Research output per year
Research output per year
Accepting PhD Students
Research activity per year
Kat is a Quaternary geochronologist, sedimentologist and geomorphologist interested in drylands, specifically:
To answer these questions, I work with luminescence dating, geomorphology, stratigraphy and sedimentology. My main (but not my only!) geographic foci are Australia and Central Asia.
Kat Fitzsimmons is an Associate Professor in the School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment in the Faculty of Science.
Kat's research focuses on environmental change in drylands (arid, semi-arid and drought-affected regions) over Quaternary to more recent time periods. Her biography spans several continents and work at interdisciplinary institutes. Her PhD (ANU) investigated indications for the history of aridity in Australia's arid core; in her first postdoc (also at ANU) she expanded her perspective to work on past hydroclimatic change and human-environmental interactions on the semi-arid margins. She then moved to the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology (Leipzig, Germany), where she intensified her research collaborations in the fields of archaeology and the environmental contexts for human evolution. This was followed by leadership of an independent Max Planck Research Group at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry (Mainz, Germany), which provided the opportunity to collaborate with atmospheric scientists and geochemists on large-scale climate histories. From 2021-2024 she was Professor for Terrestrial Sedimentology at the University of Tuebingen, where she reconnected with earth scientists, while maintaining her interdisciplinary research links. From November 2024 she joined the School of Earth Atmosphere and Environment, bringing her international and multi-disciplinary experience to her country of origin.
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Physical Geography, Habilitation (Dr. rer. nat. habil.), Addressing the challenge of reconstructing palaeoenvironments in studies of human-environmental interactions, Universität Leipzig (University of Leipzig)
… → 30 Nov 2016
Award Date: 30 Nov 2016
Quaternary Geology, PhD, The late Quaternary history of aridity in the Strzelecki and Tirari Desert dunefields, South Australia, Australian National University (ANU)
1 Mar 2003 → 21 Dec 2007
Award Date: 21 Dec 2007
Earth Sciences, BSc (Hons), The dynamics of desert dunes near Lake Frome (Munda), South Australia, University of Melbourne
1 Mar 1998 → 31 Oct 2002
Award Date: 31 Oct 2002
Germanistik, Diploma of Modern Languages, University of Melbourne
1 Mar 1998 → 31 Dec 2001
Award Date: 31 Dec 2001
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Fitzsimmons, Kat (Recipient), 2014
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
Fitzsimmons, Kat (Recipient), 2009
Prize: Competitive Fellowships
Fitzsimmons, Kat (Recipient), 2007
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
Fitzsimmons, Kat (Recipient), 2016
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
1/01/07 → 20/09/25
5 items of Media coverage, 3 Media contributions
Press/Media: Profile/Interview