Although I'm now a retired civil servant, I was a botanist in my first career. I'm now a botanical historian with a particular interest in David Douglas (1799-1834), botanist and plant collector extraordinaire and the premier plant collector of his time.

My Fellowship enabled me to follow in Douglas' footsteps across the globe. I travelled from his birthplace in Scotland to the site of his death in Hawaii and his grave in downtown Honolulu. Along the way, I followed his travels on both coasts of the USA, across Canada and finally to sub-Arctic Canada. With other Douglas 'followers' met on my travels, I made a film of his life – Finding David Douglas. I'm writing a commentary on his first expedition to North America, a journey which has been left largely unremarked upon until now.

I am also a Fellow of the Linnaean Society, the oldest natural history society in the world.