Victoria Latin America scholarship recipient to study coastal erosion
In Summary
A new PhD scholarship will allow Brazilian student Isabela Cabral to study long-term coastal erosion at Swinburne's Centre for Ocean Engineering, Science and Technology.
A Victoria Latin America Doctoral Scholarship will allow Isabela Cabral from Brazil to study long-term coastal erosion at Australia’s leading maritime engineering research centre.
Ms Cabral, from Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, is one of only four high performing PhD students from Latin America to receive the new scholarship.
She will join the Centre for Ocean Engineering, Science and Technology at Swinburne University of Technology.
Ms Cabral will use numerical models to study long-term coastal erosion due to climate change in polar, moderate and tropical latitudes.
“About half of the world's population lives within 200 kilometres of a coastline and most human activity is concentrated along the coast,” Ms Cabral says.
“Climate change has intensified coastal erosion worldwide. Recent studies show a general trend of increasing wind speed and wave height as well as increasing global temperatures.
“Using detailed near-shore sediment modelling my research will investigate coastal erosion at three different points – the Arctic, Australia and Brazil.
“By comparing those three points with very different climates — polar, moderate and tropical – I hope to be able to make some global conclusions about climate change.”
The Victoria Latin America scholarship is worth up to $90,000 and is funded by the Victorian Government.
It can be used to cover living expenses and also includes a full fee waiver at Swinburne.
Swinburne and Federal University of Rio de Janeiro signed a Memorandum of Understanding for joint oceanographic and ocean engineering research and are developing a PhD double degree in Engineering and Science.