Prof Debbie Pain

Following a degree in environmental chemistry (London University) and a D.Phil. on the biochemistry of lead poisoning from ammunition sources in birds (Oxford University) I spent four years carrying out postdoctoral research at the Station Biologique de la Tour du Valat in the Camargue, France. I then spent sixteen years in the Research Department of the RSPB where I initiated and headed up the International Research Section working on bird conservation issues in collaboration with BirdLife Partner organisations in Africa, Asia and Europe. I subsequently spent ten years as Director of Conservation at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) overseeing their wetland science and conservation delivery in the UK and overseas. This included a 6-month secondment to World Land Trust acting as CEO. Since leaving WWT in 2018 I have worked independently and am actively involved in conservation science. In 2018 I became an Honorary Research Fellow in the Department of Zoology at Cambridge University and am now a visiting academic.  In 2019, I became an Honorary Professor in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of East Anglia.

I have previously held several Trustee roles, including for the RSPB, the Wetlands International European Association and WWT Consulting, and I have sat on various technical expert committees and the Cambridge Conservation Initiative Collaborative Fund Selection Panel. I was a member of the Science and Conservation Council of Station Biologique de la Tour du Valat for 8 years, including as vice-president, until December 2024. My current roles include the following public appointments: member of the Darwin Expert Committee; the Darwin Plus Advisory Group; the UK REACH Independent Scientific Expert Pool (RISEP). My other roles include as a member of the Lead Ammunition Group. I am a Fellow of WWF-UK.

Conservation Science Group