Sam Harrison

Background

About Sam Harrison

Hi, I’m Sam - an environmental modeller and self-proclaimed research software engineer at the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Lancaster, with a background in quantum physics and software development. My main specialism is in the development of geospatial fate and exposure models of potential pollutants in soils and surface waters, including micro- and nanoplastics, pharmaceuticals, nanomaterials and metals. Through this, I am interested in integrating models to better quantify the impact of environmental change, giving us a deeper understanding of human-environment interactions. My work frequently involves assessing the relevance of such models to regulators and industry, tackling issues around how complex model output can be best used in robust, evidence-based decision making. I am a keen advocate of, creator of and contributor to open source software and open science. I am a 2022 Fellow of the Software Sustainability Institute and am interested in how software sustainability best practices and state-of-the-art digital infrastructures can help environmental modelling. I am an early career fellow on NERC’s Constructing a Digital Environment Expert Network and a member of the Centre of Excellence in Environmental Data Science (CEEDS). In my free time, I can usually be found running, walking, climbing or cycling in the hills and mountains of the UK. I am a qualified winter mountain leader and have previously worked as a freelance outdoor instructor.