Research Fellows

	Tracy Ainsworth - James Cook University Contact : Tracy.Ainsworth@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 4442 Tracy is originally from the North Coast of New South Wales. She completed a BSc in Marine Biology/Aquaculture in 1996 and MSc in Marine Microbiology/Immunology in 2001, both at James Cook University. After working at the University of Queensland for several years she completed a PhD in 2007 at the Center for Marine Studies. Her PhD research investigated the histopathology and microbial ecology of stress and disease in reef corals. Tracy's broad research interests include stress responses, cell biology, immunity and disease of marine invertebrates.
	Glenn Almany - James Cook University Contact : Glenn.Almany@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 5721 Glenn is originally from Los Angeles, California. He spent six years in the U.S. Navy as a nuclear reactor engineer on a submarine (1985-1991), and has a BSc in marine biology from San Francisco State University (1996) and a PhD in Zoology from Oregon State University (2002). His research is broadly focused on the ecology of coral reef fishes.
	Andrew Baird - James Cook University Contact : Andrew.Baird@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 4857 Andrew grew up in Sydney, Australia. He completed a BSc with 1st class Honours in Marine Ecology in 1994 and a Phd in Marine Ecology in 2001 both at James Cook University. His current research focuses on the evolution of life histories and biogeographical patterns in reproductive ecology of scleractinian corals.
	Line Bay - James Cook University/AIMS Contact : Line.Bay@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 5979 Line grew up near Roskilde in Denmark but moved to Townsville late last century. She completed her Honours degree on the behavioural ecology and PhD on population genetics of coral reef fishes at James Cook University. While maintaining broad interests in molecular ecology and evolution, her current research uses genetic tools to examine the role of thermal stress on corals and their endosymbiotic algal communities.
	Joshua Cinner - James Cook University email : Joshua.Cinner@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 6751 Josh grew up in Massachusetts, USA. He completed a Masters degree in Marine Affairs from the University of Rhode Island in 2000 and a PhD from James Cook University in 2006. His research focuses on using social science to improve coral reef management.
	Sean Connolly - James Cook University email : Sean.Connolly@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 4242 Sean Connolly was born and grew up in Evansville, Indiana, USA, a long way from the ocean. He received a B.A. in Biology from Earlham College (USA) in 1994, from whence he began his scientific career with a paper on spider web orientation in 1992. He received a PhD in Biological Sciences from Stanford University (USA) in 1999, for research on the ecology of temperate rocky shores. During a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Arizona (USA), as part of the Research Training Group in Biological Diversification (1998-2000), he shifted his focus to paleobiology, examining the global dynamics of biodiversity in the fossil record. Since then, he has been at James Cook University as a Lecturer (2000-2002), Senior Lecturer (2003-2006), and Associate Professor (2007), where he has developed a research program in ecological modelling applied to coral reefs. His principal focus is coral reef biodiversity, but he is also active in the areas of physiological ecology, larval ecology, and population dynamics. Sean currently holds an ARC Australian Professorial Fellowship (2008-2012).
	Guillermo Diaz-Pulido - University of Queensland Contact: g.diazpulido@uq.edu.au Phone: 61 7 3365 3378 Guillermo grew up in Colombia. He completed his BSc (Hons) in Marine Biology in Bogota, in 1995 and his PhD in Marine Botany in James Cook University in 2002. His research focuses on the ecology and diversity of coral reef algae particularly in the context of coral reef degradation and global climate change, coral algae interactions and post-bleaching ecology.
	Maria Dornelas - James Cook University Contact: maria.dornelas@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 6072 Maria grew up in Lisbon, Portugal, and wanted to be a "nature scientist" ever since she can remember. She did her BSc (Hons) at the Universidade de Lisboa, and first became interested in tropical ecology during her Honors project in Mozambique. She studied coral biodiversity patterns in the context of neutral theory forher PhD at James Cook University (2006). She continued to work on community ecology and biodiversity in her Post-Doctoral Fellowship at the University of St Andrews in Scotland in 2007. She has returned to Australia to join the Centre and study morphological and life history diversity of corals.
