About the program
Deadly in Generation STEM (DIGS) aims to increase the engagement and retention of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in STEM educational pathways. The program fosters an understanding and respect for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people and their contributions to STEM.
It is delivered through a community-driven approach in the Illawarra-Shoalhaven, Moree-Narrabri and surrounding areas, where growing industries will generate new STEM jobs over the coming years.
Deadly in Generation STEM activities include STEM camps for Year 8 -10 Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait students and teacher professional learning opportunities for primary and secondary educators.
The program is delivered by CSIRO Generation STEM, a 10-year initiative aimed at diversifying the STEM pipeline in NSW.
[Music plays and a split circle appears and photos of different CSIRO activities flash through in either side of the circle and then the circle morphs into the CSIRO logo]
[Image appears of Destiny Paris talking to the camera, and text appears: Destiny Paris, Deadly in Gen-eration STEM Project Officer]
Destiny Paris: In Generation STEM is an education outreach program that focuses on attracting, sup-porting and retaining more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in STEM pathways.
[Images move through Destiny talking to a group with the shot moving closer and a circle of youth with the shot panning around the outside edge]
[Image changes to Cliodhna Maguire talking to camera, and text appears: Cliodhna Maguire, Botanic Gardens of Sydney, First Nations Youth Community Greening Officer and camp mentor]
Cliodhna Maguire: STEM is important because it brings together so many different concepts, so many different people, so many different perspectives to solve problems, to understand the world and to interact with the world.
[Images move through Cliodhna sitting on the ground with a male as they laugh and talk, a woman standing in front of a group of youth with a long table between them, camera moves to show the plants on the long table that the woman is discussing with the group and returns to Cliodhna]
When you think of trying to be more sustainable, trying to be more innovative, trying to have a uni-versal model, that everyone is considered, within Engineering, within Technology, within Science. We’re considering all people, animals, flora, landscape.
[Images move through a group listening to a man in a red and purple shirt and black hat and then the man moves to lead the group off towards camera before image returns to Cliodhna]
[Image changes to Letitia Holmes talking to camera, and text appears: Letitia Holmes, BlueScope, La-boratory Technician]
Letitia Holmes: The reason why I got involved in Deadly In Generation STEM is because I saw the op-portunity to connect with young people and to give them a viewpoint on how I got into STEM.
[Images move as camera pans around Letitia and a group of youth in a room with several discussions going on, one group has a drone, another is looking at a tablet and there is someone holding some wood vertically]
[Image changest to Zachary Noel-Strang talking to camera, and text appears: Zachary Noel-Strang, Snowy Hydro, Civil Engineer and camp mentor]
Zachary Noel-Strang: To have industry people like myself come in and mentor these young kids, it’s super important and I think it’s important because my upbringing and what I learned in a public school space, I didn’t have these opportunities to learn about, I guess, STEM careers.
[Images move through a group of students and instructors around a table as drones are being flown toward the camera, an outdoor activity where students are throwing boomerangs as the instructors encourage them and returns to Zachary]
So for me, not having that experience and sort of just navigating it myself, I found it quite hard.
[Image changes to low shot of people walking along a bush track]
[Image changes to Mitchell talking to camera, and text appears: Mitchell, participating student]
Mitchell: I decided to participate in this camp to meet people from the same background as me and also to explore STEM opportunities for the future.
[Image changes to Aunty May Button talking to camera, and text appears: Aunty May Button, Dhara-wal, Yuin and Gunaikurnai Country]
Aunty May Button: I teach on bush medicine and other stuff that comes from the bush.
[Images move through a shot from behind students as Aunty May Button stands behind a long table with various jars of plants on it as she talks to the students and answers a question then returns to Aunty May Button talking to camera]
So I have a passion of taking care of it as well. My best advice I could give is always follow your heart. Go with your heart and step out of that comfort zone because you can do it. You can make it happen.
[Image changes to Bianca talking to camera, and text appears: Bianca, participating student]
Bianca: The reason why I wanted to do this camp was it was outside of my comfort zone and I do en-joy science and I feel like it was a good opportunity.
