Cesca McInerney

Dr. Cesca McInerney is a Research Fellow at the University of Adelaide’s School of Physics, Chemistry, and Earth Sciences within the Faculty of Sciences, Engineering, and Technology. Her research focuses on reconstructing past climate-ecosystem interactions using isotopic signatures from fossilized plants and leaf waxes to inform future climate change impacts. She specializes in paleohydrology, soil geochemistry, and the application of isotopic tools for environmental proxies.

Her research projects include studies on the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, Miocene paleoecology in Ethiopia, and modern Australian climate-soil interactions. She has secured significant grants, including a $714k ARC Future Fellowship and multiple international collaborations.

• Grants: Over $1M in funding from ARC, NERC, TERN, and NSF for projects like leaf wax isotopes and megafauna extinction studies.
• Awards: ARC Future Fellowship (2012-2016).
• Professional Activities: Organized workshops (e.g., Climate and Biotic Events Conference), chaired sessions at Goldschmidt, and led the Australian Organic Geochemistry Conference.

Dr. McInerney supervises PhD and Masters students in topics like isotopic provenancing, paleohydrology, and myrtaceae macrofossil records. She teaches courses on paleoclimate, stable isotopes, and Earth systems history.