Flinders STEM Women Aurora photo contest

The 2021 Cochlear Aurora photo contest winners

Thank you to all who entered and attended our awards ceremony on 2 December 2021.

Winners are listed below.

stemwomen@flinders.edu.au

Cochlear Aurora Photo Contest 2021 Winners Announcement

The Flinders University Hub and Plaza played host to the finals of the 2021 Cochlear Aurora Photo Contest awards on Thursday, 2 December 2021. Hosted by STEM Women Branching Out and featuring Jess Adamson as MC, this year's event showcased female STEM alumni who gave talks about their studies and careers in STEM.

The awards, aimed at encouraging women into STEM, and is open to year 7-12 students across South Australia and, for the first time, the Northern Territory. Entries are science-based photographs, judged on the quality of the photo, creativity of the concept, clear communication and explanation of the photo.

This year saw a record number of entries (100) as the contest continues to grow at an impressive pace. There was a prize pool of $6700 awarded across all categories, including individual categories for Best Physics, Best Natural photo, BestSTEM/M, Best Regional entries and Best entry from an Indigenous student.

First place in the individual honours for Years 11 & 12 from South Australian students was awarded to Lillian Ernst from Mary MacKillop College for her photo Eternal Flame.

First place in the individual honours for Years 7-10 students from South Australia went to Emily Faggotter from Gleeson College with her photo: Super Blood Moon.

First place in the individual honours for Years 11 & 12 from Northern Territory students was awarded to Rosanna Materazzo, Darwin High School for her photo: Underwater Vortex.

First place in the individual honours for Years 7-10 from Northern Territory students was awarded to Sophie-Lee Fisher – Home Education of the NT for her photo: Hot Hot Hot.

Read the full article

View the full list of winners

2021 Aurora Photo Contest winners with MC Jess Adamson and Professor Maria Parappilly

2021 Aurora Photo Contest prize ceremony, Flinders University Plaza

Full list of winners

South Australian Winners

Years 11 & 12
1st Place and winning school	Eternal Flame	Lillian Ernst	Mary MacKillop College
2nd Place	Optical Collision	Bianca Pehi	Brighton Secondary College
3rd place	Beauty in age	Louisa-Sophie Wagener	Adelaide High School
4th Place	Milk Galaxy	Summer Buhlmann	Wilderness School
Commendation	Infiltration	Hayley Henke	Nuriootpa High School

Years 7, 8, 9, 10
1st Place and winning school	Effect of Reflection: Super blood moon	Emily Faggotter	Gleeson College
2nd Place	Waterworld	Poppy Milligan	Mary MacKillop College
3rd Place	Iris Flamma	Mollie Campain-Burns	Mt Compass Area School
4th Place	More than just a spark	Jessica More	Immanuel College
Commendation	Reflections on Refractions	Annabelle Mossford- MacGregor	St Martin's Lutheran College

Northern Territory winners

Years 11 & 12
1st Place and winning school	Underwater Vortex	Rosanna Materazzo	Darwin High School
2nd Place	Broken and Tamed	Razvcedka Macabuhay	NT Christian College
3rd place	Desert Glaze	Charlotte Murphy	St Philips College
4th Place	Narcissus	Charlotte O'Neill	St Philips College
Commendation	Blue Moon	Kate Bennett	Centralian Senior Colle

Years 7, 8, 9, 10
1st Place and winning school	Hot hot hot	Sophie-Lee Fisher	Home Education of the NT
2nd Place	Neon Memories	Lilly Bloomer	St Philip's College
3rd Place	Spinning Wheel, Dance of the Damselfly	Fienna Jones	St Philip's College
4th Place	Little Giant	Jordan Fisher	Northern Territory School of Distance Education
Commendation	Colours of light	Zoe Lim	Darwin Middle School

Special Category Awards
Optometry and Medicine Prize	Through the lens	Rishvaa Tyagi	Glenunga International High School
Best STEMM (including medicine)	Waterworld	Poppy Milligan	Mary MacKillop College
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Entry	Eternal Flame	Lillian Ernst	Mary MacKillop College
Best Commitment to STEM Engagement SA		Teacher Jason Puttins	Gleeson College
Best Commitment to STEM Engagement NT		Educator Linda Tsai	St Philips College, Alice Springs

View all entries to the 2021 Aurora Photo Contest

Eternal Flame: Lillian Ernst

Super Blood Moon: Emily Faggotter

Underwater Vortex: Rosanna Materazzo

Hot! Hot! Hot!: Sophie-Lee Fisher

Be inspired by our finalists

“

It was an incredible honour to win the award with my photo ‘Worthington Jet’ because of what it represents; the contest paves a way for young girls and women to have a career in the area of STEM and teaching them that their gender, age or whether they live in the city or country, should not restrict what they are able to achieve.”

Molly WIld Grant High School - Mt Gambier

“

I have always loved both science and photography and it isn’t often you get an opportunity to combine the two, so when I heard about the competition from my science teacher at the time, I thought that it could both be a bit of fun for me and a way to challenge myself as a learner and an artist.”

Amber McAuley Thomas More College

“

At the ceremony there were many presentations made by industry speakers and students that were very interesting. The student presenters in particular were very inspirational and educational, as they gave me an insight to different types of sciences that I didn't know could be studied. It inspired me to see young women achieving their goals with the science that they loved.”

