Professor Euan Ritchie: Promoting understanding of science

Who Professor Euan Ritchie

What In the face of dual climate change and extinction crises, Professor Euan Ritchie is a sought-after voice. From writing popular articles and influential opinion pieces, live-tweeting field research and creating the much-loved ‘Australian Mammal of The Year’ competition, he guides policy and fosters public understanding of nature, wildlife and how science can help overcome environmental challenges.

Winner of the 2024 Celestino Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Science.

As a sought-after expert voice around Australia, you wear many hats. How do you strike the right balance between your teaching and research, and the work of communicating more broadly with the Australian public? 

I’ve always seen teaching, research, and science communication as equally important and inextricably linked. As a scientist I want to make sure that my work, and that of my research group, colleagues, and more broadly, fields of ecology and conservation, is accessible, relevant, and useful, across society. I therefore invest my time in all of these important activities, but in a flexible manner. Sometimes teaching or research have to be my priorities, but at other times my schedule allows for more focus on science communication and public outreach, such as during Australian Mammal of the Year 2022 and 2023.

Did you set out to focus on promoting understanding of science when you began your career, or did this come about more organically? 

This has increased substantially from my PhD and throughout my career. As a young researcher, ‘publish or perish’ felt like a constant pressure. But as I now have the privilege of being tenured and a senior academic, I’ve come to appreciate that more and more publications alone are not what will lead to better outcomes for the environment and wildlife, which is ultimately what drives me. Connecting with people, and sparking important conversations are crucial, especially given the dual biodiversity decline and extinction and climate change crises we confront.

What outcomes are you most proud of from your work to date?

Australian Mammal of the Year 2022 and 2023, now thousands of Aussies know about mammals that many had never heard of before, including the two winners, the southern bent-wing and golden-tipped bats! I also played a part in inspiring children’s author and artist, Sarah Allen, to write children’s books about wildlife, after she heard me talking about extinction on ABC’s Late Night Live.

What are some of the larger impacts you hope to see from your work in the future?

I hope Australians gain a greater understanding of the extraordinary plants, animals, and other species we share this continent with. I hope this translates to governments genuinely prioritising biodiversity conservation and investing what’s required so that future generations can be inspired by, amazed, and enjoy all of nature’s many benefits. If anyone has access to a Tardis, I’d love to be able to come back and see whether we achieve this!

What does winning a Eureka Prize mean to you?

Too much to merely express in words. It’s a huge honour, and especially as Australia is lucky to have a large number of excellent science communicators. It’s great to see science communication recognised in these highly prestigious national science awards. This recognition is also shared by my family, friends, colleagues, and students, all of whom have supported my career and work, thank you!

The Australian Museum Eureka Prizes are the country’s most comprehensive national science awards, honouring excellence across the areas of research & innovation, leadership, science engagement, and school science.