Nicole Lowrey

It’s been ten years since I completed science communication with Jenny during my Master of Science degree, and I have such fond memories of how practical and fun the course was, and still use the skills and knowledge I learned today.

Those skills gave me the confidence that helped me get my first job out of university as a graduate at the Australian Government Department of Agriculture. I really enjoyed working on complex overseas animal welfare issues and found my ability to analyse problems and distil information into plain English helped me develop solutions and communicate this to the public.

From there, I moved to the Department of the Environment and worked on how the government could reduce emissions in the electricity sector by 2030, and how to increase uptake of the Renewable Energy Target. I used the skills I’d learned to find accurate information, disseminate it, and communicate with energy and climate groups.

One of my most enjoyable jobs has been working with World Wild Fund for Nature (WWF) in Solomon Islands where I worked as both the communications and tuna fisheries manager. Part of my role was making communication products about the benefits of moving towards electronic monitoring of fishing activities on tuna vessels for both technical and public audiences. The best part of my job was working with women in remote communities to build livelihoods while keeping their coastal fisheries sustainable.

My love for working on overseas issues has grown and now I’m back in Australia working on a program in Southeast Asia to address urbanisation issues in ASEAN cities. Science communication can take you anywhere, and I never would have had such a diverse career without those core practical skills I learned back in 2010!