MDE Profiles: Harriet Baldwin

My name is Harriet, but better known to most as "Haz”. The natural world has always been a staple love of mine, feeding my curiosity and my imagination. I spent much of my childhood pond-dipping, rock-pooling and searching for exciting new creatures…I admit, not a lot has changed!

Personal Profile

I’m a water baby and love spending time in nature, and when given the opportunity love to go diving or snorkelling in search of exciting marine life. One of my main drivers and life ambitions is to ensure the protection of our precious marine environments and to have a positive impact in nature restoration, both at home and abroad.

Favourite hobbies:

Diving/snorkelling/swimming, drawing, music (listening and playing), reading, hiking, travelling and lots of eating and drinking!

Favourite marine creature:

That is a difficult question. Tasselled wobbegongs... or the Wunderpus... or mantas? Or Hammerheads. Come back to me on that one!

Party trick:

It may not be a party trick, but I’m a sucker for good fancy dress party and can make some absolutely cracking home-made costumes. My recent creation was a deep-sea angler fish (see below).

2 truths & a lie:

I’m named after a Björk song, I once met Gandalf and I play the harp.

Career Profile

I joined The Crown Estate in January 2022 as a Marine Evidence Advisor and am now on secondment into the spatial data and evidence team, working as Marine Insights Manager for the Whole of Seabed Programme. I split my time between the MDE Team and the Whole of Seabed team - I'm really lucky to be involved across such a broad range of projects.

Within the Whole of Seabed Programme, we are building a holistic evidence base and understanding of the seabed resources needed to meet the future demands of our sea and the barriers to meeting them.

The Whole of Seabed Programme delivers the capability to identify potential sectoral interactions over the coming decades in greater detail than ever before. This will be used to model how future demands for seabed rights and overarching objectives, such as achieving net zero by 2050 and recovering the marine environment, could be met under various scenarios.

I also work on research and evidence projects to support the sustainable development of the seabed. As part of this role, I often investigate survey data stored on the MDE, to see what environmental insights can be gained from industry data. My role also involves working on the continuous development of the MDE and the MDE’s communications & content strategy.

I also have a creative background in green infrastructure and architecture and design (BSc Architecture, University of Bath) and have experience working on a wide range of projects; from small-scale landscape projects, such as creating microhabitats for wildlife, to large-scale infrastructure projects, including Heathrow and Bradwell B. I like to think that my multi-disciplinary background gives me a creative edge and a fresh approach to challenges and tasks!

LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/harriet-baldwin-0a695092/

Responsibilities:

I wear many hats. From working on the Whole of Seabed Programme to draw out insights, to the delivery of research and evidence projects, to the continuous development of the Marine Data Exchange. I also work on the content and communications strategy for the Marine Data Exchange, spatial planning projects, social science and education projects, as well as leading on the East Coast Internship programme.

Why did you choose this career?:

It is always something I wanted to do. I love science and research and I love the marine environment. I've always been completely fascinated by all forms of nature, so working in this space just makes sense. It gives me the opportunity to protect and enhance biodiversity.

What do you love about your job?:

I love that I can be creative and wear my creative hat, but that I can also get into the detail of science, insights and analysis. Knowing that I’m genuinely working on projects that will help to fight against the climate and biodiversity crisis’s makes me very happy. My team mates are the best too.

What do you find challenging about your work?:

There is always more that can be done and not enough time.

Skills:

• Scientific analysis (R Studio etc.)
• Spatial mapping (GIS)
• Experience of working with a wide range of surveying types and data formats
• Scientific communications and report writing
• Creative design (BSc Architecture)
• Landscape architecture and design
• Data visualisation/illustration (Adobe programmes - Photoshop, Illustrator etc.)
• 3D modelling (SketchUp etc.)

Career Pathway:

• MSc Marine Environmental Protection, Bangor University –First Class Honours.
• (Independent Research Project for Masters: Benthic functional biodiversity across a habitat complexity gradient within the deep-sea coral reefs of the Rockall Bank, NE Atlantic).
• Consultant Landscape Architect: LDA Design and Macgregor Smith Landscape Architects
• Assistant Architect: Jestico and Whiles. BSc Architecture with placements, Bath University
• Lots and lots of bar/catering work!

Advise to someone looking to move into the marine/digital/design sector:

Remember that skills are transferable. I have found all the skills I've learned from architecture and design incredibly helpful in my current career. Use what you've got to your advantage!

(Below are some photos of me - including a photo and drawing from my childhood -me searching for stag beetles)