In recognition of National Volunteer Week, The University of Western Australia is celebrating its volunteers and their transformative impact in enriching student journeys, energising our global connections and contributing to world-leading research.
Often flying below the radar, UWA’s volunteers contribute to all walks of UWA life, with more than 2,700 alumni, staff and members of the community participating in over 3,000 unique activities in 2023 alone. Volunteers provide clinical mentoring of the next generation of medical professionals, host international students, propagate seedlings to help keep our grounds beautiful, and participate in research projects as well as citizen science initiatives.
Perhaps the most visible and celebrated example of volunteers playing a vital role in furthering research and understanding, is that of the Raine Study, which is currently recruiting a world-first third generation of volunteer participants. Established in 1989, the WA-based initiative was the world’s first pregnancy cohort study and is now one of the world’s largest and longest-running studies of human health from pregnancy through childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. It has already recruited around 800 third-generation volunteers, a number that is expected to reach into the thousands by the end of the next decade. Many volunteers will have a life-long association with the project, something that is greatly valued by second-generation volunteer and UWA alumna Emily Brooke (neé Palmer, BSc '12).
Having been signed up by her mother at birth, Emily’s earliest memories of the Raine Study are of being supplied with delicious toasties and juice at the old Telethon Institute. One of 2,868 Generation 2 babies, Emily was given the choice to continue with the study when she was old enough and now finds herself completing her 33-year-old assessment.
“As I’ve gotten older, I’ve developed an appreciation for the importance of helping provide data that could be used for medical advancement,” Emily said.
Volunteering also provides many other benefits for those involved, with many volunteers finding lifelong friendships, satisfaction in helping others, career rewards and, in the case of Emily and the Raine Study, the opportunity to receive the results of comprehensive medical checks.
“For the small cost of giving back to the medical research field, I’ve also been given medical knowledge about my body that I wouldn’t otherwise have known,” Emily said.
Emily’s interest in science started at a young age, and in 2011 she completed a Bachelor of Science at UWA. During her studies, she learnt much about medical research and the importance of a large cohort of data to infer findings, and this is one of the reasons she decided to sign her children up as third-generation participants of the Raine Study.
“Although I am just one person, we all individually can help provide a large dataset of information to be used for medical and scientific advancement. I recommend anyone who might be eligible to try volunteering for a study or trial – not only will you be helping scientific and medical advancement, but you often get valuable information about your body and general health,” she said.
Whether it’s taking part in a research study like Emily, planting trees, or mentoring the next generation of leaders, UWA volunteers can make a difference. To every UWA volunteer: You are an inspiration, you are important, and we thank you.
If you are interested in learning more about the Raine Study, please tune in to our webinar on June 13 where Professor Romola Bucks, Pro Vice Chancellor Health and Medical Research at UWA & Director of the Raine Study will interview Associate Professor Rebecca Glauert, Scientific Director at the Raine Study.