Mr Neil Cochrane
Teaching Fellow
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Personal statement
As a Teaching Fellow, I have helped to re-shape our undergraduate Civil and Environmental Engineering programs to offer new and innovative learning methods, such as apprenticeship degree programs. This blended learning model has transformed my teaching for full-time students, providing formative learning opportunities that suit their learning styles.
I’m passionate about creating accessible learning resources for diverse students and ensuring our graduates address societal challenges. I led a curriculum review to meet sustainable development and net zero construction goals, collaborating with colleagues to embed these goals in their teaching.
I aim to grow my role in academia by sharing best practices through interdisciplinary learning opportunities for students. This is recognized through my Senior Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (AdvanceHE).
Prize And Awards
- Teaching Excellence Award
- Recipient
- 2018
Qualifications
MEng MSc GMICE GradIEMA SFHEA
Publications
- Book review : 'Introduction to Environmental Impact Assessment' – fifth edn.
- Cochrane Neil
- Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal Vol 38, pp. 87-88 (2019)
- https://doi.org/10.1080/14615517.2019.1658444
- Integrating EIA with popular design methodologies
- Cochrane Neil, João Elsa
- 35th Annual Conference of the International Association for Impact Assessment (2015)
- How are the dynamic and interactive elements of resilience reflected in higher education literature? : A critical narrative review
- McCool Susan, Carlysle-Davies Felicity, Cochrane Neil, McCrorie Kathryn
- (2024)
- Can dredged canal sediments be used for flood defence as part of the Scottish circular economy?
- Lord Richard, Bertram Doug, Cochrane Neil, Hamilton Alasdair, Jakstys Ignas, João Elsa, Robinson Peter, Torrance Keith
- 10th Annual Conference on the Advances in Land Contamination Assessment and Remediation (2019)
- Can dredged canal sediments be used for flood defences as part of the Scottish circular economy?
- Lord Richard, Bertram Douglas, Cochrane Neil, Hamilton Alasdair, Jakstys Ignas, Joao Elsa, Robinson Peter, Torrance Keith
- 35th International Conference on Geochemistry and Health
(2019)
Teaching
My teaching expertise spans the gap between environmental assessment and engineering design. I am keen on exploring ways to enhance the alignment of these topics and developing innovative methods to foster an awareness and passion for sustainable design within our undergraduate curriculum.
My current teaching responsibilities include:
- CL114: Civil Engineering Design Projects
- CL134: Engineering Mechanics 2
- EO106: Structural Analysis 1
- CL804: Research Methods for Quantitative and Qualitative Approaches
- EV939: Environmental Impact Assessment
- CL941: Best Practice in Environmental Impact Assessment
In addition to these teaching duties, I hold the position of programme leader for our undergraduate (BEng Hons / MEng) programmes in both Civil and Civil & Environmental Engineering.
Research Interests
My research focuses on how different parties collaborate in the built environment. This work aims to improve decision-making and sustainable design outcomes by understanding how stakeholders in environmental assessment and engineering design work together.
This interest has shaped my teaching practice and emerging scholarship in pedagogic research. Industrial practitioners make more sustainable decisions by collaborating early in construction projects. Our graduates can learn to share skills in an interdisciplinary environment while at Strathclyde which – with the largest engineering faculty in Scotland – is uniquely placed to deliver.
Professional Activities
- 43rd Annual Conference of the International Association for Impact Assessment
- Participant
- 24/4/2024
- Institution of Civil Engineers (External organisation)
- Member
- 11/10/2019
- Scotland's EIA Community Conference 2018
- Participant
- 24/5/2018
- Engage with Strathclyde 2018
- Participant
- 1/5/2018
- Higher Education Academy (FHEA) (External organisation)
- Member
- 2018
- Launch Event: Delivering Proportionate EIA
- Participant
- 18/7/2017
Projects
- Evaluating the feasibility of environmental DNA (eDNA) as a fast, low-cost and more accurate tool for measuring Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) in infrastructure projects
- Henriquez-Mui, Fiona (Principal Investigator) Cochrane, Neil (Principal Investigator) Mooney, Ronnie (Principal Investigator) Brunton, Holly (Post Grad Student) Kean, Alistair (Principal Investigator) McDonald, Alex (Principal Investigator)
- With the introduction of Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) as a statutory requirement for planning applications in England and the expansion of requirements for measurable biodiversity enhancements gaining traction internationally, there is a need for rapid, cost-effective pre and post intervention assessment of the quantity and quality of a habitat.
Traditional walkover methods can be labour intensive and rely on visiting a site e.g. a floodplain meadow, at the right time of year which may not always be conducive with project programmes and commissions leading to the risk of a site being wrongly classified and designs being based on incorrect assumptions.
Long-term habitat monitoring (e.g. over 30 years) can be expensive, with projects often challenged by funding constraints and looking for cost effective ways of undertaking the monitoring required.
Environmental DNA (eDNA) monitoring offers a novel approach to overcoming many of the complexities associated with BNG assessment. eDNA enables the detection of genetic material naturally shed by organisms into the environment, providing a highly sensitive, non-invasive, and cost-effective means of measuring biodiversity. - 01-Jan-2025 - 30-Jan-2025
- Theory and Practice of Biodiversity Friendly Infrastructure
- Cochrane, Neil (Principal Investigator)
- 22-Jan-2024 - 23-Jan-2024
- Integrating Design and Impact Assessment
- Cochrane, Neil (Principal Investigator)
- 01-Jan-2014 - 31-Jan-2019
Contact
Mr
Neil
Cochrane
Teaching Fellow
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Email: neil.cochrane@strath.ac.uk
Tel: Unlisted