Dr Julie Peacock

Profile

My work sits at the intersection of plant ecology and student education, exploring how authentic learning experiences, particularly fieldwork and work-based learning, can support inclusive participation, belonging, and success in environmental and geographical sciences.

I am a Teaching-Focused Lecturer in Plant Ecology and Global Change at the University of Leeds. I am a Leeds Institute for Teaching Excellence (LITE) Fellow, where my current work explores the hidden curriculum of fieldwork and how field-based learning can be made more inclusive and accessible for all students.

My disciplinary background is in plant ecology, with research focusing on plant life histories and the impacts of global climate change on vegetation communities. This work has involved extensive field research in both the UK and tropical ecosystems, examining how plants respond to environmental change across space and time. I also have a growing interest in plant awareness and botanical literacy, exploring how interventions can strengthen people's connection with plants and nature.

Alongside my teaching and research, I lead the Faculty of Environment's Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) network, EdExE, helping to shape pedagogic research and educational enhancement across the Environment and Social Sciences disciplines. I am also a committee member of the British Ecological Society's Teaching and Learning Special Interest Group, contributing to the development of teaching and learning practice within ecology and environmental sciences nationally.

Responsibilities

• Director of EdExE - the Faculties Pedagogic Research Network
• Leeds Institute for Teaching Excellence Fellow

Research interests

Plant ecology

Qualifications

• PhD Biology University of York
• BSc (Hons) 1st Class Plant Biology, University of Wales, Bangor

Professional memberships

• Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
• Member of the Royal Society of Biology
• Member of the British Ecological Society

Student education

I sit on the LITE steering group shaping the way educational research shapes the improvements to student education at Leeds.

I currently contribute to modules on the Living Earth, Skills for Physical Geographers, Climate Systems, Careers for Geographers, and Dissertations.

I attend the first year Blencathra residential fieldtrip and the second year Alps fieldtrip.

I also teach on the Faculty of Biological Sciences Taught Masters in Biodiversity and Conservation.

Research groups and institutes

• Ecology and Global Change

Current postgraduate researchers

• Gangadhar Narsing Tambre
• Zulkarnain Tihurua