"I was born with a
deep attachment to the natural world. I have three siblings who
shared the same childhood experiences of camping in the bush,
walking through cool coastal scrub to the burning sand of the
beach, and observing the altitudinal changes in vegetation while
driving to the snowfields on winter weekends. . .
"At Melbourne University I took botany, zoology and genetics
units, but it was botany that inspired. I loved it. Second-year
plant systematics was taught so ...systematically... by the
amazing Suzanne Lawless Duigan: palaeobotanist, plant systematist and aviatrix, with a ready wit and a booming voice."
Sue graduated with a PhD from University of Melbourne.
She was a Senior Principal Research Scientist at CSIRO, where for 20 years she worked with colleagues to develop important themes in landscape ecology and sustainable land use. She led major projects working with the rice industry, the livestock industry, and Land and Water Australia. For the International Global Change and Terrestrial Ecosystems program Sue ran a project involving scientists from 20 countries synthesizing research on the responses of vegetation to land use and disturbance.
She has advised the federal government as a member of both the Council for Sustainable Vegetation Management and the Threatened Species Conservation Committee, and served on the board of Bush Heritage Australia for eight years.
Sue is a foundation partner in the Mulligans Flat - Goorooyarroo Woodland Experiment, a 1,400 ha woodland restoration project in the ACT.
She later became an Honorary Professor at the Fenner School at the Australian National University and an Honorary Fellow at CSIRO, where she continued to work at the interface of scientific publishing and a general readership.
She sometimes works with photographer Carolyn Young, and their jointly authored art photography book 'Grassland in Transition' is available from Carolyn's website.
Source: Extracted from: XXXX
Portrait Photo: none known.
Collecting localities for 'XXXX' from AVH (2025)
Data from XXXX specimens
Australian National Herbarium - updated
10 July, 2025
by webmaster (cpbr-info@anbg.gov.au)