Meet the Team Behind Which Plant Where

Macquarie University

Distinguished Professor Michelle Leishman

Michelle is the lead Chief Investigator for the Which Plant Where research program. She has a wealth of knowledge and expertise on climate change impacts on plants and climate change adaptation. She is responsible for the overall project management, as well as research program design, stakeholder engagement and co-supervision of PhD students.

Ms Leigh Staas

Leigh has an extensive background in project management for research. She was the project manager for the Which Plant Where program during its development, handling overall project management, stakeholder engagement, budget and planning.

Mr Gwilym Griffiths

Gwilym is an urban greening specialist with over 20 years’ experience in both local government and private organisations. He is the current Program Manager for Which Plant Where and is responsible for the implementation and future development of the program. For any enquiries on the program please contact Gwilym at whichplantwhere@mq.edu.au

Dr Samiya Tabassum

Samiya is a post-doctoral research fellow for the Which Plant Where research program. She has extensive knowledge regarding plant ecology and was involved in experimentally testing heat and drought tolerance of horticultural species. She is also the curator of the trait and image databases underpinning the webtool.

Associate Professor Linda Beaumont

Linda is the Chief Investigator in charge of Module 1’s climate suitability modelling for the Which Plant Where research program. She brings extensive knowledge on understanding and reducing uncertainty in species distribution modelling and biological responses to climate change.

Dr Rachael Gallagher

Rachael is a principle advisor for the Which Plant Where research project. Rachael is an ecologist specialising in the functional biogeography of the Australian flora. As part of Which Plant Where, she advised on the development of the trait database and research papers.

Dr Anthony Manea

Anthony is a post-doctoral research fellow with expertise in plant responses to climate change. He undertook glasshouse and field experiments to test the effects of soil amendments on alleviating drought stress in species commonly planted in urban environments. He also co-supervised PhD student Ariningsun (Tya) Cinantya.

Dr Alessandro Ossola

Alessandro is a post-doctoral research fellow for the Which Plant Where research project. Alessandro is an urban ecologist, working across the three modules and co-supervising PhD students Ariningsun (Tya) Cinantya and Sourav (Rony) Das.

Dr Hugh Burley, Dr Farzin Shabani, Dr Anikó Tóth

Hugh, Farzin and Anikó are post-doctoral research fellows for the Which Plant Where research project. They all have strong data science or ecological modelling backgrounds and contributed extensively to developing the climate suitability modelling output.

Mr David Coleman

David is a research assistant who assisted with the glasshouse experiments and trait database.

Ms Ariningsun (Tya) Cinantya

Tya’s PhD research is focused on whether the use of biostimulants, such as humic acid and seaweed extracts, improves planting success and plant performance in urban environments.

Mr Sourav (Rony) Das

Rony’s PhD is focused on modelling responses of urban plant species to climate change and extreme weather events. His research aims to improve species’ climate suitability models by accounting for urban factors such as the urban heat island effect and altered water availability.

Ms Danelia Robinson

Danelia is undertaking PhD research on legislative barriers affecting the development and persistence of urban green spaces within Australia.

Western Sydney University

Professor Ian Anderson

Ian is a Chief Investigator with research interests in the relationship between soil microbes and plants. Ian is responsible for the overall strategic direction and management of the research team at Western Sydney University.

Professor David Ellsworth

David is a Chief Investigator for the Which Plant Where research program. David is a plant physiologist specialising on the impacts of elevated carbon dioxide on plants. David was responsible for Module 3’s glasshouse experiments to assess heat and drought tolerance of horticultural species.

Professor Sally Power

Sally is a Chief Investigator for the Which Plant Where program. Her research explores how human activities affect processes at the leaf, plant and community level, and how these effects influence ecosystem function and sustainability. Sally was involved in quantifying co-benefits that urban green spaces provide and co-supervision of PhD student Mahmuda Sharmin.

Dr Paul Rymer

Paul is a Chief Investigator for the Which Plant Where project, with expertise in the ability of plants to adapt to changing environmental conditions through genetic and phenotypic traits. He was responsible for managing the research within Module 2, assessing the factors that contribute to the successes and failures of urban plantings and co-supervision of PhD students.

Professor Mark Tjoelker

Mark is a Chief Investigator responsible for advice on research design, co-supervision of students and industry engagement.

Dr Manuel Esperon-Rodriquez

Manuel is a post-doctoral research fellow with a strong background in species’ responses to climatic and environmental changes. He was involved in assessing the factors that contribute to the successes and failures of urban plantings, including the development of the WPW Living Labs.

Dr Reneé Marchin Procopavicius

Reneé is a post-doctoral research fellow for the Which Plant Where project. She is a plant ecophysiologist with strong interests in how plants cope with heatwaves and droughts. She was closely involved in testing heat and drought tolerance of horticultural species in glasshouse experiments.

Ms Nikki Sperinck

Nikki is a research assistant who helped with the glasshouse experiments assessing heat and drought tolerance of horticultural species.

Ms Diana Backes

Diana’s PhD research is focused on understanding heat tolerance of Australian native trees and shrubs.

Mr Mohammad Kibria

Kibria’s PhD research focuses on testing urban tree performance under future hotter and drier conditions.

Ms Mahmuda Sharmin

Mahmuda’s PhD research explores co-benefits such as cooling and increased biodiversity provided by urban green spaces.


Dr Manuel Esperon-Rodriguez helping to set up a Living Lab


Distinguished Professor Michelle Leishman and Dr Alessandro Ossola in the glasshouse

 
Dr Reneé Marchin Procopavicius and Mr David Coleman taking measurements in the lab


Professor David Ellsworth and Ms Leigh Staas at a nursery site visit

 
Diana Backes and Ms Nikki Sperinck in the glasshouse

 
The Which Plant Where team setting up a glasshouse experiment

The Team