A seriously dedicated team of staff and advisors support the amazing work of our volunteers. These are the folks behind the scenes helping to ensure that the citizen science program Reef Check Australia conducts is of the highest quality, making it possible for us to continue achieving great outcomes for people and the reef.
Staff
Jodi Salmond
General Manager
Jodi is a marine scientist, award-winning entrepreneur and community leader with more than two decades of experience in reef conservation, citizen science and environmental education. She brings a unique blend of scientific expertise, hands-on field leadership and people-centred innovation to her role as General Manager of Reef Check Australia.
Her career spans field research, program design, volunteer training and large-scale community engagement, with a particular focus on empowering everyday people to become informed ocean stewards. Jodi has led reef health monitoring throughout Queensland, developed school education programs, expanded community outreach, and strengthened partnerships across science, government and local coastal communities.
Named the 2024 Sunshine Coast Business Women’s Network Sustainability Award Winner, Jodi is also an alumna of the Homeward Bound Leadership Program (Cohort 5) and was originally brought into the organisation through a competitive placement with the Vodafone World of Difference Program.
Her leadership style blends authenticity, collaboration and playfulness - whether she’s coordinating fieldwork, fostering community connection, or training the next generation of surveyors. Known for her adventurous spirit and creative problem-solving, Jodi leads by example, getting in the water, on the ground, and among the community to make meaningful impact happen.
Deb Duggan
Team Leader; Whitsundays
Deb is a long-term Whitsundays local with more than 30 years of hands-on experience in marine conservation. She began volunteering in 1994 on projects ranging from seabird and shorebird surveys to humpback whale monitoring, marine turtle tagging and seagrass assessments through Coastcare programs.
With a strong maritime background, Deb has spent much of her career working with commercial operators across the region. In a previous role, she managed a team conducting Reef Health Surveys for GBRMPA as part of the Tourism Industry Activation and Reef Protection Initiative. A Coral Watch trip to Heron Island further cemented her passion for citizen science and its ability to connect and empower communities.
Work might compete for her time, but Deb continues to volunteer whenever she can - and she remains committed to inspiring others to get out there, learn, and contribute. She firmly believes everyone can make a difference.
Jenni Calcraft
Team Leader - (Casual hours)
Jenni started volunteering with Reef Check Australia in 2014 as a core diver with the University of Queensland Underwater Club’s Point Lookout and Flinders Reef Ecological Assessment projects using RCA methodology. After being inspired by citizen science, she gained an ADAS diver qualification, Divemaster certification and completed an MSc in Marine Biology degree at JCU which helped her transition from working in Human Resources into the Marine Sciences.
She has worked as a diver, dive supervisor and trip team leader for various projects at UQ, JCU, GBRMPA, Pacific Marine Group and Reef Check Australia focusing on coral reef and reef fish surveys, reef fish parasites, invasive crown of thorns starfish and aquarium health. She is currently the Science and Diving Officer at JCU’s Orpheus Island Research Station and Acting Station Manager for the first half of 2023 in addition to being a Team Leader with Reef Check Australia in the Great Barrier Reef region. She is always looking forward to empowering others to save our reefs and oceans, just like RCA did for her all those years ago.
Michelle Triana
Graphic Designer (Volunteer)
Michelle Triana is a "design-a-holic" who lives and breathes design. Her role is to communicate thoughts, ideas and feelings into digital expressions- no easy task! She started her career in Colombia in 2004 when she started helping local music bands promote themselves both locally and abroad. In 2007 Michelle moved to Australia to follow her dream of becoming a designer and currently works as a volunteer for Reef Check Australia assisting in the area of design. She is the force behind many of our awesome infographics!
Board of Directors
Board role
The fundamental role and duty of directors of a charitable organisation is to ensure the objectives of the company, as set out in the constitution, are pursued. Our volunteer Board of Directors helps to set the objectives and overall direction of the company, including monitoring performance indicators across all areas of company business.
Fiona Austin
Board Director and Secretary
Qualifications:
Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Laws with Honours, James Cook University
Graduate Certificate OHS Management, Curtin University of Technology, MAICD
Experience:
Fiona is a Brisbane lawyer. She has extensive industry experience across onshore and offshore workplaces around Australia and works as counsel in the disputes team for a leading law firm. Fiona has previously lectured as a sessional academic within the faculty of health at Queensland University of Technology.
