Associate Professor Tatsuya Amano
Associate Professor

Tatsuya Amano

Email: 
Phone: 
+61 7 336 56907

Background

I am primarily interested in how we, as scientists, can make meaningful contributions to halting and reversing the ongoing global biodiversity crisis. I am particularly committed to tackling gaps in our knowledge needed for biodiversity conservation, focusing on the following three aspects.

(i) Identifying gaps in existing information and their drivers: I have been working on how information on biodiversity is distributed over space, time and taxa, and what causes the existing gaps in information availability.

(ii) Overcoming information gaps with modelling approaches: I have been applying modelling approaches to better inform conservation initiatives through the use of available, imperfect data. For this I have intensively worked on assessing long-term changes in global waterbird diversity (see for example our recent papers in Nature (also see my blog post) and Nature Climate Change (blog post))

(iii) Bridging the research-implementation gap: I am also keen to provide scientific information for conservation in a more accessible way and have been involved in the Conservation Evidence project as a statistical editor, with the aim of contributing to the implementation of evidence-based decision making in conservation.

I am leading the translatE project (transcending language barriers to environmental sciences), funded by the Australian Research Council, which incorporates the above three aspects in order to understand the consequences of language barriers in biodiversity conservation. The project aims to:

  • assess the importance of scientific knowledge that is available in non-English languages,
  • understand how language barriers impede the application of science in decision making,
  • quantify language barriers to the career development of non-native English speaking scientists, and
  • devise solutions for exchanging information across languages and cultures in an effective manner.

See my interview in Nature's Changemakers series: Biologist Tatsuya Amano works to make science a fairer place for non-fluent speakers.

Our work on language barriers in science has also been featured in Nature in 2019 and July and August in 2023, Science in 2020 and 2023, The Conversation in 2021 and 2023, The Guardian, and The Economist, and my presentation on findings from the project (plenary at the 2022 Joint Conference of the Ecological Society of Australia and the Society for Conservation Biology Oceania: from 48:48).

Also see the website of Kaizen Conservation Group for our research, members and latest publications.

I am also an affiliated researcher at the Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science.

Availability

Associate Professor Tatsuya Amano is:
Available for supervision

Fields of research

Biological Sciences Climate change impacts and adaptation Conservation and biodiversity Ecology Environmental Sciences Environmental assessment and monitoring Global change biology Language, Communication and Culture Other biological sciences

Qualifications

  • Bachelor of Science, University of Tokyo
  • Masters (Coursework) of Science, University of Tokyo
  • Doctor of Philosophy, University of Tokyo

Research interests

  • Understanding and overcoming consequences of language barriers in science

    I have been investigating (i) the importance of scientific knowledge that is available in non-English languages, (ii) how language barriers impede the application of science in decision making, (iii) impacts of language barriers on the career development of non-native English speaking scientists, and (iv) solutions for exchanging information across languages and cultures in an effective manner.

  • Facilitating evidence-based conservation

    I am keen to generate and provie scientific evidence in a more accessible way and have been involved in the Conservation Evidence project as a statistical editor, with the aim of contributing to the implementation of evidence-based decision making in conservation.

  • Identifying gaps in biodiversity information/research and their drivers

    I have been working on how knowledge on biodiversity and its conservation is distributed over space, time and taxa, and what causes the existing gaps in knowledge availability.

  • Overcoming biodiversity information gaps with modelling approaches

    I have been applying modelling approaches to better inform conservation initiatives through the use of available, imperfect data. For this I have intensively worked on assessing long-term changes in waterbird diversity at the global and national scales.

Research impacts

Through the translatE project I have not only been producing scientific outcomes, but also transforming people’s views of the problem through dissemination activities. Our research is extremely wide-reaching. For example, one of our recent papers has been viewed over 80,000 times to date. Since 2019 our work has been featured in over 300 media outlets globally including Nature, Science, The Guardian, Scientific American, Le Monde, Japan Times, and the ABC, a number of policy documents (including those by the OECD and International Union for Conservation of Nature), and so on. I have delivered over 30 invited/keynote presentations so far in Australia, Germany, Japan, the Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan, UK, and USA.

