From 2011 – 2012 I worked at the ANU Colleges of Science in their communications team. In this role I worked with scientists to translate their scientific and technical material to be readable by the general public. I produced a number of scientific materials, including media releases, publications, profile stories and booklets.
I also wrote a number of articles for the publication ANU Reporter. These stories can be found below.
Searching for Solutions
Collaborative research is helping to shed light on how to close the gap on Indigenous health disadvantage, writes SIMON COPLAND.
We hear a lot about ‘closing the gap’ between Indigenous and non-Indigenous health outcomes. With a 12-year difference in life expectancy between non-Indigenous and Indigenous males, and child mortality rates up to four times higher in Indigenous communities, Indigenous disadvantage is considered to be one of Australia’s biggest health problems.
But what we often don’t hear about is the gap between Indigenous people who live in rural areas and Indigenous people who live in urban areas.
Help Online
Online tools are helping Australia tackle its mental health crisis, writes SIMON COPLAND
Australia is facing a mental health crisis. Around one in five Australians suffer some form of mental disorder each year and mental disorders now account for 13 per cent of the total disease burden in Australia. Despite this, many people are still not getting the treatment they need. Dr Lou Farrer from the Centre for Mental Health Research says that this is a problem she’s determined to tackle.
Farming Futures
Farming techniques are often seen as outdated and out of touch with the Australian landscape. One farmer however is changing that view, writes SIMON COPLAND
The story of the farmer is often seen as synonymous with the story of Australia. Australian history is dominated by farming heroes, from the tale of ‘The Man from Snowy River’ to the story of the 1891 sheep shearers’ strike. But today, the public view of farming is often of an industry dominated by outdated industrial techniques and thinking from the 1950s. The stereotypical farmer is conservative, backward and reluctant to change their ways to adapt to the realities of the 21st century.
But Charles Massy, author of the recently released book, ‘Breaking the Sheep’s Back’, which charts the collapse of the Australian wool industry, and a PhD student at the Fenner School of Environment & Society, says that farmers across Australia are challenging this view. For Massy, Australian farmers are at the forefront of using innovative techniques that are revolutionising the way they work.
Global Warning
Without immediate action to combat human-induced climate change, we’re not only risking the health of our planet, but also ourselves. SIMON COPLAND reports.
Professor Tony McMichael is issuing a warning: not only will the changing climate affect our planet – killing our coral reefs and melting polar ice – it will also have serious impacts on human health. If we don’t learn from our past, and take action immediately, the future consequences could be devastating.
“The effects of climate changes in the past are really just a small taste of what we could expect to happen in the coming century,” says McMichael, a researcher at the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population health, part of the ANU College of Medicine, Biology and Environment.
It’s safe to say that McMichael knows what he’s talking about. The world-leading epidemiologist was looking at the effects of climate change long before it was a hot topic.