Nominees for ASAB Council

Meetings Secretary

Dr Richard Mott – Higher Scientific Officer (Farm Animal Welfare)

Argi-Food and Biosciences Institute, Northern Ireland 

I was first introduced to ASAB as a PhD student, and since then I’ve attended several meetings, including giving oral presentations at Easter 2022 and Summer 2023.  I have found the society to be incredibly welcoming and supportive, and I’ve always left the meetings with a renewed enthusiasm for science!  My development as a scientist is due in no small part to my membership of ASAB and the connections I’ve made by attending these meetings, and I’m now at a stage of my career where I feel able to give something back to the society.

My bachelor’s degree is in Equine Studies from Coventry University, I have an MSc in Equine Science from the University of Edinburgh and a PhD in shelter dog welfare from the University of Glasgow.  I undertook a research fellowship in pig welfare at the University of Leeds and I have also been a lecturer in Equine Science at Warwickshire College University Centre, where I obtained Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy.

Before coming to academia, I spent 17 years in government service where I gained experience of strategic planning and developed strong organisational skills.  This adds to my academic profile, making me an ideal candidate for the role of meetings secretary.

Dr Vivek Nityananda

Newcastle University 

ASAB has been invaluable for several of us researchers in animal behaviour and ASAB meetings are essential for building our community. As meetings secretary, I would like to contribute to strengthening and building our community and the development of diverse and early career researchers. 

I attended my first ASAB conference in 2011 soon after moving to the UK from India. Since then I have been an active member of the society. I helped organise a spring meeting at Newcastle in 2022 and a winter meeting in 2024. I have also been a member of the EDIA committee of ASAB, helping develop conference codes of conduct and other policies. I have organised other international meetings and symposia including virtual ones. I believe this experience and my connections in the wider behaviour community in the UK, the rest of Europe and beyond will help me be an effective and approachable meetings secretary.