Christina Birnbaum, PhD 🍃
@christinabirnbaum.bsky.social
Senior Lecturer in Terrestrial Ecology @soaes-unisq.bsky.social @unisq.bsky.social | Lead Convenor of @esaplantsoilecol.bsky.social Plant-soil Ecology Special Interest Network | she/her, own views https://sites.google.com/site/birnbaumchristina/home
The Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium is hiring 3 Assistant/Associate Professors lumcon.edu/job/coastal-...
Coastal, Marine, and Oceanographic Science Faculty Positions (Assistant/Associate Professor)
The Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium (LUMCON) for research and education (https://lumcon.edu) seeks to hire at least three (3) additional Assistant/Associate Professors as part of a multi-year...
lumcon.edu
We’ve known each other since high school (!) our paths have diverged and converged and here we are at #ICOM2026 reunited with a best friend and dear colleague Kadri Koorem 🥳
ECR day at #ICOM2026 🌱🍄🟫🦘 Expert insights about how to make it in Mycology with @thecrobe.bsky.social @camilledelavaux.bsky.social @anthomycota.bsky.social @frewecologist.bsky.social @christinabirnbaum.bsky.social & John Dearnaley @icom2026.bsky.social @mycorrhizaims.bsky.social
We are @aussocmic.bsky.social national conference in Melbourne this week and have already spotted some awesome microbial ecology posters! 👀 #conference #microbiology
Congratulations to our research group member Braden Willows who graduated from the BSc of Environmental Science today and is already doing his masters of research with us 🥳🎉🌱 @unisq.bsky.social
Restoring soil and sediment microbiomes in the Anthropocene www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Restoring soil and sediment microbiomes in the Anthropocene - Nature Reviews Microbiology
In this Review, Wood and colleagues discuss how anthropogenic pressures are degrading soil and sediment microbiomes, propose restoration strategies and emphasize the importance of integrating microbio...
nature.com
Did you hear? Abstract submissions are open for @ecolsocaus.bsky.social annual meeting! We are excited to host a symposium: Does one size fit all? Plant-microbe interactions across ecosystems esa2026.org.au @renskejongen.bsky.social @christinabirnbaum.bsky.social Luke Florence Elizabeth Wandrag
Check out our President's @euanritchie.bsky.social tribute to Sir David Attenborough on his 100th birthday in @theconversation.com theconversation.com/from-fossick...
From fossicking for fossils to a champion for life on Earth: Sir David Attenborough at 100
David Attenborough has captured and told the stories of nature to millions of people – and inspired scientists and conservationists the world over.
theconversation.com
🧵5 Top Free Alternatives to BioRender for Scientific Illustrations! These five websites offer free scientific illustrations for biologists. Great for presentations, research papers and other research communication needs. Save and share the post!
Motherhood derails women’s academic careers — these data reveal how and why www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Motherhood derails women’s academic careers — these data reveal how and why
Mothers in academia take on considerably more childcare-related responsibilities than do fathers.
nature.com
Do you live in Toowoomba region and enjoy nature photography? 📷 Then "Nature calls" photography contest is just the thing for you! Ends March 31st. Please see details in the flyer below 👇 @soaes-unisq.bsky.social
Proud to have published this piece with @christinabirnbaum.bsky.social for THE Campus. Check out the article to hear our two cents on why pure writing is just too important to dismiss in this wild west AI landscape in higher education. www.timeshighereducation.com/campus/proce...
‘The process of writing forces the writer to be present’
Writing is hard and uncomfortable, but the craft of turning thoughts into words should not be lost to the frictionless ease of generative AI, write Jackie Webb and Christina Birnbaum
timeshighereducation.com
Happy International Day of Women and Girls in Science 2026 💫 From quad bikes in the Kimberley to driving boats in Louisiana marshes, science has taken me to places where I’ve met some of the most inspiring people, including many awesome women. Curiosity, adventure and discovery is what drives me.
