Student lands the catch of the day in writing awards

26 November 2003

UNSW PhD student Wendy Laursen has won second prize in the Co-op bookshop Dialogica awards for excellence in written communication for her article, The catch of the day.

Laursen, who is studying the ecology of mangrove algae along the Clyde River south of Sydney at the school of biology, earth and environmental science, won $5000 for her article.

Told from the perspective of a person fancying fish and chips in Bateman's Bay, the article delves into the food web of the mangrove forests along the pristine Clyde River, bringing to life the world of algae and the delicate eco-system that exists in this unique environment.

Lead judge Professor Malcolm Gillies described Laursen's work as imaginative and insightful. Works were assessed on scholarly standards, quality of expression and their suitability as short essays aimed to provoke informed public debate and reflection on major intellectual, social and political issues of the day.

"The Co-op bookshop Dialogica awards are designed to encourage excellence in written communication by academics, researchers, postgraduates and educators," says David Myton, editor of Campus Review, the central organiser of the competition.

Six prizes were awarded in total including awards for an under 30-year-old and an under 35-year-old. First prize went to Marcia Devlin, educational researcher at Swinburne University for her article, The problem with plagiarism.