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Issue no. 47 / May 2022
Karlie Noon. Photo: ANU, Lannon Harley
Corey Tutt. Photo: University of Sydney
KARLIE NOON AND COREY TUTT ON THE BARRIERS THAT STOP INDIGENOUS PEOPLE FROM GETTING INTO SCIENCE Some of Karlie Noon’s fondest memories as a budding scientist were at university — but it was also the scene of one of her most devastating moments. She’d walked into a lecture theatre, and almost immediately the professor realised that like him, Karlie was from Tamworth.
Homesick, Karlie was relieved to meet someone from her hometown. But things took a turn for the worse when the professor found out where she attended high school. His enthusiasm quickly faded. “He said in front of the whole class, ‘Oh… you went to that school … that’s in Vegemite village,’” Karlie recalls. Karlie says “Vegemite village” is a racial slur used to describe the Aboriginal community in Tamworth. It was a crushing moment for Karlie, who was working five jobs to support herself through university and already struggling to fit into a system built for others. Karlie Alinta Noon went on to become the first Indigenous student to obtain a Masters of Astronomy and Advanced Astrophysics in Australia. The Gomeroi yinarr astrophysicist is currently doing a PhD in astronomy at the Australian National University. Like Karlie, Gamilaraay man Corey Tutt is a keen science communicator. His love of science and reading began with a book about Australian reptiles and amphibians that was given to him as a kid by his “pop”. The book was also an inspiration behind his charity Deadly Science, which provides science books to over 110 remote schools across Australia. While Karlie and Corey have made science their calling, things could have been so different. They’re worried the same barriers they had to overcome are preventing the next generation from breaking into, and thriving in, a career in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, or medicine (STEMM).