[Images move as camera pan around an art room with various groups seated at tables creating art and discussing their creations]
[Image changes to Destiny Paris talking to camera]
Destiny Paris: Mentorship is a big part of the camps model. It’s really important to give these students a chance to meet and hear from STEM professionals working locally in the area, to get a real sense of what these job opportunities look like and feel like.
[Images move through a group of students on a grassed area with an adult in the foreground explain-ing the boomerang to a couple of students nearby, a group of students gathering in front of someone holding a digideroo, an overhead shot of country with a tree covered mountain and a carpark at the top, a different angle of the property with the students gathered at a lookout and returns to Destiny talking to camera]
Because at the end of the day you can’t be what you can’t see and so the more people we can intro-duce them to and the more stories that we can get about different peoples lived experiences and journeys, the deeper insight they can get about the amazing opportunities available to them.
[Image changes to Cliodhna Maguire talking to camera]
Cliodhna Maguire: I hope that these students, the kids on the Deadly In Generation camp, I hope that they get out of this camp the understanding that they’re supported, that they’re seen, that a linear path is not necessarily everything that they have to achieve.
[Images move through the camera panning across a group of students with Cliodhna as she instructs them on weaving some fibres and returns to Cliodhna talking to camera]
[Images move through a group of students in a circle dancing as an elder instructs them and keeps time with two boomerangs clapped together and then returns to Cliodhna talking to camera]
That they’ve got a long journey ahead of them and they can zig zag, they can hop, they can bounce, they can take a step back but that they can be proud of who they are and that the world can see them., that they have a voice. And that they’re scientists.
[Images move through Cliodhna in the art room with students gathered around, to people walking between colourfully painted totem poles and returns to Cliodhna talking to camera]
Whether they’re STEM scientists or not, as an Aboriginal person they have science in their blood.
[Music plays and image changes to New South Wales Government logo as well as the Science and In-dustry Endowment Fund logo with text: Generation STEM is managed by CSIRO and made possible through the NSW Government’s $25 million endowment to the Science and Industry Endowment Fund (SIEF)]
[Image changes to CSIRO logo]
[Image appears of Destiny Paris talking to the camera, and text appears: Destiny Paris, Deadly in Gen-eration STEM Project Officer]
Destiny Paris: In Generation STEM is an education outreach program that focuses on attracting, sup-porting and retaining more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in STEM pathways.
[Images move through Destiny talking to a group with the shot moving closer and a circle of youth with the shot panning around the outside edge]
[Image changes to Cliodhna Maguire talking to camera, and text appears: Cliodhna Maguire, Botanic Gardens of Sydney, First Nations Youth Community Greening Officer and camp mentor]
Cliodhna Maguire: STEM is important because it brings together so many different concepts, so many different people, so many different perspectives to solve problems, to understand the world and to interact with the world.
[Images move through Cliodhna sitting on the ground with a male as they laugh and talk, a woman standing in front of a group of youth with a long table between them, camera moves to show the plants on the long table that the woman is discussing with the group and returns to Cliodhna]
When you think of trying to be more sustainable, trying to be more innovative, trying to have a uni-versal model, that everyone is considered, within Engineering, within Technology, within Science. We’re considering all people, animals, flora, landscape.
[Images move through a group listening to a man in a red and purple shirt and black hat and then the man moves to lead the group off towards camera before image returns to Cliodhna]
[Image changes to Letitia Holmes talking to camera, and text appears: Letitia Holmes, BlueScope, La-boratory Technician]
Letitia Holmes: The reason why I got involved in Deadly In Generation STEM is because I saw the op-portunity to connect with young people and to give them a viewpoint on how I got into STEM.
[Images move as camera pans around Letitia and a group of youth in a room with several discussions going on, one group has a drone, another is looking at a tablet and there is someone holding some wood vertically]
[Image changest to Zachary Noel-Strang talking to camera, and text appears: Zachary Noel-Strang, Snowy Hydro, Civil Engineer and camp mentor]
Zachary Noel-Strang: To have industry people like myself come in and mentor these young kids, it’s super important and I think it’s important because my upbringing and what I learned in a public school space, I didn’t have these opportunities to learn about, I guess, STEM careers.
