Charles Darwin University

Brittany Hayward Brown

For her Honours thesis on the landscape-scale movement of Gouldian Finches, Brittany gained first class honours, with a high distinction and GPA of 7. Passionate about both research and communicating it to the wider community, she led the reactivation of the environment student group on campus, which won the Territory NRM Environment & Conservation Award for their Conservation on Campus program in 2020. This year, she has been short-listed in the NT Young Achiever Environment Award for her work in the community and is recipient of the Inspiring Australia Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement in a College of Engineering IT & Environment Honours Course.

Curtin University

Madeleine Scanlon

Madeleine Scanlon always had a passion for sciences and for the marine environment. While being fully committed to her degree in the Coastal and Marine Science Major (achieving highest marks in her cohort!), Madeleine is inspiring young minds to embrace all sciences through STEM motivational talks to multiple highschools. She especially enjoys delivering outreach talks targeting “Girls in Science” where she plays and outstanding role model for young girls. When the opportunity presents itself, Madeleine also volunteers for the Sea Sheppard or if short of time, just goes surfing for a few hours!

Edith Cowan University

Jade Larkhman

Jade has shone in her studies achieving the highest course-weighted average for students graduating from the Environmental Management BSc program in the 2020 calendar year. She achieved high grades across all her units, particularly excelling in units in Environmental Impact Assessment, Ecology, Wildlife Management, and Environmental Monitoring and Investigation. For her final year project she completed a WIL Project with Greening Australia investigating climate-adjusted seed selection for shade, shelter and fodder revegetation, which was very well received.

Griffith University

Xanthe Poll

Xanthe is an aspiring Environmental Scientist majoring in Ecology and Conservation and Environmental Management at Griffith University. She would love to work in nature and help “rewild the world”, as Sir David Attenborough has urged us to do. On her journey to fulfilling this dream, perhaps as a Park Ranger in the beautiful Australian outback, she hopes to help the environment by volunteering in nature projects and being a voice for the planet by actively sharing all the wonders learned. After graduation she wishes to implement conservation laws and solutions to environmental problems. Her passion for learning about animals, plants and earth systems has led her to become a member of the Environment Institute of Australia and New Zealand Inc. (EIANZ). During her schooling.

Murdoch University

Caitlyn Sepkus

Caitlyn excelled in her studies, completing a Bachelor of Science with a double major in Conservation and Wildlife Biology and Environmental Management and Sustainability, with a minor in Molecular Biology as well. Caitlyn has received academic awards throughout her studies, including the Environmental Management & Sustainability Award for best GPA in the major. As a part of her studies, Caitlyn demonstrated strong environmental leadership and made noteworthy contributions to NatureLink Perth, an organization launched by Murdoch academics and students to bring together diverse stakeholders to integrate nature more effectively in the urban landscape for conservation and sustainability.

Swinburne University

Elliott Muckleston

University of Queensland

Jessica Dober

Jess completed her Bachelor of Environmental Management in 2020 with a GPA of 6.73, majoring in Natural Systems and Wildlife. She earned First Class Honours through her study of potential translocation sites for an endangered wallaby species, in collaboration with Bush Heritage Australia. Awarded five Dean’s Commendations for Academic Excellence throughout her degree and the Enid Reeves Memorial Prize in 2017, Jess was able to apply knowledge and skills gained from her degree during two internships within Brisbane City Council and Yarrabee Coal Company, whilst also tutoring first year students in Environment and Geographical courses through UQ’s Peer Assisted Study Session program. Prior to her graduation, Jess was also accepted in the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment’s 2021 graduate program and continues to follow her passion for environmental protection and conservation.

University of Canberra

Tasha James

Tasha James has demonstrated consistent academic excellence throughout her Bachelor of Environmental Science course. Tasha has obtained the highest grade point average among 2020 Environmental Science graduates (GPA 6.76), recording Distinction or High Distinction grades for every applicable unit undertaken. Tasha has been the recipient of Dean’s Excellence Awards on five separate occasions. It is anticipated that Tasha will be a highly valuable contributor to the discipline of environmental science.

