Australian of the Year

Edward Robinson is helping students make sense of textbook maths and science by bringing real world engineering into classrooms. 

Edward developed a passion for space in high school and set about building his own rocket. Soon after starting an electrical and mechatronic engineering degree, he began to see how the equations he was learning in textbooks could actually apply in real life. He thought others might benefit from practical, hands-on experiences too. 

So, in 2022, he founded his company Robinson Aerospace, which manufactures an educational satellite kit called RASCube that enables students to build a functional satellite replica, collect live data and run experiments.   

He has delivered more than 1700 space education kits to over 200 schools in 18 countries, allowing tens of thousands of students to design and analyse genuine space systems. In his programs, students develop the same problem-solving, teamwork and technical skills used by professional engineers, making advanced STEM education accessible, regardless of a school's location or resources.