Ms Jessica Urwin
Areas of expertise
- Historical Studies 4303
- Environmental History 430307
- History Of Empires, Imperialism And Colonialism 430313
- Australian History 430302
Research interests
My interests include Australian and global nuclear history, Australian history (including political history), history of colonialism, imperial history and environmental history.
Biography
Jessica is an associate lecturer and PhD candidate in the School of History at the ANU. Her PhD research charts a history of nuclear colonialism in Australia across the twentieth century through an analysis of radium and uranium mining, nuclear weapons testing and the dumping of radioactive waste in South Australia since 1906. Her research has been published in History Australia, Australian Historical Studies, the Australian Journal of Politics and Biography, Inside Story and The Conversation. Jessica has also discussed her research in conference and seminar papers, as well as on community radio. She currently teaches first year environmental history within the School of History.
Jessica's research has recevied multiple accolades, including: the History Council of NSW First Nations History Award (2021) and Max Kelly Medal (2018); the Minoru Hokari Memorial Scholarship (2021); the Australian Historical Association's Jill Roe Prize (2021); runner-up for the Ken Inglis Prize (2020); and, the Lilith Symposium's best HDR paper (2021).
Beyond her own research, Jessica is currently a research assistant on an ARC Laureatte Program spearheaded by the Research Centre for Deep History, and on an ARC Special Initiative 'Water Cultures of the Murray Darling Basin'.
Researcher's projects
Guest Co-Editor, Special Issue of International Review of Environmental History, 'Histories and legacies of extraction and toxicity'
Publications
- Urwin, J 2021, 'The British Empire's Dr Strangelove? Ernest Titterton and the Royal Commission into British nuclear tests in Australia', History Australia, vol. 18, no. 4, pp. 714-736.
- Urwin, J & Silverstein, B 2020, 'Governing Natives: Indirect Rule and Settler Colonialism in Australia's North, by Ben Silverstein. Conversation between Jessica Urwin and Ben Silverstein', ANU Historical Journal II, vol. 2, pp. 233-241.
- Urwin, J & Urwin, J 2019, Uranium mines harm Indigenous people - so why have we approved a new one?, pp. 1pp-3pp.
- Urwin, J 2017, 'More bang for your buck: Nuclear weapons and their enactment of colonial and gendered power', ANU Undergraduate Research Journal, vol. 8, pp. 237-250.