A new wave of PhD completions

Several Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC students who have successfully had their theses accepted are now offering vital research impacts and benefits to the emergency management sector.

Dr Kamarah Pooley’s PhD on the Youth Misuse of Fire program in NSW found that Youth Justice Conferencing with firefighter involvement contributes to a reduced risk of general recidivism, which provides an avenue for delivering better fire safety education to at-risk groups across the community.

Dr Pooley aimed to fill knowledge gaps in measuring fire knowledge, fire behaviour, fire interest, perception of firefighters, and general behaviour in both youths and their primary care givers. Kamarah completed her PhD at Queensland University of Technology, where she is now working as a sessional academic and research assistant.

“I feel very fortunate to have been supported by the CRC during my PhD candidature. I attended and presented at research forums and conferences around Australia, met some incredible people, accessed some very useful contacts, and made lifelong friends,” Dr Pooley said.

She is looking forward to contributing to evidence-based knowledge and policy in the fields of criminology and child-centred disaster risk reduction.

Her thesis is available here.

Dr Ryan Hoult analysed both rectangular and C-shaped concrete walls in Australia, where he developed a Secondary Cracking Model to predict the potential of cracks forming in these types of walls. Ryan found that the direction of loading and the mode of bending were particularly important for the seismic performance of these sorts of walls.

He is now working as a postdoctoral researcher at the prestigious Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland, where he is using his PhD research to work collaboratively with several South American universities to mitigate against earthquake risk.

Ryan completed his PhD in 2017 and his thesis is available here.

Dr Ashley Wright completed his CRC PhD on flood forecasting at Monash University. Dr Wright found that the combination of modelling choices and the physical characteristics of soil moisture have a significant impact on the amount, and quality of the estimated rainfall.

He was awarded the Eric Laurenson Medal, which recognises his outstanding thesis, communication to industry and the potential research utilisation in water science, engineering or management.

“The award gives me confidence that my work is meaningful and of high quality,” Dr Wright said.

In October, he joined CRC project leader A/Prof Pauwels’ project, Improving flood forecast skill using remote sensing data.

His thesis is available here.

The Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC congratulates all students on their achievements and is excited to learn of their new future.

The CRC’s PhD program supports students to deliver a research base that enhances emergency services and agencies.