Bikem Pastine

From Heat Exposure to Health Outcomes: Modelling Human Responses to Extreme Temperatures

I am a DPhil student in Professor Louise Slater’s Hydro-Climate Extremes Research Group, which I joined in 2025. My research focuses on the human physiological experience of extreme temperatures and improving our ability to anticipate population-level health impacts of heatwaves. My DPhil is funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) through the Environmental Research DTP and the Hertford College Mortimer-May Scholarship.

My current work centres on upgrading the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI), a widely used biometeorological measure of “real-feel” temperature, using an artificial neural network. I am interested in data-driven approaches to understanding health and mortality impacts of temperature extremes, including the protective effects of acclimatisation and adaptation.

I previously completed an MSc in Computational Methods for Ecology and Evolution at Imperial College London and a BA in Geography at the University of Cambridge. Although my research focus has shifted from plants to people, I continue to use computational methods to address questions of environmental risk.

You are welcome to contact me at bikem.pastine@ouce.ox.ac.uk to discuss anything heat, health, or climate related.

Awards

• Elsevier Student Conference Poster and Presentation Prize (DTP Conference, 2025)
• William Vaughan Lewis Prize for Outstanding Dissertation (University of Cambridge, 2022)
• Winkworth Third-Year Scholarship (Newnham College, Cambridge, 2021)