Prof Rachel Ankeny
School of Humanities
College of Creative Arts, Design and Humanities
Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.
Professor Rachel A. Ankeny is an interdisciplinary teacher and scholar whose areas of expertise cross several fields: history/philosophy of science, bioethics and science policy, and food studies. She is an Honorary Visiting Professor in the College of Social Science and International Studies (Philosophy) at the University of Exeter (UK). Rachel has a BA in Liberal Arts (Philosophy/Maths, St John's College, Santa Fe, NM), and MA degrees in Philosophy and in Bioethics, and a PhD in the History and Philosophy of Science (all from the University of Pittsburgh, PA). She also holds a Master of Arts in Gastronomy (University of Adelaide) and a Graduate Certificate in Online Learning (Higher Education) from the University of Adelaide. Prior to joining the University of Adelaide in 2006, she was director and lecturer/senior lecturer in the Unit for History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Sydney from 2000.Rachel previously served as Deputy Dean Research (former Associate Dean Research, 2011-19 and Deputy Executive Dean, 2015-21) for the Faculty of Arts, and coordinated the Faculty's ARC ERA and Engagement and Impact submissions during this period. She also formerly served as the Faculty's Associate Dean (International) (2009-10). She also has overseen research strategy related projects for the Division of Research and Innovation (DRI) at the University of Adelaide including preparation for ERA and research publication strategies (2021-22).*FOR ALL ENQUIRIES RELATED TO STUDIES IN HISTORY & PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE, PLEASE EMAIL shps@adelaide.edu.au
Research Interests
Rachel's research interests and expertise cross several areas and fields: the history and philosophy of science particularly biomedical/biological sciences, bioethics and science policy, food studies, and migration history.
In the history and philosophy of science, her research focuses on the roles of models and case-based reasoning in science, model organisms, the philosophy of medicine, and the history of contemporary life sciences. Her major ongoing projects include Organisms and Us: How Living Things Help Us to Understand Our World which is a comprehensive historical and philosophical exploration of the changing roles and understandings of research with organisms in 20th and early 21st century science. She also has long-standing research on norms and practices in contemporary biology, including the Bermuda Principles for data sharing (see the archive created for this project). Among her current book projects is a study focused on the use of case reports in biomedical science and clinical practice for which she received a 2022 book manuscript grant from the Ann Johnson Institute for Science, Technology and Society.
She is the sole international partner investigator on an European Research Council Consolidator Award grant to Prof Sabina Leonelli now at the Technical University of Munich entitled A Philosophy of Open Science for Diverse Research Environments (PHIL_OS) (2021-26), with special focus on developing methods from the philosophy of science in practice approach for application to explorations of open science.
Rachel is an international PI on the ARC Training Centre for Future Crops Development with responsibility for the subprogram focused on social engagement, market shaping, and responsible research innovation (RRI) frameworks for use in innovative crop technologies and training associated with RRI together with Prof Joan Leach (ANU) and Prof Carolin Plewa (Adelaide).
In bioethics, Rachel has long-standing interests in genetics and genomics, transplantation, stem cell research, and feminist approaches to bioethics. She is the lead CI on a NHMRC Medical Research Future Fund project via their 2020 Stem Cell Therapies Mission on Developing an Evidence-Based Model for Building Trust in Australian Stem Cell Research and Therapies (2021-24) in collaboration with Prof Joan Leach (ANU), Prof Di Nicol (Tasmania), and Prof Christine Wells (Melbourne). She also is a CI on a NHMRC Medical Research Future Fund project via their 2021 Genomic Health Futures Mission entitled LINEAGE: Law, sociology and ethics in data governance for genomics (2022-27) led by Prof Ainsley Newson at University of Sydney.
She is a co-investigator on an Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC) funded project entitled Improving Indigenous Research Capabilities: An Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research Data Commons, run by Prof Marcia Langton and the Indigenous Data Network at the University of Melbourne. Her subproject, with collaborators from CSIRO and Macquarie, focuses on the potential and limitations of traditional knowledge (TK), Indigenous knowledge (IK), and biocultural (BC) labels in a range of types of Australian collections.
