Dimitris Poursanidis

Experience

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  Natural History Museum of Crete

  Oct 2000 - Oct 2004

  Trainee

  During these years i have been trained on several issues concerning terrestrial and aquatic research. From setting up experiments with traps to sort specimens from pitfall traps, identify species of arthropods, micromammals and marine molluscs. Also i learn the basics of the GIS, using ArcView for map digitize. Nowadays i have close cooperation with the laboratory of vertebrates and inverebrates, working on map design for species distribution, use the data of the database for modelling of species and also i offer specimens to the collection of the museum. Show less

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  Marathon Data Systems

  Jan 2005 - Nov 2007

  GIS Techical Support

  1) Technical support on ArcGIS suite2) Database administration on local databases for customers3) Education on ArcGIS software

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  University of the Aegean

  Oct 2006 - Dec 2016

  Marine Enviroment Research / Biodiversity Assesment

  Member of the marine ecology & biodiversity lab.

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  Hellenic Center for Marine Research

  Dec 2006 - Jan 2013

  GIS Analyst - GeoDatabase Design / Cartographer

  https://services.ath.hcmr.gr/

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  UNEP/MAP

  May 2007 - Feb 2017

  Geographic Information System Analyst / Database manager

  The MED POL Programme (the marine pollution assessment and control component of MAP) is responsible for the follow up work related to the implementation of the LBS Protocol, the Protocol for the Protection of the Mediterranean Sea against Pollution from Land-Based Sources and Activities (1980, as amended in 1996), and of the dumping and Hazardous Wastes Protocols. MED POL assists Mediterranean countries in the formulation and implementation of pollution monitoring programmes, including pollution control measures and the drafting of action plans aiming to eliminate pollution from land-based sources.My role is to maintane the MEDPOL Database system, keep it updated and functionable and contribute to reports in EU and Mediterranean level. Show less

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  TerraSolutions marine environment research

  Jan 2008 - now

  CEO

  terraSolutions marine environment research is a newly established research company, based on the island of Crete focused on the research of the coastal and marine enviroment. terraSolutions has undertook projects like environmental monitoring, development of eco-tourism activities in unexplored areas, development of diving parks as well as partner in research projects.

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  WWF Greece

  Apr 2008 - Jul 2013

  GIS Analyst / Cartorapher / Field Researcher

  Member of the Project "Census of the Island wetlands of Greece".Responsible for the cartography of the island wetlands and the maintenance of the geodatabase.Photolibrary curator for the image library of the project.Field researcher in the expedition of the Island wetlands of Ionian Islands as well as in short period field work in Crete, Kasos and Karpathos.

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  Foundation for Research and Technology

  Nov 2012 - Dec 2016

  Earth Observation Analyst / GIS Analyst / Cartographer

  The Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas (FORTH), established in 1983, is one of the largest research centers in Greece with well organized facilities, highly qualified personnel and a reputation as a top-level research foundation worldwide. FORTH reports to the General Secretariat for Research and Technology of the Hellenic Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs, Culture and Sports.

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  Meet Your Neighbours

  Jan 2013 - Jan 2021

  Wildlife Photographer

  Founded in 2009, Meet Your Neighbours™ is a worldwide photographic initiative created by Niall Benvie and Clay Bolt. The project is dedicated to reconnecting people with the wildlife on their own doorsteps – and enriching their lives in the process. These creatures and plants are vital to people: they represent the first, and for some, the only contact with wild nature we have. Yet too often they are overlooked, undervalued.How does Meet Your Neighbours make this reconnection? Through producing inspiring imagery – the sort of pictures that make the viewer think, ‘I’ve got to see this for myself!” And then we encourage people to “meet their neighbours” through their own cameras.Meet Your Neighbours images have an instantly recognizable look. Each subject is photographed on location in a field studio. A brilliantly-lit white background removes the context, encouraging appreciation of the subject as an individual rather than a species. Their own form constitutes the composition. Seen this way, animals and plants we thought we knew reveal another side of themselves, encourage a second glance, perhaps even renewed interest. Show less

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  Democritus University of Thrace - (D.U.Th.)

