VMF
Teaching Student supervision Outreach
Student supervision

supporting projects & future geomorphologists.

I supervise projects that explore how landscapes evolve from source to sink, and how we can use quantitative geomorphology to uncover the history and rates of geological processes. Each project is a collaboration that blends field observations, modelling and data analysis.

Project opportunities

Interested in a project on glacial–fluvial systems, cosmogenic nuclides or landscape evolution?

I welcome enquiries from students who would like to work on:

  • Glacial–fluvial terrace records of climate change in Patagonia
  • Quantifying incision rates with cosmogenic nuclides
  • Linking dynamic topography to river profiles and basin stratigraphy
  • Landscape evolution modelling of ice–river coupling

If you are interested in a project, please get in touch by email with a short description of your background, your interests, and any ideas you already have. This box can be updated anytime with specific advertised projects and links to institutional project lists.

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2024 MSc project · University of Potsdam

L. Grimm · Morphological dating of fluvial terraces

Project investigating how the shapes of fluvial terrace risers can be used as a proxy for age, using an inverse method to model the landscape morphology, with examples from New Zealand and Patagonia.

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2019 MSci project · Imperial College London

I. Wapenhans · North American rivers: scale-dependence, scale-variance and correlation to environment

Project investigating how river longitudinal profiles and metrics vary across scales and environmental controls in North America, using quantitative analysis of DEMs and hydrological datasets.

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2018 MSci project · Imperial College London

M. Morris · Neogene evolution of the New Jersey margin

Project exploring the Neogene stratigraphic architecture and subsidence history of the New Jersey passive margin, linking seismic and well data to sea-level change and tectonic forcing.

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2018 MSci project · Imperial College London

S. Mitchell · Long-term response to faulting: insights from tectonic and landscape evolution modelling

Combining tectonic and landscape evolution models to understand how faulting drives long-term topographic development and sediment routing patterns.

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2017 MSci project · Imperial College London

B. Conway-Jones · Neogene epeirogeny of Iberia

Project examining Neogene uplift and tilting of the Iberian Peninsula using geomorphic markers and stratigraphic evidence, with implications for mantle-driven vertical motions and dynamic topography.

Teaching

courses, supervision & field teaching.

I enjoy teaching across lectures, practicals and fieldwork, with a focus on surface processes, tectonics and quantitative tools for understanding Earth’s evolution.

Graduate teaching assistant

undergraduate teaching

Stratigraphy and Geomaterials (Year 1)
Teaching lead: Prof. Peter Allison
Introduction to stratigraphy and palaeontology using examples from the geological history of Great Britain, alongside practical skills in recognising and describing minerals and rocks.

Deforming the Earth (Year 1)
Teaching lead: Dr. Alex Whittaker
Structural geology and tectonics: from geological maps to folds, faults and large-scale crustal deformation.

Graphics Workshop (Year 1)
Teaching lead: Dr. Mark Sutton
Practical skills in image manipulation (GIMP) and vector graphics (Inkscape) for scientific figures.

Surface Processes (Year 1)
Teaching lead: Dr. Dylan Rood
Physical and surface processes shaping Earth’s landscapes and sedimentary deposits, with an emphasis on geomorphic process understanding.

Global Geophysics (Year 2)
Teaching lead: Prof. Jenny Collier
Structure of the Earth and plate tectonics from seismology and mineral physics, and the use of geophysical data to understand plate motions and Earth structure.

Continental Tectonics (Year 3)
Teaching lead: Dr. Gareth Roberts
Quantitative tools to describe and explain continental deformation, with practicals using Python to apply geophysical methods to tectonic problems.

Applied Geomorphology (Year 4)
Teaching lead: Dr. Dylan Rood
Field-based and computational training to understand past and present surface processes, including human interactions with landscapes using tools such as ArcGIS.

Postgraduate teaching

basin analysis

Basin Analysis (postgraduate)
Teaching lead: Dr. Gareth Roberts
An integrated study of sedimentary basins from a geodynamic perspective. Covers backstripping, modelling rift and flexural basins, and applying geophysical tools to subsidence and sedimentation problems relevant to hydrocarbon exploration and broader Earth science questions.

Field teaching

fieldtrip teaching assistant

I have supported multiple undergraduate field courses, helping students link outcrop observations to subsurface structure, geomorphic processes and basin evolution. Fieldwork teaching often centres on connecting maps, cross-sections and process-based reasoning with the lived experience of being in the landscape.

Outreach

public engagement & science communication beyond the classroom.

I enjoy sharing geoscience with wider audiences through podcasts, festivals and events that connect people with the landscapes and processes that shape our planet.

Podcast

Coffee & Geography

Getting to know people and their love for the world.

Hosted by Kit Rackley, Coffee & Geography celebrates the diverse and intersectional range of people who love the world and think geographically. In my episode we talked about my work, how I fell in love with geology, and the interests and hobbies that sit alongside academia. You can listen to the conversation here.

Video series
Watson Forum video series

Watson Forum

Showcasing women in STEM.

The Watson Forum is a series of informal interviews highlighting women working in numerical modelling, simulation and programming across STEM, particularly Maths, Physics, Earth Sciences and Engineering. It aims to motivate young women to engage with modelling topics and provide visible role models combining fieldwork, experiments and computation. I managed the social media (Instagram: @watson_forum) and participated in the interviews. Watch here.

Event
International Women in Engineering Day virtual event

International Women in Engineering Day

Virtual Q&A to promote women in STEM (2021).

Supported by the Earth Science and Engineering department at Imperial College, I hosted a virtual Q&A where school students could ask current undergraduates about studying STEM at university. The live event brought together students, researchers and staff to share experiences of fieldwork, research projects and career paths. The full Q&A is available here.

Public festival
Imperial Lates exhibition stand

Imperial Lates

The modern geologist’s field bag.

Imperial Lates celebrate science and engineering through hands-on demonstrations and talks. For the Science Without Borders edition, I curated an exhibition stand called The modern geologist’s field bag, showcasing the tools and equipment we take on fieldwork, from notebooks and rock samples to drones and Schmidt hammers, and the diverse places our research takes us.

European Researchers' Night
European Researchers' Night event

World Wild Webs: Our Interconnected Planet

Natural History Museum, London (2019).

As part of European Researchers’ Night at the Natural History Museum, I took part in two events: EU Pub, a speed-dating style science Q&A in a relaxed setting, and a storytelling evening set among marine invertebrate collections. Together with colleagues, I shared field stories from Calabria and discussed how our work helps make sense of Earth’s dynamic systems.

Festivals & schools
Great Exhibition Road Festival stand

Great Exhibition Road Festival & school workshops

IODP science and hands-on geology for younger students.

At the Great Exhibition Road Festival in South Kensington, I helped present “Blast from the Past”, an exhibit on International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) science, including a walkable map of expeditions and core models from subduction zones, impact structures and paleoclimate records. I have also run day-long geology workshops for 12-year-old students at schools such as Kingston Grammar School, giving them an early taste of rocks, plate boundaries and how we read Earth’s history.