Nicola S. Smith

I am a postdoctoral researcher at Simon Fraser University, BC, Canada. My postdoctoral research focuses on reconstructing the sponge fishery of The Bahamas over the past 180 years with the aim to make the fishery sustainable. I also work on marine invasive species risk analyses. I am an Associate Editor for NeoBiota, a peer-reviewed, open access, online journal where I focus on marine invasions.

I obtained a Hons. B.Sc. with High Distinction from the University of Toronto in 2006, where I double majored in English and Zoology. In 2010, I received a M.Sc. in Zoology from the University of British Columbia while in 2020 I obtained a Ph.D. in Biology from Simon Fraser University.

I have 10 years of experience researching various aspects of biological invasions, coral reef ecology, and data-limited fisheries. I have published several studies on the Indo-Pacific lionfish invasion of the Caribbean and on unreported fisheries catches, particularly in the tropics. I have received numerous awards, including the Bullitt Environmental Prize, a graduate scholarship from the Organization of American States, and a professional development scholarship from the Society for Conservation Biology, Latin America and Caribbean Section. I headed two Global Environment Facility/United Nations Environment Programme (GEF/UNEP) funded projects on invasive species. My first project involved creating a series of pilot experiments to control invasive, Indo-Pacific lionfish in coastal waters of The Bahamas. My second project involved conducting a risk assessment of potential marine invasive species for Barbados and the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States countries.