Biography

Emmalee is passionate about scientific literacy and education about reproductive health. Having began her university journey studying to become a secondary science teacher, Emmalee was determined to inspire the next generation of scientists. Realising the research potential at the University of Newcastle, Emmalee decided to pursue her goal in a new environment, by working with other scientists and the public to increase awareness about fertility and reproductive health.

Emmalee completed her PhD in 2020, where she looked at the underlying mechanism of how eggs in the ovary grow and are lost, to provide new directions for diagnosing people at risk of early fertility loss. Throughout her PhD, Emmalee also focused on what the public knows about fertility, including the study of reproductive health apps which feature apps that track menstrual cycles. She believes that apps have an important role to play in understanding fertility, but there is much more work to be done.

"I understand that everyone has different life plans, but people’s age shouldn’t be a doomsday clock signalling the end of fertility. By combining my molecular biology training with a focus on public health, I want to tackle infertility at the source while providing people with real solutions to family planning challenges they face now. I aim to provide accessible, personalised and accurate resources for people throughout their life that don’t leave people under pressure to race the fertility clock."

Emmalee’s current research is focused on addressing fertility knowledge in young people, she works in a multi-disciplinary team of academics and industry leaders to research fertility knowledge in adolescents. By educating young people at this key period in their lives, they can be empowered to understand their bodies and make informed decisions with their lifestyle and future family planning. 

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