Katy joined the Cape Leopard Trust team in September 2020 as Research and Conservation Director. Katy grew up in a number of different countries but she has always been passionate about conservation, nature, and exploration. She completed a BSc in Environmental Sciences with Durham University and a MPhil in Geography with Cambridge University. Katy’s first taste of Africa and its wildlife was contributing to large carnivore conservation and research in Zimbabwe as a research assistant. She returned to the UK to work for the John Muir Trust with an emphasis on environmental education.

Unsurprisingly, the call of Africa drew her back. Katy spent five years in the Soutpansberg Mountains, Limpopo Province, working as the Field Team Leader and Predator Research Manager for the Primate and Predator Project. Leopard ecology and conservation is a specific focus of the Primate and Predator Project, and Katy was pivotal in helping develop the project’s research methodologies and conservation strategies. During this time, she also completed a PhD with Durham University on brown hyena ecology and their relationships with humans. Since then she has completed two postdoctoral research positions, one with the University of Mpumalanga and one with Durham University, analyzing national trends in brown hyena occupancy and density using camera trap data collected across South Africa.

Katy is particularly interested in human-wildlife relationships and using creative approaches to stimulate conservation knowledge and positive action. She is excited about applying her knowledge and expertise to protect leopards and improve the lives of people who live alongside leopards in the Cape.