Centre Management

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Centre Management

University of Tasmania, Glacier researcher Professor Matt King.
Wed 11th Feb 2015
picture by Peter Mathew

Matt King
Centre Director

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Current ACEAS Activities:

As Centre Director of ACEAS, Matt will lead the delivery of the research programs, strategy, governance, and operations for the Centre.

Under Matt's direction ACEAS will take five strategic approaches by:

Undertaking world-class integrated research;
Maximising strong national and international partnerships;
Employing a diverse workforce;
Leveraging and creating national research infrastructure; and
Creating pathways to local, regional, and circumpolar impact.

More about Matt

Biography

After completing my PhD at the University of Tasmania in geodesy I worked within one of Europe’s leading geodesy groups at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne from 2002-2012. During that time I progressed from Junior Research Associate to Full Professor while working on problems within academia and industry. In late 2012 I returned to the University of Tasmania as Professor of Polar Geodesy and as Australian Research Council Future Fellow.

Since completing that fellowship I have served as Head of Discipline and then Acting Head of School of Geography, Planning, and Spatial Sciences, and now Director of ACEAS.

During my career I have been able to work with outstanding colleagues from across geodesy, glaciology, solid Earth sciences, oceanography and many other fields. I have received a number of prestigious prizes and fellowship, including from the Royal Society London and the Australian Academy of Sciences.

I serve on the Scientific Advisory Committee for the EU Horizon 2020 Protect SLR program, and am the Australian Delegate to the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG).

Scientific Committee Memberships

National Committee for Antarctic Research, Australian Academy of Science

National delegate, International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics

External expert advisory board for the EU Horizon 2020 ProtectSLR program

Awards / Grants

Royal Society of London Kavli Medal and Lecture

Australian Academy of Sciences Mawson Medal and Lecture

Royal Society of Tasmania Max Banks Medal

Phillip Leverhulme Prize

American Geophysical Union Geodesy Section Prize

Selected Publications

King MA, Watson CS, White D, 'GPS rates of vertical bedrock motion suggest late Holocene ice-sheet readvance in a critical sector of East Antarctica', Geophysical Research Letters Article e2021GL097232. ISSN 0094-8276 (2022)
DOI: 10.1029/2021GL097232

Samrat NH, King MA, Watson C, Hooper A, Chen X, et al., 'Reduced ice mass loss and three-dimensional viscoelastic deformation in northern Antarctic Peninsula inferred from GPS', Geophysical Journal International, 222, (2) pp. 1013-1023. ISSN 0956-540X (2020)
DOI: 10.1093/gji/ggaa229

Whitehouse PL, Gomez N, King MA, Wiens DA, 'Solid Earth change and the evolution of the Antarctic Ice Sheet', Nature Communications, 10 Article 503. ISSN 2041-1723 (2019)
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-08068-y

King MA, Bingham RJ, Moore P, Whitehouse PL, Bentley MJ, et al., 'Lower satellite-gravimetry estimates of Antarctic sea-level contribution', Nature, 491, (7425) pp. 586-590. ISSN 0028-0836 (2012) DOI: 10.1038/nature11621

Shepherd A, Ivins ER, Geruo A, Barletta VR, Bentley MJ, et al., 'A reconciled estimate of ice-sheet mass balance', Science, 338, (6111) pp. 1183-1189. ISSN 0036-8075 (2012)
DOI: 10.1126/science.1228102

Associated links

UTAS Profile

Carl Bennett
Business Manager

E: carl.bennett@utas.edu.au

Current ACEAS Activities:

Carl supports the Director and Research Program Leaders to manage ACEAS and position the centre to achieve its strategic objectives.

He provides:

Executive business management, policy assistance and advice;
Management of the Centre’s budget;
Reporting on the Centre’s activities and compliance with contractual arrangements;
Assistance on developing project governance and monitoring arrangements with all project collaborators, the Advisory Board and the Australian Research Council;
Coordination of the activities of the Centre, including its strategic plans and business plans;

Engagement with stakeholders and end-users in government and industry.

More about Carl

Biography

Carl has a BSc in Physics, and has applied his technical interests to systems thinking and sustainability.

He has worked in the NGO sector with The Wilderness Society and Sustainable Living Tasmania, gaining experience in operations and project management.

He has served at the University of Tasmania since 2015, holding senior roles in IT, technical project management and general management of four schools in the College of Sciences and Engineering: Architecture & Design, Engineering, Geography Planning & Spatial Sciences, ICT.

