Sean Connolly

Background

About Sean Connolly

Sean Connolly uses a combination of mathematical modelling and empirical work, to address fundamental questions about the origin and maintenance of biodiversity, and to understand the ecological impacts of human activities, such as overfishing and climate change. Connolly received his PhD from Stanford University in and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Arizona before moving to JCU from where he was Professor of Marine Biology, and Program Leader for Understanding and Managing Coral Reef Biodiversity in the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies. In late 2019, he moved to take up a Staff Scientist/Research Biologist position at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama. Connolly is a recipient of the 2009 Fenner Medal of the Australian Academy of Science, and was an ARC Australian Professorial Fellow from 2008-2012. He has also received two national teaching awards in Australia (from the Australian Government Office for Learning and Teaching - formerly the Carrick Institute) in 2006 and 2014, for innovative approaches to teaching quantitative skills to science majors. He also received a JCU Advisor of the Year Award in 2017 for postgraduate student supervision, and JCU's Award for Excellence in Research the same year.