Dinh Khanh Le

PhD details

Proposed Topic: Valuing beaches and coastlines to improve coastal management

Supervisors: A/Prof. Abbie Rogers & A/Prof. Michael Burton

Proposed submission date: May, 2024.

Contact Details

Phone: +61 (0)423 717 068

Email: dinhkhanh.le@research.uwa.edu.au 

Dinh Khanh Le is currently a PhD candidate in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the UWA School of Agriculture and Environment. Khanh has been working in the areas of agriculture, natural resources, and the environment. His focus is on developing and analysing policies that support inclusive and sustainable economic development.

Khanh’s research focuses on studying the role of non-market valuations in decision-making process of coastal erosion management.

Key skills:

Cost-benefit analysis, discrete choice experiments and modelling, questionnaire/ survey design, value chain analysis.

Areas of application:

Project appraisal, behaviour and experimental economics, non-market valuations, agricultural and environmental economic policy.

Awards:

Australia Awards Scholarships in 2018 for Master of Global Food and Agricultural Business at the University of Adelaide.

The best research project award in 2020 from the Centre for Global Food and Resources, the University of Adelaide.

Scholarship for International Research Fees in 2023, The University of Western Australia.

PhD scholarship from the ARC Discovery project titled “Benefits and costs of non-market valuation for environment management”.

Dinah Yunitawati

PhD details

Proposed Topic: Stakeholders Interactions in Transboundary Maritime Cooperation: A Case Study of the Arafura and Timor Seas.

Supervisors: Dr Natasha Pauli & Dr Tai Loureiro

External Supervisors: Dr Carmen Elrick-Barr & Dr Julian Clifton

Proposed submission date: Feb, 2027.

Contact Details

Phone: +61 (0)434 173 049

Email: dinah.yunitawati@research.uwa.edu.au  

Dinah Yunitawati is currently a PhD candidate at the UWA School of Agriculture and Environment. Dinah has been working in the areas of marine planning and policy, ocean governance, and community development.

Dinah's research focuses on studying the interactions among various stakeholders in multiple jurisdictions and how they can influence the process of transboundary cooperation on marine planning and management.t.

Key skills:

Stakeholder and power analysis, policy analysis, multi-stakeholder engagement, semi-structured interview techniques, and participatory mapping activities.

Areas of application:

Marine and coastal spatial planning, marine conservation, ocean governance, regional partnership, transboundary cooperation.

Awards:

Australia Awards Scholarship for Master of Environmental Science, the University of Western Australia, 2012-2013

Australia Awards Scholarship for PhD program, the University of Western Australia, 2023-2027

The 2024 Robson and Robertson Awards

Academic Publications:

Yunitawati, D., & Clifton, J. (2021). Governance in the early stages of marine protected area development: A case study of Nusa Penida District Marine Conservation Area, Indonesia. Marine Policy, 127, 103653.

Yunitawati, D., & Clifton, J. (2019). Nusa Penida MPA, Indonesia. In: Enabling Effective and Equitable Marine Protected Areas – guidance on combining governance approaches, eds PJS Jones, RH Murray, O Vestergaard. United Nations Environment Programme, Nairobi pp 116-119.

Daniel Martinez Felip

PhD details

Proposed Topic: Social Norms, Financial Incentives, and the Long-Term Persistence of Environmental Actions.

Supervisors: A/Prof. Steven Schilizzi, Prof. David Pannell, Dr. Chi, Nguyen.

External supervisors: Dr. Uwe Latacz-Lohmann, Prof. Erik Kimbrough, Dr. Alexander Vostroknutov

Proposed submission date: February, 2026.

Contact Details

Phone: +61 424598307

Email: daniel.martinezfelip@research.uwa.edu.au

UWA Profile: Daniel Martinez Felip

Daniel Martinez Felip is currently a PhD candidate in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the UWA School of Agriculture and Environment. Daniel is interested in the economics and underpinnings of voluntary cooperation, and the effectiveness of social incentives as a lever for aligning personal interests with collective interests.

Daniel's research focuses on studying the role of social norms in enhancing the effects of financial incentives on cooperative behaviour and how social norm enforcement mechanisms should be designed to trigger cooperative normative change.

