Institute for Agri-Food Research and Innovation

Staff Profile

Dr Katherine Wotherspoon

  • Head of Science Strategy, Fera Science Ltd
  • Email: Katherine.wotherspoon@fera.co.uk
  • Telephone: +44 (0)7716 226008
  • Address: Fera Science Ltd. (Fera) National Agri-Food Innovation Campus Sand Hutton York YO41 1LZ

Kat has a background in grassland ecology obtaining her PhD from the Open University in 2015 where she worked as part of the Esmée Fairburn funded Floodplain Meadows Partnership Project for almost 10 years; focussing on nutrient dynamics and nutrient addition experiments in grasslands. Kat worked across many projects drawing on her botanical survey skills, GIS, outreach work, community engagement and multi-partner national and international conference and events organisation.  Alongside this role she worked freelance for The Woodmeadow Trust as a botanical surveyor.

In 2019 she joined Fera Science Ltd as Science Strategy Lead under the CEO (Andrew Swift), where she manages the development and execution of Fera’s science strategy with the Science Lead and Science Leadership Team to underpin the 5 Year Strategic Growth Plan, drives external collaboration leading on Fera’s academic partnerships (IAFRI), and monitors and reports on the science KPIs working as part of the Fera Science Committee to deliver higher value and outputs for Fera’s science agenda. Kat also works with the Land-use team to support bids and proposals on biodiversity net-gain and natural capital when required.