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Judith was born and raised on pastoral properties owned by her family, pioneers of the New England Tablelands. She was educated first at home then at the New England Girls' School, Armidale. From an early age she wrote poetry and produced her first collection in 1946. She was soon recognised as a major poet. In 1948 she moved to Tamborine Mountain in Queensland after marrying Jack McKinney with whom she had a daughter. She became increasingly active in environmental and Aboriginal issues. She was an advocate of nuclear disarmament and opposed the Vietnam War. She wrote poetry of an increasingly satirical nature and publicly espoused Aboriginal land rights, acknowledging that her view put her at odds with her family's 'pioneer' background. Judith's interest in conservation issues was reflected in her verse but she retired from writing poetry in 1985 to concentrate on land rights and conservation issues. [Brief Biography compiled by Robin Hammond, January/February 2004]
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