Australian National University

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2025 · 2025-01

The impact of settler-colonial risks on Aboriginal and Torres Strait... Category: Medical Research

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Innovation in durable goods: expansion of electric cars in Australia. Highly desirable transition to environmentally friendly technologies such as electric automobiles requires well-designed governmental support. Short-sighted policies may lead to unintended consequences and do more harm than good. The importance of a secondary market for durable goods makes the policy design a complex dynamic problem. This project will produce mathematical and computational tools to explore potential regulation standards and stimulus programs in a simulated environment to find an optimal approach for expanding electric cars in Australia. Built on the team's groundbreaking research in modelling equilibria in markets for automobiles, this project will enable the search for optimal policy that will benefit Australian society. Field of research: 3801 - Applied Economics The expansion of electric vehicles (EVs) is crucial for decarbonizing the Australian economy, requiring effective policies to support EV adoption. This focus has intensified with the "New Vehicle Efficiency Standard" and the ongoing parliamentary Inquiry into the transition to electric vehicles. This project develops a comprehensive toolkit, incorporating a mathematical framework and computer models for realistic, data-driven, and theoretically sound analysis of durable markets, such as the car market. This toolkit will simulate EV adoption under various policy regimes, aiming to accelerate the transition and minimize costs to individuals, firms, and the economy. It will provide valuable insights into optimal policy design, helping to avoid unintended adverse consequences like rebound effects, market distortions, and social or cultural inequalities during the electrification of Australian automobiles.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Decoding plant organellar signaling under heat stress. This proposal aims to address a knowledge gap in how plants respond to heat stress, focusing on chloroplasts and mitochondria, essential compartments for photosynthesis and energy production. The key early events by which these organelles transmit signals to the nucleus during heat stress remain unknown. The project expects to unravel the dynamics of communication between plant cell compartments under heat stress, enabling discoveries across stresses and cell types. Anticipated outcomes include multi-faceted spatiotemporal maps of heat signaling in chloroplasts, mitochondria, and the nucleus. This will deliver new targets and strategies for engineering heat-tolerant crops to mitigate future climate challenges. Field of research: 3108 - Plant Biology Escalating global temperatures have substantial impacts on crop yields, with each one-degree Celsius increase resulting in a 3-7% average reduction in crop productivity, representing multi-billion-dollar losses annually in Australia. Consequently, predicted hotter and drier climates will lead to more severe crop failures and worsening global food security. However, our understanding of early heat stress events, which are crucial for plant adaptation, is limited. By combining cutting-edge molecular biology and synthetic biology tools with high-throughput analysis, this project will explore the cellular signature of plants in the first minutes of perceiving heat stress. Mapping these early events will give a new perspective of how plant perceive and respond to heat. This knowledge will greatly benefit Australia’s agricultural sector by facilitating the design of heat-tolerant crops, essential for mitigating extreme heat events. This aligns with Australia's Science and Research priorities to secure the food supply, boost agricultural resilience, and promote sustainable practices in a changing climate.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Unveiling the full sky with advanced Laser Guide Star technology. Despite advances in telescope size and laser power for satellites, atmospheric correction remains a limiting factor. Laser Guide Star Adaptive Optics addresses this issue but requires a bright star for full correction. This project aims to expand atmospheric correction to the entire sky, overcoming limitations tied to natural stars. It seeks to demonstrate innovative approaches applicable not just to astronomy but also to satellite optical communications, meeting growing data transmission needs. The expected outcomes will include pioneering technology, benefiting the largest telescopes and expanding capabilities in satellite communications. It will position Australia as a leader in both astronomical instrumentation and space communities. Field of research: 5101 - Astronomical Sciences The challenge of atmospheric turbulence poses a major hurdle in both astronomy and optical communications. This limitation prevents us from capturing clear, detailed views of celestial objects and restricts the efficiency and security of satellite communications. This project seeks to transform these fields by advancing the atmospheric correction systems. The outcomes promise significant impact: in astronomy, clearer images revealing unseen details across the sky; in optical communications, faster, more secure satellite data transmission. This innovation could change the way Australia communicates, offering reliable connectivity for terrestrial, maritime, and airspace applications. This is especially important in the remote areas of Australia, which have historically faced communication barriers. Access to optical communications will connect communities, businesses, and emergency services in these regions. Furthermore, the transfer of technology between astronomical instrumentation and space applications will have a substantial impact on the Australian industry. It will pave the way for low-risk commercial developments with high benefit. Other than the classic outreach venues including conferences and workshops, the results of this project will be disseminated and promoted through visual channels, interviews, and social media. It will reach different audiences, including scientific and governmental organizations as well as the next generation of Australian space workforce.