University of New England

Amelia Paton

Amelia Completed a Bachelor of Environmental Science majoring in Natural Resources Management with a GPA of 6.67. She is interested in soil health including soil microbiology and soil pollution as well as Ecosystem rehabilitation. Amelia is committed to educating and raising awareness of soil and environmental issues, sustainability and best practice. In her spare time she enjoys horse riding and spending time with her family on her small mixed farm and vegie garden.

University of South Australia

Johannes Skirrow

Johannes is in the final year of his Environmental Science degree, with a GPA of 6.9/7, and has won both the Natural and Built Environments Prize and the DG Moye Memorial Prize at UniSA. As part of his third-year group project, Johannes and fellow students worked with the Kangaroo Island Landscape board on drooping sheoak regeneration following the 2019/20 bushfires, to assess the plant’s importance as a food source for the endemic glossy black cockatoo. Outside of University, Johannes’ passions include hiking, cycling and camping, which also motivate him to help preserve our natural resources for future generations to enjoy.

Western Sydney University

Millie Hatton

Millie achieved a GPA of 7.0 for her coursework in 2020 whilst undertaking a Bachelor of Natural Science (Environment and Health). Since beginning her studies, her academic performance has been recognised through her inclusion on the Dean’s Merit List for the School of Science in 2017, 2018 & 2019.

She is currently working in local government as a trainee Environmental Health Officer and has a particular interest in public health and food safety issues.

University of Southern Queensland

Monique Walmsley

Monique completed her Bachelor of Science with Distinction as an online student from Perth, Western Australia in 2020, achieving an overall GPA of 6.2. Monique combined majors in Environment & Sustainability and Sustainable Business and excelled in all her studies. While at USQ she also participated in the Elite Athlete Program where she represented Western Australia in calisthenics at national championships.

Since completing her degree, Monique has been working as a Graduate Sustainability Engineer at Stantec in Perth, which entails working with clients to ensure they meet sustainability needs when developing new buildings. She hopes to continue to develop her knowledge and experience in environment & sustainability as well as making small changes to the world.

University of Tasmania

Jessie Westbury

Jessie was recently awarded a Bachelor of Science (GPA 6.32) at the University of Tasmania with a double major in Geography and Environment / Plant Science. During her final year of study, Jessie received Higher Distinction results for 7 out of 10 units. As part of her studies, Jessie completed an independent research project assessing the floristic diversity of Mt Agnew in Tasmania.

Jessie has a long-standing commitment to environmental and conservation issues. Since 2015, she has coordinated annual biodiversity surveys in remote North West Tasmania to raise awareness of the conservation significance of the takayna/Tarkine region. Jessie is also passionate about combining science with outdoor education, working extensively as a wilderness tour guide and educational instructor across Tasmania.

Western Sydney University

Carlie O’Callaghan

Carly is currently completing her Bachelor of Natural Science (Environment and Health) maintaining a GPA of 6.92. For her academic excellence she has achieved recognition on the Deans merit list and received the PG Gilder Award for 2020. She is already putting her knowledge into practice as an Environmental Health Technician in the Australian Regular Army, performing disaster relief and health support roles in both domestic and international environments. Her dedication to her studies is evident in the perseverance she displays towards the challenge of maintaining a HD average whilst balancing unpredictable work schedules and deployments often in adverse environments.

Photo (Source: Operation Bushfire Assist – Defence Image Library, Australian Government, https://images.defence.gov.au/assets/Home/Search?Query=kangaroo+island&Type=Simple)

Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology

Daniel Cox

Daniel has performed extremely well in his undergraduate studies having obtained a GPA of 3.8 to date. Daniel is currently undertaking his honours year in Environmental Science at RMIT where he is conducting a research project in the area of marine biofouling. His research project is focused on the fouling organism Galeolaria caespitosa, a common tube worm found in southern Australian intertidal areas. As part of his project Daniel is culturing larvae and conducting larval attachment assays on a range of microtextures, including hierarchical and bio-inspired textures. Daniel’s research will contribute to our understanding of the influence of microtexture on larval attachment by Galeolaria.