Dr. Alison Cribb

Dr. Alison Cribb

she/her

Fossils for the future!

Blog posts

2026

Register now for the IFCRS Early Career Symposium!

less than 1 minute read

Published:

Registration for the 5th IFCRS Early Career Symposium is now live! This year, we are excited to highlight ten early career speakers who are leading new advances in fossil and modern reef research. The symposium this year will feature topics ranging from the preservation and ecology of the earliest microbialite reefs, to understanding best practices for conservation policy applied to reefs in our current era of climate crisis. The meeting will be held on Zoom on November 19, 10:00-18:00 EST (13:00-21:00 UTC) Don’t forget to register here!

New paper in Current Biology.

less than 1 minute read

Published:

From the E6 RCN team, we have published a new review on ecosystem engineering through the Ediacaran-Cambrian transition for the new Current Biology “Life and Earth” special issue. We outline key ecosystem engineering innovations that emerged during this time interval, rooted in the dramatic planetary-scale changes happening on Earth in the late Neoproterozoic and earliest Phanerozoic. Check out the paper in Current Biology here.

I am moving to the University of Oxford!

less than 1 minute read

Published:

I have now joined the University of Oxford’s Department of Earth Sciences. For the next two years, as a Schmidt AI in Science Fellow, I will be working at the intersection between quantitative palaeoecology and artificial intellligence. My primary research objective will be to apply reinforcement learning to agent-based model simulations of the end-Triassic mass extinction to learn how marine animals can adapt to survive rapid climate change events. I am also interested in more broadly applying machine learning and artifical intelligence to learn more about patterns of biodiversity and early animal evolution.

5th Annual IFCRS Early Career Symposium

less than 1 minute read

Published:

I am pleased to be organizing again this year the International Fossil and Coral Reef Society Early Career Symposium on 19 November. We are excited to highlight 10 early career researchers from across the world who are working on a range of topics, from the earliest microbialite reefs to conservation management strategies in our future. This year, we are also hosting meet-the-lab sessions with PIs and online coffee break chats about career advice and emerging research frontiers. Keep an eye on IFCRS.com for news and udpates about how to register and attend!

New paper on ecosystem engineering and biodiversity.

2 minute read

Published:

I am excited to share my newest publication, “Marine biodiversity was greater in the presence of ecosystem engineers throughout the Phanerozoic,” with Simon Darroch and William Gearty, which is officially published in Nature Communications today 🪱 🪸

Life and Planet 2026 and ESSG updates

less than 1 minute read

Published:

We have just finished another successful Life and Planet meeting. Many thanks as always to the Geological Society of London and Burlington House for hosting nearly 100 researchers from across the globe who came together to discuss the co-evolution of life and the environment.