Key skills:

Experimental design, oTree programming, statistical and data analysis, causal inference, impact assessment.

Areas of application:

Behavioural and experimental economics, collective action problems, environmental policy, climate change.

Awards:

Scholarship for International Research Fees, The University of Western Australia.

PhD Scholarship from the ARC Discovery project titled “Redesigning Landcare policy to better coordinate land conservation across landholders”.

Awarded with a predoctoral contract grant (FPI 2022) at Loyola University Andalusia, Spain. Public call and competitive concurrence regime. Project: PID2021-126892NB-I00

Academic excellence award, Jaume I University, Spain.

Emma Scaife 

PhD details

Proposed Topic: Increasing urban forest on private land: a mixed methods investigation of regulatory mechanisms in Australia.

Supervisors: A/Prof. Ram Pandit & Prof. Alex Gardner

External supervisors: Dr Stephen Willey

Proposed submission date: July, 2026.

Contact Details

Phone: +61 8 6488 6000 

Email: emma.scaife@research.uwa.edu.au  

Emma Scaife is currently a PhD candidate in the UWA School of Agriculture and Environment and the UWA School of Law. Emma's cross-disciplinary research project aims to help increase canopy cover on private urban land in Australia. 

Emma holds a Bachelor of Laws (UWA) and a Master of Environmental Management (ECU). She trained as a lawyer in Perth and worked as a commercial litigation lawyer in Australia and the UK for several years before deciding to focus on helping environmental causes. Emma's environmental volunteer work has included work for The Woodland Trust (UK) and the Environmental Defenders Office (WA). In addition to her current PhD research, Emma is also a volunteer Board Advisor to Nature Conservation Margaret River Region. 

Key skills:

Legal analysis and research; legal and policy problem-solving; negotiation and communication; environmental regulatory understanding and analysis; cross-discipline collaboration.

Areas of application:

Environmental law and policy; environmental advocacy; environmental regulation and compliance; natural resource management; international environmental agreements.

Awards:

Bluebell Award for Best Guardian of Woods and Trees (2015) The Woodland Trust, UK                            

School of Science Executive Dean’s List for Academic Excellence (2021) Edith Cowan University

Biologic Environmental Survey Prize for Best Postgraduate Coursework Student (2021) Edith Cowan University

Troforte Innovation Prize for Best Environmental Management Project (2021) Edith Cowan University

Academic Publications:

Scaife, E. (2024) Urban tree protection on private land : A review of regulatory mechanisms in Australia. Manuscript in preparation.

Chuanji Yong

PhD details

Proposed Topic: The optimal level of uncertainty in costs and benefits of conservation decision making.

Supervisors: David Pannell and Abbie Rogers

External supervisors: Md Sayed Iftekhar, James Watson and Josie Carwardine

Proposed submission date: December, 2025.

Contact Details

Phone: +61 (0)405 083 581

Email: cj.yong@research.uwa.edu.au

UWA Profile: Chuanji Yong

Chuanji Yong (CJ) is currently a PhD candidate in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the UWA School of Agriculture and Environment. His PhD focuses on the uncertainty that underpins conservation decision-making, with a spotlight on the threatened species management on Norfolk Island.

CJ aspires to incorporate ecology, economics and mathematical modelling in the applied conservation field. He is currently working closely with Norfolk Island stakeholders and research groups to improve the conservation outcomes on the island. When not working, he is often out exploring trails and/or eating croissants!

Key skills:

Modelling, analytics, questionnaire/survey design and result analysis, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and research assistance.

Areas of application:

Decision making, threatened species, island ecosystems

Awards:

PhD Scholarship from the ARC Discovery project titled “The benefits and costs of non-market valuation for environmental management”.

PhD scholarship top up and support funds from the NESP Resilient Landscape Hub.

Academic Publications:

Yong, C., Ward, M., Watson, J. E. M., Reside, A. E., van Leeuwen, S., Legge, S., Geary, W. L., Lintermans, M., Kennard, M. J., Stuart, S., & Carwardine, J. (2023). The costs of managing key threats to Australia's biodiversity. Journal of Applied Ecology, 60(5), 898-910.

