Lynette Knapp

Lynette Knapp is an Adjunct Research Fellow at The University of Western Australia's Albany Centre. As a Merningar Barduk Elder, she contributes traditional ecological knowledge to conservation and environmental research. Her work focuses on Indigenous land management practices, biodiversity preservation, and cross-cultural collaboration with professionals in archaeology, anthropology, and biology.

She is a key participant in the 2020-2024 Walking Together project with Prof. Stephen Hopper and Dr. Alison Lullfitz, involving over 25 field trips and 184 oral history recordings. Her research spans topics like Aboriginal-built reptile habitats, Mediterranean climate ecosystems, and Noongar cultural narratives.

Knapp actively shares her heritage through formal education at UWA and public programs like Merningar Language Courses. She advises government agencies and politicians on cultural matters, leveraging her reputation built through co-authored papers, media projects, and global DNA studies linking her family's history to 75,000-year-old creation stories.

• Recipient of the 2024 Vice-Chancellor's Award for Collaborative Indigenous Research Partnerships
• Contributed to the PEAT project protecting Southwestern Australia's peatlands
• Collaborated internationally on studies linking Indigenous knowledge to environmental science