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Shifting foodways: biomolecular archaeology and oral traditions in Vanuatu. Food is a key way of understanding connections between past and present communities. This project aims to investigate how ancestral culinary practices in the Oceanic region have evolved over time using residues preserved in pottery. Working in collaboration with communities in Vanuatu, it expects to generate new knowledge of how populations have adapted their diet and developed sustainable food practices whilst navigating through environmental and cultural changes. Expected outcomes include a model for integrating traditional knowledge into contemporary development and food security strategies. This should lead to benefits including increased community resilience and better preparedness for future food and climate vulnerabilities. Field of research: 4301 - Archaeology Australia is strongly committed to supporting neighbouring Pacific nations to develop strategies to create stronger and more resilient communities with increased capacity to prepare from disasters and crisis. However, with rapid climate change, food security is a significant threat for communities within the region. Drawing on the traditional knowledge of local communities in Vanuatu, this project will use cutting-edge biomolecular techniques to identify the food residues in archaeology pottery, providing critical information on how past communities have successfully adapted to threats to food security and achieved sustainability over the last 3,000 years. Through roundtables, public engagement events, and educational material, findings will be shared with local communities, Australian foreign aid policy makers and humanitarian NGOs, helping to inform new understandings of how populations may adjust culinary practices to adapt to current and future shocks. This knowledge exchange will deliver both social and political benefits, strengthening the resilience of local communities and building policy and practitioner capabilities to develop more targeted and effective Australian aid responses. Together, this will help to safeguard the liveability of our region, and further strengthen sustainable development in the Asia-Pacific.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Listenability: responsive policymaking for young people. This project expects to assess the extent to which young people with disability and young carers feel heard by policy and service organisations. Using a co-production research approach that centres the voices of young people with lived experience, new knowledge about citizen engagement processes will be generated. Expected outcomes of this project include methodological and theoretical insights into the politics of listening in co-produced research, capacity building for emerging disability and care researchers, and enhanced policy and civil society engagement for young people. This should provide significant benefits in informing and shaping responsive, user-centred disability and carer support for Australia’s future. Field of research: 4407 - Policy and Administration Effective engagement with people with disability and carers is critical to developing quality, responsive policy and services. However, many young Australians with disability and young Australian carers have little or no input into how their support services are designed or delivered, which impacts service quality and young people’s long-term opportunities and wellbeing. Through in-depth discussions with young people, policymakers and service providers, this project will identify the shortcomings in current engagement practices as well as opportunities for building on good practice. It will develop strategies and guidance for listening to and including young people in service planning and implementation processes more effectively. The project will produce a public report and video summary, as well a practice guide for policy and service organisations which will be distributed widely through peak bodies such as National Disability Services and the Institute for Public Administration Australia. By equipping service providers with knowledge and guidance about better involving young people in their decision-making processes, this project will contribute to the development of more responsive and empowering support. This is expected to benefit young Australians with disability and young Australian carers by leading to services that are tailored to their actual needs and preferences and contribute to improved quality of life.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Gender inequalities at the frontier: AI, space and climate action . This project aims to investigate gender inequality in policy frontiers focusing on artificial intelligence, space and climate change. It expects to create a more sophisticated framework to help government balance competing priorities in rapidly developing institutions. Expected outcomes of this project include the development of new policy and institutional tools for gender equality, improving our ability to navigate crisis as it arises. This should provide significant benefits, such as advancing debate on how Australia builds new institutions and reforms ‘old’ ones, using the evidence, knowledge and resources available to pursue both development and equality. Field of research: 4407 - Policy and Administration Rapid technological and environmental changes have put progress on gender equality at risk. Within these changes lies opportunity, yet Australian governments lack the data and policy tools needed to effectively maximise those potential gains while mitigating their harms to gender equality. This situation is demonstrated in three global priority areas - artificial intelligence (AI), space, and climate action. Gender inequities are exacerbated by human endeavour in these fields – for example, the use of AI in areas ranging from recruitment to health technology tend to be biased against women. Mapping the gendered impacts of these 3 cases alongside government policy and institutional decisions, this project will develop a world-first framework to help policymakers understand and navigate new gender equality risks posed by new global policy commitments. A series of domestic and international workshops with government and industry experts, an interactive policy tracker website and a public facing symposium will transfer the knowledge and frameworks necessary to guide the next wave of policy development in these key areas. Through its uptake in government, industry and the community, this research will build expertise and capability among stakeholders to address gender inequities as they form in these rapidly emerging priority domains, enabling Australia to reap the benefits of technological and environmental change as well as advance its commitment to gender equality.