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
Duan was born in Namibia but has spent most of his life in South Africa. He started his PhD in July 2007 in the Centre’s Program on Resilience and Socio-Ecological Systems. Prior to his PhD he completed an MSc by dissertation in Conservation Biology at the University of Cape Town. His MSc dissertation was on the institutions, economics and conservation benefits of community-based specialist ecotourism in South Africa. He has a trans-disciplinary undergraduate training with majors in Economics, Development Studies and Environmental Science. Duan relishes working at the interface of science and management and has developed, coordinated and consulted to projects for BirdLife International, Conservational International and WWF among others. He also leads specialist birding and eco-tours to destinations in Africa and the Asia-Pacific. Duan is the first PhD candidate with the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies to present his PhD exit seminar.
Rapid and accelerating global change may have severe consequences for humanity. In today’s highly connected world, crises may spread and propagate in novel ways. Thus, understanding the ability of vulnerable socio-economic sectors to cope with, and adapt to change is paramount. The coral reef tourism sector is highly vulnerable not only to the ecological effects of climate change and other anthropogenic disturbances on reefs, but also to shocks such as economic recession and energy price escalation. Commercial tourism enterprises are key players in reef tourism in Australia and elsewhere. Yet, the factors that confer resilience to reef-based tourism enterprises, or the reef tourism sector more broadly, in the face of large disturbances have not been investigated to date. This thesis addresses this literature gap by examining the resilience of enterprises in the coral reef tourism sector. Because resilience manifests differently in alternative socio-economic and governance contexts, this study includes formal and informal enterprises in Phuket, Thailand and enterprises on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. Lifestyle values and human capital are important determinants of the resilience of all enterprises. Moreover, higher lifestyle values are associated with a higher conservation ethic and a higher level of enterprise participation in conservation action. This study is a basis for policy-makers to actively consider lifestyle benefits to tourism enterprises in supporting enterprise resilience and strengthening conservation.
Scientists say outdated assumptions around gender continue to hinder effective and fair policymaking and action for climate mitigation and adaptation. Lead author of a new study, Dr Jacqueline Lau
For the first time, scientists have assessed how many corals there are in the Pacific Ocean—and evaluated their risk of extinction. While the answer to “how many coral species are there?” is
Scientists have discovered a never-before-seen biodiversity pattern of coral reef fishes that suggests some fishes might be exceptionally vulnerable to environmental change. A new study shows plank
Scientists say stable seafood consumption amongst the world’s poorer coastal communities is linked to how local habitat characteristics influence fishing at different times of the year. In the co
Abstract: The vast majority of reef fishes have a life history consisting of a pelagic larval phase of typically 20 to 60 days, followed by larval settlement where they remain through their juvenile a
Abstract: Social networks have been and remain important across the Pacific Islands, and beyond, for building and maintaining social-ecological resilience. However, there is little quantitative infor
Abstract: The global conservation community is comprised of a range of organisations, processes, and professionals. Given the diversity of these actors, and the complexity of the systems that conser
Abstract: Seasons create a rhythm in nature and, by extension, in the lives of people who depend directly on natural resources. However, our understanding of how seasons affect the ways that people
Abstract: Oceanic shark populations have declined 77% over the past 60 years as a result of overexploitation in fisheries. However, sustainable shark management is limited to a few developed nations
Abstract: Vertigo3 is a new class of small, fast and agile ‘true-flight’ underwater glider, purposely designed for robotic, artificial intelligence-assisted broadscale marine surveys, and capable
Abstract: Recurrent marine heat waves are leading to widespread coral bleaching, transforming the structure and function of tropical coral reefs. Past bleaching events have highlighted large variatio
Abstract: Shallow-water tropical seascapes typically include a range of habitat types such as coral reefs, mangroves, macroalgal and seagrass beds. These habitats can occur in close proximity and are
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
