Hello everyone! I’m Thierry, and I’m thrilled to join NCARD as the new Project Officer.

My arrival at NCARD is the result of an irregular and winding journey that started with my arrival in Melbourne, where I studied Sociology and Literature at Monash. I was certain I’d become a professional writer of fiction by the end of it.

Three years sped by. I’d published several short stories, but I had nothing in the bank account to show for it. Undeterred and armed with a mounting affinity for writing and sociology, I asked a Sociology lecturer I admired whether I should consider a path like his.

To which he replied that I was interested in a dying field, in a dying department. Rather than writing ivory tower critiques about society, he said to consider a Masters of Public Health, where graduates were much better prepared to undertake qualitative research impacting the real world.

Naturally, I found myself at the University of Western Australia, pursuing a postgraduate degree in Public Health. The same lecturer advised me on my choice of school. He said UWA’s campus brimmed with charm and history, while Monash’s was ugly and uninviting. I was sold.

As a new graduate interested in health equity research, I undertook a position as a research assistant at the Equity and Oral Health Group in UWA’s School of Population and Global Health— continuing my work with my practicum supervisor, who I co-authored a paper with, published in the Journal of Dental Research.

Somewhere along the line, a slapdash plan of combining my zeal for research, writing, and health into a career congealed in the back of my head.

At the same time, I started working three days a week as a reporter for a digital real estate newspaper, bringing with me a can-do attitude and the lived experience of being a lifelong renter.

Getting paid to write? Priceless.

Through a few hundred articles and a year spent in the newsroom, I grew into the role and became comfortable with communications, a beast I was wholly unprepared to tackle not too long ago.

However, many late nights spent ruminating on my life course and life generally left me wondering whether writing about Australia’s latest and greatest buildings was the best path for me.

I still harboured an intense passion for research. When possible, I would collaborate with researchers, sneaking in a cheeky article on research dressed up as property adjacent. Climate change, carbon-neutral technologies, modern methods of construction, housing inequality and the like.

There was also the question of returning to a health-related field, which was a better fit for my training and interests.

Rummaging through job search engines, I chanced upon NCARD’s Project Officer job advertisement. Miraculously, the job description aligned with my hodgepodge of competencies in media, health, science communication and research.

Also, miraculously, I got the job, a byproduct of having harangued the NCARD leaders about my positive attributes throughout the interview process.

Currently, I balance my time between my roles at NCARD and the School of Population and Global Health.

Outside of work, I read, fish and scour for pastries.

My unconventional journey reflects an indefatigable dedication towards writing, health and research.
I look forward to contributing to NCARD’s important work.

From Dr Tanya Ward, NCARD Program Manager: I am delighted to welcome Thierry to NCARD. Thierry brings with him a bespoke and highly relevant skill set, complemented by a palpable enthusiasm for supporting research. His background in media, health, and scientific communication is especially relevant to our mission of enhancing the understanding and treatment of asbestos-related diseases. We are excited about the new ideas and energy he brings, and we look forward to his contributions.