I am also committed to devising, proposing, and implementing solutions to the issue of language barriers in science. For example, I published a list of ten tips for overcoming language barriers in science (on UQ website and in Amano et al 2021 Nature Human Behaviour), proposed ideal policies and supports for non-native English speakers in academic journals by reviewing guidelines across more than 700 biological science journals (Arenas-Castro et al 2024 Proc R Soc B), released two interactive tools to raise awareness of language barriers in conservation (Bird language diversity shiny app and a database of non-English-language evidence for conservation), organised two workshops at UQ on overcoming language barriers in science involving academics and journal editors, and supported the launch of an English writing workshops at the UQ Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science. Our project has driven a number of positive movements in overcoming language barriers in science and the implementation of solutions in various sectors, thereby contributing to enhancing diversity, inclusion, and integrity in science.

I have also led collaborations with non-academic organisations (Australian Government’s Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water and Birdlife Australia) in evaluating the latest status of migratory shorebird species in Australia. The project’s outcomes, now published as a report to the National Environmental Science Program, provide comprehensive assessments of population status of 14 migratory shorebird species, some of which are seriously endangered. The results have directly informed the Federal Government’s Threatened Species Listing decisions, and Birdlife International/International Union for Conservation of Nature’s latest revision to global bird species conservation status.

Search Professor Tatsuya Amano’s works on UQ eSpace

150 works between 2004 and 2025
All (150) Journal Article (143) Book Chapter (4) Conference Publication (2) Other Outputs (1)

61 - 80 of 150 works

2020

Journal Article

Ensuring tests of conservation interventions build on existing literature

Sutherland, William J., Alvarez-Castañeda, Sergio Ticul, Amano, Tatsuya, Ambrosini, Roberto, Atkinson, Philip, Baxter, John M., Bond, Alexander L., Boon, Philip J., Buchanan, Katherine L., Barlow, Jos, Bogliani, Giuseppe, Bragg, Olivia M., Burgman, Mark, Cadotte, Marc W., Calver, Michael, Cooke, Steven J., Corlett, Richard T., Devictor, Vincent, Ewen, John G., Fisher, Martin, Freeman, Guy, Game, Edward, Godley, Brendan J., Gortázar, Christian, Hartley, Ian R., Hawksworth, David L., Hobson, Keith A., Lu, Ming-Lun, Martín-López, Berta ... Wordley, Claire (2020). Ensuring tests of conservation interventions build on existing literature. Conservation Biology, 34 (4), 781-783. doi: 10.1111/cobi.13555

Ensuring tests of conservation interventions build on existing literature

2020

Journal Article

Navigating coasts of concrete: pervasive use of artificial habitats by shorebirds in the Asia-Pacific

Jackson, Micha V., Choi, Chi-Yeung, Amano, Tatsuya, Estrella, Sora M., Lei, Weipan, Moores, Nial, Mundkur, Taej, Rogers, Danny I. and Fuller, Richard A. (2020). Navigating coasts of concrete: pervasive use of artificial habitats by shorebirds in the Asia-Pacific. Biological Conservation, 247 108591, 108591. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108591

Navigating coasts of concrete: pervasive use of artificial habitats by shorebirds in the Asia-Pacific

2020

Journal Article

Spatial and temporal associations between fallow fields and Greater Painted Snipe density in Japanese rice paddy landscapes

Katayama, Naoki, Odaya, Yoshiya, Amano, Tatsuya and Yoshida, Hoshiko (2020). Spatial and temporal associations between fallow fields and Greater Painted Snipe density in Japanese rice paddy landscapes. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 295 106892, 106892. doi: 10.1016/j.agee.2020.106892

Spatial and temporal associations between fallow fields and Greater Painted Snipe density in Japanese rice paddy landscapes