	Simon Dunn - University of Queensland Contact: s.dunn@cms.uq.edu.au Phone: 61 7 3365 3378 Simon grew up in the UK and obtained a BSc(Hons) in marine and freshwater biology from Queen Mary and Westfield College, University of London in 1998. He completed his PhD on cellular mechanisms of symbiont release during cnidarian bleaching at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne (2002). This was followed by a short-term position researching cellular pathways in neuroblastoma and medullablastoma cancer at the University of Liverpool (2002-2003). He then moved to Corvallis, Oregon, USA to take up a post-doctoral position in the Weis lab. This work focused on the cellular interactions of cnidarian-dinoflagellate symbiosis (2003-2007). His work at UQ will continue to focus on the changes in gene expression and cellular interactions of coral and anemone symbiosis.
	Toby Elmhirst - James Cook University Contact: Toby.Elmhirst@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 6747 Toby is from Yorkshire in the UK. He was a philosophy and maths undergraduate and got his PhD in maths from Warwick University. Since then he has been an itinerant mathematician, working on "Coupled Cell Systems" at the University of Houston (2003-2005) and adaptive radiation and "Pod Systems" at the University of British Columbia (2005-2007). He is currently using pod systems, bifurcation theory, coupled cell systems and singularity theory to study resilience in coupled social-ecological systems.
	Kathryn Ferguson - James Cook University Contact: Kathryn.Ferguson@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 6749 Kathryn investigates how places accrue various cultural meanings and different social valuations over time. Her current research examines the cultural history and social significance of Australia's Great Barrier Reef. Kathryn has never grown up…
	Simon Foale - James Cook University Contact: Simon.Foale@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 6785 Simon grew up in the Solomon Islands and studied zoology and marine ecology at Queensland University in the early '80s. His Ph.D. (University of Melbourne) and subsequent work (ANU) has involved a strong social science focus and he will be building a cross-disciplinary cluster while at the Centre, before migrating to the School of Anthropology, Archaeology and Sociology in 2010.
	Débora De Freitas - James Cook University Contact: Debora.defreitas@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 47814170 Débora De Freitas is originally from Brazil. She completed a BSc-honours (2000) and Masters-honours (2003) in Oceanography at the Federal University of Rio Grande, Brazil – with complementary studies in Marine Policy at the Center for the Study of Marine Policy, Delaware/U.S.A. She is concluding her PhD in Environment Studies at James Cook University. Her research interests focus on the use of geospatial technology (i.e. GIS) in systematic conservation planning, integrated coastal zone management, and stakeholders’ engagement in the management of natural resources.
	Terry Hughes - James Cook University Contact: Terry.Hughes@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 4000 Professor Terry Hughes is an Australian Research Council Federation Fellow (2002-2007, 2007-2012) and Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies (since 2005). Professor Hughes was elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science in 2001, and was a member of the Expert Advisory Committee for Australian National Research Priorities in 2002. He is a Fellow and Board Member of the Beijer International Institute for Ecological Economics at the Royal Swedish Academy of Science, Stockholm, and a member of the Board of Directors of the Resilience Alliance. He has been awarded numerous prizes awards, including the Centenary Medal of Australia, the Silver Jubilee Award for Excellence of the Australian Marine Science Association in 2004, the 2007 Sherman Eureka Prize for Environmental Research, and the 2008 quadrennial Darwin Medal of the International Society for Coral Reef Studies. According to ISI Science Citation Index, Professor Hughes is ranked number one globally for citations to individual researchers in coral reef science. He has published 18 papers in Science and Nature. In the past 2-3 years, his research has increasingly evolved in a new direction, moving from an ecological focus to a broader evaluation of the linkages between coral reef ecosystems, the goods and services they provide to people, and the welfare of human societies.
