Academy of Science prizes go to two women indigenous scientists

Two indigenous women are winners of Australian Academy of Science awards for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander scientists.

Griffith University associate lecturer and PhD student Michelle Hobbs.

Two female scientists, one researching natural dyes from native trees and another studying mussels in freshwater ecosystems, are winners of this year’s Australian Academy of Science awards for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander scientists.

One of the winners, Stephanie Beaupark, who is an associate lecturer and PhD student at the University of Wollongong, said she was looking specifically at eucalyptus dye used in artworks and “how the colourant compounds interact with the dye mixture to fix onto silk fabric and wool”.

Stephanie Beaupark

Ms Beaupark, a descendant of the Ngugi people of Quandamooka Country, said she hoped better integration of “chemical science and Indigenous knowledge systems will also allow us to better take care of Australia”.

She said it could lead to alternatives to mainstream artmaking materials being developed.

The other winner, Griffith University’s Michelle Hobbs, is researching Australia’s freshwater ecosystems, particularly mussels which she said have been little studied despite their importance.

“Extinctions or population declines of mussels are likely to disproportionately affect Indigenous peoples who use them, yet relatively little has been published about mussels from Indigenous perspectives or regarding the cultural values of mussels,” said Ms Hobbs, a Bidjara descendant who is an associate lecturer and PhD student.

She will use the award to travel to Canada to meet with First Nation researchers and discuss indigenous uses and management of mussels.

The awards, worth up to $20,000, support the research of Indigenous scientists including PhD students and those in their early to mid career. They also cover interdisciplinary research crossing over to the social sciences and humanities.