She studied at Aberystwyth University and has previously worked at Edinburgh and Cranfield Universities in the UK. The focus of Alison's current research is on the analysis of agricultural production systems encompassing: the financial and economic analyses of the impact on farm productivity of alternative farming systems and agri-environment policy strategy, and the investigation of farmer decision making processes and motivations. She also has an interest in the application of socio-economic principles and techniques for resource and environmental management, including environmental economic valuation, cost benefit analysis and accounting. She is Programme Director for the degree in Agricultural Business Management; with teaching focused on farm business management, including agricultural, rural development and agri-environment policy.