Reflecting on 2022: Ruth Paterson, Marine Data Advisor at NatureScot
This month in The Data Lab Community, we're looking back on the year that's been, as we take a bit of time to reflect on 2022. We've asked our members to share their highs and lows, the challenges they've faced, and what they've learned along the way.
Next up, we were delighted to hear from Ruth Paterson, Marine Data Advisor at NatureScot. Thanks for taking part Ruth!
Figure 1: Me in December 2020
A New Year… Yikes!
I began my 2022 with The Bells at my childhood home in rural Argyll. It was a very quiet affair as the village party did not go ahead for the second year running. So the stove was lit, Graham Norton was on the TV and the hot chocolate was spiked with Bailey’s. I was still reeling from 2021 and I was mentally battening down the hatches for the year ahead.
At the time I was working at an environmental consultancy on several complex Section 36 renewables projects which kept me extremely busy. The offices were starting to reopen and my team were beginning to attend a few days a week. It was an adjustment to suddenly be around other people in an office again, especially since our household had been shielding for so long. However it was a relief to see people again. I had a significant birthday and a colleague brought in a beautiful 2-tier cake she’d made herself to celebrate.
My application for a position on the regional steering group of my professional body (Institute for Environmental Impact and Assessment) was accepted! So I’m now on the IEMA Scotland East regional steering group and we’re tasked with organising regional events and webinars for members throughout Scotland East. I would also say that as a non-member you can attend events for £5. If you have a project or bit of work related to the environment or sustainability (in the broadest terms) and you would like to come and speak (in person/online) please get in touch!
A New Job!
I’d been wanting to do more technical work for a while and in June I landed a position in data which also made use of my marine/environmental background – a tricky combination to find! As a Marine Data Advisor at NatureScot (formerly Scottish Natural Heritage) I work with spatial and species/habitat data to support both marine monitoring of protected features and the delivery of advice for offshore renewables.
In my first month we did some seagrass snorkelling surveys in Orkney! We swam around the perimeter of the patches towing a GPS in a floating bucket and also took video transects to gauge the habitat quality. It was my first time on the islands and it was a truly remarkable experience to visit Ring of Brodgar on the summer solstice!
Figure 2: Kyles of Bute, preparing my equipment before the Orkney survey trip
In the second half of 2022 I’ve been focussing on dusting off my GIS, R and Python skills. I’ve also been attending interesting workshops and events including the Marine Environmental Data and Information Network (MEDIN) workshop on data guidelines and discovery metadata; the government and public sector data conference Data Connect 2022; the Esri Scottish Conference; and the Artificial Intelligence session at the Marine Alliance for Science and Technology Scotland (MASTS) annual science conference. I’ve also been involved in some boards and working groups within NatureScot looking at data needs (including our Data Strategy with help from The Data Lab), genetics and science development. This December I’ve been working on the Advent of Code challenges using R (highlighted to me through the Data Lab Community's Professionals Group) – those Elves are so unorganised!
For Your Interest
Three interesting projects I’ve come across this year that may be of interest are:
• SEA-AI: Streamlined and efficient artificial intelligence assisted underwater video analysis;
• Smartrawl: In-water improvements in selectivity to explore intelligent fishing to allow identification and grading of fish by species and size in real-time; and
• The Scottish Marine Biodiversity Data Review: explores and determines limitations to the existing marine data infrastructure and presents recommendations that will make the management and use of marine species and habitat data more consistent, joined up and accessible to the marine community.
Looking Forward and Final Thoughts
As 2022 comes to a close I am very excited for what new adventures my role in data will bring. I feel much more prepared for 2023 than I was for 2022 but I’m sure there will be at least one plot-twist, if recent years have been anything to go by!
My parting “wisdom” is to remember that when times are difficult, things will get better eventually and not always in the ways you expect.
Ruth Paterson
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