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University Associate, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania

John Hunter is an oceanographer at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, which is based in the University of Tasmania. His current interests are the sea-level rise induced by climate change, and the response of Antarctic Ice Shelves to global warming. His interest in sea-level rise was initially stimulated in the mid-1990s by his work (with others) on the historic sea-level mark at the Isle of the Dead, Port Arthur, which indicated where sea level was in 1841. This was one of the first such marks struck anywhere in the world for the scientific investigation of sea level. Recent work has involved investigations of sea-level rise in Australia, the U.S., and in the Indian Ocean and Pacific regions, and the way in which this rise increases the frequency and likelihood of flooding events. He has a keen interest in seeing that the science of climate change is accurately communicated, not distorted by the so-called "climate skeptics" and is appropriately incorporated into public policy. He is a member of the independent Climate Tasmania, an expert body set up to replace the Tasmanian Climate Action Council, which was disbanded by the Tasmanian government in 2014.

Experience

  • –present
    University Associate, Antarctic Climate & Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, University of Tasmania