In food studies, Rachel's research interests include food ethics and values, animal welfare, and community views on food and agriculture. For more details on these projects and to volunteer to participate in our research, please see the Food Values Research Group page.
Rachel also was the team leader of the ARC-funded Hostel Stories Linkage project in collaboration with the Migration Museum and in partnership with the cities of Charles Sturt and Port Adelaide Enfield, State Records, and the Vietnamese Community in Australia (SA). For more information, see the Hostel Stories project page.
| Date | Position | Institution name |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 - 2022 | University Academic Lead, ERA | University of Adelaide |
| 2019 - 2021 | Deputy Dean Research | University of Adelaide |
| 2014 - 2026 | Honorary Visiting Professor | University of Exeter |
| 2009 - ongoing | Professor | University of Adelaide |
| Date | Institution name | Country | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | University of Adelaide | Australia | Graduate Certificate in Online Learning (Higher Education) |
| 2006 | University of Adelaide | Australia | Masters of Arts (Le Cordon Bleu/Gastronomy) |
| 1997 | University of Pittsburgh | United States | PhD, History and Philosophy of Science |
| 1996 | University of Pittsburgh | United States | Masters, Medical Ethics |
| 1995 | University of Pittsburgh | United States | Masters, Philosophy |
| 1988 | St John’s College | United States | BA Liberal Arts (Philosophy/Maths) |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2025 | Ankeny, R. A., Dietrich, M. R., & Leonelli, S. (2025). Scaffolding: Selected Contributions of James R. Griesemer to History, Philosophy, and Biology. R. A. Ankeny, M. R. Dietrich, & S. Leonelli (Eds.), Springer Nature Switzerland. DOI Scopus1 |
| 2025 | Ankeny, R. A., Dietrich, M. R., & Leonelli, S. (2025). Scaffolding: Selected Contributions of James R. Griesemer to History, Philosophy, and Biology. R. A. Ankeny, M. R. Dietrich, & S. Leonelli (Eds.), Springer Nature Switzerland. DOI Scopus1 |
| 2021 | Ankeny, R. A., & Leonelli, S. (2021). Model Organisms. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. DOI |
| 2020 | Matlin, K. S., Maienschein, J., & Ankeny, R. A. (Eds.) (2020). Why Study Biology by the Sea?. Chicago, IL; USA: University of Chicago Press. |
| 2016 | Dodds, S. M., & Ankeny, R. A. (Eds.) (2016). Big Picture Bioethics: Democratic Policy Making in Contested Domains. Dordrecht: Springer. |
| 2006 | Rasko, J., O'Sullivan, G., & Ankeny, R. (Eds.) (2006). The Ethics of Inheritable Genetic Modification: A Dividing Line? / J.E.J. Rasko, G.M. O'Sullivan and R.A. Ankeny (eds.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. |
| 2002 | Parker, L., & Ankeny, R. (Eds.) (2002). Mutating concepts, evolving disciplines: Genetics, medicine, and society. Dodrecht: Kluwer Academic. |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2008 | Strong, K. A., Kerridge, I., Jordens, C., Ankeny, R. A., Shaw, P. J., O'Brien, T., . . . Barlow-Stewart, K. (2008). Creating Savior Siblings for Transplantation: Discrepancy Between Parental Wishes and Clinical Practice. In BLOOD Vol. 112 (pp. 276). San Francisco, CA: AMER SOC HEMATOLOGY. |
| 2006 | Lysaght, T., Ankeny, R., & Kerridge, I. (2006). The scope of public discourse surrounding stem cell research: Looking beyond the moral status of the embryo. In CYTOMETRY PART A Vol. 69A (pp. 410-411). Queensland, AUSTRIA: WILEY-LISS. |
