Dr Lara Mani is the recipient of the 2024 Murchison Fund, awarded by the Geological Society of London for her considerable contributions to 'hard' rock studies.
The Murchison Fund is awarded to contributors to the Earth Sciences on the basis of noteworthy published research in 'hard' rock studies. This Fund is awarded to early-career geoscientists who have made excellent contributions to geoscience research and its application, in the UK and internationally.
Lara Mani was awarded the Murchison Fund for her research on global volcanic risk and her commitment to building global resilience to volcanic eruptions. Lara's research has explored the intersection of global complex systems with regions of active volcanism as a way to prioritise volcanic risk reduction, and advocates for greater prioritisation of volcanic risk within national and international governance.
"I am thrilled to be accepting the Geological Society's Murchison Fund Award in recognition of my work on volcanic risk reduction. I'd like to thank my colleagues and friends who without their support and hard work this award wouldn't be possible."
Dr Lara Mani, CSER
Much of Lara's research has focused on effective risk communications for both volcanic and existential risks. Lara obtained her PhD from the University of Plymouth in 2018 for a project exploring how video games could be used to effectively communicate volcanic hazards with communities in the Eastern Caribbean. Since joining CSER in 2020, her work has continued to explore effective risk communication, focusing on creative and experiential communications applied across a range of high-impact risk scenarios. In 2021 Lara worked closely with the University of the West Indies Seismic Research Centre to evaluate the crisis communications during the eruption of La Soufriere, St. Vincent.
Alongside, Dr Mike Cassidy at the University of Birmingham, Lara has also recently co-founded a new charity organisation to build preparedness for globally disruptive volcanic eruptions. Dr Lara Mani says "I am extremely passionate about reducing global volcanic risk and the impacts eruptions can have on communities around the world. I look forward to continuing to dedicate my research career to this cause. "
The full list of 2024 award winners can be found on the Geological Society's website.
