Carol Maher, PhD

Carol Maher is a Research Professor and the Director of the Alliance for Research in Exercise, Nutrition and Activity (ARENA), a thriving research centre with over 120 members at UniSA. At the heart of her work is a strong desire to impact everyday activities like physical activity, sleep, and sedentary behaviours, to positively influence children's and adults' health.
Carol has an affinity for incorporating technology into her research. From wearables and social networking to smartphone apps and artificial intelligence, she sees the potential of these tools to encourage healthier lifestyle choices. Her approach to health improvement operates at a system level, aiming to influence lifestyle and health in a scalable way that can benefit Australians in the schools, the community, and healthcare settings.
Her research has garnered significant support, as evidenced by four consecutive fellowships from the ARC, National Heart Foundation, NHMRC and MRFF, including an MRFF Investigator Grant (2021-2025). As CIA, she has led, or currently leads, 4 NHMRC and MRFF projects. Overall, she has secured funding for a total of 10 NHMRC projects, 4 MRFF projects, and 2 ARC projects. Collectively, Carol has received over $20M in research funding, and published over 200 journal articles. Her influence in her field is underscored by her recognition as a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher (a distinction awarded to 1 in 1000 researchers) for three consecutive years 2020-2022.  
Outside of her own research, Carol serves as a Senior Editor for BMC Public Health, and Chief Specialty Editor for Frontiers in Digital Health. She is on the Executive Committee of the International Society of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity and a Co-Convenor for the SA researcher-practitioner network: Healthy Development Adelaide. 
If you're an aspiring PhD or Masters by research student looking to explore this dynamic field, Carol is keen to supervise and collaborate. Feel free to drop her an email to start a conversation.