	Bill Leggat - James Cook University Contact: bill.leggat@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 Bill developed an interest in the biochemistry and molecular biology of marine symbiosis during his honours and PhD when he studied the giant clam-zooxanthellae symbiosis. In particular he is interested in communication between the symbiotic partners and the uptake and fixation of inorganic carbon and nitrogen.
	Susan McIntyre-Tamwoy - James Cook University Contact: Susan.McIntyreTamwoy@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4042 1176 Susan worked in NSW on cultural heritage and the preservation of important sites. This work often involved sensitive site in National Parks. Susan's current focus is the integration of the management of cultural and social values in the management of protected areas.
	Philip Munday - James Cook University Contact : Philip.Munday@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 5341 Philip grew up in Tasmania where he was surrounded by beautiful forests, great trout fishing, and superb (but chilly) temperate-water diving. He spent a number of years working overseas as a dive guide before returning to Australia and moving to Townsville to study marine biology. He completed his PhD (1996-1999) in Marine Ecology at James Cook University. Philip has conducted extensive research on the reproductive ecology of reef fishes. His current research focuses on fish-habitat associations and the impact of climate change on reef fish communities
	Morgan Pratchett - James Cook University Contact : Morgan.Pratchett@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 5747 Morgan is originally from Botswana, but spent his childhood in Kununurra, north-western Australia. He completed his BSc with honours (1992-1996) and Phd (1996-2001) in Marine Ecology, at James Cook University. His current research focuses on major perturbations and threats to coral reef ecosystems, such as climate induced coral bleaching and outbreaks of crown-of-thorns starfish.
	Bob Pressey - James Cook University Contact : Bob.Pressey@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 6194 Professor Bob Pressey has worked on the theory, techniques and practice of conservation planning as a private environmental consultant, then as a research scientist with the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service, and now at James Cook University. During his career, he has combined scientific research with policy development and collaboration with practitioners in Australia and internationally. His publications have had a high scientific impact. He is an ISI highly cited researcher in the field of Environment/Ecology with more than 4000 non-self citations of his papers and book chapters. His influence on practice includes close involvement with the systematic design of about 1 million hectares of reserves in New South Wales and collaborative projects that have influenced conservation decisions extensively in other countries. He has current projects in China, South Africa, Brazil, Papua New Guinea and Mexico, including two global biodiversity hotspots. His awards and prizes include the New South Wales Premier’s Public Sector Environment Award (2004), the Eureka Prize for Biodiversity Research (2002), and the major annual award from the Society for Conservation Biology (2001). An important feature of his new research program will be the close involvement of practitioners and other stakeholders representing local, regional, state and national agencies, non-government organisations and community groups.
	Mauricio Rodriguez-Lanetty - University of Queensland Contact : M.Rodriguez-lanetty@uq.edu.au Phone: 61 7 3365 3378 Mauricio Rodriguez-Lanetty is from the city of Valencia, Venezuela. He did his bachelor in Biological Sciences in "Universidad Simon Bolivar" (1993) and his PhD in Marine Studies in the University of Queensland (2001). His research spans from cell biology and molecular ecology of cnidarian host/ dinoflagellate guest symbioses.
	Benjamin Walther - Australian National University Contact : benjamin.walther@anu.edu.au Phone: 61 2 6125 3424 Benjamin is originally from Texas in the U.S., and received a B.A. and a B.S. from the University of Texas at Austin in 2000. He received his Ph.D. in Biological Oceanography in 2007 from the Joint Program at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His research uses chemical signatures in fish otoliths to examine migration and life history dynamics as well as chemical proxies of environmental variability in both otolith and coral carbonate.
	Shaun Wilson - James Cook University Contact : shaun.wilson@jcu.edu.au Phone: 61 7 4781 6067 Shaun received his first degree in pharmacy from the University of Sydney, before becoming interested in marine biology. He was awarded his Phd in Marine Ecology in 2002 from James Cook University, and then held teaching and research positions overseas (USA and UK). His current research focuses on impact of habitat loss on coral reef fish communities.