Catherine Leigh

Dr. Catherine Leigh is an Associate Professor in the School of Science at RMIT University, Australia. Her research focuses on environmental science, hydrology, and ecological systems, with particular expertise in intermittent river ecosystems, water quality monitoring, and biodiversity conservation. She leads interdisciplinary projects combining fieldwork, sensor technology, and computational methods to address environmental challenges. Dr. Leigh is actively involved in supervising Masters and PhD students in environmental research.

Her work emphasizes innovative data analysis techniques, including machine learning for anomaly detection in environmental sensor data, and has contributed to global understanding of dry river ecosystems' biodiversity and climate impacts. She collaborates internationally on projects addressing carbon cycling in drylands and sustainable water management in agricultural systems like the Mekong Delta.

Dr. Leigh's publications span over 50 peer-reviewed articles, with recent work highlighting advancements in high-frequency water quality monitoring frameworks and the ecological consequences of anthropogenic salinization. She advocates for holistic approaches integrating ecological, hydrological, and statistical methodologies to inform environmental policy and conservation strategies.