Aristides Moustakas is Assistant Professor of Quantitative Methods and Applied Mathematics at the Department of Product and Systems Design Engineering, University of the Aegean. He holds a PhD in Mathematical Ecology and his research activity lies at the interface of data science, statistical modelling, artificial intelligence and environmental sciences. He develops and applies quantitative methods for understanding and managing complex socio-ecological systems, with emphasis on biodiversity, climate change, land-use change, renewable energy, environmental surveillance and decision-making under uncertainty.

He has worked and taught at universities and research institutions across Europe and Asia, including Queen Mary University of London, the University of Leeds, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, the University of Crete, the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). In parallel, he serves as evaluator and expert for research programmes of the European Commission and other international research funding organisations.

His research is characterised by a strong interdisciplinary orientation and by linking fundamental science with real-world policy and management challenges. Research findings from his group on the management of bovine tuberculosis in the United Kingdom were presented to the UK Parliament and contributed to public discussions regarding disease surveillance and control policies. This work received extensive international media coverage, including by the BBC and The Guardian, and has been utilised by public authorities and stakeholders.

Similarly, his research on wind-energy spatial planning and biodiversity impacts highlighted ways of reconciling the energy transition with nature conservation. These findings were discussed in the Hellenic Parliament and contributed to the public dialogue that led to the establishment of the “Untrodden Mountains” network, a new framework for the protection of mountain ecosystems in Greece.

He has published more than fifty-five papers in leading international scientific journals, including Nature Communications, Science of the Total Environment and Environmental Impact Assessment Review.

Research Interests:

• Statistical modelling and data analysis
• Machine learning
• Spatial statistics and spatial analysis
• Environmental informatics
• Computational ecology
• Biodiversity, land-use change and climate change