ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies
James Cook University Townsville
Queensland 4811 Australia
Phone: 61 7 4781 4000
Email: info@coralcoe.org.au
Stephen obtained his B.Sc in marine biology and biotechnology from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, an Advanced Technical Diploma in Geographic Information Systems from the British Columbia Institute of Technology, and a Master’s degree in Zoology from the University of British Columbia, where his research focused on terrestrial and oceanographic predictors of Steller sea lion habitat in the north Pacific. He has worked with the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Science Centre and the Vancouver Museum, and spent several years in the private sector as a wildlife biologist with an environmental consulting firm. His current research interest centres on spatial ecological modeling and impacts of climate change.
Climate change poses a dual threat to coral reefs in the form of increased ocean temperatures and ocean acidification. However, the future state and health of reef ecosystems depends not only on climate change scenarios, but also on the trajectory of existing natural and anthropogenic stressors at a local scale. My thesis aims to identify the types of stressors that are most likely to influence the condition of the Great Barrier Reef, and how these stressors interact to mitigate or enhance each other. Furthermore, I plan to construct models that will describe how ecosystem structure may change in the face of multiple stressors, and compare these models against existing models of coral bleaching and disease to determine whether they offer novel insights or enhanced predictive ability of these events. Finally, I plan to examine how effective different local management strategies may be in mitigating the effects of global climate change.
Australian scientists have discovered a massive detached coral reef just off Cape York on the Great Barrier Reef that’s taller than the Empire State Building or the Sydney Tower. The scientists f
A new study of the Great Barrier Reef shows populations of its small, medium and large corals have all declined in the past three decades. Lead author Dr Andy Dietzel, from the ARC Centre of Excell
Scientists have found that as the world undergoes profound environmental change, identifying and protecting ‘novel’ communities of species can help prevent extinctions within vulnerable ecosystems
Scientists say a ‘portfolio’ of protected areas within marine parks such as the Great Barrier Reef can help secure sustainable fish populations. Dr Hugo Harrison from the ARC Centre of Excellen
Abstract: CHE is not a particular theory or a single approach but a collection of lines of research that address human-environmental interactions in coastal and marine systems at the local scale
Abstract: How can we care about something we never see or experience? Virtual reality has the potential to connect people with far-away places, and is an effective medium to generate empathy and sel
Abstract: When abundant, seabirds feeding in the open ocean transport large quantities of nutrients onto islands, enhancing the productivity of island fauna and flora. These nutrients can leach int
Abstract: Current-day populations of coral reef fish suffer when exposed acutely to elevated temperatures, but future warming will occur over greater timescales. Recent studies show that developmenta
Abstract: There is often a mismatch between the scales at which ecosystems are threatened by human impacts and those at which management and policy are implemented. Better understanding the scales ov
Abstract: Ocean warming and acidification are challenging the tolerance limits of scleractinian corals. However, beneficial acclimation and stress-hardening via phenotypic plasticity may be pathw
Abstract: Globally, coral reefs are under threat. Unfortunately, the rate of ecosystem degradation often surpasses the rate of generation of knowledge required to support management. Despite the consi
Partner Research Institutions
ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies
James Cook University Townsville
Queensland 4811 Australia
Phone: 61 7 4781 4000
Email: info@coralcoe.org.au
