Professor Tim Smith is a human geographer focused on coastal management and climate change adaptation. He holds an Australian Research Council (ARC) Future Fellowship, and is a core researcher with the Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research. Professor Smith is an Adjunct Professor with Brock University, Canada, an Adjunct Professor with Southern Cross University, and a Senior Research Associate with Uppsala University, Sweden. He is also currently co-Chair of Future Earth Coasts, co-Chair of Future Earth Australia, and Editor-in-Chief of the international journal Ocean & Coastal Management.
Prior to accepting the ARC Fellowship, Professor Smith was the Executive Dean for the Faculty of Arts, Business and Law. As Executive Dean, he was responsible for over 8,000 students and 600 academic, professional, adjunct and casual staff, spread across 10 campuses/study locations. In response to changing student needs and recent fiscal challenges in the sector, he led significant learning and teaching reforms that improved student outcomes and maintained the 5-star teaching quality ratings in the Good Universities Guide. He also initiated research measures that increased research quantum, quality and impact by emphasising existing areas of strength in sustainability, forestry, human factors, Indigenous studies, and the arts; as well as supporting emerging areas of critical significance to communities such as sexual violence. He was also the Faculty lead on strategic university imperatives including student wellbeing and planning of the new Moreton Bay campus precinct.
From 2007-2017 Professor Smith was the inaugural Director of the Sustainability Research Centre (SRC). During this time the SRC generated external grants for research projects in 25 countries; published over 500 papers; graduated over 25 PhD students; and contributed the majority of outputs that resulted in UniSC’s equal highest rating nationally of 5 (well above world average) in the area of environmental science and management for the past two national (ERA) assessments.
Before joining UniSC, Professor Smith was a senior research scientist with the CSIRO. He has also led the social sciences and education portfolios of 2 national research centres (Coastal and Catchment Hydrology CRCs). Professor Smith has also worked at Griffith University and UNSW, for local and state government, and in the private sector.
Selected awards
- 2019: Fellowship of the Institute of Australian Geographers
- 2018: Australian Research Council Future Fellowship
- 2010: Vice Chancellor's Medal for Excellence in Research and Research Training
- 2009: Australian Museum Eureka Prize (Innovative Solutions to Climate Change)
- 2009: NSW Coastal Innovation Award
Selected Board and Committee Appointments
- 2022-present: Co-Chair, Future Earth Australia
- 2021-present: Australian Research Council (ARC) College of Experts
- 2020-present: Co-Chair, Future Earth Coasts
- 2016-present: QCoast2100 Expert Panel, Local Government Association of Queensland
- 2015-2019: International Scientific Steering Committee, Future Earth Coasts
- 2015-2017: Executive Scientific Advisory Committee, Healthy Land and Water
- 2015-2016: Board Member, UNESCO Noosa Biosphere Reserve Foundation
- 2003-2016: Funds Committee, Surfrider Australia
Professor Smith has been a lead or co-investigator on over 30 research projects relating to sustainability (valued at over $15m of competitive research grants) and has authored over 200 publications in this area. He has supervised 17 PhD students and 16 post-doctoral fellows. He also been an invited examiner of 27 PhD students from 15 universities across 3 countries. He has undertaken numerous projects for national and international organisations such as the Australian Research Council, CSIRO, Land and Water Australia, five Cooperative Research Centres, AusAID, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit, Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, Volkswagen Foundation, Compagnia di Sal Paolo, and UNDP.
Professor Smith currently leads the Coastal Governance project, including an international team of researchers and PhD students funded by the Australian Research Council. He previously led the Institutions Work Package of the Global Challenges Project: Climate Change and Water Governance, the Socio-Economic Vulnerability Theme of the Climate Change Adaptation for Natural Resource Management in East Coast Australia project, and convened the Social, Economic and Institutional Dimensions Research Network (SEI Network) of the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility (NCCARF). He has led 3 international journal special issues, is currently on the Editorial Board of the journal Geographical Research, and Editor-in-Chief of Ocean & Coastal Management.
Apart from assessing Australian research proposals and programs, he has been invited to assess applications for the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), Canadian Chairs program, Canadian Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), Dutch National Research Agenda (NWA), US Sea Grants, South African Research Council, Australia-India Strategic Research Fund, and was part of the assessment panel of the International Opportunities Fund (€20m) for the Belmont Forum and G8 Research Councils Initiative on Multilateral Research Funding. He has also given invited and keynote presentations on his research in 10 countries.
