James Thornton

Scientific Project Officer

James joined the Mountain Research Initiative in 2020 upon completion of his PhD in hydrogeology at the University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland. His doctoral research focussed on the interdisciplinary, physics-based numerical modelling of hydrological processes in complex Alpine terrain, and involved a wide range of datasets and computational tools.

Prior to that, James worked in the reinsurance sector, where he was responsible for leading the development of natural catastrophe models in order to quantify the risks associated with extreme events such as floods and tropical cyclones.

He is currently responsible for the coordination and implementation of GEO Mountains; a GEO Initiative seeking to increase the availability and accessibility of a wide range of data pertaining to mountainous regions to benefit human societies and ecosystems globally.  

james thornton profile pic 350 300 - climate adaptation.
Bern
Switzerland

Content shared by James

People sitting in a meeting

Regional Adaptation Dialogue in the South Caucasus Meeting

Get an insight into what went on at the Regional Adaptation Dialogue in the South Caucasus meeting; held to discuss regional climate risks and scenarios, climate change adaptation policies and action, and engage in regional dialogue and collaboration among the South Caucasus countries for adaptation planning.

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Blue sky with green mountains covered in colourful looking houses

Human populations in the world’s mountains: Spatio-temporal patterns and potential controls

Delve into the data and trends of human populations in mountainous regions, and explore the associations between mountain populations and different environmental covariates. Findings may inform predictions of future mountain population distributions under scenarios of future climatic change.

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three people installing mass balance stakes in a snowy mountain environment

Mountain observations: Monitoring, data, and information for science, policy, and society

Explore this easy-to-read overview of the current state of multi-disciplinary mountain observations. Discover the different methods used to observe mountain environments, as well as the diversity of knowledge and data sources available to learn from.

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Photo by Paul Daly on Unsplash

Identifying user data requirements and access preferences across the Andes

This workshop sought to develop a broad, interdisciplinary, and systematic understanding of the current “data situation” across a range of relevant disciplines in the Andean region.

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Photo by Tomáš Malík on Unsplash

Inter- and transdisciplinary mountain data in the Caucasus: Identifying user requirements and access preferences

This workshop sought to develop a broad, interdisciplinary, and systematic understanding of the current “data situation” across a range of relevant disciplines in the Caucasus.

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geo mountains

GEO Mountains

GEO Mountains seeks to identify, collate and make accessible transboundary and inter- and transdisciplinary data and information – from a variety of providers – pertaining to environmental, ecological, and societal change in mountainous regions globally.

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