Eureka Talks Series: Antarctica

Ages: Recommended for ages 14+

Celebrate Science Month by joining us for the second event in our 2024 Eureka Talks Series. Hosted by Australian Museum Eureka Prize winner Dr Jackson Ryan, this free panel discussion explores how the Antarctic landscape has changed over the past century, and the critical role of scientists, researchers and science communicators in striving to preserve our frozen continent. Explore the data and hear the stories of those who have braved the Antarctic in an effort to help combat climate change. This fascinating discussion features Australian Museum Eureka Prize winners Prof. Dana Bergstrom and Jo Chandler, with special guest and renowned adventurer, explorer and environmentalist, Dr Tim Jarvis AM.

The Australian Museum Eureka Prizes were established in 1990 to celebrate the work of Australian scientists, and their contributions to producing world-leading results that can influence the lives of many across the globe. The Eureka Talk Series shines a light on the research and innovations changing the fields of climate, health and science communication. Hear from Australian Museum Eureka Prize winners, finalists and other science leaders as they share their experiences, challenges and discoveries in their particular fields of research.

Tim Jarvis AM is an environmental scientist, author, filmmaker, philanthropist and speaker who seeks pragmatic solutions to climate change and biodiversity loss. Tim is founder of The Forktree Project, Global Ambassador and Governor of WWF, Southern Ocean Ambassador to Save Our Marine Life and a Vice President of Flora and Fauna International.

As an adventurer, Tim re-enacted Douglas Mawson and Ernest Shackleton’s Antarctic explorations and advocates for the protection of Antarctica. In 2010, he received the Order of Australia. Tim was made a Bragg Fellow by the Royal Institution of Australia and has received multiple awards, including the Australian Geographic Society’s 2016 Conservationist of the Year and has been named 2024 South Australian of the Year.

Prof. Dana Bergstrom is an eminent Australian ecologist, focused on identifying and, if possible, mitigating risks that threaten Antarctic, sub-Antarctic and Australian ecosystems, including pressures from climate change and non-native species. She led important research on combating ecosystem collapse from the tropics to the Antarctic, and was also part of teams that documented record-breaking heatwaves in Antarctica.

She was awarded the 2021 Eureka Prize for Leadership in Innovation and Science. Also passionate for the Arts, she is the book author of the musical, Antarctica, Beneath the Storm, and president of the Pure Antarctic Foundation, a joint arts/science foundation.

Jo Chandler is an award-winning journalist, author and educator. Her focus is on explanatory reporting on science, climate, environment, health, human rights and development. Formerly a staffer at The Age, her work has featured in The Guardian, The New York Times, The Atlantic, Yale Environment 360, The Monthly, The Saturday Paper, Griffith Review, ABC Radio National, Good Weekend, The Sydney Morning Herald, Cosmos, New Scientist and Undark.

In 2023, Jo was awarded the Eureka Prize for Science Journalism. She is a senior lecturer at the Centre for Advancing Journalism, University of Melbourne and is the author of a book on climate field science; Feeling The Heat (2011 MUP).

Dr Jackson Ryan is a science and tech reporter and President of the Science Journalists Association of Australia. He completed his PhD in molecular biology and skeletal health at the University of South Australia in 2017 before it dawned on him that he's not cut out for academia.

In 2022, he was awarded the Australian Museum Eureka Prize for Science Journalism and has been featured in each Best Australian Science Writing anthology from 2019 to 2023.