Out of Australia into Africa
by Katrina Kalleske
Working in the jungles of Laos alongside the Ho Chi Minh Trail is a major highlight of Brent Laws’ career as a geologist since graduating from UniSA in 2003.
The Honours graduate in Applied Science (Geology) has already worked in three countries during his six-year career.
Right now he’s in Botswana, Africa working as a senior geologist on an expanding uranium resource. Laws has been working for Australian company, A-Cap Resources, since November last year after spending a few years in Western Australia.
"I love the variety involved in project management," he says. "One day you can be in the field working in the dust, soaking up the sun or sweating it out in the jungle, the next you’re working on geological or resource models in the office.
"While the challenges of working with other cultures can be frustrating, it is ultimately rewarding.
"As part of an Australian exploration company, we work hard to bring Australian standards of operation to our overseas projects.
"Logistics is often more challenging overseas than in Australia
because distances from suppliers are not only further, but the
language differences sometimes need to be overcome to make sure we
get what we order."
For Laws, who grew up on a farm near Riverton north of Adelaide, the cultural experience of working in the mining industry overseas is not new. The 29-year-old previously spent nine months working on a mine site in Laos on a fly-in/out roster from Perth.
His time in Laos involved passing his geological knowledge on to the locals. But it also involved experiences a far cry from anything he had in Australia, including working alongside the infamous Ho Chi Minh Trail, always mindful of the hazards of unexploded munitions.
Law says passing his knowledge and skills on to enthusiastic employees is a great highlight of his work.
He also remembers it was those real-life experiences, relayed by his UniSA lecturers, that made a difference to his own learning at university.
"The quality of the lecturers and the real experiences they could bring to their teaching were very important and it is something I have become increasingly aware of the longer I have been working myself," Laws says.
"The lessons learnt from real examples and practical projects at uni may not be used straight away after graduating, but it is uncanny how many times the lessons come to the fore in different circumstances once a geologist starts plying their trade.
"Given that geology is such a diverse field, the applied science aspect of the degree has certainly been beneficial in making an easier transition from the academic world to the professional working world."
He also believes that the learning certainly doesn’t stop once your formal studies do.
"University provides the skills to learn and research but once you’ve left and landed your first job, it is essential to remember you don’t know everything and you are still learning."
Laws’ move to Botswana was strongly influenced by the chance to learn something new.
"I had a predominantly geological background in base metals (copper, zinc) and gold and could see the need to broaden my skills by gaining experience in the energy sector through working with uranium," he says.
"I had enjoyed and learnt a great deal from my previous overseas work in Laos and was keen to try another country.
"This position also offered residential employment, which meant my wife could move with me instead of staying home while I was on a fly-in/out roster.
"I’m really enjoying the challenge of working in Africa and the opportunity to work with a skilled team that has a passion for developing uranium resources and exploring for more."
And of course there are also the enormous benefits of experiencing life in a different country.
As well as being in the ideal timezone to watch the Ashes series live on television, Laws highly rates experiences such as walking through the African bush and seeing fresh leopard prints in the sand, or a family of monkeys in the backyard fighting over paw paws, or having a group of rogue elephants roaming through the outskirts of town.
"It is all still new and amazing," he says.
And while he does miss live AFL games, meat pies and swimming at the beach, it’s the African experiences that are likely to keep him and his wife in Botswana beyond their initial two-year contract.