Alice Buhrich
James Cook University

Dr Alice Buhrich

Adjunct Senior Research Fellow, James Cook University

alice.buhrich@jcu.edu.au

Bio

Dr Alice Buhrich is based in Cairns, she has over 25-years experience living and working in Australia’s tropical north. Alice specialises in partnership with First Nations groups to advise government and industry on projects around heritage values, management and protection in Queensland’s rainforest, Gulf savannah and Cape York Peninsula.

Alice is experienced in the collection, management and synthesis of sensitive data for heritage planning and policy development. Alice’s ongoing research interests include climate change, rock art, dendroglyphs (carved trees), lava tube archaeology and the effects of government policy on the preservation of Queensland’s cultural heritage

Research outputs linked to policy change and decision making

• As a consultant, Alice provides advice to private industry, government on First Nations observations, concerns and aspirations around land and water management using a community-based framework.
• Advice to First Nations Corporations and government on cultural values and management of Indigenous Protected Areas, National Parks and Nature Refuges.
• Contributing author to State of the Wet Tropics 2023, specifically facilitating the input of First Nations voices on threatened species in the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area.
• Since 2010, Alice has delivered 100+ consultancy reports to Aboriginal organisations, industry, non-government organisations, state, federal and local government.
• Alice regularly publishes on topics including climate change risks, Frontier Wars and cultural landscapes. Most of these publications are with First Nations co-authors.

Current academic employment

• 2025 – present: Research Fellow, James Cook University

Highest qualification

• 2017: PhD, James Cook University

Major prizes, medals, honours

• 2018: Dean’s Award for Higher Degree Research

My Projects

Current projectCompleted project

• 

  Climate-resilient landscapes: an adaptation case study in NSW’s Northern Rivers region and the Wet Tropics of Queensland

  Keywords: cultural values, climate change, Wet Tropics, adaptation planningpriority species and ecosystemsNorthern rivers regioncommunity centred