Watson, J., Simmonds, J., Ward, M., Yong, C. J., Reside, A. E., Possingham, H. P., Rogers, A., & Carwardine, J. (2022). Communicating the true challenges of saving species: response to Wiedenfeld et al. Conservation Biology, 36(4), Article e13961.

Ward, M., Carwardine, J., Watson, J. E. M., Pintor, A., Stuart, S., Possingham, H. P., Rhodes, J., Carey, A. R., Auerbach, N., Reside, A., Yong, C. J., & Tulloch, A. (2022). How to prioritize species recovery after a megafire. Conservation Biology, 36(5), Article e13936.

Dudaniec, R. Y., Carey, A. R., Svensson, E. I., Hansson, B., Yong, C. J., & Lancaster, L. T. (2022). Latitudinal clines in sexual selection, sexual size dimorphism and sex-specific genetic dispersal during a poleward range expansion. Journal of Animal Ecology, 91(6), 1104-1118.

Ward, M., Tulloch, A., Stewart, R., Possingham, H. P., Legge, S., Gallagher, R., Graham, E. M., Southwell, D., Keith, D., Dixon, K., Yong, C., Carwardine, J., Cronin, T., Reside, A. E., & Watson, J. E. M. (2022). Restoring habitat for fire-impacted species' across degraded Australian landscapes. Environmental Research Letters, 17(8), Article 084036.

Ward, M., Carwardine, J., Yong, C. J., Watson, J. E. M., Silcock, J., Taylor, G. S., Lintermans, M., Gillespie, G. R., Garnett, S. T., Woinarski, J., Tingley, R., Fensham, R. J., Hoskin, C. J., Hines, H. B., Roberts, J. D., Kennard, M. J., Harvey, M. S., Chapple, D. G., & Reside, A. E. (2021). A national-scale dataset for threats impacting Australia’s imperiled flora and fauna. Ecology and Evolution, 11(17), 11749-11761.

Yong, C. (2019). X-linked and sex-specific selection during a climate mediated range-expansion in a damselfly. [Masters by Research Thesis, Macquarie University].

Dudaniec, R. Y., Yong, C. J., Lancaster, L. T., Svensson, E., & Hansson, B. (2018). Signatures of local adaptation along environmental gradients in a range-expanding damselfly (Ischnura elegans). Molecular Ecology, 27(11), 2576-2593.

Gede Agus Ariutama

PhD details

Proposed Topic: Household Solid Waste Behaviour and Practices: A Case of Indonesia

Supervisors: A/Prof. Ram Pandit and A/Prof. Ben White

Proposed submission date: May, 2027.

Contact details

Email: agus.ariutama@research.uwa.edu.au

Agus Ariutama is currently a PhD candidate in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Western Australia (UWA). His research focuses on resource economics and policy, specifically on waste management and rural development.

Agus graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Education from Sanata Dharma University in 2007. After winning a JICA Scholarship in 2012, he went to the International University of Japan to pursue a Master’s degree in Public Management and Policy Analysis. As a part of Master’s thesis, he conducted research in analysing the impact of human relations and working environment on employees’ performance in Indonesia.

Key skills:

Input output modelling, questionnaire/survey design and analysis, gravity model

Areas of application:

Waste and resource management, and rural development and policy

Academic Publications:

Arifin, B., Wicaksono, E., Tenrini, R. H., Wardhana, I. W., Setiawan, H., Damayanty, S. A., ... & Handoko, R. (2020). Village fund, village-owned-enterprises, and employment: Evidence from Indonesia. Journal of Rural Studies, 79, 382-394.

Ariutama, I. G. A., Fadlillah, Y. A. R., & Saputra, A. H. (2020). Measurement and determinants of inclusive growth in Papua. International Journal of Innovation, Creativity and Change, 12(4).

Sulaeman, A. S., Saputra, A. H., & Ariutama, I. G. A. (2020). Does isomorphic pressure matter? Indonesia’s policy on disaster risk finance. International Journal of Scientific and Technology Research, 9(2).

Ariutama, I. G. A., & Fahmi, A. (2019). Inclusive Growth, Educational Attainment and Morbidity Rate in Papua Province. Economics Development Analysis Journal, 8(1), 54-64.

