Ethnobotanist & postgraduate student - Jenny Atchison

As a result of my work in science, I have travelled to some remote and beautiful parts of Australia to do field work. I have also had the privilege of living in an Aboriginal community for several months, participating in traditional hunting and gathering activities and experiencing some of the contemporary problems that affect indigenous people.

I am studying at the University of Wollongong for a postgraduate degree in geography, learning how Aboriginal people used and managed the vegetation in the Kimberley region of northern Australia. Other members of my team are archaeologists, ecologists and rock art experts, but our shared aim is learn more about the relationship between Aboriginal people and the land.

The senior Aboriginal women I work with know a great deal about their country and its flora and fauna. They show me how plant foods such as water lilies, yams, palms, nuts and native fruits are gathered, processed and eaten. Some fruits can be eaten straight from the tree but others such as yams must be mashed, washed and cooked before they can be eaten. I am interested in identifying and locating these plants and determining what is the best time of year to find them.

I also help to record traditional Aboriginal knowledge about plants. In some communities this knowledge has died out because younger generations have not been interested or had the opportunity to learn from their elders. So it is important for us to work with Aboriginal people and record their knowledge before it is lost.

I find it helps my work to have studied subjects from areas such as law and sociology as part of my first science degree, and I would encourage anyone thinking about a career in science to try a few subjects from other disciplines to broaden their perspective.

"Science Futures" was produced by Wisenet with the aid of a grant from the Department of Industry, Science and Tourism Science and Technology Awareness Program.