Nikky LaBranche

Dr Nikky LaBranche is an occupational health researcher and mining engineer specialising in dust and respiratory health. She leads the Dust and Respiratory Health Program at The University of Queensland’s Sustainable Minerals Institute, managing a $3.6 million portfolio of applied research.

Her work focuses on respirable dust characterisation, exposure assessment, control technologies, and return-to-work strategies for workers affected by lung disease. She has developed advanced methods using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with automated mineralogy (MLA) and field emission SEM (FEG-SEM) to understand particle size, shape, mineralogy, and agglomeration. This research informs industry, government, and unions on practical measures to prevent occupational lung disease in coal, metal, smelting, and engineered stone industries.

Nikky also brings nearly two decades of broader mining health and safety experience, including:

• Incident management – improving underground coal mine emergency exercises, escape systems, and in-place shelters.

• Injury analysis and accident investigation – developing classification systems for mining incidents and identifying organisational risk factors.

• Occupational health systems – linking exposure and surveillance data to disease outcomes.

An AusIMM Fellow and Chartered Professional, Nikky has been recognised with the 2024 AusIMM Professional Excellence Award in Health & Safety and the 2025 QRC Exceptional Woman in Technological Innovation Award. She is committed to creating safer, healthier, and more sustainable workplaces across the resources sector.