James Watson

Cleared habitat in Niassa Reserve, Mozambique. James Allan

December 14, 2016

Half the world’s ecosystems at risk from habitat loss, and Australia is one of the worst

James Watson, The University of Queensland; Eve McDonald-Madden, The University of Queensland; James Allan, The University of Queensland; Kendall Jones, The University of Queensland; Moreno Di Marco, The University of Queensland, and Richard Fuller, The University of Queensland

Since 1992, an area of land two-thirds the size of Australia has been converted to human use.

Researchers have found that dragonflies have become on average lighter-colored over the past half-century in response to higher temperatures. norio-nakayama/flickr

November 11, 2016

Climate change is affecting all life on Earth – and that’s not good news for humanity

Brett Scheffers, University of Florida and James Watson, The University of Queensland

Study shows the footprint of climate change is already vast and that species are trying to adapt to rising temperatures.

Abbot Point port would have to be expanded to ship coal from the proposed new mine. AAP Image/Greenpeace

November 1, 2016

Four environmental reasons why fast‑tracking the Carmichael coal mine is a bad idea

April Reside, The University of Queensland; Bonnie Mappin, The University of Queensland; James Watson, The University of Queensland; Sarah Chapman, The University of Queensland, and Stephen Kearney, The University of Queensland

Queensland’s planned new coal mine could impact the climate, the Great Barrier Reef, water, and local species. Yet still it has been declared as ‘critical infrastructure’ by the state government.

Fires in 1997 in Indonesia released over a billion tonnes of carbon into the atmosphere. Indonesia’s forests burned again in 2015. AAP

September 16, 2016

The world’s carbon stores are going up in smoke with vanishing wilderness

James Watson, The University of Queensland; Bill Laurance, James Cook University; Brendan Mackey, Griffith University, and James Allan, The University of Queensland

The world has lost 10% of its wilderness areas in the past 20 years and, with it, vast stores of carbon.

Snow leopards are just one of the species still threatened by hunting. from www.shutterstock.com

August 10, 2016

Hunting, fishing and farming remain the biggest threats to wildlife

Sean Maxwell, The University of Queensland; James Watson, The University of Queensland, and Richard Fuller, The University of Queensland

Climate change gets a lot of the spotlight when it comes to saving wildlife. But bigger threats remain.

Land clearing rates in Queensland tripled since 2010. Martin Taylor

February 21, 2016

Queensland land clearing is undermining Australia’s environmental progress

Martine Maron, The University of Queensland; Bill Laurance, James Cook University; Bob Pressey, James Cook University; Carla P. Catterall, Griffith University; Clive McAlpine, The University of Queensland; Hugh Possingham, The University of Queensland; James Watson, The University of Queensland; Jonathan Rhodes, The University of Queensland; Kerrie Wilson, The University of Queensland, and Marc Hockings, The University of Queensland

Land clearing in Queensland has tripled in the past five years.

Clearing mulga woodland in Queensland to open up land for cattle during drought. M. Venterriven

February 11, 2016

The best way to protect us from climate change? Save our ecosystems

Tara Martin, CSIRO and James Watson, The University of Queensland

We’re going to have to adapt to climate change, but some of the options on the table could do more harm than good if they destroy the ecosystems that protect us.

Countries such as Mauritania have contributed little to climate change, yet face the worst impacts such as crop failure. Oxfam International/Flickr

February 5, 2016

Australia, the US and Europe are climate ‘free‑riders’: it’s time to step up

Glenn Althor, The University of Queensland; James Watson, The University of Queensland, and Richard Fuller, The University of Queensland

The countries that have contributed the least to climate change will experience the worst of its effects.

Fragments of woodland surrounded by cleared land in south west Australia. Google Earth

January 6, 2016

Unique Australian wildlife risks vanishing as ecosystems suffer death by a thousand cuts

Ayesha Tulloch, Australian National University; James Watson, The University of Queensland; Jeremy Ringma, The University of Queensland; Megan Barnes, The University of Queensland, and Richard Fuller, The University of Queensland

Australia may have reputation for vast areas of wilderness, but in reality the continent’s ecosystems have been chopped and diced. Now we need to protect what’s left.

Recent increases in land clearing threaten Queensland’s biodiversity. Bill Laurance

March 18, 2015

Land clearing in Queensland triples after policy ping pong

Martine Maron, The University of Queensland; Bill Laurance, James Cook University; Bob Pressey, James Cook University; Carla P. Catterall, Griffith University; James Watson, The University of Queensland, and Jonathan Rhodes, The University of Queensland

Land clearing in Queensland has tripled since 2010 after wind backs to regulations.

Marlgu Billabong in Australia’s Kimberley region, which new research nominates as a smart place to invest in conservation. www.shutterstock.com/Janelle Lugge

October 1, 2013

Adapt or die: where in the world we should start on cost‑effective conservation

James Watson, The University of Queensland; Nathalie Butt, The University of Queensland, and Takuya Iwamura, Stanford University

As the dust settles on the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report on the science of climate change, the obvious question is: what do we do next? Our research, published in Nature…

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