Hugh Possingham
Encyclopedia
Hugh Phillip Possingham, FAA (born 21 July 1962, in Adelaide, Australia), is an ARC Federation Fellow
in the Department of Mathematics, and the School of Integrative Biology at the University of Queensland
. He is best known for his work in Conservation Biology
, and is currently Director of the Applied Environmental Decision Analysis facility.
, finished an Honours degree in Applied Mathematics
at the University of Adelaide
in 1984. He secured a Rhodes Scholarship to St John's College
at Oxford University in 1984. He completed his D.Phil. under Michael Bulmer in 1987, focusing on optimal foraging theory
.
His first postdoctoral research position was at Stanford University
, under Joan Roughgarden
, where he worked on biophysical models of intertidal communities. He then returned to Australia on a QEII Fellowship at the Australian National University
. His work there made particular contributions to the field of population viability analysis
. In 1991 Possingham took a staff position at the University of Adelaide
, in the Department of Mathematics. In 1995 he was appointed Foundation Chair and Professor of the Department of Environmental Science at the Roseworthy campus of The University of Adelaide.
In July 2000 Possingham moved to the University of Queensland
, in Brisbane
, where he took up a joint Professorship in the Department of Zoology & Entomology, and the Department of Mathematics. In February 2001 The Ecology Centre was established with Possingham as Director. His 2001 ARC Professorial Research Fellowship was followed in 2006 by an ARC Federation Fellowship
. He was elected to the Australian Academy of Science
in 2005. He was a Federation Fellow of the Australian Research Council
from 2003 to 2007.
During his career, Possingham has published over 100 peer-reviewed papers. He co-developed the MARXAN
software for systematic conservation planning, which is used by over 2000 conservationists in more than 100 countries.
He also has a high popular profile. In 2009 he proposed devoting a proportionate fraction of gambling revenues to saving an endangered species, to be selected by a random drawing shown on television before the Melbourne Cup
.
Federation Fellowship
Federation Fellowships are Australian professorial research fellowships that were instigated by the Australian Government as part of their Backing Australia's Ability initiative. They were initially designed to compete with prestigious overseas grants in an attempt to lure back high profile...
in the Department of Mathematics, and the School of Integrative Biology at the University of Queensland
University of Queensland
The University of Queensland, also known as UQ, is a public university located in state of Queensland, Australia. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest and largest university in Queensland and the fifth oldest in the nation...
. He is best known for his work in Conservation Biology
Conservation biology
Conservation biology is the scientific study of the nature and status of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction...
, and is currently Director of the Applied Environmental Decision Analysis facility.
Academic career
Possingham, an alumnus of St Peter's College, AdelaideSt Peter's College, Adelaide
St Peter's College, , is an independent boy's school in the South Australian capital of Adelaide...
, finished an Honours degree in Applied Mathematics
Applied mathematics
Applied mathematics is a branch of mathematics that concerns itself with mathematical methods that are typically used in science, engineering, business, and industry. Thus, "applied mathematics" is a mathematical science with specialized knowledge...
at the University of Adelaide
University of Adelaide
The University of Adelaide is a public university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third oldest university in Australia...
in 1984. He secured a Rhodes Scholarship to St John's College
St John's College, Oxford
__FORCETOC__St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, one of the larger Oxford colleges with approximately 390 undergraduates, 200 postgraduates and over 100 academic staff. It was founded by Sir Thomas White, a merchant, in 1555, whose heart is buried in the chapel of...
at Oxford University in 1984. He completed his D.Phil. under Michael Bulmer in 1987, focusing on optimal foraging theory
Optimal foraging theory
Optimal foraging theory is an idea in ecology based on the study of foraging behaviour and states that organisms forage in such a way as to maximize their net energy intake per unit time. In other words, they behave in such a way as to find, capture and consume food containing the most calories...
.
His first postdoctoral research position was at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, under Joan Roughgarden
Joan Roughgarden
Joan E. Roughgarden is an American evolutionary biologist.- Biography :...
, where he worked on biophysical models of intertidal communities. He then returned to Australia on a QEII Fellowship at the Australian National University
Australian National University
The Australian National University is a teaching and research university located in the Australian capital, Canberra.As of 2009, the ANU employs 3,945 administrative staff who teach approximately 10,000 undergraduates, and 7,500 postgraduate students...
. His work there made particular contributions to the field of population viability analysis
Population viability analysis
Population viability analysis is a species-specific method of risk assessment frequently used in conservation biology.It is traditionally defined as the process that determines the probability that a population will go extinct within a given number of years.More recently, PVA has been described...
. In 1991 Possingham took a staff position at the University of Adelaide
University of Adelaide
The University of Adelaide is a public university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third oldest university in Australia...
, in the Department of Mathematics. In 1995 he was appointed Foundation Chair and Professor of the Department of Environmental Science at the Roseworthy campus of The University of Adelaide.
In July 2000 Possingham moved to the University of Queensland
University of Queensland
The University of Queensland, also known as UQ, is a public university located in state of Queensland, Australia. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest and largest university in Queensland and the fifth oldest in the nation...