2020

Journal Article

Ignoring non‐English‐language studies may bias ecological meta‐analyses

Konno, Ko, Akasaka, Munemitsu, Koshida, Chieko, Katayama, Naoki, Osada, Noriyuki, Spake, Rebecca and Amano, Tatsuya (2020). Ignoring non‐English‐language studies may bias ecological meta‐analyses. Ecology and Evolution, 10 (13) ece3.6368, 6373-6384. doi: 10.1002/ece3.6368

Ignoring non‐English‐language studies may bias ecological meta‐analyses

2020

Journal Article

Insights from two decades of the Student Conference on Conservation Science

Geldmann, Jonas, Alves-Pinto, Helena, Amano, Tatsuya, Bartlett, Harriet, Christie, Alec P., Collas, Lydia, Cooke, Sophia C., Correa, Roberto, Cripps, Imogen, Doherty, Anya, Finch, Tom, Garnett, Emma E., Hua, Fangyuan, Jones, Julia Patricia Gordon, Kasoar, Tim, MacFarlane, Douglas, Martin, Philip A., Mukherjee, Nibedita, Mumby, Hannah S., Payne, Charlotte, Petrovan, Silviu O., Rocha, Ricardo, Russell, Kirsten, Simmons, Benno I., Wauchope, Hannah S., Worthington, Thomas A., Trevelyan, Rosie, Green, Rhys and Balmford, Andrew (2020). Insights from two decades of the Student Conference on Conservation Science. Biological Conservation, 243 108478. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108478

Insights from two decades of the Student Conference on Conservation Science

2019

Journal Article

Australian songbird body size tracks climate variation: 82 species over 50 years

Gardner, Janet L., Amano, Tatsuya, Peters, Anne, Sutherland, William J., Mackey, Brendan, Joseph, Leo, Stein, John, Ikin, Karen, Little, Roellen, Smith, Jesse and Symonds, Matthew R. E. (2019). Australian songbird body size tracks climate variation: 82 species over 50 years. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 286 (1916) 20192258, 20192258. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2019.2258

Australian songbird body size tracks climate variation: 82 species over 50 years

2019

Journal Article

Simple study designs in ecology produce inaccurate estimates of biodiversity responses

Christie, Alec P., Amano, Tatsuya, Martin, Philip A., Shackelford, Gorm E., Simmons, Benno I. and Sutherland, William J. (2019). Simple study designs in ecology produce inaccurate estimates of biodiversity responses. Journal of Applied Ecology, 56 (12) 1365-2664.13499, 2742-2754. doi: 10.1111/1365-2664.13499

Simple study designs in ecology produce inaccurate estimates of biodiversity responses

2019

Journal Article

Spatial and taxonomic biases in bat records: drivers and conservation implications in a megadiverse country

Zamora-Gutierrez, Veronica, Amano, Tatsuya and Jones, Kate E. (2019). Spatial and taxonomic biases in bat records: drivers and conservation implications in a megadiverse country. Ecology and Evolution, 9 (24) ece3.5848, 14130-14141. doi: 10.1002/ece3.5848

Spatial and taxonomic biases in bat records: drivers and conservation implications in a megadiverse country

2019

Journal Article

When can we trust population trends? A method for quantifying the effects of sampling interval and duration

Wauchope, Hannah S., Amano, Tatsuya, Sutherland, William J. and Johnston, Alison (2019). When can we trust population trends? A method for quantifying the effects of sampling interval and duration. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 10 (12) 2041-210X.13302, 2067-2078. doi: 10.1111/2041-210x.13302

When can we trust population trends? A method for quantifying the effects of sampling interval and duration

2019

Journal Article

Calling for a new agenda for conservation science to create evidence-informed policy

Rose, David Christian, Amano, Tatsuya, González-Varo, Juan P., Mukherjee, Nibedita, Robertson, Rebecca J., Simmons, Benno I., Wauchope, Hannah S. and Sutherland, William J. (2019). Calling for a new agenda for conservation science to create evidence-informed policy. Biological Conservation, 238 108222, 108222. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2019.108222

Calling for a new agenda for conservation science to create evidence-informed policy

2019

Journal Article

Building a tool to overcome barriers in research-implementation spaces: the conservation evidence database

