Dr Nikky LaBranche is an occupational health researcher and mining engineer specialising in dust and respiratory health. She leads the Dust and Respiratory Health Program at The University of Queensland’s Sustainable Minerals Institute, managing a $3.6 million portfolio of applied research.

Her work focuses on respirable dust characterisation, exposure assessment, control technologies, and return-to-work strategies for workers affected by lung disease. She has developed advanced methods using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with automated mineralogy (MLA) and field emission SEM (FEG-SEM) to understand particle size, shape, mineralogy, and agglomeration. This research informs industry, government, and unions on practical measures to prevent occupational lung disease in coal, metal, smelting, and engineered stone industries.