The Great Barrier Reef is under threat, but UTS PhD students are playing a key role in its recovery by working with scientists, reef operators, Traditional Owners and local communities to protect one of the world's most iconic ecosystems.
Spanning more than 2300 kilometres along Australia's northeast coast, the Great Barrier Reef is one of the world's most diverse ecosystems. But it faces mounting threats from climate change, marine heatwaves, pollution and overfishing. Protecting it for future generations demands innovation, collaboration and on-the-ground action.
PhD candidates Kathryn Cobleigh and Hadley England at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) are part of these efforts. They are taking their research beyond the lab and into the field, contributing directly to reef restoration through initiatives such as the Coral Nurture Program.
The Coral Nurture Program
The Coral Nurture Program is a collaborative reef restoration initiative co-led by UTS researchers, including marine biologist Dr Emma Camp, and long-standing tourism operator Wavelength Reef Cruises. By embedding coral restoration into daily tourism activities, the program creates a unique platform for applied, science-based conservation.
Tour operators in Cairns, Port Douglas and the Whitsundays grow and plant corals on the Great Barrier Reef as part of their regular operations, using research-backed techniques to help damaged sites recover.
For PhD students, the program offers a rare opportunity to bridge academic research with practical conservation. They trial and refine restoration methods in real reef environments, collaborate with scientists, reef managers, tourism operators, government agencies and Traditional Owners, and see the tangible impact of their work.
Since launching in 2018, the program has:
- Planted over 125,000 corals across 30 reef sites
- Established 124 coral nursery platforms
- Grown more than 2200 nursery corals across 37 coral species
- Involved 1840 hours of planting work by staff and volunteers
For Kathryn, joining the program was a natural step in her long-held dream of becoming a marine biologist on the Great Barrier Reef. She had previously led coral restoration efforts for Reef Response in the U.S. Virgin Islands, where she became interested in the role of community involvement in conservation.
During the pandemic, she began searching for ways to expand her work beyond academia.
"In my internet searches, I stumbled on the Coral Nurture Program, which really resonated with me," she says.
"It offered the chance to build on my previous work, take on new challenges and pursue my dream of working on the reef."
Similarly, Hadley was drawn to UTS because of its reef restoration initiatives, reputation and facilities.
“I had heard about the innovative work happening at UTS and the opportunities available,” he says.
“UTS offered a dynamic environment and a central location, which was also important to me.”
I developed a novel phenotyping tool that allows stakeholders in reef restoration to identify more thermally resilient corals.
Real-world research for real-world challenges
PhD research through the Coral Nurture Program is designed for impact. Students work on projects aligned with the program's restoration goals, tackling everything from coral species selection to enhancing thermal resilience.
Kathryn's research focuses on understanding the 'functional trait space' of reefs – mapping the role each coral species plays and identifying the unique ecological 'fingerprint' of reef sites.
"We can determine what coral function has been lost, gained or is still missing by tracking this fingerprint over time," she explains.
“Each reef has its own specific needs and identity based on what corals are present, so restoration must be tailored to match the goals of each stewardship reef.”
Her work provides restoration partners with science-backed guidance on which coral species best support local ecosystem recovery.
Unlike most reef restoration efforts that focus on easily propagated branching corals, Kathryn is working with lesser-used ‘massive’ corals – large, reef-forming species that are more resilient to storms and heat stress.
"These corals help future-proof restoration sites," she says.
A large part of her work involves analysing historic video surveys collected on reefs to evaluate how they have changed over time and determine the impact of restoration efforts. Her fieldwork is primarily based in the Whitsundays, where she also set up a multispecies coral outplanting experiment off Hook Island.
Meanwhile, Hadley is developing tools to help corals better withstand rising ocean temperatures.
“My PhD has focused on methods for increasing coral thermal resilience,” he explains.
“I’ve explored how manganese supplementation can help with this resilience, and I developed a novel phenotyping tool that allows stakeholders in reef restoration to identify more thermally resilient corals.”
That tool is already in use by restoration groups, including the Coral Nurture Program, to help select coral stock for outplanting – boosting resilience at target reef sites.
Kathryn and Hadley’s research takes them across a wide range of environments, from labs to some of the most remote field locations in the country.
"We've worked in extremely remote, crocodile-infested locations in the Northern Territory, as well as on the Great Barrier Reef, in Sydney Harbour and in the lab," Hadley says.
Not only were most of the corals alive, but they were growing better than any of us had hoped.
Seeing results in the water
Despite the challenges of working with such vast and dynamic ecosystems, Kathryn has seen her research make a tangible difference. A breakthrough moment came during her massive coral fragmentation experiment in the Whitsundays.
"There was hesitancy with some of our partners, and justifiably so. We were using a massive mitre saw to fragment corals into smaller pieces to cement back on the reef. The entire process looks brutal," she recalls.
"We were ecstatic to receive an update from our partners just a few months later. Not only were most of the corals alive, but they were growing better than any of us had hoped.
"When we visited the site weeks later, it was a massive relief to see them doing so well."
For Hadley, the impact is less immediately visible but equally significant.
“The phenotyping tool is already in use, and my manganese studies will support the development of custom supplements that can be given to corals during periods of thermal stress to help reduce bleaching,” he says.
Growing through collaboration
Both students emphasise the importance of the collaborative relationships they've built through the program.
"It's important to build rapport with tourism operators, Traditional Owners and community members," says Kathryn.
"To do so authentically takes time and I am still in the early stages of my journey."
Hadley has learned valuable lessons from working across different sectors.
"I have learnt a lot from collaborating with different groups, particularly learning about the types of challenges that different groups and organisations face, and that there is no one single solution," he says.
Both students credit their supervisor, Dr Emma Camp, with shaping their experience.
"Emma is a wonderful role model and someone I want to emulate in my future career," says Kathryn.
"She has been supportive and encouraging throughout my PhD experience. Most importantly, she has set a precedent to be collaborative and inclusive inside and outside the lab."
Hadley agrees wholeheartedly: "Having Emma as a supervisor has been nothing short of amazing. She has provided me with so many opportunities and been a really great example of what it means to be a good scientist."
Shaping the reef – and their futures
For both students, contributing to reef restoration isn’t just a research project – it’s a personal mission.
“Diving on the Great Barrier Reef has been my childhood dream, so to get to help with work on the reef is surreal,” says Kathryn.
The experience has also shaped their career aspirations.
Kathryn hopes to continue coordinating restoration programs that combine research with hands-on conservation.
“I enjoy the dual role of working within research and as a restoration practitioner. I feel it’s a much-needed bridge between the community and researchers.”
Hadley plans to remain in research, inspired by the interdisciplinary opportunities at UTS.
“Having access to all the facilities UTS offers, as well as the many different areas of expertise, has encouraged me to look beyond my immediate field when conducting research.”
Together, their work is helping to restore today’s reefs and safeguard their future for generations to come.
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