Lauren Fell
About
I am Director of Lunaria One, an Australian space startup developing biological payloads for the Moon, and Marketing and Outreach Specialist at Lunar Outpost Oceania, where I lead public outreach for Roo-ver, Australia's first lunar rover, developed by the ELO2 Consortium for the Australian Space Agency.
It surprises some people to learn that my background is actually in psychology. I hold a BA Psychology (Hons) from Macquarie University, and in 2025 I completed my PhD at QUT with the thesis Pistis: Development of a Holistic Theory of Trust - a holistic framework for trust built from its most primordial form, drawing on quantum cognition, philosophy of mind, and evolutionary psychology.
I apply this research to trust in human-AI systems and in extreme environments, including off-Earth habitation. I served as Vice Commander at the HI-SEAS analog habitat in Hawai'i, and have presented this work alongside the ALEPH project at the International Astronautical Congress 2025 in Sydney.
Earlier work includes placing in five NASA crowdsourced design challenges, a TEDx talk at QUT, co-founding PsytAssist, and a background spanning UX consulting, mental health support, and fieldwork in palaeontology and conservation.
ALEPH - LUNARIA ONE
As Director of Lunaria One, I lead the ALEPH project (Australian Lunar Experiment Promoting Horticulture) - the first Australian payload approved to fly to the Moon, scheduled for 2026. The payload carries seeds and resurrection plants to the lunar surface to test germination and growth in an extraterrestrial environment.
ALEPH is a collaboration between Lunaria One and a number of partners across government, SMEs and research institutions. The mission includes a citizen science component through Plants on the Moon, enabling public participation in the science through plant testing, engineering, and photography challenges.
ROO-VER OUTREACH - LUNAR OUTPOST OCEANIA
As Marketing and Outreach Specialist at Lunar Outpost Oceania, I lead public engagement for the Roo-ver mission within the ELO2 Consortium - the team selected by the Australian Space Agency to deliver Australia's first lunar rover.
My focus is on giving people a genuine sense of agency in Australia's space industry, and on finding creative, curiosity-driven pathways into STEM. This includes open innovation challenges that invite the public to contribute real ideas to the mission, activities and workshops for school kids and community groups, and events that connect what we're doing in space to life here on Earth.
RESEARCH AND TEACHING
In 2025 I completed my PhD at QUT, culminating in the thesis Pistis: Development of a Holistic Theory of Trust. The research applies quantum cognition to develop a holistic, philosophically grounded theory of trust, building from its most primordial, intuitive form.
I was Associate Lecturer in the Masters of IT at Queensland University of Technology for six years, and continue to contribute as a sessional lecturer and guest. I bring a cognition-centric approach which enables students to gain a deeper understanding of why we have technology and how we use it.
I have also been involved in projects investigating the use of virtual reality for people with cognitive impairments, and trust in autonomous systems.
TEDxQUT - WHY EVERYONE CAN BE A ROCKET SCIENTIST
Sharing experiences can aid learning and help people see opportunities they may not have otherwise considered.
In my TEDx talk at QUT, I shared my experience going from a high school kid failing at maths to winning NASA crowdsourced challenges. Crowdsourced innovation allows connections with people with diverse backgrounds, and importantly, is a powerful tool in innovation and discovery - particularly in the space industry.
I visit schools and events to talk about a range of topics including careers in space, quantum cognition, building trust in organisations and psychological safety.
DESIGN PROJECTS
I regularly participate in contests as a freelancer to develop my cross-disciplinary skillset. So far, I have won and placed in five contests for NASA:
- Design of an autonomous inflatable crane for moving cargo on the moon (1st)
- Creation of a storyboard to explain RFID tagging in space (1st)
- Creation of a course for implementing the Interplanetary Overlay Network in space (2nd)
- Design of a collapsible radiation shield for shuttle travel (2nd)
- Design of a moon regolith collector and sorter (3rd)
UX CONSULTING
I have consulted on numerous UX projects, combining my background in psychology with hands-on practice across a range of technology products. Clients have spanned government, startups, large corporations, and non-profits, both in Australia and overseas.
This work has involved researching and developing solutions for mobile applications, websites, physical locations, and self-service terminals - typically starting from user research and working through to design recommendations and usability testing.
HOBBIES AND SIDE PROJECTS
As busy as work gets, I find it important to pursue things outside of it that genuinely interest me. This has included various robotics projects - among them Andy, a bio-inspired robotic face built with pneumatic artificial muscles mapped anatomically to human facial musculature, with potential applications in facial expression training for people on the Autism Spectrum.
Other pursuits include a closed system experiment growing plants in a sealed terrarium, performance on aerial apparatuses, and game design.
VOLUNTEERING
Volunteering has been a key component of my personal growth and the perspective I take of the world. I have worked with:
- wildlife in South Africa
- missionary work in South Africa
- a small community in the Ecuadorian Andes
- reforestation projects in the Galapagos
- Palaeontology digs in Patagonia