Interview with coastal scientist Professor Rob Brander, aka ‘Dr Rip’.

Professor Rob Brander, aka ‘Dr Rip’, is a coastal scientist, beach safety researcher and science communicator in the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of New South Wales in Sydney where he leads the UNSW Beach Safety Research Group. He has studied beaches for over 35 years starting in Canada where water temperatures convinced him to move to Australia in 1993 and do his PhD on rip currents at the University of Sydney.  He has published over 100 scientific articles and book chapters on coastal science and is the author of the best selling book 'Dr Rip's Essential Beach Book'. Rob began his popular community beach safety education program ‘The Science of the Surf’ in 2001 and gained the nickname ‘Dr Rip’ for his habit of releasing harmless purple dye in rip currents to educate people about this important hazard. He is a past recipient of an Australian Museum Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Australian Science Research and enjoys bodysurfing very much. He is a Life Member of the Tamarama Beach Surf Life Saving Club and in January 2023 was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for his service towards beach safety education and research.