Rae Johnston was born and raised on Darug & Gundungurra Country in the Blue Mountains of NSW with her Wiradjuri mother and Greek father. A multi-award-winning journalist and broadcaster, she has a passion for the geekier side of life.

Rae was the first Science & Technology Editor for NITV at SBS, and currently travels the country as a host on NITV’s Going Places with Ernie Dingo, and ABC’s Back Roads.

An accomplished podcast producer and host, Rae has worked on a slew of programs such as Harmful (SBS), 100 Climate Conversations (Powerhouse Museum) and Download This Show (ABC). She also hosts the Next Gen podcast with Unicef Australia, for whom she is an Ambassador.

Rae is currently serving on the boards of both the Telstra Foundation and Swinburne University of Technology, where she also sits on the Technology, Innovation and Value Creation Committee.

Previously, Rae was the first female editor of Gizmodo Australia, and the first Indigenous editor of Junkee. 

A leading commentator on all things technology, science and pop culture, Rae has worked with every major television and radio network in Australia at some stage of her career. Today, she makes regular appearances across SBS, ABC and Network Ten.

Rae’s work has seen her awarded the Lighting The Way prize for advocacy and support of the Australian games industry at the Australian Game Developer Awards. The Australian Games Awards named her both Journalist of the Year (2018) and The Gamechanger – awarded for challenging the negative misconceptions about video games throughout her career. 

Rae is a warm and highly professional MC. From interviewing NBA Superstar Luc Longley to awarding the Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science, Rae’s background in events and stage management ensures any event she hosts – virtual, live, pre-recorded or stage – run smoothly. She is also an engaging speaker, giving talks on wide-ranging topics everything from diversity in STEM to burnout.

An experienced and trained actor for stage and screen, Rae specialises in voice acting. She is currently voicing “Janali Banks” in ABC & Nine Network’s animated children’s series, Space Nova.

Rae is a founding mentor with The Working Lunch program, supporting underrepresented entry-level people in games. She is also an External Assessor with Film Victoria and Screen Australia helping to fund independent games.

A part of the prestigious “brains trust” Leonardos group for The Science Gallery Melbourne, Rae is also a mentor for Science Media Centre Australia‘s Indigenous Science program and the Superstars of STEM.

Becoming a single teenage Mum fuelled Rae to follow her passions and show her son how to achieve your dreams. Working in casual minimum wage hospitality jobs for 15 years, sometimes three at once, she hustled hard for opportunities in media.

After a decade of freelancing, in 2013 she got her first full-time job as the Lifestyle Editor of Techlife. She hasn’t looked back since.