Crystal is a PhD student in the Fenner School of Environment & Society and a Sir Roland Wilson Scholarship awardee. She is researching critical natural capital dependency in Australia and options for protection in law and policy.

Crystal is an experienced senior policy advisor and program leader with over 20 years of experience in the Australian Government social services and environment portfolios. She holds qualifications in environmental science and law and is a certified change management practitioner.

For over 15 years Crystal has led various domestic and international environment policy programs such as chemical policy, biodiversity policy and natural capital accounting policy. In partnership with the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Crystal recently led development of Australia’s first national ocean ecosystem account and co-chaired the United Nations working group advancing global ocean accounting standards.

Crystal volunteers in the CSIRO STEM Professionals in Schools program and as a member of the Global Ocean Accounts Partnership Panel of Technical Experts.

Crystal’s PhD research explores what is ‘critical natural capital’ in Australia’s environmental and socio-economic context, the way Australia’s essential economic products and services depend on nature, and options for protecting critical natural capital in law and policy. She is particularly interested in how critical natural capital dependency can be reflected in Australia’s system of national accounts. Crystal’s research aims to support governments to understand and address natural capital dependency risk.