People & Partners

Dr. Dian Spear hailes from Zimbabwe. She studied zoology and nature conservation at Rhodes University, the University of Cape Town and Stellenbosch University, and has worked as a natural and social scientist, bioinformatics manager, research programme manager, climate change consultant and copy and substantive editor of scientific papers. She has conducted research on antelope translocations in the game industry, introductions of alien species and their impacts in South African national parks and countries globally, the adaptation of society to climate change in semi-arid areas and the collation of biodiversity occurrence data to develop species checklists. Dian has worked for the Scientific Services of South African National Parks, the Global Invasive Species Programme, the Centre for Invasion Biology in Stellenbosch and the United Nations Environment Programme in Afghanistan, where she advised on the use of nature-based solutions to increase resilience to climate change. She has also managed an inter-disciplinary research programme on adaptation to climate change in semi-arid regions, which included engaging with and communicating research findings and recommendations to policymakers, practitioners and small-scale farming communities. Additionally, Dian has written op-eds and news stories for newspapers, including The Conversation, News24, Mail & Guardian and Daily Maverick.