Dr Claudia Benham is an environmental social scientist working on coastal and marine ecosystems. Her research examines the intersections between environmental change, resource development, human wellbeing and governance in coastal regions of northern Australia and the Pacific. As part of this, her work examines the processes and outcomes of environmental governance in these settings, including deliberative and community-based approaches. Claudia has an interdisciplinary background in the social and ecological sciences, and brings this perspective to bear on her work. She previously worked for the UQ Global Change Institute and the Australian Department of Environment.
Keywords: Public policy; Seagrasses; Gender; Unconventional gas; Great Barrier Reef
Journal Article: What role do social-ecological factors play in ecological grief?: Insights from a global scoping review
Benham, Claudia and Hoerst, Doortje (2023). What role do social-ecological factors play in ecological grief?: Insights from a global scoping review. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 93 102184, 102184. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvp.2023.102184
Book Chapter: Impact geographies of gas terminal development in the northern Australian context: insights from Gladstone and Darwin
Benham, Claudia F. (2022). Impact geographies of gas terminal development in the northern Australian context: insights from Gladstone and Darwin. Public responses to fossil fuel export: exporting energy and emissions in a time of transition. (pp. 195-208) edited by Hilary Boudet and Shawn Hazboun. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-824046-5.00009-6
Other Outputs: Stewardship for the Great Barrier Reef
Hobman, Elizabeth V., Stone-Jovicich, Samantha, Schultz, Tracy, McLean, Kirsten, Benham Claudia, Jones, Natalie and Dean, Angela (2022). Stewardship for the Great Barrier Reef. Brisbane, QLD, Australia: CSIRO. doi: 10.25919/en5v-xm34
Ecological grief, wellbeing and resilience in the Great Barrier Reef
(2022–2026) ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award
(2022–2024) Great Barrier Reef Foundation
Mapping social values and activities of recreational motor vessel users in Moreton Bay
(2022–2023) The Moreton Bay Foundation Members Projects
Evaluating transboundary environmental impacts on endangered marine migratory species using an agent-based framework
Doctor Philosophy
Ecosystem-based Adaptation to Climate Change in Tuvalu
Doctor Philosophy
Use of interactive technology in captive great ape management
(2022) Master Philosophy
Benham, Claudia F. (2022). Impact geographies of gas terminal development in the northern Australian context: insights from Gladstone and Darwin. Public responses to fossil fuel export: exporting energy and emissions in a time of transition. (pp. 195-208) edited by Hilary Boudet and Shawn Hazboun. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-824046-5.00009-6
Plastic pollution in the coastal environment: current challenges and future solutions
Critchell, K., Bauer-Civiello, A., Benham, C., Berry, K., Eagle, L., Hamann, M., Hussey, K. and Ridgway, T. (2019). Plastic pollution in the coastal environment: current challenges and future solutions. Coasts and estuaries: the future. (pp. 595-609) edited by Eric Wolanski, John W. Day, Michael Elliott and Ramesh Ramachandran. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-814003-1.00034-4
Plastic pollution in the coastal environment: current challenges and future solutions
Critchell, K., Bauer-Civiello, A., Benham, C., Berry, K., Eagle, L., Hamann, M., Hussey, K. and Ridgway, T. (2019). Plastic pollution in the coastal environment: current challenges and future solutions. Coasts and estuaries: the future. (pp. 595-609) edited by Eric Wolanski, John W. Day, Michael Elliott and Ramesh Ramachandran. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/b978-0-12-814003-1.00034-4
Benham, Claudia and Hoerst, Doortje (2023). What role do social-ecological factors play in ecological grief?: Insights from a global scoping review. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 93 102184, 102184. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvp.2023.102184
Shum, Edith, Benham, Claudia, Jones, Karina and Ariel, Ellen (2021). Understanding people who volunteer with marine turtles: motives and values for engagement in conservation. Human Dimensions of Wildlife, 28 (3), 1-19. doi: 10.1080/10871209.2021.2018737
Restoration of marine ecosystems: understanding possible futures for optimal outcomes
Sheaves, M., Waltham, N. J., Benham, C., Bradley, M., Mattone, C., Diedrich, A., Sheaves, J., Sheaves, A., Hernandez, S., Dale, P., Banhalmi-Zakar, Z. and Newlands, M. (2021). Restoration of marine ecosystems: understanding possible futures for optimal outcomes. Science of the Total Environment, 796 148845, 148845. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.148845
What drives modern protected area establishment in Australia?
