Dr. Laurie Rousseau-Nepton made history when she became the first Indigenous woman in Canada to obtain her PhD in astrophysics. Since Rousseau-Nepton finished her doctoral dissertation and graduated from Université Laval in 2017, she has forged her own path as an astronomer and a science communicator.
Rousseau-Nepton worked as a Resident Astronomer at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope for six years. Her work as the principal investigator of SIGNALS (Star Formation, Ionized Gas, and Nebular Abundance Legacy Survey) drew enough attention that the National Film Board of Canada made a short five episode docuseries of Rousseau-Nepton's life and work on the project.
Since then, Rousseau-Nepton joined the Dunlap Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Toronto, where she continues to explore the universe, teach, and find ways to communicate science to the community.
She received the Qilak Award in 2023 from the Canadian Astronomical Society for her outstanding contributions to astronomy education and outreach. One of Rousseau-Nepton's favorite topics is how her research aligns with Innu traditions, which says that humans originate from and return to the stars.
In September 2026, the University of Toronto announced Rousseau-Nepton was one of eight recipients of the Connaught Community Partnership Research Program Awards. With the award money, Rousseau-Nepton will continue her current research into how ancient Indigenous peoples observed, understood, and tracked celestial events using stone circle alignments.
On October 16, 2026, Rousseau-Nepton and a team of astronomy students will present Aurora Ancestors & Teachings of the North at Calgary's Telus Spark Science Center. The science center is hosting Stones, Stories, & Stars: Experience Astronomy from the Stone Ancestors. This evening of astronomy and explorations into indigenous oral storytelling takes place from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m.
Learn more about Laurie Rousseau-Nepton's career through her Let's Talk Science Career Profile.
Watch Rousseau-Nepton's interview with Spotlight with Scientists in School, where Rousseau-Nepton speaks about her work and her outreach encouraging kids to stay in STEM.
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