Dr Dee Ninis

Dr Dee Ninis is an Earthquake Geologist at The Seismology Research Centre. She monitors, analyses, and researches seismic hazards and events in Australia and overseas. If you were in Australia in September 2021 for the magnitude 5.9 earthquake in Woods Point, Victoria, your information about this seismic event likely came from Dee, who was prolific in sharing the facts as they came in!

Dee has always loved earthquakes and knew from a young age that she wanted to study them - her whole career has centred around working towards her current (dream!) role.

What do you do?

I work for the Seismology Research Centre, in their Seismic Hazard team, as an earthquake geologist. We are responsible for site-specific seismic hazard analyses – this means we assess sites (mainly in Australia, but also overseas) to determine the earthquake hazard there, namely from ground shaking. We do this by considering the historical (recorded) seismicity as well as looking into the geological record for evidence of past ground-rupturing earthquakes, and combine this information with the local/regional geology and how it attenuates seismic waves. We provide this information mainly to engineers/designers/operators of major infrastructure (e.g., dams, pipelines, bridges) so they can build and maintain their structures to withstand earthquake ground shaking.

Specifically, I contribute to our seismic hazard studies by assessing local tectonic faults to determine whether they’re active, and if so, how active – this information is included in our models. I also locate earthquakes as part of my duty seismologist role. My job also requires me to present our work in publications and at conferences, and to communicate with the media and the public about earthquakes.

Why did you choose this career pathway?

I’ve been interested in earthquakes from a very young age and, even before I started at university, I knew I wanted to study geology so I could learn more about them. Having said that, my career pathway hasn’t exactly been straightforward. I was a bit disappointed to realise that there wasn’t much earthquake science taught in my undergrad classes at my university – at the time, this seemed typical for a geology degree at any of the universities in Melbourne, and indeed Australia! Also, I was enrolled part-time for a number of my undergraduate years, while I also worked in the music industry - my other passion. Working in the music biz was a lot of fun, but it wasn’t something that I wanted to do long-term (even though music is still something I very much enjoy).

When I finished my B.Sc. Hons. in Geology/ Geophysics, I learned about the Seismology Research Centre – back then, they were the only group doing earthquake science in Melbourne. I contacted them, but I never received a reply. Then I basically fell into what was meant to be a short-term position in Data Management with the Minerals and Petroleum Division at the Department of Natural Resources and Environment (DNRE - State Government of Victoria). I started there, working alongside others who were also just out of their Earth Science degree. It was fun meeting and working with other like-minded people, including the awesome team at the Geological Survey of Victoria. I enjoyed my job (and having an income!) and my short-term contract kept on being renewed, until it was made ongoing. My employer sponsored me for a Diploma of Business in Management, and I became the Manager of the Rock Core Library Facility. I was then moved into a Policy position.

Before I knew it, I’d been working at the DNRE for 5 years – time flies! That’s when I took stock and realised I still wanted to work with earthquakes. I looked at my options - I considered going back to uni to further my studies, but at that stage I didn’t want to leave Melbourne, and there still weren’t any local academics who specialised in earthquake science. That’s when I heard about the position at the Seismology Research Centre - in fact, I heard that they had advertised a position, but that applications had already closed! I called them anyway, and asked if they would accept my late application. I was so excited to be interviewed, and I was offered the job about an hour after I left the interview - I was over the moon!

My work at the Seismology Research Centre was very much seismology focused, and while I did (and still do) enjoy seismology, my specific interests became clearer – I wanted to work in earthquake geology/paleoseismology. And I was ready to move from Melbourne. I put my feelers out and, through the contacts I had made working with the Seismology Research Centre, I was encouraged to apply for a scholarship to do my Ph.D. in New Zealand. My application was successful and I moved to Aotearoa to do my Ph.D. in earthquake geology, with every intention of returning to the Seismology Research Centre. My Ph.D. took longer than I had anticipated though – life happened (I had children) - and when I finally finished, I was thrilled that the Seismology Research Centre still had a position for me, initially working for them from NZ, and then at long last returning to Australia.

What are the best parts about your job?
What are the hardest parts?

I’m really fascinated by earthquakes, so there is not much that I don’t love about my job – I consider myself lucky to be getting paid for something that I really enjoy doing! My role contributes towards keeping people safe, by advising engineers on how to build their structures to withstand earthquakes.

