Barry Fordham

Barry Fordham is an Adjunct Professor at the Research School of Earth Sciences, Australian National University (ANU). He holds degrees from the University of Queensland (BSc Hons, PhD) and the University of New England (MBA), with additional qualifications in corporate governance. His primary affiliation is with ANU, where he contributes to research in micropaleontology and geology.

• Education: BSc (Hons) in Geology (University of Queensland), PhD in Geology (University of Queensland), MBA (University of New England), GAICD (Australian Institute of Company Directors).
• Affiliations: Visitor and affiliate in the Biogeochemistry and Palaeoenvironments research groups at ANU.
• Key Roles: Previously worked at the Geological Survey of Queensland, CSIRO, and Geo Discovery, focusing on regional geology, biostratigraphy, and management roles in geoscience.

His research interests center on micropaleontology, particularly foraminifera and conodonts, with a focus on phylogenetic analysis, biostratigraphy, and evolutionary relationships. He leads projects like the 'Stratophylogeny Projects,' which integrate phylogenetic data with geological timescales. His work also involves developing databases and visualization tools for evolutionary trees, such as the TimeScale Creator platform.

Fordham has contributed to over 50 peer-reviewed publications and datasets, including studies on Cenozoic planktonic foraminifera phylogeny, conodont biostratigraphy, and Silurian geology. His datasets are archived in ANU’s Data Commons, emphasizing reproducibility and open science.

He collaborates internationally, notably with institutions like Cardiff University, University College London, and Purdue University. His recent work explores morphological plasticity in foraminifera during speciation events and the application of phylogenetic tools to deep-time biodiversity analysis.