Sutherland, William J., Taylor, Nigel G., MacFarlane, Douglas, Amano, Tatsuya, Christie, Alec P., Dicks, Lynn V., Lemasson, Anaëlle J., Littlewood, Nick A., Martin, Philip A., Ockendon, Nancy, Petrovan, Silviu O., Robertson, Rebecca J., Rocha, Ricardo, Shackelford, Gorm E., Smith, Rebecca K., Tyler, Elizabeth H.M. and Wordley, Claire F.R. (2019). Building a tool to overcome barriers in research-implementation spaces: the conservation evidence database. Biological Conservation, 238 108199, 108199. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2019.108199

Building a tool to overcome barriers in research-implementation spaces: the conservation evidence database

2019

Journal Article

Science's language barrier

Cheng, Yangyang, Dharwadkar, Sneha, Sheridan, Vera, Rojas, Clarissa Rios, Amano, Tatsuya and Grau, Montserrat Bosch (2019). Science's language barrier. Nature, 570 (7760), 265-267. doi: 10.1038/d41586-019-01797-0

Science's language barrier

2019

Journal Article

Author correction: the environmental costs and benefits of high-yield farming

Balmford, Andrew, Amano, Tatsuya, Bartlett, Harriet, Chadwick, Dave, Collins, Adrian, Edwards, David, Field, Rob, Garnsworthy, Philip, Green, Rhys, Smith, Pete, Waters, Helen, Whitmore, Andrew, Broom, Donald M., Chara, Julian, Finch, Tom, Garnett, Emma, Gathorne-Hardy, Alfred, Hernandez-Medrano, Juan, Herrero, Mario, Hua, Fangyuan, Latawiec, Agnieszka, Misselbrook, Tom, Phalan, Ben, Simmons, Benno I., Takahashi, Taro, Vause, James, Ermgassen, Erasmus zu and Eisner, Rowan (2019). Author correction: the environmental costs and benefits of high-yield farming. Nature Sustainability, 2 (4), 339-341. doi: 10.1038/s41893-019-0265-7

Author correction: the environmental costs and benefits of high-yield farming

2018

Journal Article

Governance explains variation in national responses to the biodiversity crisis

Baynham-Herd, Zachary, Amano, Tatsuya, Sutherland, William J. and Donald, Paul F. (2018). Governance explains variation in national responses to the biodiversity crisis. Environmental Conservation, 45 (4), 307-314. doi: 10.1017/S037689291700056X

Governance explains variation in national responses to the biodiversity crisis

2018

Journal Article

The environmental costs and benefits of high-yield farming

Balmford, Andrew, Amano, Tatsuya, Bartlett, Harriet, Chadwick, Dave, Collins, Adrian, Edwards, David, Field, Rob, Garnsworthy, Philip, Green, Rhys, Smith, Pete, Waters, Helen, Whitmore, Andrew, Broom, Donald M., Chara, Julian, Finch, Tom, Garnett, Emma, Gathorne-Hardy, Alfred, Hernandez-Medrano, Juan, Herrero, Mario, Hua, Fangyuan, Latawiec, Agnieszka, Misselbrook, Tom, Phalan, Ben, Simmons, Benno I., Takahashi, Taro, Vause, James, zu Ermgassen, Erasmus and Eisner, Rowan (2018). The environmental costs and benefits of high-yield farming. Nature Sustainability, 1 (9), 477-485. doi: 10.1038/s41893-018-0138-5

The environmental costs and benefits of high-yield farming

2018

Journal Article

The importance of green spaces to public health: a multi-continental analysis

Amano, Tatsuya, Butt, Isabel and Peh, Kelvin S. -H. (2018). The importance of green spaces to public health: a multi-continental analysis. Ecological Applications, 28 (6), 1473-1480. doi: 10.1002/eap.1748

The importance of green spaces to public health: a multi-continental analysis

2018

Journal Article

Ten-year assessment of the 100 priority questions for global biodiversity conservation

