Download Stuart Phinn is a Lecturer/Scientist who works at the Department of

Stuart Phinn is a Lecturer/Scientist who works at the Department of Geographica Sciences and
Planning at The University of Queensland.
In which area or areas of science do you work?
Remote sensing, which involves the collection and analysis of images of the earth’s (and other
planets’) atmosphere, surface and water bodies from satellite and airborne platforms. My work is
multi-disciplinary and I commonly conduct projects with other scientists in earth-sciences,
zoology, botany, biology, climatology, meteorology, physics and oceanography, as well as natural
resource managers and planners.
When did you first become interested in this career?
At the start of my university course and at high school when I was fascinated by images of the
earth from space and the ability people had to detect and map ocean features, weather patterns,
minerals, types of forest. At the same time the people involved in these activities were
addressing major environmental problems, conducting both image and work in the field. There was
a good mix of science, technology, resource management and field work in different environments
that really appealed to me. At this stage I also started to work out the more you understand how
different environments function, the more likely you are to make informed decisions on how to
maintain and utilise the environment in a sustainable manner.
What education and training do you have to have for your job?
I have a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in geography from the University of California at Santa
Barbara and San Diego State University (1997) and a Bachelor of Science with honours in
geographical science from the University of Queensland (1991). My science degree was focussed
on geographical science subjects (including remote sensing, geographic information systems,
geomorphology and climatology) with a number of courses in computer science, environmental
physics, statistics and pure mathematics. Honours is an extra year taken to focus on a specific
research project in your area of interest. I focused on establishing the weather systems
responsible for different types of wave conditions and beach changes on the Gold Coast. My Ph.D.
studies were conducted in the U.S. as there were no universities in Australia covering applied
remote sensing and I needed a change of environment. A major part of my Ph.D. was involved in
providing research support for the commercialisation of new remote sensing technologies by
NASA.
How long did it take you to get the necessary qualifications?
Bachelor of Science = 3 years
Honours = 2 years (part-time)
Ph.D. = 5 years (at a U.S. university)
How has your career progressed?
My career has progressed quite rapidly since completing my Ph.D., I was offered two jobs six
months before I finished, so I was straight into lecturing and research when I arrived back in
Australia. Since 1997 I have constructed and taught eight new courses and have acquired
sufficient equipment and expert research assistants to build a high-quality applied remote sensing
program. Since initiating this program we have had continued work for local, state and
commonwealth government agencies, s well as a number of private companies.
What are the tasks that you do in a typical day?
Teaching (preparation of courses, lecturing, conducting practical classes and field work)
Project design and management
Reading the latest scientific and trade journals
Corresponding with colleagues throughout Australia and the rest of the world
Presentation of project results and plans at public and private seminars and workshops
Writing proposals, reports and journal articles
Fieldwork by foot, car, boat or plane in terrestrial and aquatic environments
What skills do you use in your job?
Written, graphic and oral presentation/communication skills
Listening/counselling/advising
Project design and management
Mathematical and statistical analysis
Computer Programming
Personnel management
What do you enjoy most about your job?
My job isn’t really routine and I am free to choose how and what I teach and research. As a
result I am able to focus on what I feel are key environmental monitoring problems and
environments (e.g. urban development in coastal and nearshore areas). I am also interacting with a
highly varied group of people all the time and I get to meet a lot of interesting and exciting people
(scientists, students, etc) in Australia and overseas. Watching people learn and move on to bigger
and better things is also exciting. The travel required for fieldwork is fun (most of the time) and
working in challenging environments (mangroves, coral reefs, etc) is always fun, as is the
integration of technology in all of this.
What is the most exciting aspect of your job?
Fieldwork in lots of different environments (especially tropical environments, wetlands and coral
reefs) combined with a technological focus on airborne and satellite imaging systems which are
changing all the time.
What do you enjoy least about your job?
Marking assessment items, politics, administrative paperwork and administrative meetings.
What are some alternative jobs that you would be qualified for?
Remote sensing scientist
Hyperspectral scientist
Environmental program coordinator
Science writer
Image processing programmer
Environmental consultant
Intelligence analyst
Geomorphologist/Cimatologist
Project coordinator
What are some of the advantages to working in this field?
Flexibility to choose what to work on, who to work with and where to work.
What are some of the disadvantages to working in this field?
The hours worked aren’t fixed, so it can take up a lot of your time.
How has your work contributed to science?
Developed a technique enabling the condition and dynamics of restored wetlands and other
environments to be monitored from airborne and satellite imaging systems.
Established how wetlands can be monitored from the current and next generation of satellite
imaging sensors.
Established a link between El-Nino/La-Nina events and wave conditions along the coast of eastern
Australia, enabling periods above/below-average wave power (beach erosion) to be predicted.
How has your work benefited society?
Increased the ability for society to be provided with a realistic assessment of the condition of a
restored environment or of a wetland environment from remotely sensed data from local to global
scales.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?
With an established teaching and research program in applied remote sensing, filling the "gap"
that forced me to pursue my Ph.D. in the United States. This program will provide a
comprehensive introduction and advanced courses on the correct application to monitoring
environmental conditions from local to global scales. We will also be conducting research for major
private companies adopting remote sensing technologies and providing advice and highly skilled
graduates to various government departments for applied remote sensing. In short, we will have
established Australia further as a world leader in remote sensing development, teaching and
applications.