HEAR COREY'S FULL STORY IN THE DOCUMENTARY ABOVE:
Corey Tutt has spent his life proving people wrong.
As a kid he dreamed of becoming a zookeeper. He loved animals and learned everything he could about them.
But very few people believed in him. For most of Corey's childhood it was just him, his mum and his sister.
Corey was encouraged to get a trade. Source: The Feed
Moving from place to place made school tough and Corey's teachers would often tell him to 'go get a trade'.
"I got told you're not going to go to university, to be a zookeeper," he said.
"You have to have a degree in zoology and tick every box and only the smart kids get to do that.
It's hard when you get told that enough. The head noise gets there and you start to believe it.
But he achieved his dream and got his zoo-keeping qualifications.
While Corey is no longer zookeeping, he's chasing another passion; promoting Indigenous science and encouraging kids into STEM careers.
And he is giving Indigenous kids in remote communities some of the tools they need to achieve their own dreams.
"I was working at the University of Sydney as an animal technician and I'd been volunteering with an organisation called AIME - the Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience," he said.
It was Corey's experience mentoring Indigenous youth that inspired him 'to do more'. Source: The Feed
"I would stand there with my iPhone and give science talks and the kids would be fascinated.
I was just like, 'I've gotta do more'.
"I googled the most remote school in Australia and I found a school with 15 books in it.
"I packed up every single book I owned and they were like we've got a school down the road that could use some books."
That was the beginning of Deadly Science.
Now Corey has schools contacting him, asking for science resources.
He aims to send books that promote Indigenous knowledge as well as Western science resources.
Deadly Science supplies books to children in remote communities. Source: Supplied
"At school we got taught that Aboriginal people were nomadic and lived off the land," he said.
"But we actually had irrigation systems, houses, we had civilisations of 10,000 people and not to mention the world's first fish traps.
That stuff should be celebrated because that's not just Indigenous history, it's Australian history.
Corey sends books to 52 schools across Australia. There's another 30 on a waiting list.
"Kids in remote areas deserve the best resources and the latest resources to grow their minds," he said.
Source: The Feed
Corey started funding the books by taking a second job, doing night shifts in a pet hotel.
Now Deadly Science has grown so much that he's had to start a GoFundMe.
He also receives donated books on a regular basis.
"Deadly Science has never been about Corey Tutt, it's been about the Deadly Science family," he told The Feed.
The whole idea was to get as many people involved as possible.
One of Corey's biggest donors is University of Sydney physics professor, Maryanne Large. She has given more than 100 books to Deadly Science in the past six months.
"My mum was a children's librarian and my dad was a scientist so the combination of those two things make it very personal to me," she said.
"I started by going through the books we had at home - we have a lot of books at home.
"Then I thought it's nice for kids to have new books because I wanted them to have books that made them love books.
Source: The Feed
"So I started to seek out some interesting books. I wanted them to be something that you would open up and it would take you to another world.
"And now it's become a bit of a habit. Whenever I go past a bookshop I'll go in and see if there's something."
But for Corey, Maryanne's support is much more than just the books.
"Maryanne was the original person that believed I could do something," he said.
"She saw me for my talent and she gave me the belief that we could create something that could benefit a lot of children out there.
"Maryanne has donated countless books, hours and just so much time to Deadly Science."
Source: Supplied