| 2005 | Ankeny, R. (2005). Case-based reasoning in the biomedical and human sciences: lessons from model organisms. In Logic, Methodology, and Philosophy of Science: [proceedings of the Twelfth International Congress] (pp. 229-242). Oviedo, Spain: King's College Publications. |
| 2004 | Platt, M. O., Ankeny, R., Shin, W. K., Sykes, M., & Jo, H. (2004). Oscillatory shear stress (OS) upregulates cathepsin expression while inhibiting cystatin C expression in endothelial cells (EC) - Implication in atherosclerosis. In FASEB JOURNAL Vol. 18 (pp. A1114). Washington, DC: FEDERATION AMER SOC EXP BIOL. WoS2 |
| 2000 | Ankeny, R. A. (2000). Fashioning descriptive models in biology: Of worms and wiring diagrams. In Philosophy of Science Vol. 67 (pp. S260-S272). MO, KANSAS CITY: CAMBRIDGE UNIV PRESS. DOI Scopus56 WoS54 |
| 1996 | Majeske, R. A., Parker, L. S., & Frader, J. E. (1996). In search of an ethical framework for consideration of decisions regarding live donation. In B. Spielman (Ed.), ORGAN AND TISSUE DONATION (pp. 89-101). CHICAGO, IL: SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIV PRESS. WoS12 |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2024 | Taylor, A. (2024). A Cosmopolitan Revelation: Travel as a Religious Act with Rick Steves' Europe. Poster session presented at the meeting of MATERIAL RELIGION. ROUTLEDGE JOURNALS, TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD. DOI |
| 2023 | Lopes McInnes, E., Ankeny, R., Leach, J., & Santos, D. (2023). Australia Stem Cell Researchers Public Engagement: Challenges and ways forward. Poster session presented at the meeting of https://www.isscr2023.org/concurrent-sessions. Boston, Massachusetts. |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2024 | Hu, M., Santos, D., Lopes, E., Nicol, D., Kurtz, A., Mah, N., . . . Wells, C. A. (2024). Australian researchers’ perceptions and experiences with stem cell registration. DOI |
Research Funding
| Date | Project | Chief Investigators | Funding Body | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
2022-23
2016-19 |
Organisms and Us: How Living Things Help Us to Understand Our World - ARC Discovery Project |
Ankeny R, Dietrich M, Leonelli S | Australian Research Council | AUD 313,686 |
| 2014-16 | Making Plants Better, Making Australia Better? A History of Genetic Modification Science, Policy, and Community Attitudes in Australia - ARC Discovery Project | Ankeny R | Australian Research Council | AUD 291,669 |
| 2013-16 | Getting to the meat of the matter: Social and economic issues in animal welfare in Australia's livestock industries - ARC Linkage Project | Ankeny R, Umberger W | Australian Research Council | AUD 287,607 |
| 2012-15 | Hostel Stories: Toward a Richer Narrative of the Lived Experiences of Migrants - ARC Linkage Project | Ankeny R | Australian Research Council | AUD 90,000 |
| 2011 | The Ethos and Effects of Data Sharing Rules: Examining the History of the 'Bermuda Principles' and Their Impact on US 21st Century Science - US Studies Centre Grant | Ankeny R | University of Sydney | AUD 10,000 |
| 2011-14 | What Shall We Have for Tea? Toward a New Discourse of Food Ethics in Contemporary Australia - ARC Discovery Project | Ankeny R | Australian Research Council | AUD 155,000 |
Rachel has taught courses in the undergraduate program in history including on Global Food History and the History of Science, Medicine, and Technology. She also supervises Higher Degree Research students, internships, summer scholarships, and honours theses. She is a member of the Commonwealth's Tertiary Education Quality and and Standards Agency (TEQSA) Register of Experts and has assessed curriculum proposals in Australia and New Zealand.