Kayla Wong Unley High School

“

Winning this award, "Best Natural Photo" and "Best Physics Entry" to me, is just amazing! It's a great recognition of the work that I've done. Receiving the award not only gives me the motivation to keep going on the road, but I have also gained more faith in myself.”

Laura Bellido Glenunga International High School

“

I really enjoyed listening to the industry speakers and students because it gave me an opportunity to see how others have created exciting careers in STEM. I was inspired by their stories and work to pursue my own passions and continue learning as much as I can about what interests me.”

Tahlia Malins Thomas More College

“

Winning this award boosted my confidence, and seeing all the other amazing submissions and reading the connections other people were making between science and the world around us meant I was noticing patterns in nature and appreciating natural beauty more. I definitely see myself studying a STEM degree at University, with a particular interest in forensic and investigative science. Unfortunately, I could not attend the awards ceremony as I was participating in a science camp on Heron Island Research Station in the Great Barrier Reef. This contest has inspired me to be more appreciative and aware of the world around me, and to take more notice of the little details and intricacies that make our world so beautiful."

Nevie Peart Australian Science and Mathematics School

The Cochlear Aurora Photo Contest 2019.

To view past finalists and winners select the link below.

For further information please email stemwomen@flinders.edu.au

Past finalists

Background information

The Cochlear Aurora Photo Contest was devised and founded by Associate Professor Maria Parappilly and has been running since 2015. Flinders University partnered with Cochlear Asia Pacific in 2016 in support of women in STEM.

The photo competition has two major prize categories:

Female school students in years 7 to 10, in South Australia or Northern Territory
Female high school students in years 11 to 12, in South Australia or Northern Territory

Prizes totalling over $4500* are awarded to students and their schools in the several categories

*Prize pool may change without notice.

The photo competition has four major prize categories:

1 x $500 Female school students in year 7 to 10 (from South Australia or Northern Territory).

1 x $500 School of the 1st prize award winner in Year 7-10 (Sponsored by ASBMB) (from South Australia or Northern Territory).

1 x $500 Female high school students in year 11 to 12 (from South Australia or Northern Territory).

1 x $500 School of the 1st prize award winner in Year 11-12 (from South Australia or Northern Territory).

Additional prize categories may include:

Beach Energy prize for the Best Natural photo will be offered ONLY in Year 11- 12 Category

Australian Institute of Physics Best Physics Photo Prize will be offered in both categories.

Best STEM Entry from Regional SA Sponsored by the college of Science and Engineering (Drawn from both Categories).

Best STEMM Entry Sponsored by the Office of Communication, Marketing and Engagement

Best Medicine and Optometry Prize sponsored by the College of Medicine and Public Health

The Cochlear Aurora Photo Contest (the Contest) is run exclusively by Flinders University ABN 65 542 596 200. Flinders University reserves and retains all rights (including intellectual property rights) arising from or associated with the Contest including the right to hold and advertise the Contest.

Photo submission guidelines

Convey the fact that ‘Science is everywhere!’
Be creative, unique and eye-catching.
Convey directly or indirectly the essence of the title/content.
Be an original photo taken by the student.

Judging criteria

Entries will be judged on the quality of the photo, creativity of the concept, clear communication and explanation of the photo.
Judging will be based on the weighting as follows:
60% Photograph
35% Description
5% Title,
Judges decisions is final.

Students are only allowed to enter one photo; multiple entries are not permitted.

The 2021 competition closes at 5pm , 8 October 2021.

Aurora photo contest guidelines and submission details

Eligibility

If you are a female student currently enrolled in Years 7 - 12 at a South Australian or Northern Territory secondary school you are eligible to enter the contest.

Guidelines

The Cochlear Aurora Photo Contest (the Contest) is run exclusively by Flinders University ABN 65 542 596 200. Flinders University reserves and retains all rights (including intellectual property rights) arising from or associated with the Contest including the right to hold and advertise the Contest.

The Cochlear Aurora Photo Contest opens 14 May 2021 and the deadline for submissions is 5pm Friday 8 October 2021. Students submitting an entry agree to their name and photo being displayed or presented at Flinders University and other media sources should they be a winner or a runner up. The winners of the prizes will be announced at an Awards Ceremony at Flinders University on a date to be confirmed.

The submitted photo must:

convey the fact that ‘Science is everywhere!’
be creative, unique and eye-catching
convey directly or indirectly the essence of the title/content
be an original photo taken by the student.

Students are only allowed to enter one photo; multiple entries are not permitted.

Joint entries by up to 2 students is permitted; multiple entries by joint entrants are not permitted. Only one prize will be given for joint entries.

Judging criteria

Entries will be judged on the quality of the photo, creativity of the concept, clear communication and explanation of the photo.
Judging will be based on the weighting as follows:
60% Photograph
35% Description
5% Title.
The judging panel will review all valid entries and select the winning entries.
The explanation must be written by the student(s) and must not contain any copyrighted material.
The judging panel’s decision on the winning entries is final.

How to submit an entry

Students must:

Complete the online registration.
Upload a jpeg file of the photo (high resolution - 300 dpi)
Use this naming convention for the photo: Aurora_Surname_School name, eg: Aurora_Smith_Henley-High