Environmental disciplines in which I have conducted research and lead projects

Remote sensing, environmental law (national and international, ethno-botany, socio-economics, ecology, energy planning, environmental education, environmental planning management and policy development, conservation, carbon and climate change.

 

 

Computer Literacy

Good knowledge and handling of Microsoft Office, SPSS, ENVI, ArcGIS, IDRISI and ERDAS. Notions of programming in Fortran and Matlab.

 

 

Publications

Maniatis, D., MacKenzie, C. (in review) Human-induced climate change: State responsibility and liability. Environmental Research Letters.

 

Hirani, H., Maniatis, D., Badgie, D., Koedam, N., Dahdouh-Guebas, F. (in preparation) Mangrove ethno-ecology and vegetation of The Tanbi-Wetland Complex (The Gambia). To be submitted to Ecology and Society.

 

Maniatis, D., Hirani, P., Badgie D., Koedam, N., Dahdouh-Guebas, F. (in review) Making use of archive material,  aerial photographs and satellite images to assess mangrove extent of the Tanbi Wetland Complex (The Gambia). Wetlands

 

Maniatis, D. (2006) Intensification of slash-and-burn agriculture in the village of Pokola (Republic of Congo): socio-economic context and ecological implications. 3^rd GBIF Science Symposium, Tropical Biodiversity: Science, Data, Conservation. Brussels, Belgium, April 2005.

 

 A. W. Mitchell, K. Secoy, N. Mardas, D. Maniatis, A. Morel Forests First in the Fight Against Climate Change: The VivoCarbon Initiative, The Global Canopy Programme, June 2007.

 

P.A. Harrison, C. Thomson, A. Morel, D. Maniatis and P.M. Berry Bioclimatic Analysis  for England from UKCIP02, Commissioned Report for Natural England, April 2007.

 

 

Prizes & awards

October 2006: Oxford University Press Law Prize 2006 for Highest Mark in International Environmental Law.

June 2006: Second Poster Prize for a poster at the Mangrove Macrobenthos Meeting June 2006, Australia.

2006-2008: Applied Materials Scholarship, tenable at Linacre College;

2006-2007: Grant from Prof. Malhi at the University of Oxford;

2005-2006: University of Oxford Environmental Change Institute Fellowship.

 

 

Languages

·         Dutch:        Mother tongue ·         English:     Fluent ·         French:      Fluent

·         Greek:            Fluent (speaking) ·         Spanish:        Learning ·         Afrikaans:      Learning

 

 

Relevant experience

July 2008: Study for BHP – Billiton as a research assistant to Dr. William Hawthorne for a Rapid Biodiversity Assessment of forests in the World Heritage Site of the Nimba Mountains in Guinea.

 

June 2008: Leading a reconnaissance trip and study for WWF-UK on biomass and carbon stocks in Gabon. The aim of this study is to produce an above-ground biomass and carbon map of the Congo Basin forests using Gabon as a case study. The data we are using includes ALOS-PALSAR data and a suite of other satellite imagery, permanent plots and forestry inventories. Currently, I have gained access to over 40 plots and transects and over 500,000 hectares of forest inventories scattered across the country. This is the first comprehensive dataset of its kind for Gabon and perhaps the Central African region.

 

June 2008 – October 2008: Consultant and principal investigator to Conservation International on soil carbon stocks in the tropics and potential for Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD).

 

January 2008 – July 2009: Principal investigator with Prof. Malhi on the Oxford University part the BIOMASS mission with the European Space Agency. This project aims to close the gaps in the current lack of reliable global knowledge about regional biomass patterns and dynamics. I am responsible for compiling and providing corresponding geolocated data for tropical ecosystems, drawing on networks in Africa, Asia and South America.

 

April 2007 - May 2007: Consultant to the NGO the Global Canopy Programme on the Congo Basin forests (threats to forests, actions being taken, ecosystem services, economic value of ecosystem services, key players in the region, models for delivering benefits to local communities).

 

March 2007 - April 2007: GIS consultant to Dr. Harrison - creating GIS files on Bioclimatic indicators in England for Natural England.

 

February 2007 - March 2007: Teaching practical courses in Remote Sensing and Geographical Information Systems to MSc students at the Oxford University Centre for the Environment.

 

October 2006 - March 2007: Research assistant to Philip Mann on a UK Department for International Development project together with the Energy for Sustainable Development Limited consultancy: 'Energy Planning in Developing Countries - facing the challenges of equitable access, secure supply and climate change’. The study focussed on two Kenya and South Africa and comprised of three elements: 1) an analytical background and reference phase; 2) a case study (country and regional) phase, including a study of energy planning attitudes and priorities and; 3) development of recommendations for future research priorities.

 

July - August 2006: Two month internship with TRAFFIC Europe, Brussels, to work on a project of WWFGFTN funded by the EU. I was responsible for developing Principles, Criteria and Indicators to Define and Verify the Legality of Wood Products in Cameroon based on national and international laws.

 

February 11 - March 25, 2005: Project on the ethno-botany, vegetation and stability of the Tanbi Wetland mangrove complex in Banjul, The Gambia. This project focused on the use of QuickBird satellite images, aerial photographs and ground-truthing to assess the past and present status of the mangroves surrounding the capital city of Banjul. The study also examined the ethno-botany of the mangroves. The combined results formed direct recommendations to the City Council of Banjul, the Forestry department, the National Environment Agency and local schools on including environmental education in the syllabus. One of the direct results of this work was that the City Council of Banjul decided against expanding its port into the mangrove complex and that the Tanbi Wetland Complex was placed on the Ramsar list as a wetland of international importance.

 

May - August 2003: Internship of three months with the logging company La Congolaise Industrielle du Bois (CIB) in Pokola, Republic of Congo. I set up a project focussing on the problematic of shifting agriculture, its effects on the environment and its current ecological and socio-economic sustainability in and around the village of Pokola. I was leading my own team and working together closely with the management team of CIB and the relevant specialists of the Wildlife Conservation Society. The results formed recommendations for the CIB management report to apply for the Forest Stewardship Council label.