I would say that the most frustrating part of my job, in terms of assessing faults for inclusion in earthquake hazard estimates, is the current lack of information on paleoearthquakes in the geological record in Australia. There are many faults that seem to show a surface expression as a result of ground rupture (e.g., a scarp) but most of these haven’t been properly studied to determine, for example, if the scarp is erosional, or, if it is indeed earthquake ground-rupture related, how old the scarp is/when the most recent earthquake was – this information is important to earthquake hazard estimates.

Detailed fault investigations require funding, and unfortunately earthquake science in Australia has generally been underfunded – I think this stems from the “earthquakes don’t happen in Australia” perception… until, of course, they do happen!

How well did your degree prepare you for your career path?

My geology undergrad degree provided the foundations needed for my career in earthquake science, but there wasn’t a specific course on earthquake geology or seismicity - I learned a lot more from my time working at the Seismology Research Centre, where I was trained in earthquake seismology.

The Seismology Research Centre had been monitoring earthquakes in south-east Australia since the mid-1970’s, so they were (and still are!) experts in the seismicity of Australia. When I moved “across the ditch” to do my Ph.D. in earthquake geology, I was also tutoring undergrads - I was so envious of the earthquake science they were learning – everything from seismology to earthquake geology and geomorphology, and with so many active fault sites for suitable field work! I ended up sitting in on some of the undergrad classes and going on their field trips! So at the same time as I was teaching them, I was simultaneously learning a lot that I didn’t get a chance to learn during my own undergrad – making up for lost time!

For someone interested in earthquakes, New Zealand had it all; I learned so much, even just from my day-to-day interactions with the very active (no pun intended) earthquake science community there; they really are world leaders in this field. And we continue to learn - the M7.8 Kaikōura event taught us that we may think we understand a lot about earthquakes, but the earth still surprises us, and we learn more with every additional event. The more we understand earthquakes, the better we can prepare for future events and, in turn, save lives.

What advice would you give to students in your study area trying to decide on a career path?

They say “you have to see it, to be it”, and because earthquake science wasn’t really being undertaken in Australia when I was in undergrad., I wasn’t able to immediately appreciate what my options were in earthquake science; it took me a while to work out what I wanted to focus on. This means I started my Ph.D. in my 30’s! These days it’s much easier to refer to the internet and the many social media platforms (I’m looking at you, Twitter!) to see research being undertaken. And, in the last decade or so, the Australian earthquake science community has grown; there are more options to undertake earthquake studies locally.

My advice to anyone interested in a career studying earthquakes or any field in earth science – especially if you’re not sure exactly what field you’d like to focus on – is to use the resources available to see what others are doing. Also, attend conferences (don’t forget pre- and post-conference field trips); locally, volunteer to help out in labs or field work to experience different areas of earth science. Find people whose research aligns with your interests and make yourself known to them.

What were your career worries and expectations when you were at uni?

To be honest, when I chose to study geology, I really wasn’t thinking ahead about a career; I was just thinking about what interested me! It was a bit of a rude shock during third year to see my peers all applying for jobs with mining companies – I was not at all interested in working for a mining company! Regardless, I did give it a go - I did a summer stint as a favour for a friend of mine, who had agreed with her employer that if she could find someone to replace her for the summer, she could try a new role. I was only one of two women working at the mine, and we were amongst the youngest at the site. My role required me to supervise the ore excavation, which was all being done by men, and I think they struggled being directed by someone who was new to the company/younger/more qualified/a female! I found their reaction to me pretty tough going. When the company asked if I could stay on in my role after the summer, I politely declined.

People often think that a Ph.D. means a career in academia, but when I decided to do a Ph.D. it was because I wanted to further my qualifications, especially given that I didn’t do much earthquake science in undergrad. I’ve observed friends/ colleagues working in academia, and their seemingly constant battle for funding and a secure job doesn’t really appeal to me. To sum it up, from my perspective, a geology degree doesn’t have to mean a career in mining, nor does it have to be staying in academia. There are so many other places that a geology degree can take you – some of my peers are advisors to the Government, some have moved into environmental science, or climate studies, or earth science related IT, they’ve become geotechnicians for building sites, park rangers, and they work at museums… those who worked in earthquake hazard have even gained employment the insurance/re-insurance industry (the latter, btw, pays quite well!).