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Resolving Star Formation at its Peak. This project aims to quantify where and under what conditions half the stars in today's Universe formed, via a novel approach combining the highest-resolution observations and simulations yet of galaxies at the peak epoch for star formation. Expected outcomes of this project include new insights into how stars form and how the galaxies they reside in settle into disks. Since these research topics are major science drivers for next-generation telescopes like the Giant Magellan Telescope and Square Kilometre Array, this project will benefit a new generation of research. Moreover, through this project, young Australians will receive the scientific and technical training needed to lead this ground-breaking astronomical research. Field of research: 5101 - Astronomical Sciences The aim of this project is to understand how at least half the stars in today’s Universe formed and how their formation shaped the galaxies they reside in. To achieve this, the project capitalises on new high-resolution observations of cold, molecular gas in early galaxies – the stuff out of which stars form. This cold, star-forming gas has barely been studied by Australian astronomers, meaning that the project fills a vital research gap. The project capitalises on Australian taxpayer investment in the Very Large Telescope, strengthening our ties to the European Southern Observatory and its member states. Because this project involves generating and processing large astronomical data sets, it will contribute to development and training in key areas of data science – strengthening Australia’s capital in research and innovation. Moreover, this “blue-sky” research will likely lead to technological leaps that cannot be foreseen, like the development of WiFi by Australian radio astronomers. Key research concepts and outcomes will be directly shared with the community through various media platforms and direct (two-way) engagement. In this way, the project will maximise the community’s understanding of astronomy and data science. Through engagement with the community, government bodies, and schools, this project will also foster a more diverse and equitable involvement in science.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Making Efficient Sound Gradual Typing Fit for Industry Adoption. Programming languages enable programmers to express their ideas in a way that suits them, and have the resulting code automatically translated into something a computer can understand. Languages trade off different features against each other to support particular use cases. This project aims to enable a new generation of programming languages that combines the advantages of languages used by professional software developers with the flexibility of widely-used scripting languages, improving the productivity and code quality of programmers of all kinds. To this end, it will solve important problems in the underlying mathematical theory of programming languages. The main benefit is that it will be easier to write safe and yet fast software. Field of research: 4612 - Software Engineering Currently, the programming languages used by professional software developers in large-scale software projects are often deemed too restrictive for smaller-scale or experimental programming. The many data analysts, engineers, students, administrators, and scientists typically use languages offering fewer safety guarantees and performance improvements, thus creating more error-prone code that wastes energy and resources. Gradual typing is a programming language feature that can theoretically close the gap between these two groups of programming languages and users. However, unsolved fundamental problems in programming language design and implementation are preventing its widespread adoption in widely available languages. Despite intense interest from large companies like Microsoft, Meta, and Instagram, there is still very limited progress. This project will deliver solutions to the above problems and create a prototype language implementation as proof-of-concept. This in turn will allow programmers of all kinds and especially outside of major software companies to enjoy the benefits of professional tools while still enjoying a large degree of flexibility in coding. For Australia, the benefits are increases in productivity, a more level playing field for small businesses competing with foreign IT industry giants, reduced energy use from computers by running code more efficiently, and increased cybersecurity by increasing the use of memory-safe programming languages.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Sea Level in the Mid-Pliocene Warm Period: Unveiling Earth's mantle Effects. This project aims to revise our understanding of sea-level change in the mid-Pliocene warm period, a period that closely mirrors the high greenhouse gas levels we anticipate in the coming decades, by looking into solid-Earth contributions. It does so by utilising innovative variational data-assimilation methods that are developed for Geosciences, which enable the assimilation of various observational datasets into models, to reconstruct Earth’s mantle evolution. By connecting mid-Pliocene’s surface movement to other geological observables of various periods, we are able to generate and validate a benchmark for future studies of global sea-level rise and climate change. Field of research: 3706 - Geophysics This project delves into the Mid-Pliocene Warm Period, a time 3.5 to 3.0 million years ago that closely mirrors the high greenhouse gas levels we anticipate in the coming decades. As the best natural comparison to our future, this period provides critical insights into potential sea level rises from warming climates and melting ice sheets. However, our understanding of this period is incomplete due to Earth's surface movements, influenced by the mantle's deep forces. This project will provide a robust baseline for this movement through testable reconstructions of Earth's mantle. By looking into the past dynamics of the Earth's deep interior, my research will significantly refine sea level rise predictions for 21st century. This is especially crucial for Australia, where vast coastal communities and delicate ecosystems are at risk from ocean changes. Enhanced predictions will empower policymakers with accurate information to devise robust strategies for environmental conservation and disaster response. Accurate sea level estimates are vital inputs into climate models, which are essential for predicting future climate scenarios. Improving these models helps in planning for climate resilience, thus protecting our communities and natural habitats. This project aims to provide that accuracy, leading to better-informed climate.