Sarah Douglass

2014 Early Career Recipient, College of Science and Engineering

Ms Douglass graduated from James Cook University with a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Science (Politics and International Relations/Environmental Earth Science) in 2012. She is now an International Chemical Policy Officer in the Australian Government Department of the Environment.

After graduating from JCU, Ms Douglass was accepted into a highly competitive Graduate Programme within the Department of the Environment.

This included being a case manager for a coal seam gas project, coordinating Australia’s contribution to the East Asia Summit Environment Stream, and the domestic implementation of the Montreal Protocol.

Her now permanent position involves developing international and domestic policy related to hazardous materials – particularly those associated with mercury, lead and cadmium.

Recently, her team led Australia’s participation in negotiations on the Minamata Convention on Mercury, with a focus now on considering ratification of the Convention.

A firm believer in contributing to the wider community, Ms Douglass also works with Soroptimist International, advocating the education and empowerment of women globally.

During her time at James Cook University, Ms Douglass undertook a number of personal ventures, including representing Australia as the National youth delegate for the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, and a humanitarian mission to a remote village in Nepal with financial assistance provided by the JCU Chancellery and Cairns-based non-government organisations.

During her short stay in Nepal, she coordinated the successful implementation of an empowerment program through the promotion of education for young women and children; addressed a number of environmental issues through the instalment of an education and awareness program concerning local pollution issues and researched conservation strategies for the preservation of the region’s threatened sub-tropical forests in conjunction with local elders.