Andrew joined CQUniversity in 2013 as a senior lecturer specializing in marine and environmental ecology, evolution, experimental design, and statistical analysis. He is a founding developer and member of the Coastal Marine Ecosystems Research Centre - a world-class research unit that prides itself on cross-disciplinary engagement to deliver innovative and sustainable research outcomes for coastal communities.

Andrew's research interests primarily focus on the ecology of marine habitats, particularly marine plants such as seagrass meadows, salt marshes, and kelp forests. How such habitats are maintained, how humans disrupt them, how they might recover naturally, and what humans can do to facilitate their recovery (e.g. restoration) are all central themes to his research.

In addition to research, Andrew coordinates and delivers a full-time teaching load covering topics in environmental sciences, foundational biology, coastal resources management, experimental design and analysis, and scientific philosophy.

Andrew's previous positions include lectureships at the University of Adelaide, Brown University (USA), as well as government research roles (SARDI Aquatic Sciences, Adelaide) and several post-doc adventures in the United States, Europe, and South America. He is strongly driven by natural history, preferring his observations of the natural world to stimulate his curiosity and interest, and letting the data acquired tell him how natural world works (instead of prescribing some theory of how the world should work!).


Individuals interested in volunteering their time to help current marine research projects can contact either Andrew (a.irving@cqu.edu.au) or Emma Jackson (emma.jackson@cqu.edu.au). Our philosophy is to try and attach volunteers to specific projects so they can learn more than they might if jumping from project to project. Also, we hope it instills some sense of collaboration for those giving up their valuable time.


Students interested in Summer Scholarships, Honours, Masters, and PhD opportunities should contact Andrew in the first instance (a.irving@cqu.edu.au) to identify common interests and potential projects and supervisors within the cluster. There are currently a broad range of potential research projects available, often focused on the Central Queensland region, but also in other states through collaborative networks.