Bronwen Whitney

Professor Bronwen Whitney

Professor

School: Geography and Natural Sciences

Bronwen Whitney I studied for my PhD at the University of Edinburgh (2005 – 2009) where I examined climate and vegetation change from the last glacial period until present in the world’s largest tropical wetland. From there, I continued my research into human and climatic causes of tropical environmental change and I joined 51�� in January 2015

Campus Address

Ellison Building A207

Email Bronwen

Key Publications

A tropical Sphagnum peatland ecosystem in lowland Belize, Whitney, B., Swindles, G., Cameron, I., Gałka, M., Meerman, J. 22 Sep 2025, In: Current Biology
Ecohydrological response of a tropical peatland to rainfall changes driven by Intertropical Convergence Zone variability, Swindles, G., Whitney, B., Gałka, M., Mullan, D., Low, R., Gallego-Sala, A., Lopez, R., Kilbride, E., Graham, C., Baird, A. 1 Mar 2025, In: Journal of Biogeography
Forest change in the northern Yucatan lowlands (Mexico) during Maya cultural periods: Insights from a paired lake reconstruction, Bermingham, A., Whitney, B., Metcalfe, S., Jones, M., Martinez-Dyrzo, H., Medina-Gonzalez, R. 6 Nov 2025, In: The Holocene
Culture, Climate and Landscape shape the savanna and wetland mosaic of the Bolivian Amazon, Whitney, B., Walker, J., Duncan, N., Loughlin, N. 13 Sep 2024, In: Frontiers in Water
Insights into past land-use and vegetation change in the Llanos de Moxos (Bolivia) using fungal non-pollen palynomorphs, Loughlin, N., Mayle, F., Nuñez Otaño, N., O'Keefe, J., Duncan, N., Walker, J., Whitney, B. 1 Jun 2021, In: Journal of Archaeological Science
Island resource exploitation by the ancient Maya during periods of climate stress, Ambergris Caye, Belize: Island climate refuge of the ancient Maya, Bermingham, A., Whitney, B., Loughlin, N., Hoggarth, J. 1 Jun 2021, In: Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports
Pre-Columbian fire management and control of climate-driven floodwaters over 3500 years in southwestern Amazonia, Duncan, N., Loughlin, N., Walker, J., Hocking, E., Whitney, B. 5 Oct 2021, In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
A Tale of Maize, Palm, and Pine: Changing Socio-Ecological Interactions from Pre-Classic Maya to the Present Day in Belize, Rushton, E., Whitney, B., Metcalfe, S. 17 Oct 2020, In: Quaternary
Identifying drivers of forest resilience in long-term records from the Neotropics, Adolf, C., Tovar, C., Kühn, N., Behling, H., Berrío, J., Dominguez-Vázquez, G., Figueroa-Rangel, B., Gonzalez-Carranza, Z., Islebe, G., Hooghiemstra, H., Neff, H., Olvera-Vargas, M., Whitney, B., Wooller, M., Willis, K. 29 Apr 2020, In: Biology Letters
Palaeoecological potential of phytoliths from lake sediment records from the tropical lowlands of Bolivia, Plumpton, H., Mayle, F., Whitney, B. 1 Apr 2020, In: Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology

Current and Recent Projects

MAPPP - Maya Archaeology and Paleoecology Partnership Project, Whitney, B. (Principal Investigator), Arts & Humanities Research Council, 03/05/21 - 02/05/23, 0.00
Shifted Ecological Baselines in the Brazillianb Savannah (SEBBS), Whitney, B. (Principal Investigator), Natural Environment Research Council, 01/09/19 - 31/01/21, £91,901.00
Paleoethnobotany and Landscape in the Southwestern Amazon, Whitney, B. (Principal Investigator), Arts & Humanities Research Council, 01/06/18 - 31/05/20, £189,234.00
Climate and Landscape Change in the Pantanal: Assessing environmental vulnerabilities and future water security in Brazil’s wetland wilderness, Whitney, B. (Principal Investigator), British Council, 01/04/16 - 31/10/16, £42,500.00

PGR Supervision

Loretta-Ann Jilks Palaeoenvironmental evidence of wetland domestication in the Llanos de Mojos, Bolivian Amazon. Start Date: 01/10/2021
Loretta-Ann Jilks Palaeoenvironmental evidence of wetland domestication in the Llanos de Mojos, Bolivian Amazon. Start Date: 01/10/2021 End Date: 17/10/2025