Emily McLeod 🍉
LightNews LightNews
banner
emilymmcl.bsky.social
Emily McLeod 🍉
@emilymmcl.bsky.social
59 followers 52 following 17 posts
Conservation social scientist at Zoos Victoria • Behaviour change • Connecting people to nature • UQ PhD candidate: responsible wildlife tourism behaviours • she/her 🏳‍🌈 • Views my own

emilymcleod.netlify.app

📍Wurundjeri Country, Naarm/Melbourne
Posts Replies Media Videos
emilymmcl.bsky.social
✨Job opportunity!✨ Are you a social scientist keen to contribute to conservation behaviour change programs and explore ways to get people acting for nature? Then come work with me at Zoos Victoria!

Please share with your networks & reach out with questions!

hcm618.peoplestreme.net/zoosvictoria...
Zoos Victoria eRecruitment System - Social Scientist - Zoos Victoria
This Social Scientist role will design and deliver social research projects to support Zoos Victoria's social research agenda
hcm618.peoplestreme.net
August 6, 2025 at 7:45 AM
Reposted by Emily McLeod 🍉
shandiya.bsky.social
It’s National Tree Day!* 🌴🌳🌲📊

I visualised patterns of records added to the Atlas of Living Australia over the last 50 years as tree rings for 4 iconic Australian species: Mountain Ash, Snow Gum, Moreton Bay Fig, and River Red Gum
#rstats

*well, two days ago but who’s counting
A two-by-two grid with concentric circles of different colours and thicknesses in each, representing numbers of records added to the Atlas of Living Australia over the last 50 years. The rings resemble cross sections of trees, and each is set against a different brightly coloured background.
July 29, 2025 at 7:23 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
Wonderful to share our research at #ICCB2025 showing how promoting captive animal experiences that prioritise animal agency can increase participation intent and positive attitudes towards the venue.
June 20, 2025 at 3:53 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
Appreciated hearing about the role of welfare in conservation at #ICCB2025. @janirecas.bsky.social outlined how to look at wild animal welfare and how its consideration can improve the success of conservation efforts
June 20, 2025 at 3:52 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
With standing room only, @meg-shaw.bsky.social talked us through ways to responsibly increase engagement in wildlife conservation images. My fav tips: avoid human-animal interactions and no need to stick to mammal pics only - similar engagement across a range of taxa!
#ICCB2025
Meg standing next to her title slide with the text "picture this. Using pictures to inspire conservation action" Green forest background, blond white woman taking photo on old school camera in foreground, rainbow lorikeet perched behind her Meg's result slide showing violin plot of engagement rates with various taxa. Some sig differences but no diff between mammals, frogs, birds, molluscs
June 20, 2025 at 3:49 AM
Reposted by Emily McLeod 🍉
brandonswhitley.bsky.social
Fantastic talk by John Woinarski today at #ICCB2025 about mammal conservation & addressing invasive species impact denialism & related discourse. There’s been great philosophical & pragmatic discussions at the conference on this topic, with vast overwhelming support for protecting native species.
June 19, 2025 at 5:09 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
"Extinction is a choice and one we don't have to accept." Arabella Eyre gives us a powerful reminder that 1% of Aust GDP would achieve this and highlights the extensive work undertaken to try to save the Leadbeater's possum

#ICCB2025
Photo of Arabella and her title slide Photo of a leadbeater possum and key lessons
June 17, 2025 at 2:14 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
Fascinating talk from @hollieboothie.bsky.social showing the importance of RCT studies with cross-over design to find the true impact of incentive behav change programs & uncover unintended changes in behaviour that can then inform refinement and improvement of program

#ICCB2025
Slide with bar graphs showing 71% reduction in wedgefish and 4% decrease in hammerhead Slide showing unintended consequences of program. Not as bigger reduction in wedgefish as thought. People seeking them out to release and increase in hammerhead bycatch due to higher mortality post catch
June 17, 2025 at 12:33 AM
Reposted by Emily McLeod 🍉
justineshaw.bsky.social
Amy Coetzee from Zoos Victoria shows the benefits of cat control on small marsupials; Eastern Barred Bandicoots & Long nosed Potoroos on islands. Cat control has commenced on French Island already benefiting threatened species. Here's hoping cat eradication is achieved! #ICCB2025
June 17, 2025 at 12:01 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
Drs Fadu & Olaleru talk of the importance of understanding the social interactions & attitudes of different generations in human-elephant conflicts to create shared solutions

