Researching aquatic ecosystems to understand impacts of climate change
Our research aims to understand the impacts of climate change and to support the urgent need to adapt to it’s effects in already-stressed aquatic ecosystems. Climate change will fundamentally alter the water cycle through direct changes to the timing, duration and magnitude of rainfall events, increasing temperatures and sea level rise. We seek to understand how these changes will differ across aquatic ecosystems, with scale and how it will impact the species present. We examine the multiple dimensions of climate change impacts on aquatic ecosystems.
Sustainable Development Goals
Griffith University is aligned to the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and is committed to ensuring clean water and sanitation, combating climate change, and preserving life below water, working towards a more sustainable and resilient world for all.
We provide mitigation strategies to counter climate change impacts
Climate change mitigation focuses on ecological services that some species and environments can provide in locking up carbon and mitigating the effects of climate change. We focus on an emerging research area of blue carbon and mangrove forests in the coastal zone for mitigation climate change.
We examine the multiple dimensions of climate change impacts on aquatic ecosystems
Research on climate change impacts combines climate, ecophysiology and ecological information to examine the likely consequences of climate change for vulnerable species, habitats and processes. Our research transcends freshwater, estuarine and marine environments to examine these impacts, including how to understand changes in species distributions and counter extinction risks from climate change.
We provide information on climate change adaptation strategies
Adaptation is a complex, multidisciplinary undertaking, which requires synthesis of knowledge across ecology, hydrology, climate, physiology, economics and social science disciplines to determine the best course of action, or response to climate threats. We develop methods to build resilience in catchments and coasts to counter climate change impacts.
Read about some of our projects:
Our experts working in this field:
- Professor Michele Burford
- Professor Samantha Capon
- Professor Rod Connolly
- Professor Guillermo Diaz-Pulido
- Professor Mark Kennard
- Professor Kylie Pitt
- Associate Professor Fernanda Adame
- Associate Professor Jim Smart
- Dr Wade Hadwen
- Dr Christopher Ndehedehe
- Dr Mehran Rezaei Rashti
- Dr Luke Carpenter-Bundhoo
- Dr Kaitlyn O'Mara
- Dr Michael Sievers