| Date | Role | Research Topic | Program | Degree Type | Student Load | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Principal Supervisor | The Island Mentality of a Tall Poppy: Toward Coexistence, Confidence and Cooperation in the Regulation of Australia's Genetically Modified Crops | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Mr Michail Sergeev Ivanov |
| 2024 | Principal Supervisor | The Island Mentality of a Tall Poppy: Toward Coexistence, Confidence and Cooperation in the Regulation of Australia's Genetically Modified Crops | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Mr Michail Sergeev Ivanov |
| 2023 | Co-Supervisor | Animal Welfare Regulation of Animal Research in Australia; A critical evaluation of its effectiveness, the risk of regulatory capture, and the veterinary voice in animal welfare policy. | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Lisa Josephine Craig |
| 2023 | Principal Supervisor | Connecting consumers with their food via innovative virtual experiences | Doctor of Philosophy under a Jointly-awarded Degree Agreement with | Doctorate | Full Time | Miss Imogen Catherine Lucinda Barker |
| 2023 | Principal Supervisor | An integrated Indigenous knowledges and multispecies justice approach to Responsible Innovation outcomes in crop science research practice | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Audrey Henry |
| 2023 | Co-Supervisor | Animal Welfare Regulation of Animal Research in Australia; A critical evaluation of its effectiveness, the risk of regulatory capture, and the veterinary voice in animal welfare policy. | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Lisa Josephine Craig |
| 2023 | Principal Supervisor | Connecting consumers with their food via innovative virtual experiences | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Miss Imogen Catherine Lucinda Barker |
| 2023 | Principal Supervisor | An integrated Indigenous knowledges and multispecies justice approach to Responsible Innovation outcomes in crop science research practice | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Audrey Henry |
| 2022 | Principal Supervisor | Negotiating the Future of Foods: The Intersections of Food Values, Sustainability and Food Technology in Australia | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Chris Wenzl |
| 2022 | Principal Supervisor | Negotiating the Future of Foods: The Intersections of Food Values, Sustainability and Food Technology in Australia | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Chris Wenzl |
| 2021 | Co-Supervisor | Egg-laying mammals can inspire research in reproductive evolution and science education | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Isabella Rose Wilson |
| 2021 | Principal Supervisor | What is responsible gene drive research in the Australian context? A case study of the development of gene drive mice. | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Rebecca Paxton |
| 2021 | Co-Supervisor | Egg-laying mammals can inspire research in reproductive evolution and science education | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Isabella Rose Wilson |
| 2021 | Principal Supervisor | What is responsible gene drive research in the Australian context? A case study of the development of gene drive mice. | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Rebecca Paxton |
| 2016 | Principal Supervisor | 'Blackboxing' Australian Science? Understanding Popular Perceptions of Science in Australia, 1939- 1963 | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Part Time | Mrs Lisa Hunt |
| 2016 | Principal Supervisor | 'Blackboxing' Australian Science? Understanding Popular Perceptions of Science in Australia, 1939- 1963 | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Part Time | Mrs Lisa Hunt |
| Date | Role | Research Topic | Program | Degree Type | Student Load | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 - 2025 | Principal Supervisor | Non-Ideal Theory and Real-World Dilemmas | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Elinor Daisy Heather Pryce |
| 2021 - 2025 | Principal Supervisor | ‘Just because I’m vegan doesn’t mean my dog is’: Exploring human-animal relations among raw meat feeders in the UK and Australia | Doctor of Philosophy under a Jointly-awarded Degree Agreement with | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Natalia Ciecierska-Holmes |
| 2021 - 2021 | Co-Supervisor | Visualising Human Anatomy and Physiology in Medical Literature (10th - 17th c.) | Doctor of Philosophy | Master | Full Time | Miss Mary Elizabeth Harpas |
| 2019 - 2023 | Co-Supervisor | Investigating the Gap Between the Ambitious Goals and Practical Reality of Animal Welfare Law: Understanding the Contributors of the Enforcement Gap in Australia | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Miss Rochelle Palazzo |
| 2018 - 2024 | Principal Supervisor | Building the Innovation Economy: The History of Innovation Policies in South Australia, 1982 to 2011 | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Part Time | Ms Rebekah Joyce Harms |
| 2016 - 2020 | Principal Supervisor | The Bounty of the Suburbs. Home Food Production and Preservation in Adelaide Suburban Yards 1945-1995 | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Mrs Linda Alison Haines |
