Key points
- Butchulla and Muninjali woman, Indigenous science student and CSIRO’s Young Indigenous Women’s STEM Academy participant, Karlie, has recently returned to Australia from a 15-day STEM summer camp in the UK.
- Karlie was thrilled to be accepted into LIYSF 2025, was eager to go on her first independent overseas trip, meet people from other countries and see cultural performances.
- LIYSF aims to provide students with a deeper insight into science and how science can be applied for the benefit of all humankind.
It's not every day you meet a Nobel Prize winner.
And Karlie's response?
"It made me feel like anything was possible for myself."
Karlie joined 430 students from 92 different countries at the 66th London International Youth Science Forum (the forum) at Imperial College London.
Lectures from world leading scientists
"I really enjoyed the lectures. I was able to choose which lectures I wanted to go to so I could really specialise it to my interests in science," shared Karlie.
The 15-day program provided opportunities for students with a keen interest in STEM subjects to visit top UK universities, including Oxford and Cambridge, hear lectures from world leading scientists and participate in an immersive social and cultural program.
Karlie attended a lecture on the Science of Maternal Immunity Transfer by Dr Emerson Hickey from the University of Exeter and another presentation from Dr Gideon Johnson from King's College London about what it's like to work in a cardiac trauma centre and managing patients with ICU delirium.
One of the biggest program highlights for Karlie was hearing from Professor Sir David MacMillan who was the 2021 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry and gave the Keynote Address at the forum opening ceremony.
"It was definitely an enlightening experience for me. You don't get to meet a Nobel Prize winner every day," Karlie said.
"He was incredibly smart but also a regular humorous person so his speech honestly made me laugh."
Karlie was thrilled to be accepted to attend the 2025 forum and was eager to go on her first independent overseas trip. She was particularly keen to meet people from other countries and see cultural performances.
"There was a lot of cultural sharing, cultural dances, songs in different languages and things like that, it was definitely really interesting to me," Karlie explained.
The forum offers both an on-campus summer camp and virtual summer camp each year. It aims to provide students with a deeper insight into science and how science can be applied for the benefit of all humankind.
Having good teachers and growing up around doctors
Earlier this year, Karlie also attended the National Youth Science Forum in Brisbane and explained how she originally discovered her interests in science, biology, chemistry and medicine.
"I've had some really good teachers that I can relate to. They teach in a way that made me interested in the first place," she said.
For her last year of high school, Karlie was able to follow her specific interests in her extension science class. Her major project was studying how the PH of the stomach effects the absorption time of different ibuprofens.
Growing up, Karlie was also inspired by her mum's work as a General Practice Manager.
"I grew up around doctors. I always watched them and admired them, when they'd explained things to me, it made me interested in medicine. Then when I was learning about it at school, I remembered, 'I've heard this before'," explained Karlie.
Karlie, who lives in Newcastle, has applied for a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Medicine both at the University of New England but is yet to accept an offer to commence studying for her university degree in 2026.
The Young Indigenous Women's STEM Academy
The Young Indigenous Women's STEM Academy, delivered by CSIRO and CareerTrackers, supports Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young women through high school and into further study and careers in STEM. Through culturally-safe and strengths-based practices, each participant is offered contextualised mentorship to map personal STEM interests and future pathways.
Students engage in immersive STEM camps, connect with industry mentors and peer networks, attend national assemblies, explore work placements and paid internships, and have access to tailored resources and ongoing support all designed to build confidence, academic success and long-term career readiness in STEM.