Ph.D., OCF
Supervisor
Dr. Amanda Vincent
Degrees
MBIOL (University of Oxford)
Contact Information
Email:r.arnold@oceans.ubc.ca
Thesis Topic
| Seahorse distributions, fisheries and trade in Mexico: science for action planning. | |
Biography
Ruth holds an MBIOL from the University of Oxford (UK) and was the Oxford–Canada Rhodes Scholar for 2024 to 2026. She has recently begun her PhD with Project Seahorse, focusing on fisheries and trade in Mexico and the status of seahorse populations, with an emphasis on planning approaches and implications for management and policy. Her previous research combined evidence-gap analyses and expert elicitation to examine supply chains of at-risk species in the illegal wildlife trade. Ruth is particularly interested in community-based conservation of marine ecosystems.
Research Interests
Seahorse ecology, fisheries, trade, management and policy, marine species distribution modelling, community-based conservation, Mexico.
Awards
Four-Year Doctoral Fellowship (2026 – ongoing)
Selected as the single Oxford-Canada Rhodes Scholar for 2024-2026, awarded for academic excellence, leadership, community service, and commitment to positive change.
Top Presenter and Semi-finalist for UBC’s competitive 3-minute thesis challenge (2025)
Solo recipient of the Jean MacDonald Graduate Fellowship awarded by UBC (2025)
Louise Johnson Award for academic excellence in all undergraduate examinations (2023)
Pembroke Scholarship for academic excellence (Awarded annually since 2021)