Megan is a conservation ecologist with broad interests in ecological sustainability, climate change and economics. From 2009-2012 she worked as a Research Assistant undertaking research into applied conservation problems through the use and development of conservation planning tools. During this time, her research included: an analysis of the potential co-benefits for biodiversity through native vegetation regrowth in the context of the carbon market, the use and misuse of biodiversity offsets, as well as a  regional scale spatial prioritization analysis for conservation management in the Great Western Woodlands, Western Australia. She provided research support in the form of data analysis, geographic information systems and conservation planning for a range of projects, and assisted with supervision of student projects.

As an undergraduate Megan studied a dual Bachelors program in Science (Ecology) and Arts (Mathematics) at the University of Queensland, where she completed a diverse set of courses ranging from operations research, bifurcations and chaos, conservation biology and field ecology studies. She was awarded a Bachelor of Science with First Class Honours from the University of Queensland in June 2009.  During her Honours year she was supervised by Prof Hugh Possingham, Dr James Watson and Dr Richard Fuller. In 2013 she started her PhD at the Australian National University.

Research Assistant, University of Queensland, 2009-2012

Email: megcevans@gmail.com

Blog posts & presentations by Megan

Publications

Evans, M.C., Possingham H.P., Wilson K.A. 2011. Extinctions: conserve not collate. Nature 474: 284-284. doi:10.1038/474284a

Wilson KA, Evans MC, Di Marco M, Green DC, Boitani L, Possingham HP, Chiozza F, Rondinini C. 2011. Prioritizing conservation investments for mammal species globally. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 366:2670-2680. doi:10.1098/rstb.2011.0108

Evans MC, Watson JEM, Fuller RA, Venter O, Bennett SC, Marsack PR, Possingham HP. 2011. The Spatial Distribution of Threats to Species in Australia. BioScience 61: 281-289. doi: 10.1525/bio.2011.61.4.8

Evans MC, Possingham HP, Wilson KA.  2011. What to do in the face of multiple threats? Incorporating dependencies within a return on investment framework for conservation. Diversity and Distributions. doi.10.1111/j.1472-4642.2011.00747.x

Taylor MFJ, Sattler PS, Evans MC, Fuller RA, Watson JEM, Possingham HP. 2011. What works for threatened species recovery? An empirical evaluation for Australia. Biodiversity and Conservation. doi:10.1007/s10531-010-9977-8

Watson JEM, Evans MC, Carwardine J, Fuller RA, Joseph LN, Segan DB, Taylor MFJ, Fensham R, Possingham HP. 2011. The Capacity of Australia’s Protected-Area System to Represent Threatened Species. Conservation Biology.  doi:10.1111/j.1523-1739.2010.01587.x

Popular articles

Evans MC. 2011. No refuge: When a ‘protected area’ is not really protected. The Conversation, September 2011, retrieved from: http://theconversation.edu.au/no-refuge-when-a-protected-area-is-not-really-protected-3363

Evans MC. 2011. Know Thy Threat: Managing for multiple threats. Decision Point 50, June 2011, retrieved from: http://ceed.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/DPoint_50.pdf  and ConservationBytes.com

Conference presentations:

Evans MC, Carwardine J, Fensham R, Dwyer J, Butler D, Wilson KA, Possingham HP, Martin T. 2012. Native vegetation restoration to achieve carbon and biodiversity benefits in Queensland. The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) Conference. UFZ Leipzig, Germany

Evans MC, Wilson KA. 2011. Spatial prioritisation for improved management in the Great Western Woodlands, Western Australia. 25th International Congress for Conservation Biology, Auckland, New Zealand

Wilson KA, Evans MC, Di Marco M, Rondinini C, Boitani L, Chiozza F, Possingham HP & McBride MF. 2010. Prioritising conservation investments for mammal species globally. 24th International Congress for Conservation Biology, Edmonton, Canada

Evans MC, Wells J, Lowe A, Possingham HP. 2006. Conservation genetics and spatial ecology of the rainforest plant species Cryptocarya mackinnoniana. Faculty of Biological and Chemical Sciences Undergraduate Research Conference, The University of Queensland.