Jucker, Tommaso, Wintle, Bonnie, Shackelford, Gorm, Bocquillon, Pierre, Geffert, Jan Laurens, Kasoar, Tim, Kovacs, Eszter, Mumby, Hannah S., Orland, Chloé, Schleicher, Judith, Tew, Eleanor R., Zabala, Aiora, Amano, Tatsuya, Bell, Alexandra, Bongalov, Boris, Chambers, Josephine M., Corrigan, Colleen, Durán, América P., Duvic-Paoli, Leslie-Anne, Emilson, Caroline, da Silva, Jéssica Fonseca, Garnett, Emma E., Green, Elizabeth J., Guth, Miriam K., Hacket-Pain, Andrew, Hinsley, Amy, Igea, Javier, Kunz, Martina, Luke, Sarah H. ... Mukherjee, Nibedita (2018). Ten-year assessment of the 100 priority questions for global biodiversity conservation. Conservation Biology, 32 (6), 1457-1463. doi: 10.1111/cobi.13159

Ten-year assessment of the 100 priority questions for global biodiversity conservation

2018

Journal Article

The major barriers to evidence-informed conservation policy and possible solutions

Rose, David C., Sutherland, William J., Amano, Tatsuya, González-Varo, Juan P., Robertson, Rebecca J., Simmons, Benno I., Wauchope, Hannah S., Kovacs, Eszter, Durán, América Paz, Vadrot, Alice B. M., Wu, Weiling, Dias, Maria P., Di Fonzo, Martina M. I., Ivory, Sarah, Norris, Lucia, Nunes, Matheus Henrique, Nyumba, Tobias Ochieng, Steiner, Noa, Vickery, Juliet and Mukherjee, Nibedita (2018). The major barriers to evidence-informed conservation policy and possible solutions. Conservation Letters, 11 (5) e12564, e12564. doi: 10.1111/conl.12564

The major barriers to evidence-informed conservation policy and possible solutions

2018

Journal Article

Does governance play a role in the distribution of invasive alien species?

Evans, Thomas, zu Ermgassen, Philine, Amano, Tatsuya and Peh, Kelvin S.-H. (2018). Does governance play a role in the distribution of invasive alien species?. Ecology and Evolution, 8 (4), 1984-1994. doi: 10.1002/ece3.3744

Does governance play a role in the distribution of invasive alien species?

2017

Journal Article

Conservation performance of different conservation governance regimes in the Peruvian Amazon

Schleicher, Judith, Peres, Carlos A., Amano, Tatsuya, Llactayo, William and Leader-Williams, Nigel (2017). Conservation performance of different conservation governance regimes in the Peruvian Amazon. Scientific Reports, 7 (1) 11318. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-10736-w

Conservation performance of different conservation governance regimes in the Peruvian Amazon

Current funding

  • 2024 - 2026
    Research and tools to support recovery and management of migratory shorebirds in Australia (NESP2 MaC Hub - Reef and Rainforest Research Centre funded project)
    Reef and Rainforest Research Centre Limited
    Open grant
  • 2023 - 2026
    Tapping into non-English-language science in tackling global challenges
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant

Past funding

  • 2021 - 2022
    Australia's Coastal Shorebirds: Trends and Prospects
    University of Tasmania
    Open grant
  • 2019 - 2024
    Transcending Language Barriers to Environmental Sciences
    ARC Future Fellowships
    Open grant

Availability

Associate Professor Tatsuya Amano is:
Available for supervision

Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.

Supervision history

Current supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Tapping into non-English-language science in tackling global challenges

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Richard Fuller

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Why are waterbirds declining globally?

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Richard Fuller

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Towards responsible AI systems for automated biodiversity monitoring

    Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Language barriers in the environmental sciences in Japan: causes, consequences, and solutions

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Richard Fuller

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Enhancing International Collaboration for Migratory Bird Conservation

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Richard Fuller

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Understanding language barriers to the use of scientific knowledge in conservation decision making

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Richard Fuller

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Revealing bird migration patterns in Eastern Australia by integrating weather radar and citizen science data

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Richard Fuller

Completed supervision

Enquiries

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