Contemporary reef research is built on the shoulders of the Coral CoE and its close partners

Three prominent members of the Coral CoE, alongside a number of affiliates, are among the world’s most highly cited researchers in the field of “environment/ecology” (EE), according to the Clarivate Analytics’ Highly Cited Researcher list (formerly the Thomson Reuters Highly Cited Researcher list) published online this week.

Through the Highly Cited Researcher list, Clarivate Analytics creates a mechanism to recognise the significant global impact the researchers’ work has had within their respective fields of study, with only about 150 researchers recognised worldwide in the EE category.

Meet our influential research leaders – those who have supported, inspired, and challenged the scientific community:

Prof Terry Hughes has been the Director of Coral CoE since 2005. His research focuses on the linkages between the ecology of reefs and their importance for societies and economies. Prof Hughes has been acknowledged over the years with a host of accolades – ARC Laureate Fellow (2012-2017), Federation Fellow (2016), and received other, less formal titles including ‘reef inspector,’ ‘reef sentinel,’ and even teasingly called a ‘coral tycoon’ by comedian Jim Jefferies. Today, he once again confirms his place among the world’s elite scholars. His recent Nature paper “Global warming and recurrent mass bleaching of corals” alone yielded top notice by Altmetrics, ranking in the top 5% of all research outputs, at #26 out of 48,409 making it among the highest-scoring outputs from this source.

Prof Bob Pressey, is a world renowned conservation planner based at James Cook University. His position as a program leader in the Centre provides an ideal platform for developing innovative research projects in the conservation of marine and coastal ecosystems in the Asia-Pacific region. An emerging theme in Prof Pressey’s ‘s conservation planning group is the assessment of conservation impact, or how much difference is made by interventions such as protected areas. This research focus includes striving for a better understanding of why protected areas tend to be placed in areas where they are least needed and ways of shifting policy targets to focus interventions on species and ecosystems most in need of protection.

Prof Pete Mumby is an award-winning marine ecologist and leader of the Marine Spatial Ecology Lab at the University of Queensland. Prof Mumby acknowledges this award is a testament to the value of strong, diverse collaborators from around the world. “I’m delighted with the news and I think it reflects the wonderful research collaborations I’m fortunate to have. We’ve really been focusing on processes of coral reef resilience over the last decade and trying to find practical solutions to help direct reef management and protection.”

Also recognized are Coral CoE adjunct faculty members Prof David Mouillot of Montpellier University in France, and Prof Nicholas Graham of Lancaster University, U.K.

Prof Graham holds a Chair in Marine Ecology and is a Royal Society Research Fellow. His research focuses on the implications of climate change and fishing on coral reefs and the human communities that rely on them. Much of his research is aimed at finding solutions for the conservation and sustainable use of reef ecosystems. Prof Graham stated, “I’m delighted to be recognised as a Highly Cited Researcher, and that my research and that of my collaborators is resonating so much with our peers.”

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