Katrin Wilhelm is an interdisciplinary early career researcher with main interests in mixed heritage science. Her research focuses on the intersections of cultural and natural heritage perception and preservation. She investigates rock and stone material responses to the natural and anthropogenic environment, with further links to sustainable urban built heritage and well-being.
She completed her DPhil from the School for Geography in March 2016. She obtained her diploma in restoration, art technology and heritage science from the Technical University Munich (TUM) in 2011.Before her academic career she worked as a trained stone mason and as a site manager for heritage site conservation.
Her research focusses on built heritage preservation and perception. This includes preventive conservation with focus on environmental impacts, weathering processes and non-destructive testing in-situ: "Lab in your pocket", applied cultural heritage science: From Ancient Knowledge to 21th Century Applications. "Learning From The Past To Preserve The Future" and most recently the effect of historic environment on people's well-being and conceptualising "Urban Culture Dose".
Funding and awards
2018 Oxford University Diversity Fund award for Tomorrow’s Oxford Heads project in collaboration with the History of Science Museum Oxford
2017 - SoGE Inspiration Award in collaboration with Dr Martin Coombes for The History and Mysteries of Oxford’s Stone Heads project
2013 - EPSRC (Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council) studentship grant
