I study how marine ecosystems respond to environmental change — with a particular focus on what variation between individuals and species tells us about resilience, function, and future trajectories. My work combines mesocosm and field experiments with trait-based frameworks and computational approaches, across systems from Arctic fjords to North Sea wind farm sites.
My research interests span marine benthic ecology, Arctic coastal systems, and data-driven ecology, with a central focus on how ecosystems respond to environmental change and multiple stressors. I am particularly interested in the links between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, and how these relationships shift under climate-driven and anthropogenic pressures.
My work integrates experimental, field, and computational approaches. I conduct mesocosm and field experiments to investigate organismal and community-level responses to changing conditions, complemented by the analysis of empirical datasets from polar and temperate systems. In parallel, I develop and apply trait-based and statistical models to explore how biodiversity loss and species interactions influence ecosystem stability and function. Through this combined approach, I aim to better understand and predict the resilience of marine ecosystems in a rapidly changing world.
I run experiments and analyse large ecological datasets to understand how marine ecosystems are changing — and to predict what those changes mean for the ocean's ability to support life and regulate climate.
Research positions, expeditions, field sites, and collaborations across the Arctic, sub-Arctic, North Atlantic, and beyond. Click a marker for details.
Follow along on @tjw97.bsky.social for updates on research, fieldwork, and data science.
Williams et al. (2025) — Co-extinctions and co-compensatory species responses to climate change moderate ecosystem futures. Global Change Biology, 31(10), e70539. doi:10.1111/gcb.70539
Species don't go extinct in isolation — this paper shows how cascading co-extinctions dramatically amplify biodiversity loss projections under climate change scenarios.
All publications