Alister Morrison
Board Director
Qualifications:
Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD)
Australian Certified Economic Developer (ACEcD)
Master of Science (Applied Geophysics) from University of Birmingham, UK
Bachelor of Science (Hons) (Geology) from University of Birmingham, UK
Experience:
Alister is a passionate senior executive, and board and committee professional, with significant international experience across energy, natural resources, sustainability, early-stage technology commercialisation, health, security, government, and academia sectors, including leadership. He has a proven track record of adaptability, working with small, medium, and large organisations including start-ups, listed companies, government sectors, and not-for-profits (NFPs), delivering projects, raising and managing capital, building and managing high performance teams and stakeholder relationships, developing people, designing and executing strategies, driving growth, implementing transformation and change, and practicing strong governance.
Alister commenced his career as an offshore marine geophysicist spending time on scientific survey vessels, before transitioning to more commercial, strategic and operational management career roles.
Alister is passionate about the environment, technology, and regional economic development. He has extensive global experience and has delivered value and impact for a broad range of stakeholders.
Jann Crase
Board Director
Qualifications:
Bachelor of Law, James Cook University
Bachelor of Science (Botany, Environmental Science & Tropical Geography), James Cook University
Experience:
Jann Crase is a strategic leader with specialist advocacy, policy and stakeholder engagement expertise developed from more than two decades working across northern Australia in diverse roles and across sectors encompassing conservation, Indigenous land and sea management, regional development, infrastructure investment and Indigenous economic development. Based in Cairns, Jann is currently consulting on remote Indigenous enterprise development in northern Australia. She brings corporate governance, funding and partnerships expertise to the RCA Board
Science Commitee
Committee Role
The purpose of the volunteer Science Committee is to provide scientific advice and capacity to enable Reef Check Australia to deliver best-practice citizen science outcomes. This may include: reviewing and facilitating the interpretation and application of Reef Check Australia data, providing advice on matters of scientific interest, supporting research and management linkages and enabling effective science communication approaches.
Dr Chris Roelfsema
Chris Roelfsema is scientist/lecturer at University of Queensland since 1998. His research focuses on integrating field and remote sensing satellite or airborne imagery to study coral reef and seagrass environments. As a result, he gained knowledge and skills in: marine biology; identification of coral, seagrass, algae, and inverts; and various marine surveying methods and developed techniques for gathering georeferenced photos of bottom types.
For the research he mapped or monitored rocky reefs, seagrass and coral reefs in: Australia (e.g. Moreton Bay Marine Park, Wolf Rock, Heron Reef, Lizard, Swains, Coral Sea), and Asia Pacific (e.g. Fiji, Cook Island, Solomon's, Palau). Chris has various degrees: BsC hydrographic surveying, MsC Geodetic Engineer, PgDip Marine Science and PhD in coral reef remote sensing. Since 1981 he has been an active diver, and has trained people in all kinds of diving and first aid skills. He has trained people in various marine surveying methods, organised volunteer based marine monitoring projects, is active supporter of Reef Check and CoralWatch, and is Reef Check trainer since 2010.
Dr Marie-Lise Schläppy
Marie-Lise Schläppy has been part of the RCA team since 2009, when she was the Science Operations Manager. Since that time, Marie-Lise has continued to support publications and conference presentations to share RCA findings.
Marie-Lise is a research associate at the University of Western Australia in Perth. The focus of her research is the effects of anthropogenic structures (offshore wind, wave and tide, oil and gas infrastructure) on marine sessile invertebrate assemblages and the biodiversity associated with those structures. The methods that she uses for this work are SCUBA diving, video transects, mosaicing and remotely operated vehicles. In addition, Marie-Lise continues her work started during her PhD at the Max Planck Institute of Marine Microbiology in Bremen on sponge microbes and the microbial processes of their associated unicellular symbionts. For this, she uses microsensors in laboratory and in situ experiments. Marie-Lise is also interested in marine citizen science and believe in the power of each citizen to help the marine environment.