Fantasea Foundation

Fantasea Cruising is proud to be associated with the Great Barrier Reef Research Foundation which combines public and private funding so that it can understand and solve the great challenges facing our coral reefs.

Fantasea is the region's largest marine operator and takes its duties to help support scientific research seriously.

Each year its own foundation, the Fantasea Foundation, allocates over $100,000 towards this invaluable research.

Fantasea also manages research vessels and monitors the marine park for the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS).

Fantasea is a part of the leading Australian marine transport group Riverside Marine. Founded in 1926, Riverside is a Brisbane based company owned by the Campbell family.

Emily Smart is the marine research co-ordinator for the Fantasea Foundation.

As the marine research co-coordinator she gets to fulfil her passion of working closely with marine life and she researches and monitors Crown-of-Thorns Starfish, coral bleaching, reef health, and species diversity.

Emily also enjoys taking people on guided snorkel tours as a reef interpreter, giving marine biology presentations and giving educated talks on semi-submersible rides.

She is fully qualified with a Bachelor of Science (Biology & Geography) degree, including Honours (Marine Ecology) from Wollongong University, as well as a postgraduate Certificate of Science (Marine Biology and Ecotourism/Wildlife Tourism Management) from James Cook University.

Emily has a love for the marine world, particularly coral reefs. Before joining the Fantasea Foundation she previously spent 18 months in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, on a voluntary marine research and conservation expedition.

Emily was recently selected to attend The Climate Project in Melbourne, where Al Gore trained around 170 people to become climate messengers.