Melinda Coleman

Biography

Melinda is a Principal Research Scientist with Regional NSW, Department of Primary Industries, whose research is transforming management and protection of kelp forests. Kelp forests support immense biodiversity, sequester carbon and underpin fisheries yet are declining globally, including in NSW. Through the development of innovative science-based restoration technologies, Melinda’s research is reversing loss of kelp forests and protecting the vast economic, social and ecological values derived from the NSW Marine Estate. Importantly, Melinda’s research has real-world impact. In a global first, Melinda and her colleagues successfully restored lost underwater forests to the Sydney coast, winning a “green globe” award for environmental protection and saving NSW an estimated $1M per km of coastline restored per/year.

Research

As part of a global research team, Melinda pioneered a new restoration technology (“green gravel”) which overcomes extant challenges in underwater restoration. Critically, Melinda’s research is paving the way for proactive “future-proof” management that allows restoration to match natural adaptive responses of kelp to future climatic conditions, placing NSW at the forefront of environmental management. Melinda was over 100 publications in top journals and has secured more than $8M in external funding including 12 ARC grants. Her position as a global leader in kelp forest conservation is highlighted through long-standing editorial positions with leading journals and regular keynotes and plenaries at major international conferences.

Supervision

She mentors the next generation of scientists through supervision of 7 PhD students and 2 postdoctoral scientists.