NERC Centre for Doctoral Training in Quantitative and Modelling skills in Ecology and Evolution (QMEE)

The NERC Centre for Doctoral Training in Quantitative and Modelling Skills in Ecology and Evolution (QMEE) will train a new generation of PhD students to build and test mathematical models of how species and ecosystems behave. This matters because ecology and evolution have become data-rich fields—from satellite tracking of animal movements to DNA sequencing of populations—but the skills to analyse that data are scarce. Many ecologists can collect information but cannot turn it into predictions about how species will respond to climate change, habitat loss, or disease outbreaks. The training centre fills a gap between traditional biology and the quantitative methods needed to make sense of complex natural systems. If successful, the programme will produce researchers who can forecast ecological changes with the same rigour that climate scientists apply to weather. This could improve how conservationists prioritise land for protection, how farmers manage pollinator populations, or how public health officials predict the spread of wildlife-borne diseases. The work is fundamentally about building human expertise rather than a specific technology, but that expertise underpins decisions about everything from fisheries quotas to forest management.