Helen Fallas
Challenge programme manager, national and international geoscience
BGS Edinburgh
Contact Helen Fallas’ biography
- 2021 – ongoing: Challenge Programme Manager – National and International Geoscience
- 2018 – 2021: Chief Geologist for Scotland, British Geological Survey
- 2017: Senior Hydrogeologist, BGS Edinburgh
- 2015 – 2018: NERC Knowledge Exchange Fellow
- 2008: Hydrogeologist, BGS Edinburgh
- 2008: MSc University of Birmingham, Hydrogeology
- 2007: BSc University of St Andrews, Geoscience
Research interests
- Understanding groundwater resources and their contribution to resilience and water security – particularly in developing countries in the context of poverty reduction and climate adaption
- National Planning Policy and development planning – providing science and data to underpin policy
- Knowledge exchange – increasing institutional capacity and communication in using science and data
Current projects and collaboration
- 2018 – 2021: Environmental evidence in planning (Scotland). Commissioned research
- 2015 – 2019: UPGro Research Consortium Grant. A Hidden Crisis: unravelling current failures for future success in rural groundwater supply. NERC-DFID-ESRC funded.
- 2015 – 2018: Understanding Environmental Evidence, and evidence approaches required to inform the development, and new delivery of new planning policy approaches
- 2014 – 2017: European Cooperation of Science and Technology (COST) Sub-Urban Action (TU1206)
- 2013 – 2015: UPGro Catalyst Grant. A Hidden Crisis: Strengthening the evidence base on the sustainability of rural groundwater services (NERC-DFID-ESRC funded)
- 2012 – 2015: Groundwater resources in the Indo‐Gangetic Basin: resilience to climate change and abstraction. DFID Accountable Research Grant
- 2010 – 2012: Groundwater resilience to climate change in Africa: DFID funded research to improve the understanding of the resilience of African groundwater to climate change and links to livelihoods
- Baseline Scotland: a joint BGS/SEPA project to characterise the baseline chemistry and residence time of groundwater in Scotland
- Mapping groundwater flooding susceptibility
Published outputs
Professional association
- Fellow of the Geological Society of London
- Member of the International Association of Hydrogeologists
- 2008 – 2022: Chair of the International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH) Urban Groundwater Network