#ICCB2025 #HumanWildlifeConflict
June 16, 2025 at 11:10 PM
Reposted by Emily McLeod 🍉
yungenchee.bsky.social
Got a PhD in Philosophy❓ Expertise in moral philosophy and/or political philosophy❓ Fancy a 0.5FTE research fellow position on the 'Rio Tinto for Future Materials' project at The Australian National University's Research School of Social Sciences❓

Ad👉 www.timeshighereducation.com/unijobs/list...
Excerpt of an ad for a Research Fellow position at The Australian National University's Research School of Social Sciences It reads: "Classification: Academic Level B Salary package: $118,632 to $134,507 per annum plus 17% superannuation (pro-rata) Terms: Part time (0.5 FTE), Fixed term (up to 2 years) Position Description and Selection Criteria: PD&PEWER Level B Rio Tinto Postdoctoral Fellow.pdf • Work collaboratively with Prof Christian Barry, RSSS Director on the Rio Tinto for Future Materials • Contribute to a worldwide project • Part-time position Position overview The Research School of Social Sciences invites applications for a Research Fellow to support the work of Professor Christian Barry on the 'Rio Tinto for Future Materials' project under the supervision of Professor Christian Barry. The project aims to transform the way materials are sourced, processed, used and recycled to make them more environmentally, economically and socially sustainable. The successful applicant will have expertise in moral and/or political philosophy and will be expected to contribute to research in moral philosophy in the School of Philosophy at the ANU, and to contribute to its teaching program. The successful candidate will have a Ph.D. in Philosophy with demonstrated expertise in moral and/or political philosophy with a proven record of publication in leading journals, and in teaching at the undergraduate level. The ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences (CASS) is one of six Colleges at ANU. The College, which is structured into two main research schools, offers degrees in more than 20 discipline areas and excels in research across the creative arts, humanities and social sciences. The College has a substantial international research presence and is a major source of national policy advice. Our academic staff are internationally recognised for their research, and 57 are members of the Australian Academy of the Humanities, the Academy of the Social Sciences of Australia…
June 16, 2025 at 12:45 PM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
For the first time a river has been recognised as a living being. @christinarenowden.bsky.social is looking at how this recognition of the Birrarung is changing people-river relationships.

##ICCB2025
Pic of Birrarung river with the question " if you listened to your local river, what stories would it tell you" Text showing the policy that recognises Birrarung as a living and integrated natural entity
June 16, 2025 at 6:21 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
Follow @footesea.bsky.social steps to increase freq & accuracy of koala citizen science reports: 1. have usable tech, 2. give productive feedback, 3. proactive & hands-on training, 4. foster social opportunities, 5. incentives, 6. collaboration & coordination

#ICCB2025
Image of Liz's upcoming arc research to piloting community engagement and volunteer retention strategies
June 16, 2025 at 4:38 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
Dr Sifan Hu found building children's self-efficacy in education programs was an important component of nature connection and conservation behaviour, and shows us ways to achieve this.

#ICCB2025
June 16, 2025 at 2:43 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
Volunteers are crucial for conservation work but there is a risk of burnout amongst them. @angelasocsci.bsky.social & Tracy Schultz identified the factors associated with greater risk of volunteers leaving & give great recommendations to keep these wonderful people engaged!

#ICCB2025 #ConSocSci
June 16, 2025 at 2:31 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
Love hearing holistic approaches to conservation. Ali Chauvenet shows us how nature-based therapy improves mental well-being (& why conservationists should care about this)

#ICCB2025
June 16, 2025 at 1:57 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
How to improve open science? @shandiya.bsky.social talks us through tools developed by atlas for scientists and orgs to increase sharing and access to biodiversity data

#OpenScience #ICCB2025
Image of Shandiya giving her talk. Front slide of talk shows a data visualisation with title of talk "supporting scientists and decision-makers to us biodiversity data"
June 16, 2025 at 1:23 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
How to chose which species to include in rewilding efforts? Was it there? Will it persist in the landscape? Conflicts with people? Mareshell Wauchope talks us steps us through the decision-making process

