Emma Frances Camp (born 1987) is an English Australianmarine biologist, Coral Expert, and National Geographic Explorer who researches the mechanisms of stress tolerance in corals. She is the Team Leader of the Future Reefs Team at the University of Technology Sydney.[1][2] She is also the co-founder and lead scientist of Coral Nurture Program. In addition to her research, she promotes the retention of females in STEM fields.[3][4]
Emma was born in 1987 in Essex, England.[5] She is a dual British and Australian citizen. She completed her schooling at St Martins secondary school, where she captained the women's Basketball team to win the National Championship. Emma played professional basketball in their pre-science career, representing England and Great Britain at the youth levels. She was the captain of Essex Blades team.[6]
In 2004, she received her first full international cap against Iceland. Emma attended Belmont Abbey CollegeinBelmont, North Carolina, where she was awarded a BSc (Hons) and received a sports scholarship. She graduated with an Honours degree in Environmental science and chemistry.[7]
In 2013, Emma's science career began as she took up a science position at the Central Caribbean Marine Institute in the Cayman Islands. At the same time, she started a PhD at the University of EssexinMarine biology. Her thesis explored the biogeochemical series of reef-associated habitats on coral reefs. In 2014, Emma returned to England and took up a sports scholarship at the University of Essex for women's Basketball while she completed her Ph.D.. Emma captured the team to win the national championship by 1 point with under 2 seconds left. The University of Essex retired #14 Jersey in honor of Emma's efforts and leadership.[9][10][11]
In early 2016, Emma Camp was awarded an Endeavour fellowship, and she moved to the University of Technology Sydney to focus on research full-time. Her research continued exploring reef-associated systems, such as Mangrove lagoons, to look for corals living in hostile environmental conditions, called Super corals. These natural laboratories have been a focus of Emma's research ever since.[7]
Emma is a National Geographic Explorer. In 2019, Emma's research efforts saw her named a Young Leader for the Sustainable Development Goals by the United Nations.[12] Her research has evolved to consider metabolic interactions between corals and their symbiotic partners and how novel phenotyping tools can be used to select more tolerant corals for reef restoration.[4]
In 2018, Emma co-founded the Coral Nurture Program, a tourism-science site stewardship program on the Goat Barrier Reef. She remains the lead scientist for the Coral Nurture Program. In 2023, she moved to the role of Team Leader of the future Reefs Team at the University of Technology Sydney. The Future Reefs team unites coral Eco physiologists, molecular scientists, biologists, and analytical chemists to study how environmental change shapes coral fitness and survival. The team's research ranges from organism-scale molecular signatures to broad-scale ecological interactions, and specialize in advancing technical solutions to support innovative scientific capacity.[13][14]
Emma broadly supports other organizations working in Marine Conservation, including being a scientific advisor for SeaLegacy and an Ambassador for Coral catch.[15][16] Alongside her research she advocates for the retention of females in STEM and was named an Inaugural STEM game changer by the Australian Academy of Science. She is also an active science communicator, passionate about communicating her research to the public, starring in several documentaries, including the BCC National Geographic film Perpetual Planet Heroes of the Ocean.[17][3][18]
'Rapid coral decay is associated with marine heatwave mortality events on reefs', 2019, Vol:19, Cited by 155, William P Leggat, Emma F Camp, David J Suggett, Scott F Heron, Alexander J Fordyce, Stephanie Gardner, Lachlan Deakin, Michael Turner, Levi J Beeching, Unnikrishnan Kuzhiumparambil, C Mark Eakin, Tracy D Ainsworth[19]
'The Future of Coral Reefs Subject to Rapid Climate Change: Lessons from Natural Extreme Environments', 2018, vol:5, Cited by 228, DJ Suggett EF Camp, V Schoepf, PJ Mumby, LA Hardtke, R Rodolfo-Metalpa, DJ Smith[20]
'Reef-building corals thrive within hot-acidified and deoxygenated waters', 2017, Vol:7, cited by 113, pages: 2434, Emma F Camp, Matthew R Nitschke, Riccardo Rodolfo-Metalpa, Fanny Houlbreque, Stephanie G Gardner, David J Smith, Marco Zampighi, David J Suggett[21]
'Influence of conservation education dive briefings as a management tool on the timing and nature of recreational SCUBA diving impacts on coral reefs', 2012, Vol:61, pages:30-37, Cited by 132, Emma Camp, Douglas Fraser[22]
'The other microeukaryotes of the coral reef microbiome', 2017, Vol:25, cited by 89, TD Ainsworth, AJ Fordyce, EF Camp[23]