[Images move through a group of students and instructors around a table as drones are being flown toward the camera, an outdoor activity where students are throwing boomerangs as the instructors encourage them and returns to Zachary]
So for me, not having that experience and sort of just navigating it myself, I found it quite hard.
[Image changes to low shot of people walking along a bush track]
[Image changes to Mitchell talking to camera, and text appears: Mitchell, participating student]
Mitchell: I decided to participate in this camp to meet people from the same background as me and also to explore STEM opportunities for the future.
[Image changes to Aunty May Button talking to camera, and text appears: Aunty May Button, Dhara-wal, Yuin and Gunaikurnai Country]
Aunty May Button: I teach on bush medicine and other stuff that comes from the bush.
[Images move through a shot from behind students as Aunty May Button stands behind a long table with various jars of plants on it as she talks to the students and answers a question then returns to Aunty May Button talking to camera]
So I have a passion of taking care of it as well. My best advice I could give is always follow your heart. Go with your heart and step out of that comfort zone because you can do it. You can make it happen.
[Image changes to Bianca talking to camera, and text appears: Bianca, participating student]
Bianca: The reason why I wanted to do this camp was it was outside of my comfort zone and I do en-joy science and I feel like it was a good opportunity.
[Images move as camera pan around an art room with various groups seated at tables creating art and discussing their creations]
[Image changes to Destiny Paris talking to camera]
Destiny Paris: Mentorship is a big part of the camps model. It’s really important to give these students a chance to meet and hear from STEM professionals working locally in the area, to get a real sense of what these job opportunities look like and feel like.
[Images move through a group of students on a grassed area with an adult in the foreground explain-ing the boomerang to a couple of students nearby, a group of students gathering in front of someone holding a digideroo, an overhead shot of country with a tree covered mountain and a carpark at the top, a different angle of the property with the students gathered at a lookout and returns to Destiny talking to camera]
Because at the end of the day you can’t be what you can’t see and so the more people we can intro-duce them to and the more stories that we can get about different peoples lived experiences and journeys, the deeper insight they can get about the amazing opportunities available to them.
[Image changes to Cliodhna Maguire talking to camera]
Cliodhna Maguire: I hope that these students, the kids on the Deadly In Generation camp, I hope that they get out of this camp the understanding that they’re supported, that they’re seen, that a linear path is not necessarily everything that they have to achieve.
[Images move through the camera panning across a group of students with Cliodhna as she instructs them on weaving some fibres and returns to Cliodhna talking to camera]
[Images move through a group of students in a circle dancing as an elder instructs them and keeps time with two boomerangs clapped together and then returns to Cliodhna talking to camera]
That they’ve got a long journey ahead of them and they can zig zag, they can hop, they can bounce, they can take a step back but that they can be proud of who they are and that the world can see them., that they have a voice. And that they’re scientists.
[Images move through Cliodhna in the art room with students gathered around, to people walking between colourfully painted totem poles and returns to Cliodhna talking to camera]
Whether they’re STEM scientists or not, as an Aboriginal person they have science in their blood.
[Music plays and image changes to New South Wales Government logo as well as the Science and In-dustry Endowment Fund logo with text: Generation STEM is managed by CSIRO and made possible through the NSW Government’s $25 million endowment to the Science and Industry Endowment Fund (SIEF)]
[Image changes to CSIRO logo]
Program eligibility
Teacher Professional Learning
- Open to primary and secondary school teachers based in the Illawarra-Shoalhaven, Moree-Narrabri and surrounding areas.
- A two-year commitment is required to ensure the program achieves its intended impact.
- Teachers must attend the professional learning day and deliver at least one inquiry in the first year and minimum of two inquiries in the second year, one of which is with Community.
Student STEM Camp
- Open to Year 8 -10 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.
- Students must be based in the Illawarra (for the Illawarra camp) or Moree, Narrabri and surrounding areas (for the Moree camp).
- Nominated by their school to participate.
Program outcomes
Participating students have reported stronger connections with local Aboriginal knowledge and an increased sense of belonging. The program has also improved their awareness and interest in STEM and culture.
Teachers have also provided positive feedback, finding the professional learning very or extremely beneficial for enhancing their skills and confidence to teach within a traditional Indigenous context.
Read our Generation STEM evaluation reports