O-week is in full swing and the room is packed @soaes-unisq.bsky.social A/ProfJohn Dearnaley is giving a great overview of teaching and research at the new School of Science, Engineering and Digital Technologies. #fullroom #university #academia
"In this sense, academic publishing rivals the music and film industries. Some publishers report profit margins comparable to tech giants such as Microsoft and Google." The 5 stages of the ‘enshittification’ of academic publishing theconversation.com/the-5-stages...
The 5 stages of the ‘enshittification’ of academic publishing
Academic publishing now shows the same decline that has hit social media and online marketplaces.
theconversation.com
“Emma believed research should be about teamwork rather than personal accolades.” I’m so saddened to hear of Prof Johnston’s passing. She was a true inspiration for women in science and beyond. Gone too soon… Vale Emma Johnston 🕯️ theconversation.com/emma-johnsto...
Emma Johnston was a visionary scientist, environmentalist and leader, with an abiding hope for humanity
The University of Melbourne Vice-Chancellor, who has died aged 52, was driven by a deep love of science and a desire to safeguard the planet’s future.
theconversation.com
These Xmas holidays will look very different with the addition of this cuteness to the family 💜 #puppy
Congratulations to the winners from the Plant-Soil Symposium at the @ecolsocaus.bsky.social conference last week generously sponsored by the @britishecologicalsociety.org. Thank you for supporting the fantastic research being led by these student researchers in plant–soil ecology in Australia! 🧵
Feeling very grateful to have such wonderful people to work with every day @unisq.bsky.social. On the left, Birnbaum ecology group 2025. On the right, word cloud of how we have been feeling this year.☺️
Well done to Genavieve (pictured below on the right) presenting at her first ever scientific conference! Even better when your co-supervisor makes a special trip from Western Australia to support you 🥹 #ESA2025 @esaplantsoilecol.bsky.social
🌳🌿💚 Monday morning good news story! Following strong opposition from local councils & residents, Alcoa has shelved its plans to explore the Perth Hills #jarrah #forests for its #bauxite mining expansion... for now at least. #wildoz #conservation #ozflora #trees www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11...
Alcoa shelves plans to explore Perth Hills for mining expansion
US mining giant Alcoa will withdraw part of its plans to expand its mining operations in the world's only jarrah forests, following community concerns around water security and environmental impacts.
abc.net.au
How good is this poster from our master's student Genavieve Jurd ?! 👇🎉☺️ If you are attending @ecolsocaus.bsky.social conference next week, please support ECRs like Genavieve during the Barbara Rice memorial poster session on Monday evening!
I'm so sad to miss out on this fantastic symposium. Please make sure you check it out and share the insights with us on Bluesky, too! 🍄
ESA Plant-Soil Ecology@esaplantsoilecol.bsky.social · 10mo agoEcological Society of Australia conference is already next week! Our symposium "Functional biodiversity and bold insights from plant-soil ecology" will be on Wed (Nov 26) afternoon 130-530pm. Cracker talks on 🔥❄️⛰️🚱🧬🫧🌿🐮🌾🍄 (did you guess them?!) @ecolsocaus.bsky.social esa2025.org.au
The final version is now available #AmJBot bsapubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
Toward a macroevolutionary understanding of live‐leaf flammability in plant species of fire‐prone forests
Premise The flammability of live leaves in canopies varies considerably among plant species. Identifying macroevolutionary processes that shape variation in leaf flammability contributes to an under.....
bsapubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Most major theories in ecology assume some sort of equilibrium, but only ~half of empirical tests acknowledge it & even fewer observed it in their system. Does this matter? How did the idea become so pervasive in ecology anyway? Find out in our new paper! onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
The Equilibrium Conundrum
Although an assumption of equilibrium dynamics underlies most ecological theory, the evidence for this dynamic in nature and in empirical studies is scarce. This creates an unfortunate disconnect bet...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Monday was spent scouting for new field sites when we stumbled upon this beauty 😍 Dipodium roseum - a saprophytic orchid that does not produce chlorophyll but rather relies on carbon from decaying matter near eucalypt trees.