, in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, where he took up a joint Professorship in the Department of Zoology & Entomology, and the Department of Mathematics. In February 2001 The Ecology Centre was established with Possingham as Director. His 2001 ARC Professorial Research Fellowship was followed in 2006 by an ARC Federation Fellowship
Federation Fellowship
Federation Fellowships are Australian professorial research fellowships that were instigated by the Australian Government as part of their Backing Australia's Ability initiative. They were initially designed to compete with prestigious overseas grants in an attempt to lure back high profile...
. He was elected to the Australian Academy of Science
Australian Academy of Science
The Australian Academy of Science was founded in 1954 by a group of distinguished Australians, including Australian Fellows of the Royal Society of London. The first president was Sir Mark Oliphant. The Academy is modelled after the Royal Society and operates under a Royal Charter; as such it is...
in 2005. He was a Federation Fellow of the Australian Research Council
Australian Research Council
The Australian Research Council is the Australian Government’s main agency for allocating research funding to academics and researchers in Australian universities. Its mission is to advance Australia’s capacity to undertake research that brings economic, social and cultural benefit to the...
from 2003 to 2007.
During his career, Possingham has published over 100 peer-reviewed papers. He co-developed the MARXAN
Marxan
MARXAN is software designed to aid systematic reserve design on conservation planning. With the use of stochastic optimisation routines it generates spatial reserve systems that achieve particular biodiversity representation goals with reasonable optimality.Computationally, MARXAN provides...
software for systematic conservation planning, which is used by over 2000 conservationists in more than 100 countries.
Public Roles
Possingham serves on a large number of committees, for both state and federal governments, as well as non-governmental agencies. Among others, he has been involved in:- The Wentworth Group of Concerned ScientistsWentworth Group of Concerned ScientistsThe Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists is a group of Australian scientists concerned with the environment, that in November 2002 released a statement, Blueprint for a Living Continent...
,
- The Australian Federal Government Biological Diversity Advisory Committee (Chair),
- The Ministerial Advisory Committee on Biodiversity Hotspots (Chair),
- The Birds AustraliaRoyal Australasian Ornithologists UnionThe Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union, also known as Birds Australia, was founded in 1901 to promote the study and conservation of the native bird species of Australia and adjacent regions. This makes it Australia's oldest national birding association. It is also Australia's largest...
Conservation Committee (Chair),
- The Koala Task Force (Chair).
He also has a high popular profile. In 2009 he proposed devoting a proportionate fraction of gambling revenues to saving an endangered species, to be selected by a random drawing shown on television before the Melbourne Cup
Melbourne Cup
The Melbourne Cup is Australia's major Thoroughbred horse race. Marketed as "the race that stops a nation", it is a 3,200 metre race for three-year-olds and over. It is the richest "two-mile" handicap in the world, and one of the richest turf races...
.
Awards
- POL Eureka Prize for Environmental Research (for collaborative work with David Lindenmayer on mathematical modeling of extinction rates) - 1999
- Inaugural Fenner medal for plant and animal biology from the Australian Academy of Sciences - 2000
- Australian Mathematical SocietyAustralian Mathematical SocietyThe Australian Mathematical Society was founded in 1956 and is the national society of the mathematics profession in Australia. One of the Society's listed purposes is to promote the cause of mathematics in the community by representing the interests of the profession to government. The Society...
Medal - 2001
- General Systems medal from MSSANZ - 2003
- ARC Professorial Fellowship 2003
- UQ Higher Degree Supervision Excellence Award 2005
- ARC Federation Fellowship 2006
- Fellow of the Australian Academy of ScienceAustralian Academy of ScienceThe Australian Academy of Science was founded in 1954 by a group of distinguished Australians, including Australian Fellows of the Royal Society of London. The first president was Sir Mark Oliphant. The Academy is modelled after the Royal Society and operates under a Royal Charter; as such it is...
2005
External links
- Curriculum Vitae at University of QueenslandUniversity of QueenslandThe University of Queensland, also known as UQ, is a public university located in state of Queensland, Australia. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest and largest university in Queensland and the fifth oldest in the nation...
, January 2009 (pdf)
Selected bibliography
- Biodiversity – turning up the heat on hotspots. Possingham, H. P. and K. A. Wilson, Nature (2005) 436:919-920.
- Ecology – Are US coral reefs on the slippery slope to slime? Pandolfi J. M., J. B. C. Jackson, N. Baron, R. H. Bradbury, H. M. Guzman, T. P Hughes, C. V. Kappel, F. Micheli, J. C. Ogden, H.P. Possingham and E. Sala. Science (2005) 301:1725-1726.
- A stochastic metapopulation model with variability in patch size and position Day, J. R. and Possingham, H. P., Theoretical Population Biology (1995) 48:333-360
- Recruitment dynamics in complex life cycles. Roughgarden, J., Gaines, S.D. and Possingham, H.P., Science (1988) 241:1460-1466.