Professor Davies’ research focuses on population growth, distribution and patterns of demographic change in Australia. She works closely with government and industry to inform policy and is currently principal investigator on several major projects.
All this while undertaking other teaching duties at the university, including supervising PhD candidates she also happens to be the youngest person to be appointed as a full professor of Geography at UWA, and the first female to be appointed as the Head of the School of Social Sciences.
In the latest episode of Research on the Record Professor Davies gives some insight into her current work tracking shifting populations throughout the state to predict and solve infrastructure challenges that evolve along with them.
She reflects on the early stages of her life in academia and the obstacles she encountered that saw her change the trajectory of her career – and how she decided to take on leadership roles to change the system for future generations of researchers, also revealing what she still hopes to change about how senior roles are structured for women.