JCU > Research Portfolio > Dr Victoria Graham

About

Tori is a conservation scientist and Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Cairns Institute. Tori's work is broadly aimed at understanding how to improve management of natural resources by considering environmental, social and economic objectives.

Currently, Tori is involved in several projects working on the Great Barrier Reef, including the Stakeholder and Traditional Owner Engagement Subprogram of the Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program (RRAP), the Crown of Thorns Control Innovation Program and the Reef 2050 Integrated Monitoring and Reporting Program. She also works with Macquarie University and the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association on marine conservation planning. She is a serving member of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas.

Tori completed an MPhil at James Cook University in 2017 and a PhD at Macquarie University in 2021 evaluating the effectiveness of protected areas for conserving nature. During this time, Tori worked in the Biodiversity Node of the NSW Climate Adaptation Research Hub. She has worked in Southeast Asia, tropical Australia, NSW, PNG and Vanuatu.

Tori has a background in conservation science and economics and adopts a cross-disciplinary approach in her research, collaborating with government decision-makers, practitioners and communities to ensure her research can be applied.

Interests

Research

Evaluating the effectiveness of protected areas for conserving nature
Evidence-based conservation, impact evaluation
Cost-effectiveness of conservation and climate mitigation and adaptation strategies
Mapping priority areas for protecting nature under future climate scenarios

Experience

2019 to 2021 - GIS Teaching Support, Macquarie University (Sydney)
2016 to 2020 - Executive Officer, Biodiversity Node of the NSW Climate Adaptation Research Hub, Macquarie University (Sydney)

Research Disciplines

Socio-Economic Objectives

Honours

Awards

2018 - Professional Staff Excellence Award, Macquarie University
2017 - Business Higher Education Round Table (BHERT), Award for Outstanding Collaboration for National Benefit (Non-Economic) (2017)
2017 - Faculty of Science and Engineering Award for Excellence in Research, Macquarie University

Publications

These are the most recent publications associated with this author. To see a detailed profile of all publications stored at JCU, visit ResearchOnline@JCU. Hover over Altmetrics badges to see social impact.

Journal Articles

Adams V, Visconti P, Graham V and Possingham H (2021) Indicators keep progress honest: a call to track both the quantity and quality of protected areas. One Earth, 4 (7). pp. 901-906
Graham V, Geldmann J, Adams V, Negret P, Sinovas P and Chang H (2021) Southeast Asian protected areas are effective in conserving forest cover and forest carbon stocks compared to unprotected areas. Scientific Reports, 11. pp. 23760 -23760
Graham V, Auld T, Beaumont L, Bell L, Dunford S, Gallagher R, Hancock N, Leishman M, Mitchell P, Staas L and Hughes L (2021) Embedding biodiversity research into climate adaptation policy and practice. Global Change Biology, 27 (19). pp. 4935-4945
Graham V, Geldmann J, Adams V, Grech A, Deinet S and Chang H (2021) Management resourcing and government transparency are key drivers of biodiversity outcomes in Southeast Asian protected areas. Biological Conservation, 253.
Graham V, Baumgartner J, Beaumont L, Esperon-Rodriguez M and Grech A (2019) Prioritizing the protection of climate refugia: designing a climate-ready protected area network. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 62 (14). pp. 2588-2606
Graham V, Laurance S, Grech A and Venter O (2017) Spatially explicit estimates of forest carbon emissions, mitigation costs and REDD+ opportunities in Indonesia. Environmental Research Letters, 12. pp. 1-11
Graham V, Laurance S, Grech A, McGregor A and Venter O (2016) A comparative assessment of the financial costs and carbon benefits of REDD+ strategies in Southeast Asia. Environmental Research Letters, 11 (11). pp. 1-11

Other research outputs

Graham V, Nurhidayah L and Astuti R (2020) Reducing emissions from tropical deforestation and forest degradation. In: Encyclopedia of the World's Biomes. Elsevier, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, pp. 260-268

Current Funding

Current and recent Research Funding to JCU is shown by funding source and project.

Great Barrier Reef Foundation - Crown-of-Thorns Control Innovation Program (CCIP)

Stakeholder perceptions and co-benefits

Indicative Funding: $144,000 over 3 years
Summary: This project will provide the first empirical examination of GBR stakeholder perspectives related to COTS and their management. It will leverage sociocultural research planned as part of RRAP, extending those stakeholder engagements and interviews to measure perceptions of acceptability, risks and benefits related to COTS control. It will also assess the regulatory and policy implications of selected novel control methods.
Investigators: Stewart Lockie, Victoria Graham, Gillian Paxton and Pedro Fidelman (Cairns Institute and The University of Queensland)
Keywords: crown of thorns

Great Barrier Reef Foundation - Crown-of-Thorns Control Innovation Program (CCIP)

Stakeholder perceptions of COTS management, socio-economic risks, opportunities and co-benefits

Indicative Funding: $488,144 over 3 years
Summary: The overarching aim of this project is to support the development and deployment of COTS management options that are perceived by the public and stakeholders as socially responsible and acceptable. Project objectives address public and stakeholder perceptions of COTS and COTS management, the distribution of social, economic and cultural opportunities and risks associated with COTS control, and the regulatory and policy implications of a limited number of novel control strategies including the use of semiochemical attractants. This research will be the first empirical examination of GBR stakeholder perspectives related to the species crown of thorns starfish.
Investigators: Stewart Lockie, Victoria Graham, Gillian Paxton and Pedro Fidelman (Cairns Institute and The University of Queensland)
Keywords: crown of thorns

Great Barrier Reef Foundation - Reef Trust Partnership

Sustainable usE And Benefits fOR marinE (SEABORNE)

Indicative Funding: $144,253 over 3 years (administered by CSIRO)
Summary: There exists a large amount of data on Great Barrier Reef use and users and the values and benefits derived. Yet despite the volume of information on current data, it tends to be dispersed and not always in the best form to inform GBRMPAs key questions around management decisions or to enable a complete understanding of progress towards Reef 2050 targets over time. Through co-design with the Great Barrier Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA), the collaborative CSIRO, JCU and CQU team will: analyse the extent and quality of existing data to understand users, their uses and sustainable benefit through time; identify key gaps in data; prioritise data gaps that need addressing; and design and test a monitoring program to continue and improve the supply of critical data into the future.
Investigators: Maxine Newlands, Diane Jarvis, Victoria Graham, Anthea Coogan, Petina Pert and Jeremy De Valck (Cairns Institute, College of Business, Law & Governance, Commonwealth Scientific & Industrial Research Organisation and Central Queensland University)
Keywords: Barrier Reef; Spatial; Benefits; Monitoring; Sustainable; Values

Collaboration

The map shows research collaborations by institution from the past 7 years.
Note: Map points are indicative of the countries or states that institutions are associated with.