#ICCB2025
Slide of a talk showing multiple species to choose from on the left. On the right are the steps Mareshall used: historical analysis, ground truthing field surveys, expert elicitation
June 16, 2025 at 1:19 AM
Reposted by Emily McLeod 🍉
shandiya.bsky.social
It's day 1 of #ICCB2025! Excited to be speaking in the Biodiversity Inventories session this morning at 10.30am - come along if you want to know about tools and resources to support open science research practices 🧪🌏
An image os a slide with the title, author names, and affiliated logos in the foreground. The background is a set of radiating rings from the middle, in different colours
June 15, 2025 at 10:52 PM
Reposted by Emily McLeod 🍉
jacintahumphrey.bsky.social
Are you a fan of urban birds? Keen to know how we can better support native birds in our cities? Come along to my speed talk tomorrow to find out!

* Mon 16 June at 10.30am *
"Sustainable Land and Water Use" in Room M2

#ICCB2025 #Conference #Research #SciComm #Conservation #UrbanEcology #Birds
A screenshot of a PowerPoint slide that reads: "What makes a residential landscape suitable for native birds?". The background is a photo taken looking out over a green urban parkland full of Eucalyptus (gum) trees. In the distance, you can see the city of Melbourne, Australia. Superimposed onto this background are five round photos of native birds including a Laughing Kookaburra, Gang-gang Cockatoo, Spotted Pardalote, Superb Fairy-wren, and an Australian King Parrot.
June 15, 2025 at 6:51 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
Such valuable discussions on the challenges of creating guidelines for all species & contexts! Thanks all! See how we've translated research into practice with our wildlife image guidelines: zoo.org.au/training/animal-welfare

#ICCB2025 #ConSocSci
meg-shaw.bsky.social Meg Shaw @meg-shaw.bsky.social · Jun 15
Kicked off #ICCB2025 with our forum on social media guidelines for conservation. Big thanks to Emily McLeod & Doug Gimesy for sparking thoughtful discussion. Key Qs: Could your post cause harm? If it needs a caption to justify it—should you post it? #ConservationMarketing #ConSocSci
June 15, 2025 at 10:10 PM
Reposted by Emily McLeod 🍉
kristiansn89.bsky.social
🧠🌍 Can you correct misperceptions of the impact of different climate actions?

In a new @pnasnexus.org paper, we tested whether climate action literacy interventions can shift behavioral commitments toward more effective climate actions. Check out our neat results 🙂
academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/ad...
Climate action literacy interventions increase commitments to more effective mitigation behaviors
Abstract. Reducing lifestyle carbon emissions is a critical component of decarbonizing society. However, people hold substantial misperceptions about the r
academic.oup.com
June 11, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Reposted by Emily McLeod 🍉
regulliver.bsky.social
Check out this info to learn more about activism in action - beyond the big groups and big headlines we can see quite a nuanced story.
enviroactivism.bsky.social Environment activism research @enviroactivism.bsky.social · Jun 12
🌿 We mapped 3,100 environmental groups across Australia and discovered something surprising: there was a massive surge in 2005, then... 2019 happened. What do these patterns reveal about how environmental activism really works? The data tells a story beyond the protests. 🧵
Beyond the banners
What 3,100 environmental groups tell us about activism in action
theenvironmentalmovement.substack.com
June 12, 2025 at 3:43 AM
emilymmcl.bsky.social
Excited for all the chats at #ICCB2025! Find me:

➡️Sharing my research on wildlife tourism behaviours on Wed 18 @ 11:35am in the Social Sciences & Conservation session

➡️ Presenting Zoos Victoria’s Image Guidelines at the Designing Social Media Imagery Guidelines for Conservation forum on Sat 14
Image of my title slide for my talk: Responsible Wildlife Tourism Behaviours: what factors influence participation in captive animal encounters? Pic is of two typically adorable meerkats on sentry duty looks up and around. One if standing on a rock, the other in foreground. Logo on the slide are Zoos Victoria and University of Queensland. My co0authors are Kelly Fielding & Angela Dean. I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Custodians of the lands where I live and work.
June 12, 2025 at 12:44 AM