Helen has over 30 years’ experience working on and leading collaborative research projects on the ecology, conservation and management of aquatic ecosystems in southern Africa. She holds a PHD from the University of Cape Town (UCT) where her freshwater career began in 1991. Helen is a rated researcher (C2) at the National Research Foundation of South Africa and is a Research Associate of UCT and the Nelson Mandela University. She has been instrumental in the development of aquatic biomonitoring protocols and databases in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Swaziland, Tanzania and Zambia. Her interest in the physico-chemical aspects of aquatic ecosystems and the effect of water quality on aquatic ecosystems, has been a focus of her research and she has contributed to the development of national water quality guidelines for aquatic ecosystems. Her work currently focuses on three core areas: 1) water temperature, climate change and aquatic ecosystems; 2) river health, bioassessment and development of biomonitoring tools in Africa, and 3) the development of biodiversity information systems for conservation, management and decision-making. She has been a water quality and macroinvertebrate specialist in several Environmental Flow Assessments. Helen has published 44 scientific publications in local and international scientific journals, served as a reviewer for a number of journals and serves on several Review Groups for the Water Research Commission. Helen is the also the Department of Water & Sanitation Accredited Regional Western Cape SASS5 Auditor; member of River Health Programme Team (1994 onwards); co-developer of the SASS5 method, the Rivers Database and the Freshwater Biodiversity Information System (FBIS). She is a member of the River Ecosystem Classification Committee of the National Biodiversity Assessment.
Formal education
PhD (Freshwater Ecology, University of Cape Town)
MSc (Zoology, University of Cape Town)
BSc Honours (Zoology & Entomology, Rhodes University)
BSc (Zoology, University of Cape Town)
Professional Memberships/Accreditations
Professional Natural Scientist (Pr.Sci.Nat) in Aquatic Science – The South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions
Member – Southern African Society of Aquatic Scientists (SASAqS)
Member – Western Cape Provincial Implementation Team, River Health Programme (RHP)
Member – Western Cape Wetlands Forum
Accredited SASS5 practitioner, trainer and assessor
Specialisations
Ecosystem health assessments and biomonitoring, effects of water quality on aquatic ecosystems, climate change, environmental flow assessments, training and capacity development – including SASS training, database design
Email: helen@frcsa.org.za
Research Gate Link: Research Gate
