Anthropology graduate awarded 2020 Cambridge Australia Scholarship
Established in the 1980s, the competitive Cambridge Australia Scholarship is awarded to Australian graduates of outstanding academic merit, allowing them to expand their passion for research and learning, while studying abroad.
Sally Montgomery touring the University of Cambridge.
Sally was selected as one of 12 Cambridge Australia Scholars in 2020.
“Being awarded a Cambridge Australia Scholarship means that I am able to pursue my long-held aspiration of studying at Cambridge – a prospect which I never thought possible. It’s an immense privilege,” says Sally.
“Being a Cambridge Australia Scholar provides a platform for making a positive impact in society – a task towards which the community of Cambridge Australia Scholars collectively strives. My route to achieving this will be through further studies in Social Anthropology - a field which, due to its deep understanding of humanity and culture, is well positioned to inform decision making on world issues that confront us today.”
Sally graduated in 2019 with a Bachelor of Arts (First Class Honours) in Anthropology. During her 4-year degree she received 11 awards for academic excellence, including the distinguished University Medal. Her path to a PhD will begin with a Masters in Research and will see her continue the research she began in her Honours year at the University of Sydney, examining the moral and monetary complexities of the emerging practice of mothers selling and buying breastmilk via unregulated online networks.
With increasing entrepreneurial activity in this growing market for human breast milk, research like Sally’s can play an important role in informing public debate and health policy, highlighting ethical concerns and ensuring more equitable access to this essential first food.
Food security is an issue which poses a great threat to the ever-increasing global population. I hope that my research will be able to contribute to the interdisciplinary efforts being made to envision the future of food in a way that is equitable, accessible and sustainable.
Commencing at the University of Cambridge in October, Sally is looking forward to the rich academic life that studying at the world-renowned campus offers.
“There are so many opportunities to attend fascinating guest lectures, to challenge the way I think and to meet diverse groups of scholars who are all passionately studying such different courses,” says Sally.
“One of the most valuable experiences I gained at the University of Sydney during my Honours year was being involved and engaged in the academic life of the Department of Anthropology, joining in bigger, often interdisciplinary discussions and sharing one’s time and talents. This is something I also really look forward to at the University of Cambridge.”
Find out more about the Cambridge Australia Scholarship.