Research projects
|
Years |
Researchers |
Grant agency |
Funding amount |
Project name |
|
2019-2023 |
Smith |
Australian Research Council |
A$996,000 |
Coastal Governance: Embracing Vulnerability and Change |
|
2019- 2022 |
Ashford, Smith et al |
Sunshine Coast Council |
A$360,000 |
Valuing the Sunshine Coast's Natural Assets |
|
2017-2019 |
Smith et al. (researchers from USC and Uppsala) |
Sunshine Coast Council |
A$20,000 |
Improving disaster management: a comparative study between the Sunshine Coast, Australia and Gotland, Sweden |
|
2017 |
Smith and Elrick-Barr |
NSW Office of Environment |
A$32,500 |
Evidence review for the design of training and leadership engagement to build adaptive capacity for climate risk management in NSW agencies |
|
2015-2017 |
Smith et al. (6 partner organisations) |
Australian Government and National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility |
A$395,000 |
Social, Economic and Institutional Dimensions Research Network (SEI Network) |
|
2015-2016 |
Jacobson, Smith et al. (3 partner organisations in 3 countries) |
Asia Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN) |
$60,000 |
Climate adaptation and community resilience |
|
2013-2016 |
Lovelock, Smith, et al. (6 partner organisations) |
Australian Government: Natural Resource Management (NRM) Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Research Grants Program |
A$939,012 |
Climate Change Adaptation for Natural Resource Management in East Coast Australia |
|
2015 |
Smith, Leitch and Thomsen |
Australian Government and National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility |
A$15,000 |
Community Engagement Manual for Climate Change Adaptation |
|
2015 |
E Smith and T Smith |
Northern Tablelands and Local Land Service |
A$30,000 |
Measuring and Monitoring Farm Profitability |
|
2012-2015 |
Powell, Smith, et al. (10 partners from 7 countries) |
Global Challenges Programme: Rikbankens Jubileumsfond, Volkswagen Foundation, and Compagnia di San Paolo |
A$1.6m |
Climate Change and Water Governance (CADWAGO) |
Research areas
- Sustainability
- Coastal management
- Climate change adaptation
- Water governance
- Geography
Recent selected publications
- Elrick-Barr CE, Smith TF & Plummer R, 2022, ‘Next generation adaptive capacity assessment’, Climate & Development. (published online 11 Sep 2022) https://doi.org/10.1080/17565529.2022.2117978
- Raikes J, Smith TF, Baldwin C & Henstra D, 2022, ‘The influence of international agreements on disaster risk reduction’, International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, vol. 76, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijdrr.2022.102999
- Huddleston P, Smith T, White I & Elrick-Barr C, 2022, ‘Adapting critical infrastructure to climate change: a scoping review’, Environmental Science & Policy, vol. 135 (2022) 67–76: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2022.04.015
- Raikes J, Smith TF, Baldwin C & Henstra D, 2022, ‘Disaster risk reduction and climate policy implementation challenges in Canada and Australia’, Climate Policy, vol. 24(4), 534-548. https://doi.org/10.1080/14693062.2022.2048784
- Elrick-Barr CE & Smith TF, 2022, ‘Current Information Provision Rarely Helps Coastal Households Adapt to Climate Change’, Sustainability, 14, 2904. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14052904
- Frohlich M, Smith TF, Fidelman P, Baldwin C, Jacobson C & Carter RW, 2022, ‘Towards Adaptive Coastal Management Law: Lessons from Australia and Brazil’, Ocean & Coastal Management, vol. 219. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2022.106057
- Elrick-Barr CE & Smith TF, 2022, ‘Problem framing for Australian coastal management’, Environmental Science & Policy, vol. 127, 218-227.
- Glavovic BC, Smith TF & White I, 2021, ‘The tragedy of climate change science’, Climate & Development, (published online 24-12-2021) DOI: 10.1080/17565529.2021.2008855
- Raikes J, Smith TF, Powell N, Thomsen DC, Friman E, Kronlid D & Sidle R, 2021, ‘Crisis management: Regional approaches to geopolitical crises and natural hazards’, Geographical Research, vol. 60, 168-178. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1745-5871.12503.
- Nunn PD, Smith TF & Elrick-Barr C, 2021, ‘Path dependency and future adaptation of coastal cities: examples from the Asia-Pacific’, Frontiers in Environmental Science, 359(9). https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2021.642385.
Professor Smith's specialist areas of knowledge include sustainability, coastal management, climate change adaptation, water governance and geography