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About DICE
The Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology (DICE) is Britain’s leading research and postgraduate training centre dedicated to conserving biodiversity and the ecological processes that support ecosystems and people. DICE’s mission is to integrate international conservation and development sustainably. This is achieved by combining natural and social sciences to design measures that help conserve biological diversity.
Ground-breaking research
DICE has a long tradition of high-quality research among its staff which makes for a strong research culture supporting postgraduates pursuing research degrees. The breadth of expertise within DICE enables us to provide research supervision on a very wide range of topics across the full spectrum of the disciplines of conservation biology, biodiversity management, biodiversity law, sustainable tourism, sustainable resource use, social, biological, visual and environmental anthropology, and ethnobotany, .
Our research groups present weekly research seminars as well as annual lectures by renowned practitioners.
International impact
Professor Richard Griffiths undertakes research on Chameleon trade and conservation in Madagascar
All of our staff have outstanding international research profiles, yet integrate this with considerable on-the-ground experience working with conservation agencies around the world. This combination of expertise ensures that our programmes deliver the skills and knowledge that are essential components of conservation implementation.
Key topics include:
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Conservation business and resource economics
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Environmental policy and governance
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Marine conservation and management
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Population ecology and conservation of threatened species
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Landscape ecology and conservation planning
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Tourism, recreation and conservation
Dynamic publishing culture
DICE research has been published in books and high-impact international journals, including Nature, Science, Conservation Biology, Biodiversity and Conservation, Proceedings of the Royal Society Series B, Ecological Economics, Human Ecology and Journal of International Wildlife Law and Policy.
PhD student Hanna Mounce working in the Museum DNA lab
Postgraduate resources
DICE has various long-term study sites around the world, and maintains an ecology field trials area and field laboratory on the University campus. DICE is part of the School of Anthropology and Conservation, which is well equipped with computing facilities and research laboratories for molecular genetics, ecology, ethnobotany, and biological anthropology, .
External relationships
We have affiliations with contacts around the world including the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, the Global Diversity Foundation, the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew and the nearby Powell-Cotton Museum.
To meet its mission, DICE works closely with a range of overseaas organisations and universities, including: Njala University in Sierra Leone; Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, Cape Cod, USA; and King’s Park and Botanic Garden, Perth, Australia.