  Apr 2014 - Jul 2015

  GIS Analyst / Species Distributions Analysis

  Taxonomy is the first step to the understanding of biodiversity, indispensable to other biological fields like phylogeny, ecology, biogeography and conservation biology. However, it has been increasingly judged as inadequate to meet the present challenge for fast aquisition of biodiversity information, needed for conservation management and planning.SPIDOnetGR intends to dynamically intervene to the taxonomy impediment by presenting an efficient way to accelerate biodiversity knowledge in one of the most important biodiversity hotspots of Europe, Greece. The target group is spiders, especially ground spiders, one of the most diverse taxa in the study area and the whole Mediterranean, yet still overlooked in their use for the identification of biodiversity hotspots, due to their challenging taxonomy and the absence of relevant identification keys. Show less

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  Natural History Museum of Crete

  Jan 2015 - Jul 2015

  EcoGenoDiv - http://ecogenodiv.sardine.gr/

  A major challenge facing evolutionary biologists is to explain the diversity of life and the interplay of evolutionary and ecological forces that shape it. Islands provide the best natural laboratories to study the species level processes that initiate biological diversification. We propose to use a next-generation sequencing method (RAD-tags) in a multi-species dataset to tease the role of genetic, geological, and environmental factors in shaping the bio-diversity. We will study the evolutionary radiation of 4 herptiles that possess contrasting ecological requirements and life history traits in the Aegean, where the landscape provides both young and old, simplified and complex geological and ecological settings. We aim to develop ecological niche models using georeferenced locality data and environmental data layers; assess whether genetic variation across lineages is associated with divergence in the ecological niche; demonstrate a general approach for combining ecological niche modeling and phylogenetics in species delimitation; and examine the phylogeographic pattern of each taxon by representing them as population trees with different topologies, identifying a series of plausible colonization scenarios, testing these scenarios within an ABC framework. We also aim to show that RAD-tags is a powerful tool to identify detailed patterns of phylogenetic relationships in any organism regardless of existing genomic data, recognize incipient speciation and genome-wide variation in natural populations, and creating a pipeline that could be adopted for other non model species, enhancing our knowledge for the processes that led to the diversity of life. As the loss of biological diversity continues at an astounding rate, increasing depth of understanding and application of new technologies will be instrumental in reevaluation of diversity, refining conservation strategies to protect what remains and preserve the highest possible level of diversity in natural ecosystems. Show less

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  Foundation for Research and Technology - Hellas (FORTH)

  Jan 2017 - now

  The Remote Sensing Lab operates within the Spatial analysis, Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing group of the Institute of Applied Mathematics of FORTH (Foundation for Research and Technology Hellas). The Lab concentrates in the field of Earth Observation and its area of research is the study of environmental phenomena and problems. Understanding Earth system processes, as well as their interaction effects of the manmade activities is recognized by the global scientific community as an urgent and important research direction. Observing the Earth using Remote Sensing is a non-invasive, non-destructive method of obtaining information. Remote Sensing can be used for monitoring changes in the Earth’s climate and environment, because it offers a unique perspective of the Earth, its resources and human impact upon it. Earth Observation is a fast-growing area of research, with technological advances leading to smaller satellites with improved instrumentation, spatial/spectral coverage and resolution, as well as to enhanced airborne hyper-spectral sensors, unmanned aerial vehicles and ground systems. The activities of the Lab focus on both urban and natural environments. Show less

  • Technical Scientist

    Jun 2023 - now

  • Research Fellow

    Jan 2017 - May 2023
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  Technological Educational Institute of Crete

  Mar 2018 - Jul 2018

  Visiting Lecturer

  Visiting Lecturer in Environmental Management, School Of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition, Department of Agriculture

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  Hellenic Mediterranean University

  Feb 2019 - Jul 2019

  Visiting Lecturer

  Visiting Lecturer in Environmental Management, School Of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition, Department of Agriculture

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  European Commission

  Feb 2019 - Jul 2019

  Research Proposal Evaluator (Vice-chair, Evaluator and Rapporteur)
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  Hellenic Mediterranean University

  Feb 2020 - Sept 2020

  Visiting Lecturer

  Visiting Lecturer in Environmental Management, School Of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition, Department of Agriculture

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  European Commission

  Jan 2022 - May 2022

  Research Proposal Evaluator (Vice-chair, Evaluator and Rapporteur)
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  New York University Abu Dhabi

  Jan 2024 - now

  Visiting Professor

  Visiting Professor