A class of year nine students can confidently tell you that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell. Chemistry is sometimes a little more intimidating-but most of the population can remember that one great experiment in school where they turned a flame bright pink with potassium. Mention the word physics? From most people, you will get a blank stare and some squirming in their seat.

Microscopes with lasers, screens filled with complex equations. These are things we often see in media reports about a scientist’s latest research breakthrough. But behind all the impressive, specialised infrastructure are people we don’t often see: technical experts who help other scientists make their research projects a reality.

This piece appears in the July 2023 edition of Science Victoria magazine. All issues can be read online for free at rsv.org.au/Science-Victoria. Embarking on a career in STEMM often involves dealing with uncertainties when it comes to progressing from education and training to professional employment and expertise. Even with training in one subject – whether […]

Secondary school students have been thinking about how they could transform healthcare as part of programs run by the Monash Tech School. They have taken on the role of scientists, and combined scientific disciplines to design and prototype cutting-edge solutions that tackle challenges experienced by workers and patients in Victoria’s healthcare system.

How can we, as a collective of 7.97 billion humans, ensure healthy people and healthy ecosystems on a healthy planet? The scale and complexity of the task can seem insurmountable; where do we focus our efforts? The SDGs helfpully provide 17 priority goals for improving human lives while protecting the environment, building on decades of work by the UN.