Izak Smit

Izak Smit completed a BSc (Ecology) and BSc (Hons) (Environmental Analysis and Management) at the University of Pretoria, South Africa, followed by a MSc (Environmental Protection and Management) and MPhil (GIS and Remote Sensing) at Edinburgh and Cambridge Universities respectively. In 2010 he received his PhD (Geography) form the University of Cambridge (UK). He is currently a Senior Scientist with South African National Parks (SANParks) where he works in the field of applied ecology and conservation sciences, with an increasing focus on social-ecological dimensions of conservation. Izak has applied GIS and remote sensing tools (optical and LiDAR) in a range of studies related to fire spatio-temporal patterns and exploring the effects of fire on vegetation structure across various national parks within South Africa. He works at the science-management interface, translating science into management implications and management questions/concerns into research questions. In addition to his appointment with SANParks, Izak is a Research Associate at the Nelson Mandela University (Sustainability Research Centre) and an Extraordinary Professor at the University of Pretoria (Department of Zoology and Entomology). He enjoys collaboration and has published with colleagues hailing from more than 30 countries and serves as Associate Editor of the Journal of Applied Ecology.