Dr Leslie Mabon

My name is Dr Leslie Mabon and I work in the School of GeoSciences at the University of Edinburgh. In a nutshell, I’m interested in how people feel about the environments they inhabit. I look at how people experience the environment through their bodies, how people talk about the environment and environmental issues, and how people feel about the technologies that shape their relationships with the natural environment.

These are obviously very broad topics, so I like to keep things in context. I’m currently working on public perceptions of carbon dioxide capture and storage, as part of Work Package 6 on Public Perception within the European Commission’s FP7-funded ECO2: Sub-seabed CO2 Storage: Impact on Marine Ecosystems project. In the past I’ve worked with rally drivers, deer stalkers, dog sledders, field archers and many more!

If you’ve come here via Google, you’ve probably had to wade through pages and pages of things I’ve written to do with cars and motor racing. This might strike you as a little odd for someone doing work on environmental issues, but I make no bones about it. Thinking through what I enjoy about cars and motor racing, and how this sits with my work in environmental issues, has given lots of useful insights that really help with my academic work – and, conveniently, gave rise to a PhD project!

Away from work and research, it will not come as a surprise to learn that I’m a big fan of Formula 1, in particular the exploits of Japanese driver Kamui Kobayashi. I’m also an enthusiastic supporter of Raith Rovers FC, and enjoy studying Japanese in my spare time.