Hernandez, Stephanie, Benham, Claudia, Miller, Rachel L., Sheaves, Marcus and Duce, Stephanie (2021). What drives modern protected area establishment in Australia?. Conservation Science and Practice, 3 (10) e501. doi: 10.1111/csp2.501
Sheaves, Marcus, Abrantes, Katya, Barnett, Adam, Benham, Claudia, Dale, Patricia, Mattone, Carlo, Sheaves, Alison, Waltham, Nathan and Bradley, Michael (2020). The consequences of paradigm change and poorly validated science: the example of the value of mangroves to fisheries. Fish and Fisheries, 21 (5) faf.12479, 1067-1075. doi: 10.1111/faf.12479
Stakeholder engagement in the governance of marine migratory species: barriers and building blocks
Miller, Rachel Lynn, Marsh, Helene, Benham, Claudia and Hamann, Mark (2020). Stakeholder engagement in the governance of marine migratory species: barriers and building blocks. Endangered Species Research, 43, 1-19. doi: 10.3354/esr01049
A Word from the New Book Review Editors
Benham, Claudia F. and Verbrugge, Laura N. H. (2019). A Word from the New Book Review Editors. Society and Natural Resources, 33 (3), 307-308. doi: 10.1080/08941920.2019.1699295
A framework for improving the cross‐jurisdictional governance of a marine migratory species
Miller, Rachel L., Marsh, Helene, Benham, Claudia and Hamann, Mark (2019). A framework for improving the cross‐jurisdictional governance of a marine migratory species. Conservation Science and Practice, 1 (8) e58, e58. doi: 10.1111/csp2.58
Diedrich, Amy, Benham, Claudia, Pandihau, Lina and Sheaves, Marcus (2019). Social capital plays a central role in transitions to sportfishing tourism in small-scale fishing communities in Papua New Guinea. Ambio, 48 (4), 385-396. doi: 10.1007/s13280-018-1081-4
Benham, Claudia F., Beavis, Sara G. and Jackson, Emma L. (2019). Tolerance of tropical seagrasses Zostera muelleri and Halophila ovalis to burial: Toward an understanding of threshold effects. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 218, 131-138. doi: 10.1016/j.ecss.2018.11.005
Marshall, Nadine, Adger, William Neil, Benham, Claudia, Brown, Katrina, Curnock, Matthew I., Gurney, Georgina G., Marshall, Paul, Pert, Petina L. and Thiault, Lauric (2019). Reef Grief: investigating the relationship between place meanings and place change on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Sustainability Science, 14 (3), 579-587. doi: 10.1007/s11625-019-00666-z
Our environmental value orientations influence how we respond to climate change
Marshall, Nadine A., Thiault, Lauric, Beeden, Ally, Beeden, Roger, Benham, Claudia, Curnock, Matt I., Diedrich, Amy, Gurney, Georgina, Jones, Lindsey and Marshall, Paul A. (2019). Our environmental value orientations influence how we respond to climate change. Frontiers in Psychology, 10 (APR) 938. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00938
Benham, Claudia F. and Hussey, Karen E. (2018). Mainstreaming deliberative principles in Environmental Impact Assessment: current practice and future prospects in the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Environmental Science and Policy, 89, 176-183. doi: 10.1016/j.envsci.2018.07.018
Benham, Claudia F. (2017). Aligning public participation with local environmental knowledge in complex marine social-ecological systems. Marine Policy, 82, 16-24. doi: 10.1016/j.marpol.2017.04.003
Benham, Claudia F. (2017). Understanding local community attitudes toward industrial development in the Great Barrier Reef region World Heritage Area: are environmental impacts perceived to overshadow economic benefits?. Natural Resources Forum, 41 (1), 42-54. doi: 10.1111/1477-8947.12112
Benham, Claudia F., Beavis, Sara G., Hendry, Rebecca A. and Jackson, Emma L. (2016). Growth effects of shading and sedimentation in two tropical seagrass species: implications for port management and impact assessment. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 109 (1), 461-470. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2016.05.027
Benham, Claudia F. and Daniell, Katherine A. (2016). Putting transdisciplinary research into practice: a participatory approach to understanding change in coastal social-ecological systems. Ocean and Coastal Management, 128, 29-39. doi: 10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2016.04.005
Benham, Claudia (2016). Change, opportunity and grief: understanding the complex social-ecological impacts of Liquefied Natural Gas development in the Australian coastal zone. Energy Research and Social Science, 14, 61-70. doi: 10.1016/j.erss.2016.01.006
Benham, C. F., Beavis, S. G. and Hussey, K. (2015). The cost of collaboration: how 'Caring for our Country' has shaped regional Natural Resource Management in Australia. Australasian Journal of Environmental Management, 22 (3), 285-297. doi: 10.1080/14486563.2014.976847
Planning for Success: Collaborative water management and planning in an Australian river catchment
Benham, C. F., Hussey, K. and Beavis, S. (2014). Planning for Success: Collaborative water management and planning in an Australian river catchment. Australian Journal of Water Resources, 18 (1), 1-14. doi: 10.7158/W13-027.2014.18.1
Politics of innovation and the spirit of justice
Daniell, Katherine A., Nabavi, Ehsan and Benham, Claudia F. (2017). Politics of innovation and the spirit of justice. Workshop on Justice, Fairness and Equity in Natural Resource Management, Canberra Australia, 12-13 October 2015. Clayton South, VIC Australia: CSIRO Publishing.
Stewardship for the Great Barrier Reef
Hobman, Elizabeth V., Stone-Jovicich, Samantha, Schultz, Tracy, McLean, Kirsten, Benham Claudia, Jones, Natalie and Dean, Angela (2022). Stewardship for the Great Barrier Reef. Brisbane, QLD, Australia: CSIRO. doi: 10.25919/en5v-xm34
Ecological grief, wellbeing and resilience in the Great Barrier Reef
(2022–2026) ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award
(2022–2024) Great Barrier Reef Foundation
Mapping social values and activities of recreational motor vessel users in Moreton Bay
(2022–2023) The Moreton Bay Foundation Members Projects
Evaluating transboundary environmental impacts on endangered marine migratory species using an agent-based framework
Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor
Other advisors:
Ecosystem-based Adaptation to Climate Change in Tuvalu
Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor
Other advisors:
Use of interactive technology in captive great ape management
(2022) Master Philosophy — Associate Advisor
Other advisors: