Dr Michelle Ward, Lecturer at Griffith University, is confronting the urgent global biodiversity crisis. Earth is undergoing a mass extinction event, with species disappearing at rates up to 1,000 times higher than historical averages. Australia is a global hotspot, home to unique species but also one of the highest recent extinction rates, with over 2,000 species formally listed as threatened.
Dr Ward’s research focuses on three interconnected themes: understanding the state of nature and the drivers of species decline, developing practical conservation solutions, and assessing the costs and resources needed for effective action. She creates datasets and metrics to measure how human activities affect biodiversity and ecosystem services, such as clean water, pollination, and air quality.
Her work also applies decision-support tools like mathematical optimisation, co-designed with government, NGOs, and industry, to ensure conservation strategies are practical and effective. By coupling this with robust economic analyses, she provides critical insights to guide conservation investment and policy. Currently, Dr Ward is advancing new frameworks and monitoring tools to assess global “nature positive” progress—helping ensure commitments to halt and reverse biodiversity loss are met.