Research on the Record: Meet Professor Amanda Davies

Professor Davies’ research focuses on population growth, distribution and patterns of demographic change in Australia. She works closely with government and industry to inform policy and is currently principal investigator on several major projects – all while undertaking leadership and teaching duties at the university, including supervising PhD candidates.

She is also the youngest person to be appointed a full professor of Geography at UWA, and the first female to be appointed as Head of the School of Social Sciences.

In the latest episode of Research on the Record, Professor Davies gives some insight into her current work tracking shifting populations throughout the state to predict and solve the infrastructure challenges that evolve along with them.

The social scientist reflects on the early stages of her life in academia and how she adapted to some of the obstacles she encountered to change the trajectory of her career.

She also shares how she decided to take on leadership roles to improve the system for future generations of researchers and reveals what she still hopes to change about how senior roles are structured for women.