Alumni in Focus Q&A with Dr Georgia Behrens

Alumna Dr Georgia Behrens is a medical doctor, advocate and board director working at the nexus of climate change and human health.

What has been keeping you busy since graduating in 2020?

I've recently finished my first year as a junior doctor in a big, busy Sydney hospital. It's been a year with lots of challenges and learning, especially with constant COVID curveballs at play! In between hospital shifts, I also work as an NGO board director, a policy author, and an adjunct clinical lecturer at UNDA's School of Medicine, Sydney. And then I decompress as much as I can by tending to my building's community garden!

What do you miss most about Notre Dame?

I miss my wonderful med school friends terribly! We've scattered across the country to embark on our medical careers, and chaotic junior doctors' schedules can be difficult to coordinate for catch-ups. My study buddies really carried me through the last few years of med school, and getting to see them most days is something I wish I hadn't taken so much for granted.

What is one of your favourite memories from your student days at Notre Dame?

In our first year of medical school, our year group got together to rally in support of asylum seekers being held in offshore detention on Manus Island and Nauru. This was before Medevac legislation was passed, and there had been an awful series of stories coming out about the health impacts of offshore detention. As future doctors, we felt a responsibility to speak out about this. I think the cohort's willingness to rally in a unified way around this issue spoke to how caring, compassionate, and socially engaged everyone was -- I was so proud that these were the sorts of doctors that Notre Dame would be sending out into the world.

What are you working on at the moment?

I'm currently juggling emergency department shifts with climate change and health advocacy work. A key focus at the moment is working with Doctors for the Environment Australia to help local communities understand and speak up about the health impacts of climate change before the upcoming election. It's hugely inspiring to empower people to ask their elected representatives to better protect the bedrocks of human health: clear air, clean water, and a liveable climate.

What are your hopes and goals for 2022?

Later this year, I'm off to the UK to do postgraduate studies in public and environmental health as the 2022 Roden Cutler NSW John Monash Scholar. In doing this, I'm hoping to equip myself to help lead some pretty big transformations in Australia's healthcare system in the coming years: it needs to be more sustainable, resilient, and equitable to deal with the massive health challenges heading our way this century. I'm also hoping to squeeze in plenty of nature adventures while I'm over there, and to go to Scandinavia to see the Northern Lights!

What’s your advice for others interested in pursuing a career in public and environmentally sustainable health?

Please do it! We need people in all fields working on climate change and environmental protection -- you really don't have to work for Greenpeace to protect our planet. This is a burgeoning, exciting, dynamic field, and it's hugely rewarding to be a part of it. More generally, I urge you to be career-courageous. It's OK if you want to do something a bit unconventional, or if your dream job doesn't exist yet. I've found that paths tend to unfold in front of you if you're passionate about what you do, and have a vision for the change you want to achieve.

What does ‘ethical leadership’ mean to you and how do you think a Notre Dame education prepares graduates to be ethical leaders?

Ethical leadership, for me, is all about stewardship and service - treating people and our shared planet with care and respect, and trying to shape a world where we can flourish together. I pursued this vision for a more sustainable, equitable world throughout my medical degree, and juggled my studies with all kinds of co-curricular activities. I really appreciated that Notre Dame actively encouraged us to go beyond academics, and engage in the world as citizens and advocates. Having the space and support to do that throughout my medical education was vital for me, and has put me in a really strong position to be a healthcare leader throughout my career.

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