Maddie McQueen Davies
Maddie is a Year 13 student at Palmerston North Girls' High School and has been selected to attend the 40th Professor Harry Messel's International Science School in Sydney.
I am a Year 13 student and Head Girl at Palmerston North Girls' High School. For as long as I can remember, the world around me has been a source of fascination and intrigue.
I'm not 100% certain what university will entail for me, however, I plan on studying law with a conjoint degree that challenges and excites my scientific interest. At school, I enjoy public speaking, coaching debating, tutoring maths, running our UN Youth and Girl Up extensions and completing my Gold Duke of Edinburgh.
Outside of school, I am the Chairperson of the Palmerston North Youth Council, and in 2017 started an initiative called Share a Pair NZ, a charity that re-gifts pre-loved school shoes and sneakers to kids and families in need. As of April 2019, I have collected more than 2,100 pairs of shoes and distributed in excess of 1,300 pairs. This year I have taken Share a Pair nation-wide and have multiple Share a Pair Ambassadors all over Aotearoa, providing shoes to even more Kiwi kids in need.
I'm extremely excited to have been given the opportunity to attend the Professor Harry Messel International Science School in Sydney this July. I look forward to hearing from world-renowned scientists, touring labs, partaking in hands-on activities and meeting budding young scientists from all around the world. Thank you so much to the Royal Society Te Apārangi for choosing me for this amazing opportunity.