Professor Emma Jackson
PhD Seagrass Landscape Ecology
Director - Coastal Marine Ecosystems Research Centre
Research Division
Coastal Marine Ecosystems Research Centre
- emma.jackson@cqu.edu.au
- ORCID: 0000-0003-1708-4776
- (07) 4970 7208
-
Gladstone Marina
604 - 1.03
My Networks
About Me
My research expertise spans seagrass landscape and restoration ecology, seascape connectivity, nature-based solutions and coastal ecosystem health. My work focuses on understanding how seagrass meadows function, respond to human pressures and recover from disturbance, and how this knowledge can be translated into practical, science-based approaches to marine conservation and large-scale ecosystem restoration.
I am particularly interested in how coastal development can work with nature rather than against it, maintaining ecosystem health and the benefits coastal ecosystems provide to communities and human well-being. I currently lead a research program developing a science-based framework for seagrass restoration in Queensland, with a focus on scaling up restoration through seagrass nurseries, improved seed production and deployment methods, innovative restoration technologies, and integrated approaches to monitoring and evaluation. My research also explores meadow dynamics, population genetics, seascape connectivity, ecosystem services and the role of restoration in supporting resilient coastal ecosystems.
I am President of the World Seagrass Association and co-lead the Global Seagrass Nursery Network, supporting international collaboration and knowledge exchange to advance seagrass restoration. I am also a member of the Australian Coastal Restoration Network and the Society for Ecological Restoration. Through these roles and my research partnerships with industry, government, Traditional Owners and communities, I aim to bridge the gap between ecological understanding and practical solutions that deliver measurable outcomes for coastal environments.
General
Background
Director of the Coastal Marine Ecosystems Research Centre
CQUniversity Australia’s Coastal Marine Ecosystems Research Centre (CMERC) has been established to work with coastal industries and communities to develop practical and sustainable solutions for our unique coast and marine environments.
Our goal is to undertake research that works with nature to build an economically and environmentally sustainable future to enrich our coastal communities. To achieve this, CMERC is taking a holistic approach that recognises the place of the communities and industries that live and work along our coastlines. This means our work entails far more than just monitoring the condition of our environments – CMERC is undertaking proactive applied research from coastal catchments to sea to develop practical solutions to the challenges facing coastal and marine ecosystems.
Practical solutions require multidisciplinary approaches and our researchers include ecologists, economists, engineers and social scientists to ensure this work accounts for all aspects of the interaction of the community and industry with coastal and marine ecosystems. They pride themselves on conducting their research where it matters most by living and working in the communities they serve.
Universities Studied At
2003 PhD The importance of seagrass landscapes as fishery species habitat. Plymouth University, UK.
1998 MSc (Distinction) in Marine Resource Development and Protection. Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh. Thesis on modelling the distribution and value of seagrass in the Orkney Isles.
1997 BSc (Hons) in Marine Biology (2:1), University of Stirling, Scotland.
Universities Worked At
Marine Institute, Plymouth University, UK
Marine Biological Association of the UK
Media Citations
Previous teaching
Undergraduate teaching
· 2019 Honours preparation (CQU): Course coordinator.
· 2018 Marine and Coastal Resources (CQU): Lecturer.
· 2017 Marine and Coastal Resources (CQU): Lecturer.
· 2016 Invertebrate Zoology (CQU): Course coordinator and lecturer.
· 2015- 2016 Science Investigation (CQU): Course coordinator and lecturer.
· 2016 Marine and Coastal Resources (CQU): Lecturer.
· 2008-2012 Aquatic Ecology (Plymouth University): Lecturer.
· 2011 GIS (Plymouth University): Lecturer
Professional Experience
· Fieldwork and Laboratory skills: Experience of operating sub-littoral remote sampling gear and in situ observations. Good marine macro-invertebrate and vertebrate identification skills.
· Diving: PADI Dive Master, HSE Part 4 (Theory).
· Boat Skills: RYA Powerboat Level 2 (planing and displacement craft, inshore and offshore over 500 helming hours), Competent Crew Certificate and RYA Dinghy Instructor; use of navigational equipment such as GPS, plotters, digital echo-sounder systems and basic radar skills; VHF Licence.
· Full UK and Queensland driving licences
· First Aid at Work Certification.
Professional Memberships
World Seagrass Association
Global Seagrass Nursery Network
Ocean Restoration Supra Alliance (ORSA)
Society for Ecological Restoration (SER)
Australian Coastal Restoration Network (ACRN)
Australian Marine Sciences Association (AMSA)
Estuarine and Coastal Sciences Association (ECSA)
Professional Interests
- Seagrass dynamics: landscape ecology, patch dynamics, restoration and faunal habitat modelling;
- Marine conservation management: vulnerability mapping (recovery and resistance), marine protected area (network design, assessing ecological coherence of MPA networks, stakeholder involvement)
- Ecosystem services: evaluation, relationships with biodiversity and ecosystem function, interactions and cost benefit analysis (in collaboration)
- Marine Protected Areas and Reserves: establishment, performance assessment and efficacy;
- Marine community ecology: fractal patterns, landscape ecology, human impacts, metapopulation ecology; and
- Marine angiosperm, invertebrate and vertebrate taxonomy.
