Rate My Professor Jane Chambers

Dr. Jane Chambers serves as Senior Lecturer in the School of Environmental and Conservation Sciences at Murdoch University and Director of NatureLink Perth, a hub promoting nature-linked urban development. Previously, she was Academic Chair of Environmental Science, Management and Sustainability. Holding a Doctor of Philosophy, she brings over 30 years of expertise in aquatic ecology, specializing in the ecology, management, and restoration of wetlands, rivers, and estuaries in south-western Australia. Her research encompasses aquatic plant ecology, climate change impacts on aquatic habitats, freshwater turtles, urban woody plantings, and biodiversity conservation in urban environments. Chambers has supervised more than 50 research students and contributed to numerous PhD theses in these areas.

Throughout her career, Chambers has held influential roles including deputy chair of the Swan River Trust from 2005 to 2010 and service on national and state advisory panels addressing climate change and mining rehabilitation. She actively supports community groups and has presented at international and national conferences. In recognition of her contributions to freshwater sciences, she received the Hilary Jolly Medal from the Australian Freshwater Sciences Society in 2017. Key publications include the co-authored textbook Environmental Biology (2009) with Jenny Davis and Arthur McComb, which covers inland aquatic environments; A Guide to Emergent Wetland Plants of South-Western Australia (1995); and recent peer-reviewed papers such as "Resprout survival and vigour in urban woody plantings are related to water availability, climate of origin, and root morphology" (2025), "Implications of Climatic Drying on the Aquatic Habitat and Aestivation Sites of an Endemic Freshwater Turtle" (2024), "Long-term habitat degradation affects nest site selection behaviour by a freshwater turtle (Chelodina oblonga) in Western Australia" (2024), "Optimizing road underpass design to maximize use by a freshwater turtle (Chelodina oblonga)" (2023), and "Substantial long-term loss of alpha and gamma diversity of lake invertebrates in a landscape exposed to a drying climate" (2021). These works underscore her impact on understanding ecological regime shifts, salinity thresholds, nutrient dynamics, and adaptation strategies in drying climates.