Dr Jennie Mallela is an Honorary Senior Lecturer at the Research School of Biology and a Researcher within the ANU Institute for Climate Energy and Disaster Solutions.
Jennie is an award-winning, environmental bio-geo scientist and coastal expert. She conducts research that addresses real-world problems focusing on pollution and climate change. Her career journey has taken her from exploring the marine biodiversity of Second World War shipwrecks to researching climate change and pollution impacts on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.
Jennie completed her PhD at Manchester Metropolitan University, UK assessing the impacts of catchment pollution on Caribbean coral reefs. She has held postdoctoral positions at ANU and the University of the West Indies. She recently completed an Australian Research Council research fellowship (DECRA) where she assessed the impacts of climate change, agricultural runoff (e.g. fertiliser and soil erosion) and mining impacts on coral reefs. She is also a highly qualified commercial and scientific SCUBA-diver. This enables her to conduct underwater research on coral reefs around the world. Jennie also acts as a scientific diving consultant and advises international scientists on diving related research.
Jennie is a keen advocate for science. She has co-authored 39 research outputs with 129 international co-authors and her research has been cited more than 1,000 times. She is regularly invited to join international teams of researchers as their scientific diving expert. Her 2017 popular online video on the causes of coral reef bleaching in 2016, released by her university, received more than 100,000 views in the first 10 days. Jennie believes science should be accessible to everyone.
Jennie was nominated as a Superstar of STEM by Science and Technology Australia and is available to give talks and interviews.