Youth invited to be part of the solution

The challenge of attracting the next generation into mining has been a recurring theme at today’s Queensland Exploration Council Tech Summit. It started with keynote speakers Resources Minister Scott Stewart and peak mining industry chief executive officer Ian Macfarlane from the Queensland Resources Council, who reinforced the dire lack of interest an even antagonism from the emerging generation. That generation is gamely represented at the summit by University of Queensland doctoral candidate Jenna McGovern (pictured above) with the thesis topic, ‘base metal mineralisation in the Western Australian Canning Basin.’ Related: QEC Tech Summit ‘Sharing for Success’ Ms McGovern, from Canberra, admits the nation’s governing capital is not a natural birthplace for geoscientists. There was a history of geologists including her father and great-grandfather, who made a greater impression, she said. It was perception rather than reality that had her generation largely shunning geoscience, she said. “I think there is a lot of people who link mining with the bad side of climate science and seeing all of the emissions as being a big part of mining,” she said. “So they want something different. They don't know what it is, they just know they don't want what's there. And so I think that's driving a lot of people away because they know they don't want what's there. “They're not really aware that they are exactly what we need to have something different and I think the lack of confidence in their own ability to innovate and actually come up with solutions to fix these problems … maybe they're just not aware that that is what they need to do,. “A big part of what's driving it as well as probably parental influence.” She supported efforts by the industry and the profession to engage more with younger people, Ms McGovern said. The pitch was to show they can be part of the solution, she said. “I think engaging with not only the new generation, but the people in other industries outside of our geoscience silo that maybe don't understand the relationships between mining companies wanting to move into an energy transition and the importance of fostering new talent to ensure that happens.” “You know, at the end of the day, we will have people who fill the jobs. We just want to make sure they're people who care. And that's the big part that I think is lacking. The people who care are both being driven away. “Everybody loves technology. Everybody loves what we've been able to create over the last century, just from our own ideas and then using technology as a day-to-day thing to make our lives better. So yeah, ask people what their ideas are and then give them the platform to go through with it.”

Youth invited to be part of the solution

Industry Queensland

Related News

State backs Isaac Country Universities Centres

HPI animation doing the rounds for safety

Megatrends report points to mining tech revolutions

Get access to breaking mining news, now.