Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE230101226
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$450,000.00
Summary
Plant community responses to fire regime: the role of plant–soil feedbacks. We need to know how different prescribed burning regimes set the stage for long-term changes in plant community composition, diversity, and flammability. This project aims to reveal how plant community dynamics under different fire scenarios can be predicted based on contemporary interactions between plants and soil micro-organisms. This innovative approach to fire ecology integrates soil biology and plant ecophysiology ....Plant community responses to fire regime: the role of plant–soil feedbacks. We need to know how different prescribed burning regimes set the stage for long-term changes in plant community composition, diversity, and flammability. This project aims to reveal how plant community dynamics under different fire scenarios can be predicted based on contemporary interactions between plants and soil micro-organisms. This innovative approach to fire ecology integrates soil biology and plant ecophysiology with sophisticated experiments and novel modelling techniques. Expected outcomes include a much-needed mechanistic framework for early detection of major ecological changes under novel fire regimes, with direct benefits for land managers and the long-term conservation of Australia’s iconic vegetation.Read moreRead less
Are coastal wetlands vulnerable to bushfires? The ‘Black Summer’ fires burned extensive areas of coastal wetland not typically associated with fire impact. These wetlands rely upon plant growth and sediment delivery to respond to sea-level rise, processes which may be impacted by fire. This project aims to quantify the distribution and severity of fire impact, and establish post-fire vegetation and surface elevation trajectories. By integrating fire ecology and wetland science approaches, this p ....Are coastal wetlands vulnerable to bushfires? The ‘Black Summer’ fires burned extensive areas of coastal wetland not typically associated with fire impact. These wetlands rely upon plant growth and sediment delivery to respond to sea-level rise, processes which may be impacted by fire. This project aims to quantify the distribution and severity of fire impact, and establish post-fire vegetation and surface elevation trajectories. By integrating fire ecology and wetland science approaches, this project will ascertain the resilience of coastal wetlands to the cumulative impacts of fire and sea-level rise. Expected outcomes of this project include new, spatially-explicit fire management tools which will aid the sustainable, long-term management of coastal wetlands in a changing climate.Read moreRead less
Improving desert fire management with culturally directed science. This project aims to improve fire management in Australian deserts. Working with 4 Indigenous ranger teams managing >150,000 km2 of the Great Sandy Desert, the project expects to document fire patterns caused by pre-European, traditional burning practices over large environmental gradients; compare these with contemporary fire patterns; and undertake extensive fieldwork to understand how fire affects native fauna, including cultu ....Improving desert fire management with culturally directed science. This project aims to improve fire management in Australian deserts. Working with 4 Indigenous ranger teams managing >150,000 km2 of the Great Sandy Desert, the project expects to document fire patterns caused by pre-European, traditional burning practices over large environmental gradients; compare these with contemporary fire patterns; and undertake extensive fieldwork to understand how fire affects native fauna, including culturally significant species. This information will shape a template for fire management planning and evaluation that is culturally meaningful to local managers. The project should support Indigenous rangers to access sustainable funding pathways for conservation management through emerging biodiversity markets.Read moreRead less
Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL220100099
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$3,360,986.00
Summary
Practical and sustainable pathways to community coexistence with bushfires. The project addresses an urgent national and global challenge to policy and practice: the escalating risk of bushfire disasters. It aims to develop adaptation pathways so Australian communities can co-exist safely and sustainably with intrinsically flammable landscapes, through an innovative integration of historical, social, economic, and biophysical lines of research. In collaboration with local councils, fire-manageme ....Practical and sustainable pathways to community coexistence with bushfires. The project addresses an urgent national and global challenge to policy and practice: the escalating risk of bushfire disasters. It aims to develop adaptation pathways so Australian communities can co-exist safely and sustainably with intrinsically flammable landscapes, through an innovative integration of historical, social, economic, and biophysical lines of research. In collaboration with local councils, fire-management agencies, Aboriginal communities contributing traditional knowledge, and world-leading fire scientists, it is expected to deliver benefit through insights into the drivers of fire disaster, concrete outcomes such as optimal preventive and mitigation strategies, and greatly improved community understanding and involvement.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE240100340
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$441,281.00
Summary
Identifying key fire drivers in Australia; biomass, climate or people. This project aims to provide a greater understanding of Australia’s bushfire risk in the face of climate change. By comparing fire occurrence in three Australian bioclimates across two millennial-scale time periods, one prior to human settlement and one during active Indigenous management, this research expects to define which factors — climate, vegetation profile, or landscape management —most impact fire frequency and sever ....Identifying key fire drivers in Australia; biomass, climate or people. This project aims to provide a greater understanding of Australia’s bushfire risk in the face of climate change. By comparing fire occurrence in three Australian bioclimates across two millennial-scale time periods, one prior to human settlement and one during active Indigenous management, this research expects to define which factors — climate, vegetation profile, or landscape management —most impact fire frequency and severity. Outcomes will likely create new knowledge on how past climates affected the Australian environment; enhance predictive ability for future fire risks under emerging climate scenarios; and provide new insights into how cultural burning can be incorporated into fire management plans to reduce catastrophic bushfires.Read moreRead less