Stephen Tooth

Professor Stephen Tooth is Chair of the Department of Geography and Earth Sciences at Aberystwyth University, where he has been a faculty member since 2000. He holds a BSc in Geography from the University of Southampton and a PhD in Physical Geography from the University of Wollongong, Australia. His academic journey includes a temporary lectureship at the University of Nottingham and postdoctoral research at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa.

His research centers on geomorphology and sedimentology, particularly in dryland regions across Australia, southern Africa, southern Europe, South America, and India. Key themes include non-branching rivers, floodplains, wetlands in arid zones, channel-vegetation interactions, bedrock-influenced rivers, gully erosion, long-term landscape evolution, palaeoenvironmental change, climate change, the Anthropocene, and Earth-Mars analogues. He also explores broader environmental issues, science-art collaborations, and science education.

His recent publications reflect a strong focus on fluvial dynamics, dryland hydrology, and environmental change, with articles in top journals such as Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, Earth-Science Reviews, and Journal of Quaternary Science. His work often integrates field data, historical analysis, and interdisciplinary perspectives to address global environmental challenges.

Stephen Tooth leads externally funded projects from organizations including the Royal Society, British Council, and Royal Geographical Society. Notable projects include research on Indian dryland wetlands, Patagonian desert rivers, and immersive teaching tools for landscape education.

He actively supervises PhD students, including Jayesh Mukherjee, Nuala Dunn, and Tasmin Griffiths, often in co-supervision with colleagues from geography, art, and botany. He has served on the editorial board of Progress in Physical Geography and engages in public outreach through media, lectures, and creative fieldwork initiatives.

He is a member of the Earth Surface Processes Research Group and contributes to UN Sustainable Development Goals related to environmental sustainability and planetary health.