Ashley Whitt, Phd Email & Phone Number

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Adaptus is a strategy and project consulting firm that partners with leaders in business and society to improve ESG performance, understand and respond to the risks and opportunities of the energy transition, and increase resilience to climate change. Adaptus’ focus is on embedding considerations of ESG, carbon and climate risk in the typical capabilities, functions, processes, and systems of an organisation, based on the belief that organisations that succeed in this era of increasing uncertainty are those that most efficiently and effectively adapt.

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Project coordinator for the Blue Impact Bonds for Nature, managed workflows, budgets, procurement, while authoring report exploring investment in blue carbon, shellfish reef restoration, and coastal resilience solutions. Secured $200K funding from HSBC Australia to support Sea Country Summit, contributed to project pitch, drafted agreements, and managed approval processes across legal and executive teams. Awarded a Coda Fellowship for my proposal to improve Asia Pacific program effectiveness in conservation finance projects, delivered a comprehensive situation analysis and theory of change.

Coordinated development of an impact bond framework, collaborated closely with blue carbon, coastal resilience and conservation finance colleagues and external experts. Developed and oversaw diverse data science activities on time and within budget.

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Provided administrative and operational support for conservation projects, drafting theory of changes, business reports, project plans in Microsoft PMO. Organized meetings, prepared agendas, and developed materials for financial and government stakeholders.

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Developed habitat suitability models and managed GIS data to support shellfish reef restoration and construction projects in VIC and WA. Managed communications and recruitment of 80+ volunteers from corporate donors, local community groups, and student associations to collect shellfish reef monitoring data.

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Aided unit lead and team of demonstrators to teach Ecology and the Environment. Due to COVID-19, I adapted the course to move online within a week for 1,100 students across 3 campuses and 24 seminars. I trained our team of 16 demonstrators in online teaching and we successfully maintained our high rank in course evaluations.

Burwood Campus

Melbourne Water and The Nature Conservancy sponsored my research in evaluating the future of coastal wetlands under rising sea-levels across Western Port, VIC and Australia. I discovered new insights into the role public and private land tenures will play in coastal wetland resilience to sea-level rise, provided guidance for adaptive management strategies using SLAMM, and mapped and modeled mangrove encroachment into saltmarshes in Western Port. I also contributed to Mapping Ocean Wealth, an interdisciplinary project with The Nature Conservancy, in showcasing ecosystem services, spatial mapping and communication for coastal wetlands across south-eastern Australia.

Burwood, Victoria, Australia

Ecology and the Environment Trimester 1 in 2017, 2018, 2019 - Developed targeted course materials for a challenging section, leading to demonstrated improvement in student performance. Biology Form and Function Trimester 2 2017 - Conducted lab sessions, teaching students in a hand-on environment and overseeing experiments to ensure understanding and safety. Landscape Ecology Trimester 3 2017- Revised course materials and taught R for landscape ecology applications.

Galveston, Texas, United States

Combined environmental education and marsh restoration initiatives to inspire high school students and oil and gas sector stakeholders to become active stewards of Galveston Bay's natural resources.

Galveston, Tx

Led field logistics for an interdisciplinary team of researchers from Texas A&M, University of Houston, and Florida International University in studying changes in ecosystem services and functions due to mangrove expansion in the Gulf of Mexico. My master's research focused on investigating the expansion of black mangroves into areas historically dominated by saltmarsh and the subsequent impact on bird communities by utilizing crowdsourced citizen science data from birdwatchers across Texas.

Galveston, Tx

Managed game camera experiment and lab volunteers in assessing the success of marsh restoration techniques in reviving ecosystem functions within the JD Murphree Wildlife Management Area.

Dauphin Island, Al

Evaluated the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill impacts on the recruitment of commercially valuable finfish and crustaceans to seagrass beds. Collaborated with The Nature Conservancy on assessing the efficiency of oyster reefs abating shoreline erosion in Mobile Bay, AL, and with US Fish and Wildlife in surveying seagrass condition and mangrove expansion.

Wilmington, Nc

Assessed nekton use and recruitment to oyster reefs for the American Recovery and Reassessment Act. Studied the effectiveness of seeding juvenile oysters on restored oyster reefs. Led field crews in collection of baseline samples for the Deep Water Horizon Oil Spill potential impact on the Outer Banks, NC.

Wilmington, Nc

Collaborated with the Army Corps of Engineers on assessing the impact of river dredging on benthic populations. Helped coordinate volunteers and homeowner associations in monitoring oyster spat settlement across NC.

Twin Cities, Mn

Assisted in investigating the transportation of microbial communities between wastewater treatment ponds via waterfowl across MN.

Sustainable Finance

Learning how finance can help create a more sustainable and resilient global economy, open up new opportunities, and strategically drive.

Doctor Of Philosophy (Phd), Environmental Science

PhD Thesis: "The future of coastal wetlands under rising sea-levels"

Master Of Science (M.S.), Marine Biology

MS Thesis: "Utilizing citizen science to assess bird community composition within a changing mangrove-marsh ecotone in Texas"

Bachelor Of Science (B.S.), Marine Biology

Activities and Societies: Ambassador, UNCW Student Ambassador Association Treasurer, Beta Beta Beta Biological Honor Society Historian.