In his spare time, Carl enjoys bushwalking and cycle touring.

Ocean-pic_Photo-by-Ines-Alvarez-Fdez-on-Unsplash-copy-1

Catalina Aguilar
Centre Project Officer

E: ACEAS.project.office@utas.edu.au

Current ACEAS Activities:

The role of ACEAS Centre Project Officer includes:

Coordination of day-to-day administration needs of ACEAS including finance, record management and human resources.
Project administration support to the Director and Chief Operating Officer
Project coordination support for ACEAS research staff and students
Centre liaison for internal and external stakeholders
Coordinate the preparation of formal reports on research delivery against Key Performance Indicators
Secretary to the Management Committee

Melissa Lyne
Communications Officer

E: melissa.lyne@utas.edu.au

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Current ACEAS Activities:

Melissa is the Communications Officer at the Australian Centre for Excellence in Antarctic Science. She coordinates the Centre’s communication activities, which includes promoting new research to the media and other key audiences.

Patti Virtue
Antarctic Graduate Training Coordinator

E: p.virtue@utas.edu.au

Current ACEAS Activities:

Patti is the graduate training coordinator at the Australian Centre for Excellence in Antarctic Science. Her role includes developing and overseeing the implementation of the centre's training for early career researchers in Antarctic Science, Policy, Governance and Law.

More about Patti

Biography

Dr Patti Virtue works collaboratively across disciplines, contributing to research covering aspects of biological oceanography, sea ice ecology and zooplankton (krill) research. She has a special interest in marine oils and the use of signature lipids and fatty acid markers in marine ecosystems. Her research, together with her students, contributes to the understanding of the role of krill in the Southern Ocean ecosystem and the likely impacts of climate change to krill. She led the development of the International Antarctic Institute. She developed and coordinated the Master of Marine and Antarctic Science program and IMAS. Patti has been very fortunate to have undertaken numerous Antarctic science expeditions both at sea and on station undertaking research on national and international programs over an extended period.

Patti completed her undergraduate studies in biological oceanography at UVic on Vancouver Island, and then worked as a high school science teacher at Nisga’a (bicultural/bilingual) First Nation Elementary/Secondary School, Gitlaxt'aamix, BC, Canada. She returned to Tasmania to undertake a PhD at the University of Tasmania before joining CSIRO Division of Oceanography as a research scientist. Patti went on to undertake a postdoctoral fellowship at the Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris VI, Observatoire Océanologique, Villefranche sur mer, France. She returned to UTAS as an ARC postdoctoral fellow and is now an Associate Professor at IMAS. She is currently the graduate research training coordinator for the Australian Centre for Excellence in Antarctic Science.

Scientific Committee Memberships

Past president of the Australian Marine Science Association (AMSA) (TAS Branch)
National AMSA Councilor
Chair AMSA National Conference

Member of the University of Tasmania’s Academic Senate

Advisory committee for APECS- Association of Polar Early Career Scientists

Awards / Grants

Patti was awarded the Australian Antarctic Medal in 2021 by the Governor-General of Australia for her outstanding contribution and efforts in mentoring and teaching the next generation of Antarctic ecologists, and her contribution to the understanding of the role of krill in the Southern Ocean ecosystem and the likely impacts of climate change to krill.

Patti was awarded an Honorary Doctorate (2015) University of Magallanes, Chile, in recognition of leadership and commitment to international Antarctic education and research.

Patti received the Vice Chancellor’s Award for outstanding contribution to the University of
Tasmania for establishing the International Antarctic Institute and UNESCO-Cousteau Unitwin
Chair in Antarctic and Southern Ocean Environmental Sciences (a United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization- university twinning and networking scheme).

Pratiksha Bhatt
Project Officer - University of New South Wales

E: pratiksha.bhatt@unsw.edu.au

Current ACEAS Activities:

Pratiksha manages the UNSW node of ACEAS. She supports the research staff and students with everyday administration and provides operational management for the centre.

More about Pratiksha

Biography

Pratiksha moved to Australia in 2016 and has been working in administration and project coordination since then. She has a master’s degree in Clinical Dietetics and has worked extensively in public health research in India. Pratiksha has always been interested in sustainable practices and conservation science. She joined ACEAS in February 2022 and is looking forward to learning more about Antarctic sciences.