Tracy Ainsworth is an Associate Professor in the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences (BEES) at The University of New South Wales, Sydney, where she leads research into the impact of environmental change on marine animals. She currently hold a Scientia Fellowship at the University of New South Wales. She has held also held an Australian Research Council Super Science Research Fellowship (2011-2014) and an Australian Research Council Postdoctoral Fellowship (2008-2011). Currently she is focused on the stress biology of corals and this research aims to understand how corals and their microbial symbionts are impacted by a changing environment. Some of her current research projects include: bacterial symbioses of deep water corals, cell death regulation of coral and tissue regeneration, response of coral to increased sea surface temperatures, conserved bacterial symbioses of coral, bacterial communities of reef fish and microbial ecology in benthic marine communities