Rhiannon Bird is a PhD student in Annabel Smith’s lab. Her research focuses on the influence of environmental variables within agricultural landscapes on invertebrate communities. Rhiannon completed her bachelor's degree in wildlife science in 2020 and then went on to do her honours focusing on fire and its interaction with a mammal community. Recently she completed a placement with DETSI’s Threatened Species Operations, where she analysed data under the Threatened Species Prioritisation Framework decision tool for summary statistics and prioritisation trade-offs. She is passionate about exploring ecology with qualitative data analysis, especially when looking at ecosystems as a whole and community ecology.

Mr. Zaib Ullah is a PhD candidate at the School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Australia. His doctoral research focuses on the impact of anthropogenic marine debris on beach fauna in Victoria, with an emphasis on understanding ecological disruptions caused by plastic and microplastic pollution. Mr. Zaib is an emerging researcher with a strong background in zoology and environmental science, and has published multiple peer-reviewed articles in reputable international journals. His expertise spans marine ecology, microplastic pollution, and invertebrate biology. With over four years of tertiary-level teaching experience, he has contributed to both undergraduate and postgraduate education. He has also been successful in securing competitive research grants, supporting field-based and laboratory investigations into marine debris and biodiversity conservation.

Annabel Ellis is a PhD student at the University of Sydney in the Behavioural Ecology and Conservation Lab. She developed an interest in human-wildlife interactions while studying invasion ecology of black rats during a Bachelor of Science (Advanced) (Honours). Annabel continued to develop her ecological research skills working and interning in government and not-for-profit, before returning to undertake a PhD. Her research focuses on biodiversity conservation within transformed landscapes, creating novel approaches to mitigate human-wildlife conflict with an ecosystem engineer.

Erik Alonso completed his undergraduate studies in Natural Resources Conservation at the University of British Columbia. After moving to Australia in 2019 he worked as a firefighter and then as a GIS analyst for several years in Fire and Biodiversity teams in Victorian government agencies. He has a deep interest in developing spatial tools and datasets to help inform decision making. Having grown up in Mexico, where entomophagy (the practice of eating insects) is commonplace, his interest in these insects, invasive species and food system reform led him to start his PhD looking at biosecurity implications for the emerging insects as food and feed industry.

I am a PhD student at Nagasaki University in Japan. Currently, I am based in New Zealand to deepen my understanding of natural history through cross-national research. My current work focuses on ornithology, especially the full life history of swallows. In this presentation, I focus on wintering strategies and land use in swallow species that remain in areas outside their typical wintering range.

Laura Fernandez Winzer is a plant ecologist with a background in biological sciences, originally from Argentina, where she developed a passion for invasive species and the conservation of natural landscapes. She completed a Master’s in Ecology in Brazil, followed by a PhD at Macquarie University (MQ), Australia, focusing on the impacts of myrtle rust on native plant communities. She then undertook a postdoctoral position at the South African National Biodiversity Institute in collaboration with the Centre for Invasion Biology. Laura is currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at MQ, where she investigates the use of recycled water for irrigating urban green spaces. She is also a Research Officer for Which Plant Where, an online plant selection tool that provides evidence-based guidance on species suitability for Australian urban landscapes under current and future climates. Her work involves integrating data on over 200 species and four key traits—water use, flammability, lifespan, and salinity tolerance—to help nurseries, landscape architects, and urban greening professionals create more resilient plantings. In her spare time, Laura is an active iNaturalist contributor and a committed taekwondo practitioner.

Anita Foerster is an environmental and climate change law academic with a focus on impact and engagement. Anita’s recent research has focused on private sector sustainability risk governance, sustainable finance and emerging corporate sustainability due diligence regimes; and framework climate laws and the mainstreaming of climate change in legal and policy processes. In addition to extensive academic publications, Anita has undertaken commissioned research for government and non-government stakeholders including the Victorian Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action, the ACT Government Directorate of Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development, ClientEarth, and the Australian Conservation Foundation. Within the Monash Business School, Anita leads Green Lab, a hub for applied, interdisciplinary research and engagement on climate change and sustainability. Green Lab’s Net Zero, Nature Positive Australian Companies project is tracking corporate responses to emerging regulatory pressures to address climate and nature-related risks and impacts. In 2024, Anita established the Monash Nature Positive Network, a multi-disciplinary network of leading Monash University researchers developing new research and engagement designed to address critical policy challenges associated with the international nature positive goal.

Sebastian is a PhD candidate in the Wildlife Crime Research Hub, researching the international exotic pet trade with a focus on the exploitation of Australian reptiles. He aims to provide information to wildlife enforcement agencies that will aid in the prioritisation of resources towards species most at-risk, improve proactive capabilities, and ensure prosecutions result in appropriate penalties that act as effective deterrents for potential future offenders.

I am an ecologist interested in understanding how communities form and function. My work focuses on marine systems, in particular phytoplankton. I use theory-informed experiments to quantify how the interplay between organismal metabolism and species interactions influences community properties. After completing my PhD at the University of Adelaide in 2016, I moved to Monash University first as a postdoc then as a DECRA fellow. In 2021 I moved to Lisbon (Portugal) to open my lab at the Gulbenkian Institute, where I secured an ERC Starting Grant. I recently accepted an ongoing Lecturer/Group leader position in community ecology at Monash University.

Dr Craig Liddicoat is a soil microbiome and One Health researcher based at Flinders University in Adelaide, South Australia. Craig uses DNA-based tools to examine the roles of microbial communities in soils, plants, animals and humans to better understand the potential for both beneficial and harmful microbial connections between ecosystem-, soil- and human-health. Currently, he is investigating the restoration of health-promoting soil biodiversity within the ‘People, Cities and Nature’ research program based in Aotearoa New Zealand.