Directorate – SAGES

Professor Matteo Spagnolo - Director

Professor Matteo Spagnolo has been appointed as Director of SAGES-3, with effect from 1st May 2023.
Matteo is based at the School of Geosciences in the University of Aberdeen.

Matteo gained his BSc in Natural Sciences from the University of Pisa, followed by an MSc in Remote Sensing and GIS from IAO in Firenze, and a PhD in tectonic geomorphology from the University of Genova, in Italy. He moved to Sheffield in 2007 for a postdoc on drumlins, and, two years later, to Aberdeen where he has been ever since, except for a year spent at Berkeley in 2017 as a visiting professor.

Matteo has been a vibrant member of the Aberdeen Cryosphere and Climate Change Group and has held various roles at the University of Aberdeen including School PGR Director, Elected Senator, and Head of Geography and Environment.

He has been a proud member of SAGES since he moved to Scotland and has been part of the SAGES Research and Innovation Committee since 2018.

Matteo’s research focuses on glaciology and geomorphology. He uses field, remote sensing and GIS techniques to understand the interaction between climate and glaciers.
Matteo has worked on ice sheet and alpine landscapes in various settings worldwide. More recently, his interests have included the dynamic relationship between glaciers and volcanoes.

Professor John Howe - Graduate School Convenor

Professor John Howe joined the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) in 1998 moving to Oban from a post-doctoral research post with the British Antarctic Survey. He has a PhD from the University of Southampton in marine geology and a degree in Geology from Derby University. In his current role of Senior Lecturer in Marine Geology he has been head of the Biogeochemistry and Earth Sciences department, is currently Degree Program Leader and is supervisor for a number of research students. Currently he sits on the steering group of the Marie Curie International Training Network (ITN) Glaciated North Atlantic Margins (GLANAM) project and the NERC National Capability Marine Environmental Mapping Program (MAREMAP). His research focus is on marine geomorphology and habitat mapping, Quaternary ice sheet history, glaciomarine environments and the use of autonomous underwater vehicles in marine mapping. He has worked in the Arctic and Antarctic examining marine sediments as archives of long-term environmental change. He has 91 published outputs from peer-reviewed science papers to magazine articles and book chapters. Current projects include the use of AUV’s in the Arctic and in the Patagonian fjord region of Chile. He is a keen sub-aqua diver, and is a scientific diver with the National Facility for Scientific Diving at SAMS as well as helping to run the student diving club.

Carol Thomson - Administrator

Carol is based at the University of Glasgow and provides administrative and finance support for the SAGES Directorate, Committees, Theme and Fora leaders and members.