In the second quarter of 2024, the C3 seminar series welcomed five distinguished guest speakers to UTS covering ocean health, precise measurements in climate change predictions and seafood safety, recent discoveries in the biomechanics of diatoms, and the development of algae-based bioplastics.
Measuring, monitoring and maintaining the health of our global oceans is a crucial step in predicting the threat of climate change. In May and June, Dr Branka Miljevic and Dr Alison Turnbull highlighted the need for improved measurements to better understand the effects of climate change on ocean health and emphasised the importance of strategic and collaborative efforts to improve risk management plans regarding seafood safety in the future.
In July, Professor Florence Elias cited the real-world impact of climate change on seafoam formations on coastlines, leading to a decline in phytoplankton trapped in the foam.
In August, Dr Julia Reisser and Michael Kingsbury, co-founder and co-CEO of Uluu, shared their strategy for reducing our dependence on fossil-fuel-derived single-use plastics through algae-based bioplastic their start-up is developing in Western Australia.
Dr Angela Falciatore concluded the seminar series for the second quarter by sharing her research on the biomechanics of diatoms and the critical role of light in their growth and development.
Angela Falciatore
Dr. Branka Miljevic
Associate Professor, Queensland University of Technology, Australia
“Southern Ocean aerosols: where we are and where we are going to” The May seminar addressed challenges in climate models for the Southern Ocean, where inaccuracies often lead to overestimated sunlight and sea surface temperatures. The talk focused on aerosols, generated by sea spray and microorganisms, which play a crucial role in cloud formation and climate predictions. Insights from recent Southern Ocean voyages highlighted the impact of these aerosols and showcased advanced field-deployable mass spectrometers, emphasizing the need for improved modelling to accurately predict global climate changes.
Dr. Alison Turnbull
Senior Research Fellow, University of Tasmania, Australia
Title: “Preparing for climate change impacts on seafood food safety” The June seminar explored the impact of climate change on seafood safety, addressing rising water temperatures, shifting species distributions, and increased storm and flood events. The speaker highlighted how these changes are altering risk profiles for known hazards and introducing new threats, such as Vibrio and ciguatera. SafeFish, a government-industry-research partnership, is at the forefront of addressing these challenges. The talk emphasized the need for strategic, collaborative efforts to enhance risk management and resilience in Australia's seafood sector.
Prof. Florence Elias
Professor, Université Paris Cité, France
Title: “Marine foam: capture of phytoplankton in foam”
The July seminar focused on the phenomenon of stable sea foam formations observed on certain coastlines, which are linked to the loss of phytoplankton biomass and biodiversity. The speaker presented laboratory experiments using the motile alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii to study its retention within sea foam. Findings revealed that live cells are more likely to be trapped in the foam, raising questions about the transport of microswimmers in confined environments. The talk also explored the microscopic mechanisms behind this entrapment.
Dr. Julia Reisser and Michael Kingsbury
Co-founders and Co-CEOs, Uluu, Australia
Title: “Uluu: The world’s first truly compelling alternative to plastic”
The first August seminar featured Uluu, a West Australian start-up that has developed an eco-friendly alternative to plastic made from farmed seaweed instead of fossil fuels. The company's products mimic the properties of plastic—strong, lightweight, and waterproof—while being climate-positive, biocompatible, and fully biodegradable. Uluu’s innovative process uses saltwater microbes fed with regeneratively grown seaweed, offering a scalable solution to replace the 400 million tonnes of fossil fuel-derived plastics produced annually.
Dr. Angela Falciatore
Director, Department of Chloroplast Biology and Light sensing in Microalgae, Institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique (IBPC) Paris, France
Title: “Light-driven processes: key players of the functional biodiversity of marine diatoms”
The second August seminar focused on diatoms, the world's most diverse group of algae, responsible for 20% of annual global carbon fixation and essential to aquatic food webs and biogeochemical cycles. The talk highlighted research aimed at understanding the mechanisms controlling diatom growth and distribution, with a focus on light-regulated processes. By integrating various scientific approaches, the study reveals the role of light-harvesting complex stress-related proteins (LHCXs) in photoprotection and the unique light-sensing abilities of diatoms, underscoring the importance of light-driven processes in their functional biodiversity.
Seminars at C3 are held monthly. The following researchers will join us over the next quarter to discuss their research.
Dr. Fengzheng Gao (September)
Talk title: Microalgal Biotechnology: from Single Cell to Industry
Dr. Brigitte Sommer (October)
Talk title: Ecological dynamics of corals at their high-latitude range limits
Dr. Wouter Visch (November)
Talk title: TBA
Prof. Justin Seymour (December)
Talk title: TBA