A group of researchers look up from the forest floor in Victoria.

Forests & fire

Forests provide ecosystem services that are critical to humans and the sustainability of our environment. Our research focuses on management of critically important native forests and woodlands, including forest ecology, landscape restoration, wildlife conservation, ecologically sustainable forestry, and the effects of fire and climate.

About

Forests provide ecosystem services that are critical to humans and the sustainability of our environment. Our research focuses on management of critically important native forests and woodlands, including forest ecology, landscape restoration, wildlife conservation, ecologically sustainable forestry, and the effects of fire and climate.

Projects

Researchers at the Fenner School have been working in the Tumut and nearby Nanangroe regions west of Canberra for 25 year. The work is exploring the impacts on biodiversity of plantation establishment on semi-cleared farmland.

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Open for Bachelor, Honours, Masters, PhD students

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News

As fires burn out of control in Australia, scientists warn the damage will have severe knock-on effects for the environment.

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Wollemi pine trees were discovered in 1994 in the Blue Mountains.

The original wild specimens of the ancient Wollemi pine tree are safe for now as fires which have burnt more than 220,000 hectares continue throughout the Blue Mountains region of New South Wales. Yet their exact location remains secret. Associate Professor Cris Brack explained why to the ABC.

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A hazard reduction burn at Majura earlier this year.

What's the difference between back-burning and hazard reduction burning? And is it the solution to reducing bushfires? Professor Phil Gibbons explains the science and explores the limitations of hazard-reduction burning in the Canberra Times.

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A Koala in a burnt landscape

More than 2 million hectares of mainly forested lands have been burnt along Australia's eastern seaboard in recent months – and the fires are still burning. Scientists are now beginning to assess the toll of the blazes on wildlife, particularly already endangered koala populations.

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Trees die, it's a sad fact of life. But how we manage their waste afterwards is a cause of concern. In this article, Fenner's Cris Brack argues that cities can do much better to honour the life of a tree and use its materials wisely, rather than just woodchipping it.

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Fenner School's Dr Joëlle Gergis told the New York Times that in dismissing the role of climate change in the fires, the government was choosing immediate disaster response over long-term needs.

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