Rate My Professor Bronwyn Gillanders

Professor Bronwyn Gillanders is Dean of the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Adelaide. She obtained her BSc from the University of Canterbury (1982-1984), MSc in Marine Science from the University of Otago (1986-1988), and PhD from the University of Sydney (1991-1995). Following her doctorate, she held an ARC Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Sydney (1997-2000). In 2001, she joined the University of Adelaide as an ARC Queen Elizabeth II Research Fellow (2001-2006), advancing to Senior Lecturer (2009), Associate Professor (2007-2010), and Professor (2011-present), during which she received an ARC Future Fellowship (2011-2015). Her leadership roles include Associate Head Research (2015-2018), Deputy Dean Research Faculty of Sciences (2019-2020), interim Head of School (2020-2022), Head of School (2023-2025), Deputy Executive Dean Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Technology (2022-2023), and Dean since 2026. She has supervised over 50 higher degree by research students and contributed to teaching courses such as Marine Ecology and Frontiers in Marine Biology.

Gillanders specializes in aquatic ecology encompassing freshwater, estuarine, and marine systems, with a focus on fish and cephalopods. Her research utilizes otolith chemistry, stable isotopes, trace elements, genomics, and tagging to examine population structure, connectivity, movement patterns, growth, and environmental histories, addressing ecological change and fisheries management. She leads the Spencer Gulf Ecosystem and Development Initiative, funded by nearly 2.5 million dollars from industry partners, promoting integrated marine management, and coastal carbon research on seagrass, mangrove, and saltmarsh ecosystems for sequestration. Key publications include 'The identification, conservation, and management of estuarine and marine nurseries for fish and invertebrates' (2001), 'Otolith chemistry to describe movements and life-history parameters of fishes: hypotheses, assumptions, limitations and inferences' (2008), 'Evidence of connectivity between juvenile and adult habitats for mobile marine fauna' (2003), 'Marine nurseries and effective juvenile habitats: concepts and applications' (2006), and 'Global proliferation of cephalopods' (2016). Awards encompass the K Radway Allen Award (2016), Life Membership Australian Society for Fish Biology (2017), Faculty of Science Distinguished Research Award (2013), and the first Australian induction as Fellow of the American Fisheries Society (2024). She serves as Editor for Fish and Fisheries and Frontiers in Marine Science, and holds committee roles including Chair of Marine Innovations Southern Australia, member of SA Coast Protection Board, and past President of the World Council of Fisheries Societies (2016-2020) and Australian Society for Fish Biology (2011-2013).