| 2016 - 2019 | Co-Supervisor | Epilepsy in the Lunatic Asylums of South Australia (1852 – 1913) | Master of Philosophy | Master | Full Time | Mrs Margaret Boult |
| 2016 - 2024 | Principal Supervisor | Of Windows and Worlds: Representations of, by and within Honeybees | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Mr Dook Shepherd |
| 2016 - 2022 | Principal Supervisor | Contemporary Perspectives on the Development of Australia’s Animal Research Regulation | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Miss Karina Monique Burns |
| 2015 - 2019 | Principal Supervisor | Australian Meat Consumers' Understandings of Farm Animal Welfare | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Dr Emily Buddle |
| 2015 - 2022 | Principal Supervisor | The Making, Killing and Consuming of Food Animals: An Analysis of Practices of Eating Animals and Cultural Difference | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Part Time | Ms Yvette Kim Clarissa Wijnandts |
| 2013 - 2015 | Principal Supervisor | British Migrants in Post-War South Australia: Expectations and Lived Experiences | Master of Philosophy | Master | Full Time | Justin Anthony Madden |
| 2012 - 2018 | Principal Supervisor | More than Just a Roof over Their Heads: Migrant Accommodation Centres and the Assimilation of "New Australians" 1947-1960 | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Part Time | Dr Karen Agutter |
| 2012 - 2016 | Principal Supervisor | The Social Lives of Superfoods | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Dr Jessica Loyer |
| 2012 - 2016 | Principal Supervisor | A History of Local Food in Australia 1788 - 2015 | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Susie Chant |
| 2012 - 2016 | Principal Supervisor | Dining in Style: Uncovering the Gastronomic History of Beleura | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Mr Iain Robert Buckland |
| 2011 - 2018 | Principal Supervisor | Ideas of Italy and the Nature of Ethnicity: A History of Italian Food in Australia with Case Studies | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Miss Tania Cammarano |
| 2008 - 2010 | Principal Supervisor | A Culinary History of the Portuguese Eurasians: The Origins of Luso-Asian Cuisine in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Ms Janet Patricia Boileau |
| 2007 - 2010 | Co-Supervisor | Incorrigible Colonist: Ginger in Australia, 1788-1950 | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Dr Leonie Anne Ryder |
| Date | Role | Board name | Institution name | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 - ongoing | Member | Ann Johnson Institute for Science, Technology and Society | University of South Carolina | United States |
| Date | Role | Committee | Institution | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 - 2025 | Board Member | Council | International Society for History, Philosophy and Social Studies of Biology | United States |
| 2021 - 2023 | President | Council | International Society for the History, Philosophy and Social Studies of Biology | United States |
| 2019 - 2021 | Board Member | Council | International Society for the History, Philosophy and Social Studies of Biology | United States |
| 2018 - ongoing | Board Member | Advisory Board | Society for Philosophy of Science in Practice | United Kingdom |
| 2017 - 2021 | Secretary | Governing Board | International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology | United States |
| 2017 - 2020 | Member | Electorate Nominating Committee, Section L (History & Philosophy of Science) | American Association for the Advancement of Science | United States |
| 2016 - 2019 | Member | Division of Logic, Methodology, and Philosophy of Science | International Union of History and Philosophy of Science and Technology | - |
| 2016 - ongoing | Member | Committee for Integrated History and Philosophy of Science | - | - |
| 2014 - ongoing | Assistant Treasurer | Advisory Board | International Network on Feminist Approaches to Bioethics | - |
| 2014 - 2016 | Co-Chair | Joint Caucus of Socially Engaged Philosophers and Historians of Science | Philosophy of Science Association and History of Science Society | - |
| 2013 - 2017 | Board Member | International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology | - | - |
| 2013 - 2016 | Member | Governing Board | Philosophy of Science Association | - |
| 2013 - 2016 | Chair | Committee on Meetings and Programs | History of Science Society | United States |
| 2009 - ongoing | Vice-President | Australasian Association of Bioethics and Health Law | - | Australia |
| 2009 - ongoing | Co-Founder | International Philosophy of Medicine Roundtable | - | - |
| 2007 - 2014 | Chair | National Committee for History and Philosophy of Science | Australian Academy of Science | - |
| 2005 - ongoing | Co-Founder | Society for Philosophy of Science in Practice | - | - |
| Date | Role | Editorial Board Name | Institution | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 - ongoing | Editor-In-chief | Studies in History and Philosophy of Science | Elsevier | Netherlands |
| 2017 - 2020 | Editor-In-chief | Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part C: Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences | Elsevier | Netherlands |
| 2015 - ongoing | Board Member | History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences | - | - |