Read Alexandra Hartemink's Albert Johnston Award report below. Alex travelled to Australia to pursue her interest in biology and investigate the effects of climate change on marine ecosystems. She volunteered for the University of Queensland to investigate if coral can be used as a natural indicator of environmental change by mapping and sampling the coral reef. 

Photos from Alex's trip can be viewed at the bottom of this page. 

I was initially inspired to apply for the Albert Johnson travel award to pursue my personal interest in marine flora and fauna inhabiting coral reef ecosystems and to broaden my knowledge of different areas of biology not taught on the A-Level course.

I presented a PowerPoint to the Governors introducing myself, my goals and my motive to travel on a solo trip to Australia. I was so excited to be awarded the Albert Johnson Travel Bursary as I would finally be able to make my dream trip a reality. I had been saving money towards this trip during my A-Level summer from my part time job in a bar, and using the funding from the Albert Johnson Travel Award, I had enough to travel Australia for 4 weeks.

I landed in Sydney and spent a few days exploring on foot. Lunch overlooking the Sydney Opera House, browsing the vivid storefronts of many local small businesses around The Rocks Market and walking to Sydney Harbour Bridge, Darling Harbour and Bangaroo Reserve were highlights. I also spent time at the Sydney Sports Medicine Centre to see a different model of healthcare to our own NHS.

I flew up the coast of Queensland to Gladstone continuing by ferry to Heron Island. The University of Queensland Heron Island Marine Research Station is situated on a remote island on the Great Barrier Reef. The University allowed me to volunteer helping researchers in their investigations and in exchange for four hours a day of repairing pathways, cleaning windows and general upkeep of the station I was given accommodation. I assisted two PhD students in projects looking at the metabolic changes of epaulette sharks. Increasing water temperatures and lowered oxygen concentrations were used to simulate the current and predicted climate of the Southern Great Barrier Reef flats that these sharks inhabit. My tasks included capturing epaulette sharks from the heron reef flats, feeding sharks regularly, collecting biopsies and tagging sharks that were being released. During my time working on Heron, I completed my PADI advanced open water scuba diving qualification which helped me to improve my underwater navigation, buoyancy regulation, drift diving control and fish Identification as well as letting me descend to thirty metres. During my dives, I was lucky enough to witness an abundance of blue whale pods and manta ray squadrons whilst diving on Heron and Wistari reef. As it was winter, both species migrate up the coast of Queensland from the Antarctic Ocean in search of warmer waters and more plentiful food sources in the South Pacific Ocean. I particularly enjoyed taking photos of the many juvenile turtles which remained in the surrounding reef after the nesting season in April. During this time, I sketched the endemic flora and fauna to further my understanding of the species on the island.

Back in Sydney I visited Taronga Zoo and Sydney Aquarium to view other fauna endemic to Australia as I was particularly interested in learning more about Australia’s unique marsupials and other varieties of marine life which I did not see whilst scuba diving.

To better understand the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, I visited the NAIDOC exhibition in the Art Gallery of New South Wales and took a day trip to the Blue Mountains, as it is the original home of six groups of indigenous people. Alongside the natural beauty of the iron rich sandstone and endemic eucalyptus trees, it was explained that the aboriginal people used the Blue Mountains as a ceremonial place, a seasonal home and a hunting ground which made the scenery even more unique. Such culture and legacy of the native people run deep within society and all the remaining tribes in Australia. I found the Aboriginal culture of respectful acknowledgement and appreciation of the environment, and the holding of elders in high esteem, passed on through generations, to be inspiring.

I am so grateful to the Old Stopfordians and the Board of Governors for selecting me for the Albert Johnson Travel award. It has inspired me to apply for Marine Biology at University to pursue my passion in biological science and has made me become more independent through travelling. It has been a life-changing experience.