Professor Rob Harcourt lectures in Marine Science and is an expert in marine biology, specialising in marine conservation, marine ecosystems, animal behaviour and ecology. He leads the Marine Predator Research Group and Australia’s Integrated Marine Observing System Animal Tracking Facility. He has authored/edited  3 books and over 320 scientific publications. He studies how marine animals respond to human impacts, such as alteration of oceanographic processes due to climate change, marine habitat degradation, shipping and fisheries interactions. His research has made valuable contributions to conservation of large marine vertebrates including sharks, seals, and whales through drafting species recovery plans for the Federal Government and providing expert comments to state and federal government, NGOs and the United Nations Environment Program. He is an Expert Witness, Chairs International Committees, sits on Ecological Risk Assessment Technical panels and has authored multiple public submissions.