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OCANZ is thrilled to congratulate Shannon Peckham for receiving the award for Emerging Leadership in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Eye Health Award at the 2023 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Eye Health Conference.

Shannon, who comes from the Wiradjuri People of Dubbo in New South Wales is Australia’s first Indigenous woman to graduate in optometry. 

Shannon grew up in Mareeba, a small town with a population of around 7,000 in Far North Queensland and completed her optometry degree at the University of Melbourne in 2004.  Since then, Shannon has become a pioneer in the field of optometry, working in rural parts of Australia conducting school screenings and providing spectacles and eye care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients in remote clinics.  Shannon now owns and runs a private optometry practice in Ayr Queensland. 

Shannon is currently Deputy Chair of the OCANZ Indigenous Strategy Taskforce and a member of the OCANZ Board.

Image: Nick Wilson and Shannon Peckham at the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Eye Health Conference May 2023