 So for me being a good science communicator means having that sense of wonder having that sense of joy. It's okay to fail It's okay to get it wrong. What is the most memorable moment and how has that changed your shape till career? I got to interview someone from NASA like that was huge. I didn't end up in the place I thought I was going to end up, but I would not take back I did not regret any of those things that I did in that university degree little kids are so keen They just want to do everything and they want to become a national They're gonna become an astronaut. How do your kids feel about your job at CuestaCon? It's like do you want to come with mum to work today? Nah, it's fine Hi everyone, I'm Zee and I'm currently a student at the Australian National University studying Bachelor of Philosophy Science And I'm currently also working at CuestaCon as a learning experiences presenter. Christy is the person who recruited me and also My coordinator. Hi, my name is Christy and I'm a science communicator from CuestaCon. So today I'll be interviewing Christy who I see as my future self asking a few questions about her career as a science communicator so far How would you describe what you do at a dinner party? So I would describe what I do as I get the fun job at CuestaCon So if you were to go into the center and you get to go into a gallery space and you get to be involved in an activity Or a program. I have the fun job of actually designing that program Now what did you want to do as a career when you were my age? How old are you Zee? I'm 19 You're 19 So when I was 19 I was starting my science degree and I wanted to become a psychologist So like many high school leavers I fell in love with psychology in high school And I had this great dream of becoming a psychologist and yeah at the age of 19 that was where I was going to go So your degree wasn't in science communication but I have a general question for you How important do you think it was your degree in shaping your career today? Oh good question so I did a Bachelor of Science followed up with a graduate diploma of secondary education So I went into my science degree thinking that psychology was what I wanted to do And I was going to do my major in psych and that's actually what I did in the end However I had those extra units around me and I was kind of like what else do I want to do? I kind of liked chemistry at school so I did some chemistry units I saw someone doing some astronomy so I did an astronomy unit I did a bit of a mix of everything For me it was really useful because apart from psychology I didn't know what else I was really wanting to do It became really useful I'll put it this way because when I pursued my education degree I had the versatility of having so many different types of sciences at my disposal and a background information on all those different types of sciences So when I got my first teaching job and they threw me in the deep end and said Hey look you know we know you did psychology How about teaching sociology? And I was like I don't even know what that is But you know I'm so easily adaptable in that sense that I can literally just say Yeah cool I'll learn the content and I'll do it So now when I work at Questacon and I have this job that's different types of sciences constantly I have some background understanding of what's sort of going on I enjoyed my science degree I enjoyed it and it was interesting because I never I didn't end up in the place that I thought I was going to end up But I would not take back and I did not regret any of those things that I did in that university degree What do you look back on as a misstep in your career? I've been very fortunate I wouldn't say I have had missteps in my career I would say I've had missed opportunities You know I became a teacher at the age of 21 So that's quite young But my mindset was very much I need to have a job I need to have a career and I didn't really give myself a lot of time to think things through And you know really consider what I wanted to do Not that I regret becoming a teacher I loved my time as a teacher But it was very fast paced So my misstep if any has been that You know I've always felt I've had to be on the go go go Rather than actually sitting there and thinking deeply about what I wanted to become Or what I wanted to do I'm better at that now though What do you wish you had known about your career path when you were my age? That you know it was going to be a lot of hard work And with that hard work was going to come sacrifice Bit of background context I was a country kid I came from rural Victoria Came to the big city for uni I was one of 12 students in my graduating year 12 class Going to uni was a big change of environment for me All of a sudden I was competing I was trying to get high scores So I could achieve honours so I could get into a postgraduate degree And that was a big mindset for me Had I known how much of that was going to impact on me And my mental health especially at that time I would have come to uni a little bit more prepared possibly But at the same time it was that sort of baptism of fire I'm where I'm at the moment in my life And I'm really happy with where I'm at at the moment What do you think are the most important qualities in a science communicator? It's important to role model the attitudes and behaviours that you want to pass on So for me being a good science communicator means Having that sense of wonder, having that sense of joy We work at Questacon and we see hundreds of kids a day We do an upside down water jar experiment Every single time I do that experiment it's still as exciting as the first time I do it And what I really want to convey is that sense of wonder And be like what is going on And role modelling that mindset of the world is such a fascinating place Yeah I think being fun and presentable, easily approachable And finding joy and passion and excitement in science is It's also really important for a science communicator How do your kids feel about your role at Questacon? I would love to say that they're super excited by it And I think they were initially when they got to come in And hang out in different spaces behind the scenes I think the novelty has worn off though So it's like do you want to come with mum to work today? Nah it's fine So look I think it's still exciting five years on But the novelty has worn off for them So Zee I've done all the talking and I've conveyed all my pearls of wisdom and knowledge But what have you taken away from our session today? So first thing And it's kind of like the motto of the tinker space Don't be afraid to fail So I think that is one of the things that made it really difficult for me When I first started as a facilitator in Gallery 5 Is I also wanted to create something that's perfect Accessibility I would also like to make science accessible to all people People with physical disabilities, other disabilities To make sure that we can spark that joy So thank you Christy for coming in today and being my future self It was an honour Zee