Dr. Melissa Hart

Biography

Melissa Hart is an Associate Professor in the Climate Change Research Centre at the University of New South Wales. She serves as the Graduate Director for the ARC Centres of Excellence in Climate System Science and Climate Extremes, where she has developed a national, cross-institutional graduate program that reimagines the traditional Australian PhD. This program has provided 160 PhD students with the skills, knowledge, and experience necessary for becoming leaders in climate science research. Her research focuses on the impacts of climate change on urban environments, particularly studying how land-use, surface characteristics, and anthropogenic activities affect urban heating. In addition, she investigates air pollution and its meteorological impacts, especially regarding hazard reduction from prescribed burns. Hart leads the citizen science project SWAQ (Schools Weather Air Quality), which enhances urban weather and air quality measurements in Sydney by placing sensors in schools, allowing students to collect and analyze data as part of their science and geography curriculum. As a strong advocate for gender equity in science, she chairs the equity and diversity committee of the Australian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society and participated in the Homeward Bound Women in STEMM leadership initiative in 2018.

Research Interests

Experience