exploration and innovative thinking, I have successfully patented a sustainable water treatment technology. This innovation not only aligns with net-zero carbon emission objectives but also ensures the provision of reusable water at affordable rates.
Collaborating closely with regulatory bodies, I am dedicated to developing and implementing holistic strategies to comprehend the impact of pollution on biodiversity. By bridging cutting-edge multidisciplinary science and practical applications, I equip stakeholders with the necessary tools and methodologies to foster green growth and contribute to the UN developmental goals.
Research interests
Human health and well-being are intimately linked to environmental quality. Pollution is the largest environmental cause of disease and death in the world today, responsible for an estimated 9 million premature deaths. Detection and measures in the environment and health area are inadequate because the links between healthy environments and healthy humans are dynamic and complex. First, the variety of species and genes in a given habitat, called biodiversity, is the foundation of healthy ecosystems and of the services they provide, which underpin economic prosperity, social well-being and quality of life.
Biodiversity is declining at 1,000 times the natural rate, which is responsible for the decline of an estimated 60% of the Earth's ecosystem services (ES) over the last 50 years. Second, climate change significantly impacts biodiversity, causing habitat destruction and species loss, as well as shifts in community assembly and ecological structure. However, climate is only one of the factors impacting biodiversity. It is the synergistic action of climate and other environmental factors linked to human activities (e.g. land-use, pollution and species invasion) that ultimately impact biodiversity. Last but not least, biodiversity response to environmental change varies dramatically in space and time. Only by simultaneously investigating environmental change and biodiversity across space and time, the impact of such changes on ES directly linked to human health and wellbeing can be understood. Only by accurately forecasting the impact of loss of biodiversity on ES, can we begin to understand the long-term impact of polluted environments on human health.
As a Turing Fellow, Dr Orsini has the long term goal of improving human health and wellbeing by creating a novel evidence-based framework that enables the identification of actionable targets for ES conservation, and the prioritization of pollutants for mitigation interventions.
