Jeanine Leane (born 1961) is a

Wiradjuri The Wiradjuri people (; ) are a group of Aboriginal Australian people from central New South Wales, united by common descent through kinship and shared traditions. They survived as skilled hunter-fisher-gatherers, in family groups or clans, a ...

poet and activist from southwest

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

. She is an associate professor in creative writing at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

Biography

Jeanine Leane was born in

Wagga Wagga Wagga Wagga (; informally called Wagga) is a major regional city in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. Straddling the Murrumbidgee River, with an urban population of more than 57,003 as of 2021, it is an important agricultural, m ...

, New South Wales, Australia. She is a member of the Wiradjuri nation. She earned her BA in Literature and History from

University of New England University of New England may refer to: * University of New England (Australia), in New South Wales, with about 26,000 students * University of New England (United States), in Biddeford, Maine, with about 6,000 students See also * New England Coll ...

, Armidale in 1983. She earned a Graduate Diploma of Education from

University of Canberra The University of Canberra (UC) is a public university, public research university with its main campus located in Bruce, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The campus is from Belconnen Town Centre, and from Canberra's Civic, Australian ...

in 1984. In 2011, she earned a doctorate in Australian literature and Aboriginal representation. Her research not only explored Aboriginal narratives, but examined white settler icons to give an Aboriginal perspective and critique. She had a long career as a secondary school teacher before becoming faculty at University of Melbourne. She worked with Aboriginal students to support them entering university programs. She also taught indigenous education to non-Aboriginal student teachers. She was an Indigenous Research Fellow at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. Leane was also a post-doctoral fellow in the Australian Centre for Indigenous History at the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...

Literary career

Leane's poetry and creative works explore Aboriginal perspectives and settler presentations in literature, and Aboriginal writing "as an important site of personal, national and collective memory." She has published three volumes of poetry and fiction, and numerous other publications including poetry, book reviews, and interviews. Even her fictional book, Purple Threads, is a fictionalization of the women in her life including her mother, grandmother, and aunts.

Published works

*''Dark Secrets After Dreaming: AD 1887-1961'' (poetry) *''Purple Threads'' (fiction) *''Walk Back Over'' (poetry) *''Guwayu'' (poetry, edited volume) *''gawimarra gathering'' (poetry)

Recognition

In 2010, her first volume of poetry ''Dark Secrets After Dreaming: AD 1887-1961'' won the Scanlon Prize for Indigenous Poetry from the Australian Poets' Union. Her novel Purple Threads won the David Unaipon Award. In 2013, she received an

Australian Research Council The Australian Research Council (ARC) is the primary non-medical research funding agency of the Australian Government, distributing more than in grants each year. The Council was established by the ''Australian Research Council Act 2001'', ...

Discovery Indigenous Fellowship. In 2020, she received a JUNCTURE fellowship. *2017, University of Canberra Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Poetry Prize *2017, Oodergroo Noonucal Prize for Poetry *2019, Oodergroo Noonucal Prize for Poetry *2019, Red Room Poetry Fellowship for "Voicing the Unsettled Space: Rewriting the Colonial Mythscape" *2020, Discovery Indigenous Award *2023, David Harold Tribe Award for Poetry for "Water Under the Bridge" *2025,

Victorian Premier's Prize for Poetry The Victorian Premier's Prize for Poetry, formerly known as the C. J. Dennis Prize for Poetry, is a prize category in the annual Victorian Premier's Literary Award. As of 2011 it has an enumeration of 25,000. The winner of this category prize vies w ...

for ''gawimarra gathering''

References

External links

Video: Australia's Aboriginal Writers: 2019 National Book Festival
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leane, Jeanine 1961 births Wiradjuri people University of New England (Australia) alumni University of Canberra alumni University of Melbourne alumni Academic staff of the University of Melbourne 21st-century poets Living people