Key Achievements
Member of the Local Maine Advisory Committee for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority
Port of Gladstone Maintenance Dredging Technical Advisory Consultative Committee
Associate Editor for Elsevier Journal Estuarine Coastal Shelf Science
Great Sandy Strait Wetlands – Ramsar Management Advisory Group
Great Barrier Reef Foundation – Burnett Mary Community Action Plan – Steering Committee
Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership – Management Committee
Port Curtis Integrated Monitoring Program Scientific Advisory Panel
Gladstone Ports Corporation Channel Duplication Stakeholder Reference Group
Gladstone Ports Corporation, Port of Gladstone - Technical Advisory Consultative Committee
Gladstone Ports Corporation, Port of Bundaberg - Technical Advisory Consultative Committee
Computer Software
- Mapping: ESRI ArcGIS, ERDAS ImagineTM, Biosonics DT Analyser, FRAGSTATS.
- Statistics: Microsoft Excel, PRIMER, WinGMAV5, StatGraphics, Statistica;
- Modelling: WEMo, Netica, MaxEnt, R.
- Databases: Microsoft Access, Endnote, Reference Manager;
- Presentations/Reports: Microsoft Word and Power Point, Adobe Photoshop.
Industry Reports
Jackson, E.L., Maher, D.T., Brooks-English, N. B. & Irving, A. D., 2019. Assessing the feasibility of identifying sediment provenance within dredged channels: a pilot study. Report by CQUniversity Coastal and Marine Ecosystem Research Centre for the Gladstone Port Corporation, Contract number CS18000043, p 24.
Skillington, A. and Jackson, E.L. (2019). Port Curtis Integrated Monitoring Program Biological Monitoring: Seagrass metal contaminants 2018. Report to PCIMP, CQUniversity, Gladstone, Australia, March 2019
Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership (2018) Technical Report, Gladstone Harbour Report Card2018, GHHP Technical Report No.5. Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership, Gladstone. (PDF) Gladstone Harbour Report Card 2018 - Technical Report.
Flint, N., Anastasi, A., Irving, A., De Valck, J., Chua, E., Rose, A., French, K. and Jackson, E.L. (2018). Fish Health Indicators for the Gladstone Harbour Report Card, Final Report to the Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership. CQUniversity, Queensland.
Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership (2017) Technical Report, Gladstone Harbour Report Card2017, GHHP Technical Report No.4. Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership, Gladstone. (PDF) Gladstone Harbour Report Card 2017 - Technical Report.
Flint, N., Anastasi, A., De Valck, J., Chua, E., Rose, A., and Jackson, E.L. (2017). Developing mud crab indicators for the Gladstone Harbour Report Card. Report to the Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership. CQUniversity Australia, Queensland. 62pp.
Jackson, E.L., Davies, J., Rasheed, M.A., Irving, A.D. (2016). Port Curtis Integrated Monitoring Program Biological Monitoring: Seagrass metal contaminants. Report to PCIMP, CQUniversity, Gladstone, Australia, September 2016.
Connolly RM, Dunn RJK, Flindt MR, Jackson, EL, Kristensen E, McKenna S, Olds AD, Rasheed MA, Schlacher TA, York PH, (2016) Assessment of the effects of foreshore nourishment and mitigation projects on seagrass ecosystems (SRMP-004). Report to Gold Coast Waterways Authority, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia, December 2016.
Connolly RM, Dunn RJK, Jackson E.L., Kristensen E, Maxwell PS, Pearson RM, Rasheed MA, York PH (2015) Gold Coast Seagrass Sensitivities and Resilience (SRMP-003). Report to Gold Coast Waterways Authority, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia, June 2015.
Flint, N., Jackson, E.L., Wilson, S., Verlis, K., Rolfe, J. (2015). Synthesis of water quality influences in ports of the Fitzroy region, Queensland. A report to the Fitzroy Basin Association for the Fitzroy Water Quality Improvement Plan. CQUniversity Australia, North Rockhampton, Queensland.
Luisetti, T. and Jackson, E.L. (2014). Blue Carbon Case study. In: Dickie, I., Cryle, P. & Maskell, L. (2014) UK National Ecosystem Assessment Follow-on. Work Package Report 1: Developing the evidence base for a Natural Capital Asset Check: What characteristics should we understand in order to improve environmental appraisal and natural income accounts? UNEP-WCMC, LWEC, UK.
Foster, N. L., Sciberras, M., Jackson, E. L., Ponge, B., Toison, V., Carrier, S., Christiansen, S., Lemasson, A., Wort, E. and Attrill, M. (2014). Assessing the Ecological Coherence of the Channel MPA Network. Report prepared by the Marine Institute for the Protected Area Network Across the Channel Ecosystem (PANACHE) project. INTERREG programme France (Channel) England funded project, 156 pp
Thomson, M. & Jackson, E.L., with Kalkonen, J. (2014). Seagrass (Zostera) beds in Orkney. Scottish Natural Heritage Commissioned Report No. 765.
d’Avack, E.A.S., Tillin, H., Jackson, E.L. and Tyler-Walters, H. (2014). Assessing the sensitivity of seagrass bed biotopes to pressures associated with marine activities. JNCC Report no. 505. Peterborough, Joint Nature Conservation Committee.
Editor
Editorial Reviews and Peer reviews
Associate Editor for Elsevier Journal Estuarine Coastal Shelf Science
Reviews for Journals
• Aquatic Botany
• Austral Ecology
• Biological Conservation
• Biologia Marina Mediterranea
• Botanica Marina
• Bulletin of Marine Science
• Estuaries and Coasts
• Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science
• ICES Journal of Marine Science
• Marine Biology
• Marine Ecology Progress Series
• Marine Pollution Bulletin
Examined University Thesis, Dissertations, Confirmations
• Plymouth University
• CQuniversity
Peer Review for Government and Non-government Agencies
• Department of the Environment Fisheries and Rural Affairs (UK)
• Natural England (UK)
• Natural Environmental Research Council (UK)
• Maryland Sea Grant, NOAA (USA)
• National Science Foundation (USA)
Consultancy Work
Recent Research Projects
Integrated Habitat Restoration for the Discovery Coast (P21004 Discovery Coast_CMERC)
Grant: Competitive Grant (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: Burnett Mary Regional Group - Reef Trust 2020
Total Funding: $867,410.10
Seagrass trace element bioindicator development (November 2020)
Grant: Contract Research (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: PCIMP Contract Research
Total Funding: $30,459.00
Knowledge to improve the assessment and management of Giant Mud Crabs (Scylla seratta) in Queensland (2019-062)
Grant: Competitive Grant (Category 2: Other Public Sector)
Funding Schemes: Department of Agriculture & Fisheries
Total Funding: $183,860.00
Development of Fish Health Indicators for the 2021 Gladstone Healthy Harbour Report Card (Project ISP023A-2021)
Grant: Contract Research (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership (Administered by FBA)
Total Funding: $65,062.00
Seaweed Biofilters for Water Quality Improvement and Reef Protection
Grant: Contract Research (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: Australian Seaweed Institute - Funding from the Great Barrier Reef Foundation: Reef Trust Partnership Innovation and System Change Water Quality Program
Total Funding: $185,000.00
Sea Flowers: Growing community engagement for seagrass restoration
Grant: Competitive Grant (Category 2: Other Public Sector)
Funding Schemes: Queensland Citizen Science Grants
Total Funding: $29,573.00
Seagrass habitat mapping and restoration
Grant: Competitive Grant (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: Great Barrier Reef Foundation
Total Funding: $38,346.00
RTP-Indigenous Award (living allowance/stipend), Commencing 2020
Grant: Scholarship (Not Specified )
Funding Schemes: RTP-Indigenous Award (living allowance/stipend), Commencing 2020
Total Funding: N/A
Working with nature Investigations for Seawall Designs in the Port of Gladstone
Grant: Consultancy (Category 2: Other Public Sector)
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Ports Corporation Limited (GPCL) - Tenders
Total Funding: $255,489.70
Mud crab indicator for the 2020 Gladstone Harbour Report Card
Grant: Contract Research (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership (Administered by FBA)
Total Funding: $63,616.00
South Trees Inlet: Fish Health and Mud Crab Assessment Options
Grant: Contract Research (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: Queensland Alumina Ltd
Total Funding: $202,577.00
Sapiotemporal variations in seagrass flowering: Can spatial models of seagrass flowering benefit seagrass restoration?
Grant: Scholarship (Not Specified )
Funding Schemes: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO)
Total Funding: N/A
Potential seagrass habitat creation and restoration on the Sunshine Coast
Grant: Contract Research (Category 2: Other Public Sector)
Funding Schemes: Sunshine Coast Regional Council
Total Funding: $15,886.00
Seagrass trace element bioindicator development
Grant: Contract Research (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: PCIMP Contract Research
Total Funding: $25,679.00
Port of Gladstone beneficial Reuse for seagrass habitat advice
Grant: Contract Research (Category 2: Other Public Sector)
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Ports Corporation Limited (GPCL)
Total Funding: $3,356.27
RMD Discharge Emergency Response Plan - Fish and Invertebrate Salvage and Sampling
Grant: Competitive Grant (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: Queensland Alumina Ltd
Total Funding: $17,662.00
Development of fish health indicators for the 2020 Gladstone Harbour Report Card
Grant: Contract Research (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership (Administered by FBA)
Total Funding: $63,450.00
Assessing the water quality impacts in ports of the Fitzroy Region
Grant: Contract Research (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: Fitzroy Basin Association
Total Funding: $14,725.40
Developing fish health indicators for the Gladstone Harbour Report Card
Grant: Non-Gov Tender (Category 3)
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership (Administered by FBA)
Total Funding: $63,211.56
Mud crab indicator for the 2019 Gladstone Harbour Report Card
Grant: Non-Gov Tender (Category 3)
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership (Administered by FBA)
Total Funding: N/A
Overcoming the seeds of doubt and growing community engagement for seagrass restoration
Grant: Competitive Grant (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership Citizen Science Program
Total Funding: $13,171.00
Seagrass Trace Metal Sampling Scope November 2018
Grant: Contract Research (Public)
Funding Schemes: PCIMP Contract Research
Total Funding: $20,420.00
Gender structure of mud crabs in an uncrabbed estuary in Central Queensland
Grant: Contract Research (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership (Administered by FBA)
Total Funding: $9,985.49
0S17304031 - Stormwater Litter Assessments of Goondoon/Lord Street Unit
Grant: Competitive Grant (Public)
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Ports Corporation Limited (GPCL)
Total Funding: $9,612.75
Developing mud crab indicators for the 2018 Gladstone Harbour Report Card - Project ISP015-2018
Grant: Competitive Grant (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership (Administered by FBA)
Total Funding: N/A
Developing mud crab indicators for the Gladstone Harbour Report Card
Grant: Competitive Grant (Category 3)
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Healthy Harbour Partnership (Administered by FBA)
Total Funding: N/A
Far field monitoring in Gladstone Harbour: analysis, reporting and advice on Port Curtis Integrated Monitoring Program (PCIMP)
Grant: Contract Research (Category 3)
Funding Schemes: PCIMP Contract Research
Total Funding: $34,645.10
Community Restoration of Seagrass Resilience in Port Curtis Bay
Grant: Competitive Grant (Not Specified )
Funding Schemes: Fitzroy Basin Association
Total Funding: N/A
Assessment of foreshore nourishment and/or mitigation projects on seagrass ecosystem response (GCWA SRMP-004)
Grant: Contract Research (Not Specified )
Funding Schemes: Griffith University - Sub-Contract
Total Funding: $4,000.00
Provision of Mangroves Survey Services CA14000202
Grant: Contract Research (Not Specified )
Funding Schemes: Gladstone Ports Corporation
Total Funding: $106,384.20
Community seagrass restoration and education in a disturbed subtropical environment
Grant: Competitive Grant (Not Specified )
Funding Schemes: Ian Potter Foundation
Total Funding: $20,000.00
Port Water Quality Improvement Program and Support Work to C20 - WQIP.06
Grant: Contract Research (Category 3)
Funding Schemes: Fitzroy Basin Association
Total Funding: N/A
New Staff Research Grant - Examining sedimentation rates as a limiting factor for successful seagrass transplantation
Grant: Competitive Grant (Not Specified )
Funding Schemes: New Staff Research Grants 2014
Total Funding: N/A
Endogenic and exogenic drivers of seagrass landscape persistence DP140103048
Grant: Competitive Grant (ACGR)
Funding Schemes: ARC Discovery Projects, for funding commencing in 2014
Total Funding: N/A
Who's next? Predicting marine invasions so we don't get fooled again DP140103252
Grant: Competitive Grant (ACGR)
Funding Schemes: ARC Discovery Projects, for funding commencing in 2014
Total Funding: N/A
Restoring Queensland' seagrass meadows
Grant: Competitive Grant (Not Specified )
Funding Schemes: Research Advancement Award Scheme
Total Funding: $300,000.00
Research Supervision
Accreditation
I am currently accredited for supervision in the following:
- 3103 Ecology
- 4102 Ecological Applications
- 4104 Environmental management
- 4199 Other Environmental Sciences
Current Capacity
Current Supervision
Research Interests
Ecology - Marine and Estuarine Ecology (incl. Marine Ichthyology)
Plant Biology - Plant Developmental and Reproductive Biology
Ecological Applications - Ecological Impacts of Climate Change
Ecological Applications - Ecosystem Function
Ecological Applications - Landscape Ecology
Environmental management - Environmental rehabilitation and restoration
