Professor Richard Brazier

About me:

Richard obtained his first degree in Physical Geography (1992-1995) in the Department of Geography at the University of Lancaster. He returned to Lancaster to study for his PhD (1996 – 2000) in the Environmental Science Department, on a project which modelled soil erosion in England and Wales, with associated uncertainty. The following two and a half years were spent as a NERC Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Geography Departments at Leicester University and King’s College, London working on soil erosion monitoring and modelling in the Sonoran Desert. In 2002 Richard was appointed as Lecturer in Physical Geography at the University of Sheffield where he worked for four years. He was employed as a Senior Lecturer at Exeter in 2006, promoted to Associate Professor of Earth Surface Processes in 2011 and Professor in 2015.

Since 2021, Richard has been a Co-Director for the Centre for Resilience in Environment, Water and Waste (CREWW). The research centre is a partnership with co-founders South West Water who provided £21 million pounds in funding to enable innovation research projects in collaboration between the University's academics from multiple disciplines and the experts at South West Water. Richard is a key visionary for the centre alongside completing his own research projects and other ventures.

Broad research specialisms:

Soil erosion, water quality, modelling, issues of data and model uncertainty, understanding the environmental effects of landscape restoration

Media Coverage

• Beavers at work... Devon dwellers reveal their flair for fighting floods
  Observer, 14th February, 2016
• Farming today - Beavers in Devon,
  BBC Radio 4, 10th February 2016
• CREWW building Topping Out Ceremony
  Exeter Daily and other sources, 1st March 2023

Find out more >>

Interests:

My research interests are in geomorphology and hydrology with an emphasis on soil erosion, sediment and nutrient mobilisation and delivery, water quality and landform evolution from hillslope to landscape scales. I take an interdisciplinary approach to understanding earth surface processes which involves field observations and characterisation, laboratory analysis, numerical modelling, use of GIS and remotely sensed data.

Qualifications:

BSc Physical Geography (Lancaster),
PhD Environmental Science (Lancaster)