Anna Blacka

Anna has worked in Scientific Illustration, Graphics and Communication at the Water Research Laboratory since 2008. She has a Bachelor of Design (Visual Communication) and is a specialist in scientific communication across visual, web, and social media platforms. 

Anna holds a specific skill set in the production of scientific illustrations including infographics, diagrams and technical figures that are used in academic publications, consulting investigations, industry communication, outreach and community engagement. She is an expert in communicating scientific concepts through visual illustrations, enabling understanding of complex technical ideas in an engaging and accessible way to both technical and non-technical audiences.

At WRL Anna’s illustrations focus on environmental, coastal and oceanographic geosciences and engineering. Her work has been published widely, including books, journals, reports, conference proceedings and online. Her illustrations and graphics are used to support coursework across numerous subjects within UNSW’s Civil and Environmental Engineering programs and for WRL’s professional training courses. 

Anna also produces all written communications across WRL’s websites and social media channels; disseminating WRL’s applied research to a global audience. As a qualified Graphic Designer, she maintains WRL’s marketing and promotional material, develops WRL’s brand guidelines, and designs WRL’s logos, brochures, posters and stationery, coordinating with suppliers and the broader UNSW external engagement team. Prior to working at WRL Anna gained extensive experience in a range of fields including advertising, editing and publications, with specialist skills in digital image manipulation, photo retouching and restoration.