Ever wondered who is behind the scenes here at Green Adelaide? We’re lifting the veil! From listening to frog calls to accidentally catching a red-bellied black snake instead of a fish, a day in the office can be incredibly diverse for our Education Officer – and well-known frog expert – Steve Walker.
Read on to hear about what led Steve to a role in the environment sector, why he’s passionate about what he does, what he loves most about his role – and more!
‘I was always interested in animals and science, so growing up I thought I’d either end up as a vet, scientist or a teacher. I guess the universe conspired to bring all of those elements together!’
‘As an Education Officer, I assist schools and community groups in implementing a wide range of sustainability and environment initiatives.
I also coordinate FrogWatch SA, a citizen science program that encourages schools, community groups and individuals to record high-quality South Australian frog data enabling us to monitor how our frogs are tracking over time.
Of all the Australian frogs, my favourite is probably the Jungguy Frog.
I’ve been an Education Officer for 20 years, firstly with WaterWatch Patawalonga and Torrens, before it became part of the Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges Natural Resources Management Board, and now with Green Adelaide.
Before that I was Coordinator of the EPA’s Frog Census program, a tutor/demonstrator at the University of Adelaide, and helped run some new work opportunities courses at TAFE SA.
At the University of Adelaide, I also helped breed cane toads for some biological control trials.
One of my career highlights is being a finalist in the Unsung Hero of SA Scientific Communication award in 2020.
There’s not really a standard working day for me.
Some days I’m in front of the computer answering emails, developing resources, listening to frog surveys or putting together our weekly enews for teachers. Other days I’m involved in meetings.
Or I might be out giving a presentation to a community group, visiting a school to offer advice or assistance or running an activity helping people connect with nature.
I love giving presentations to an engaged audience, sharing amazing info about our local frogs, and hopefully conveying some of my passion and encouraging them to think about and look after our natural spaces.
A number of years ago we were doing some fish monitoring throughout the Torrens Catchment and had set up some fyke nets (fish traps) overnight. The next morning, we went to bring in the nets and I joked about catching a snake.
The net was a long tube supported by rings and I had put my arm right into it to get hold of one of the furthermost rings to pull it in and empty it into a large bucket.
With my arm, head and upper body inside the net, I noticed a dark shape and quickly but carefully extracted myself. We had caught a red-bellied black snake!
Luckily the water was very cold and the snake inactive, so we carefully emptied it into the bucket and then released it. That might be the coolest thing I’ve done working at Green Adelaide.
In 2012, outside of my work at Green Adelaide, I had the opportunity to assist Associate Professor Mike Tyler on an ‘expedition’ taking members of the SA Museum’s Waterhouse Club to the Kimberley Ranges looking for frogs.
We had a fantastic time, found almost all of the species known in the area, watched burrowing frogs digging into the soil, and were there when the rains broke causing huge numbers of frogs to come out to call and breed!
I strongly believe that all lifeforms, not just humans, have a right to exist. Each one plays a vital role, so we should do what we can to reduce our impact on them. More selfishly, we live on this planet, it’s the only one we have, so it’s in our own interest to look after it!
This planet is our home, it’s the only one we have, and it’s in our own interest to look after it. We’re fools if we don’t!’
Want to work in the environment sector? Our podcast
is an enviro-exclusive on the people, projects, and news of metro SA. Our host, Communications Manager Melissa Martin, interviews a local expert each episode.