Distinguished Professor Susan Danby is recognised internationally as one of Australia’s leading experts in early years language and social interaction, childhood studies, and young children’s engagement with digital technologies. As Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child, Susan leads a collective of national and international researchers and partners across government, business and the community to work towards the Centre’s vision – ensuring young children are healthy, connected and educated in a rapidly changing digital age.

Susan’s research career has been driven by this same vision and cross-disciplinary approach. Her research explores the everyday social and interactional practices of children, investigating their complex and competent work as they build their social worlds. Susan was an ARC Future Fellow (2012-2017) and has led three ARC Discovery Projects. She was a member of the ARC College of Experts (2016-2017) and the Early Childhood Australia Digital Policy Group. Susan was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by Uppsala University in Sweden (2019) and was named a 2021 Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia in recognition of her outstanding scholary contributions to the fields of early childhood and digital technologies.

Earliest digital memory
The first-ever Apple Macintosh in 1985. I remember the little floppy disk, writing my first Master of Education assignment, and playing Destroyer.