Ervinda, M. Y. D., & Ariutama, I. G. A. (2022). Economic Interdependence of Indonesia in Global Value Chain: An Analysis of Multiregional Input-Output. JEJAK, 15(1), 151-164.

Tirtana, A., & Ariutama, I. G. A. (2022). The effect of cigarette prices and income on cigarettes consumption and state revenue: Case study of 33 provinces in Indonesia. Jurnal Ekonomi dan Bisnis, 25(1), 137-152.

Siahaan, M. R. F. B., & Ariutama, I. G. A. (2021). The Impact of Regional FTA on Export of Manufactured Goods: The Implementation of Gravity Model in Indonesia. Jurnal Ekonomi dan Studi Pembangunan, 13(2), 100-111.

Alfian Massagony

PhD details

Proposed Topic: Understanding Indonesian Energy Policy and Household Energy Consumption.

Supervisors: A/Prof. Ben White & A/Prof. Ram Pandit

Proposed submission date:

Contact Details

Phone: +61 (0)493 700 773

Email: alfian.massagony@research.uwa.edu.au

UWA Profile: Alfian Massagony

Alfian Massagony is currently a PhD candidate in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the UWA School of Agriculture and Environment. His research interests include climate change, environmental economics, and energy policy.

Currently, Alfian is working on a research project that aims to explore energy policy and household energy consumption in Indonesia.

Key skills:

Policy evaluation, socio-economic analysis.

Areas of application:

Environmental economics and policy, energy policy.

Awards:

Indonesia Endowment Funds for Education-Ministry of Finance.

Academic Publications:

Massagony, A., Ho, T. T., & Shimada, K. (2023). Climate change impact and adaptation policy effectiveness on rice production in Indonesia. International Journal of Environmental Studies, 80(5), 1373-1390.

Massagony, A., & Budiono (2023). Is the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis valid on CO2 emissions in Indonesia? International Journal of Environmental Studies, 80(1), 20-31.

Jemma Thévenau (née Turner)

PhD details

Supervisors: A/Prof. Abbie Rogers

Proposed submission date: May 2027

Contact Details

Email: jem.thevenau@research.uwa.edu.au

UWA Profile: 

Jem Thévenau (née Turner) is currently a PhD candidate in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the UWA School of Agriculture and Environment. Her PhD focuses on taking a systems-approach to understanding what drives fisheries non-compliance, specifically in less-economically developed contexts.

Prior to commencing her PhD at UWA in May 2024, Jem coordinated a team of researchers conducting interdisciplinary research on fisheries sustainability at Minderoo Foundation. Before this, she worked as an Expedition Leader and Research Assistant at UWA, partaking in 11 expeditions across the Pacific and Indian Ocean regions.

Jem is an advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion in research and the workplace, striving to support and create opportunities for under- or mis-represented perspectives and experiences to be shared.

Key skills:

Questionnaire design, interdisciplinary research, partner/relationship management.

Areas of application:

Natural resource management, marine conservation, sustainable and equitable fisheries governance

Awards:

Ernest Hodgkin Memorial Prize in Marine Science (2016)

Academic Publications:

Spijkers J, Mackay M, Turner J, McNeill A, Travaille K and Wilcox C (2022) Diversity of global fisheries governance: Types and contexts. Fish and Fisheries 24: 111-125. https://doi.org/10.1111/faf.12713

Minderoo Foundation (2021) The Global Fishing Index: Assessing the sustainability of the world’s marine fisheries. Perth. Western Australia, 60pp. Authors: Thomas Travaille K, McNeill A, Santana Garcon J, Turner J, Cundy M, McLennan A, Purnomosakti A, Summers V, David F and Worby T.

Letessier TB, Mouillot D, Bouchet PJ, Vigliola L, Fernandes MC, Thompson C, Boussarie G, Turner J, Juhel JB, Maire E, Caley MJ, Koldewey HJ, Friedlander A, Sala E and Meeuwig J (2019) Correction: Remote reefs and seamounts are the last refuges for marine predators across the Indo-Pacific. PLOS Biology 17(9): e3000489. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3000489