Better Data to Analyse and Protect Queensland’s Biodiversity

As a recipient of an Advance Queensland Industry Research Foundations grant, the QCIF Data Science team will create an innovative ecological data service that simplifies data management, species distribution modelling, and statistical analysis for the Queensland's State of Environment Report.

Utilising EcoCommons Australia technology and expertise, the project “Ecological data service for state of environment reporting in Queensland” aims to revolutionise environmental reporting by improving efficiency, transparency, and repeatability, which will result in better outcomes for Queensland's biodiversity.

"This new opportunity, supported by Advance Queensland, will assist QCIF and EcoCommons Australia in achieving their goals of increasing technology uptake for government and Commonwealth-level environmental reporting,"  said Dr Sebastian Lopez-Marcano, Principal Data Scientist at QCIF.

A key objective of the grant is to help Queensland businesses advance innovative products and services towards commercialisation by harnessing the skills and expertise of PhD-level graduates.

QCIF and its member, Griffith University, collaborated to identify a suitable candidate and welcomed Dr Ryan Newis, a recent PhD graduate with extensive experience in statistics, biology, and research.

Professor Rebecca Ford, Dean, Griffith Graduate Research School said, “Griffith is extremely pleased to collaborate with QCIF through this internship. This is an excellent opportunity for Ryan to move into a career post-graduation, and we look forward to collaboratively mentoring him in this new role.”

Dr Newis will play a vital role in ensuring the project’s success, applying his knowledge and expertise to strengthen Queensland’s environmental data structure.

To find out more about the project, contact Dr Newis and Dr Lopez-Marcano from the QCIF Data Science team.

EcoCommons is led by QCIF in partnership with the ARDC, University of Melbourne Centre of Excellence for Biosecurity Risk Analysis (CEBRA), Atlas of Living Australia, TERN, CSIRO, Macquarie University and UNSW.

EcoCommons received co-investment (doi.org/10.3565/chbq-mr75) from the ARDC. The ARDC is enabled by the Australian Government’s National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS).