From life as a professional in the dramatic arts, to winning a prestigious Macquarie Fellowship at the Law School, Dr Catherine Hastings’ career is a series of magnificent adventures.

Her early career was in arts management, working for theatre companies, festivals and orchestras. In her late thirties, Catherine returned to study at the University of New England, then the University of Technology Sydney. In 2011 she completed the Master of Policy and Applied Social Research at Macquarie, which led her down the career path she is on today.

Catherine is now endeavouring to understand why marginalised and disadvantaged populations in Australia develop critical legal needs and what steps can be taken to counteract them.

This work follows a thesis exploring why families in Australia become homeless, and post-PhD contributions on the drivers of first-time homelessness for older Australian women, as well as financial and housing issues faced by international students.

“Disadvantaged Australians are more likely to experience legal need, yet have greater difficulty accessing an increasingly unaffordable justice system. In collaboration with the legal assistance sector, my research aims to deliver a new approach to understanding legal need and a list of priority actions for the sector to support its service delivery, advocacy and funding activities,” she says.

1. Something you feel proud of
I am still pinching myself that I have received the Macquarie University Research Fellowship. I worked hard for it, but I also feel extremely fortunate to have been offered two jobs post-PhD, one that enabled me to publish, and another job in the community assistance sector that solidified my idea for the project.

2. What you need to do your best work
I love a happy mix of space and time for quiet, focussed work and collaborative conversations with others. I’m so happy to have colleagues again after four years of PhD study and two years of working from home during Covid.

3. Something you’ve read recently that has had an impact on you
I have recently started reading Erik Olin Wright’s Envisioning Real Utopias. It’s engaging and inspiring.

4. A favourite photo from your camera roll

This photo was taken in Ushguli in the Svaneti region of Georgia. My partner and I travelled to Georgia because of the food, music, history and mountainous landscapes. We made the long trip by 4WD to Ushguli, having seen the region featured in a 1930 Soviet silent film by Kalatozov Salt for Svanetia. Apart from the fact that this is a stunning part of the world, and I love mountains, this photo represents travel inspired by many of my interests outside of work.

5. Your definition of success
To have positive relationships in my work and personal life and to be given opportunities to do work that is intellectually stimulating and contributes to social justice and equality.

6. The first person you go to for advice 
My partner. He’s smart and wise, we have very similar values, and he asks great questions, always helping me work through an issue or decision. He doesn’t just tell me what to do!

7. A website or app you can’t live without
There are two I seem to use equally at the moment:

• BOM for weather – which helps me decide what shoes to wear, depending on the amount of rain.
• Mindbody – which I use for booking classes at my Pilates studio. Pilates is my best stress release and I’m a bit addicted to how great it makes me feel.

8. A personal quality you value in others
There are two – Integrity and compassion.

9. Something you’re trying to do differently in 2022
There seems to be always a list of ‘self-improvement’ changes I would like to make… This year I’m actually trying to do less of that stuff and keep things simple.

10. I’m happiest when…
I’m travelling and engaging with the people, culture and the history of somewhere new.