Mitch Rudge
Snapshot:
Industry / Sector: Academia & Research, Environment, Not-For-Profits
Career Type: Employed
Education Pathway: University
Mid Coast Connection: Born & raised on the Mid Coast
The Blurb:
Mitch Rudge is a Natural Capital Data Scientist with Bush Heritage Australia, where he blends ecological science and drone technology to monitor and improve land conditions. Mitch has developed a unique focus on using data for good—mapping landscapes and informing sustainable practices.
He attributes his success to a honed ability to focus deeply and work with purpose, especially when tackling large-scale environmental challenges.
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Current Role: Data scientist specializing in ecology and drone-based land analysis
Key Skills: Focus, data interpretation, problem-solving, ecological insight
Professional Insights:
Uses drone imagery and analytics to assess land health and recommend improvements
Focus is a critical skill developed over time, particularly through his PhD
Enjoys working with passionate, like-minded professionals on meaningful environmental projects
Advice to Younger Self: “It doesn’t matter as much as you think it does at the time.”
Reflection: Life is flexible—interests may change, and it's okay to take alternate paths
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“Focus is a really good skill to learn.”
“I’ve experimented with myself a lot and tried different things to work out what works for me.”
“We’re doing it for the right reasons. I care about the environment.”
“It’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t go to plan.”
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[0:10] Intro
Hi, my name is Hailey. Welcome to the Human Library video series. In this video series, we speak to people from the local community and hear their stories.
Today, we met with Mitch Rudge, who talked about his experience working for Bush Heritage Australia. He talked about how he uses drones to look at the ecology of the land. Mitch details his skill of focus and how that's helped him achieve his career goals.
[0:46] What does your professional life look like at the moment?
So right now, I'm working for a conservation not-for-profit called Bush Heritage Australia. They're a fairly well-known organization. Their main mission is around buying land and managing it for conservation—doing things like getting rid of all the feral animals and getting rid of weeds, and essentially turning land into a nature reserve.
My title is Natural Capital Data Scientist, which is a bit of a mouthful, but essentially what I do is—another part of the organization is working with large pastoralist and agricultural organizations. We work with them to collect data and try to get a handle on what the condition is of their land, with a view to improving that condition.
I work a lot with data—drone data, that's kind of my specialty. We go out to properties, fly drones, and take a lot of photos of areas of vegetation. Then I take all that data in and try to make some ecological sense of it. So I look at, put simply, how many trees there are, how much grass there is, if it’s native or if it’s invasive grasses—these types of things—to try and work out if that land is in good condition. And then, if it’s not in good condition, what can be done to improve it.
So yeah, in terms of my day-to-day, there's a mix of doing that data stuff—working on the computer, doing software stuff—and also a lot of meetings, a lot of chatting to people, communicating results, that type of thing.
[2:52] Is there a skill that you've developed that helps you through your day-to-day at work?
Definitely the ability to focus for long periods, and really define exactly what you're trying to do in a block of time and work on it relentlessly to try and get that particular job done. It’s very easy to get overwhelmed when you have a lot of different things coming at you all the time. But just being able to block out time and focus—I think that's a really good skill to learn.
A lot of the actual skills, like coding or writing or communicating, are all important and you need them for your job, but they’re also changing. So the broader thing is knowing how to focus, and then you can kind of develop those skills that are always going to change.
[3:50] Is focus something that you developed over time, or did someone teach it to you?
Yeah, I'd say it's something I've developed over time, probably more so through my PhD. A PhD is—you've got to be very self-motivated. There's no one standing behind you saying, “We need this done now.” So yeah, that's definitely something I've developed over time.
Definitely something that hasn't come naturally to me as well. I think, like most people, I get distracted easily, and there’s a lot of distractions in the world at the moment. But yeah, I’ve experimented with myself a lot and tried different things and just tried to work out what works for me.
[4:42] What is one of your favorite things about your work at the moment?
I'd have to say the people I work with are awesome. We work with people from all over the country, all over the world, who are really good at what they do, really passionate about what they do, and just love to be at work. I think it makes a huge difference if you can work with energetic, like-minded people. That would have to be a highlight.
I think we do good work as well—I agree with the work we're doing, and we're doing it for the right reasons. So yeah, that's something else. But yeah, working with good people makes a big difference.
[5:29] You said you're doing it for the right reasons. Could you elaborate on that?
Yeah, so I would say that I care about the environment. Going right back, that's definitely a motivator for me—trying to improve the environment. It's kind of hard to put your finger on exactly what that looks like, but I think through my career, that’s something that's been important to me—trying to do some good in terms of what you're doing in work.
[6:09] If you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would that be?
It's a good question. I would say—it just doesn’t matter as much as you think it does at the time. Particularly thinking about the decisions you're making in high school—you've got to choose your subjects, and then if you get the marks, you've got to choose a degree and go to uni.
All those decisions feel really significant. And they’re not insignificant, but it’s also not the end of the world if you go down a certain path and think, “This isn’t for me.” You've got plenty of time. You can always just change and do something else.
So yeah, I’d probably say, follow what you're interested in. And it's not the end of the world if it doesn't go to plan.
[7:09] What do you think it might have meant to your younger self if you had heard that piece of advice?
I don't know—probably would have just ignored me, to be honest. It is good to hear, but I suppose when you're in that situation, it's kind of... it’s the beauty of hindsight. You can look back and say, “Okay, that’s what it looks like now,” but there's no way of actually going back to being a teenager where these things are really stressful. So yeah.
Please note: All content is correct at the time of recording.
