Dr Elke Mitchell, Senior Research Fellow from the Global Health Program at the Kirby Institute, UNSW Sydney, has been awarded a Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) of $477,266 from the Australian Research Council (ARC). The award will support Dr Mitchell’s research into infertility in Fiji, which will be the first comprehensive anthropological study of its kind in the Pacific region.
An estimated 12% of reproductive-aged women in Fiji are infertile – a third higher than the average global prevalence. However, little is known about the social and cultural impacts of infertility.
Through interviews conducted with couples affected by infertility and practitioners supporting reproductive wellbeing, Dr Mitchell’s research project will examine the issue of infertility across the social systems of intimate relationships, families, communities and both formal and informal institutions.
“Infertility is an important, yet under-recognised social issue globally,” says Dr Mitchell, who has been conducting social research on sexual and reproductive health issues in Fiji for over a decade. “This research will provide better understandings of how to reduce reproductive injustices among couples experiencing infertility in Fiji, with a focus on peoples who experience marginalisation due to gender, childlessness, Indigeneity or their socio-economic status.”
Dr Mitchell’s grant is part of ARC’s overall $92.9 million in funding for 200 new research projects under the DECRA scheme, which provides focused research support for early career researchers. It aims to support innovative research that addresses a significant problem or gap in knowledge.
Knowledge gained through the project will be used to strengthen national policies related to reproduction, families, culture and social inclusion in Fiji and the region.
“This award recognises Elke's long-term commitment to collaborative research on important social and health issues in Fiji,” says Scientia Professor John Kaldor, head of the Global Health Program. “It will add a new dimension to the extensive body of research being conducted by the Kirby Institute with communities in the Pacific.”