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Worlds Unseen: Inferring Hidden Structure with Generative Vision Models. When observing the 3D world, the unseen part can only be surmised from experience. This project aims to infer the hidden structure of the 3D world by learning from generative computer vision models trained on large image datasets. This will facilitate the reconstruction of realistic and complete 3D models from images. It will generate new knowledge in computer vision using innovative techniques from differential geometry. Expected outcomes include open-source software for intelligent agents, such as robots, that better understand the 3D world in order to perform more useful tasks. Significant benefits to the manufacturing, aged care and transportation sectors are expected, with applications in robotics, smart homes and autonomous vehicles. Field of research: 4603 - Computer Vision and Multimedia Computation Australia faces the national challenges of reviving its manufacturing base, improving the health outcomes of its ageing population and reducing emissions across all sectors. It is important to address these challenges to retain strategic capability, to ensure a resilient economy and to build an equitable and healthy society. Combining cheap and ubiquitous sensors with sophisticated processing, computer vision can contribute to solving these challenges. This project will leverage the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to understand the 3D world and its variations from imagery, developing new theory, algorithms and applications that will be published open-access with open-source code. Together with direct engagement of existing and new partners in government and industry, this will facilitate the translation of research outcomes into products. This research is likely to confer significant economic, commercial, health and environmental benefits across a range of sectors. For example, it could benefit the Australian manufacturing industry by creating 3D models of deformable materials on-the-fly for a robot to manipulate in a factory; benefit older or disabled Australians by aiding the detection of potential hazards in the home and workplace; and benefit all Australians by making future autonomous vehicles 3D-aware, facilitating collision avoidance and energy-efficient navigation. This project will unlock visual AI technologies for vital government and commercial applications.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Unlocking yield gains with a new pathway targeting plant nitrogen usage. Nitrogen fertiliser is indispensable for agricultural productivity, but crops are inefficient at utilising fertiliser for grain production. This project aims to decipher the role of a peptide hormone receptor pathway in determining yield by control of seed size, number, and the draw of nitrogen from canopy to seed, across different organs, cell types and plant species. Project findings are expected to provide advanced knowledge on how plants utilise nitrogen for grain filling. The findings may aid and accelerate crop development for production of more grain with less fertiliser, with benefits of improved food security, grain protein quality, nutrition, reduced input costs, and a reduction of unused fertiliser entering the environment. Field of research: 3108 - Plant Biology The Australian grains sector is an important contributor to the economy, and to food and feed both locally and internationally through substantial global exports. Nitrogen fertiliser is one of the biggest input costs for Australian grain farmers. However, inefficient crop uptake and usage of fertiliser reduces farm profits and contributes to substantial environmental damage. Developing new plant lines that are more efficient at utilising nitrogen to form grains is critical to agricultural productivity and sustainability in the context of environmental stewardship and meeting global decarbonisation targets. This project aims to provide knowledge of plant genes affecting the delivery of nitrogen to the seed and how these genes may be targeted for rapid crop improvement using modern gene editing technology. Project outputs are expected to be useful for plant breeders in the medium to long term (5–10 years) for the creation of high-yielding crops with lower fertiliser requirements. As a major export crop for Australia (forecasted $2.7b, 2023–24), the project will use barley as a model; however, findings are also expected to be applicable to other key agriculture crops. Results will be communicated directly to industry through existing networks. Outcomes are expected to build capacities in the application of emerging gene technologies to help secure the long-term competitiveness, productivity, and environmental sustainability of Australian grain production.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Chiral photonics with resonant meta-structures. The project aims to address the big challenges of miniaturising optical elements controlling light handedness and polarisation that are crucial for high-speed information processing. The project will employ artificially engineered nanostructures, and it expects to generate new fundamental knowledge in photonics to enhance optical chirality beyond the limits available in natural materials through optical resonances and the use of novel materials. Expected outcomes include the development of advanced concepts in optics, novel methods in computational photonics, and practical designs and demonstrations of highly efficient chiral nanostructures. This research promises substantial benefits to optical data processing and telecommunications. Field of research: 4018 - Nanotechnology In today's information-driven era, an incredible volume of data is generated yearly, escalating the demand for advanced technologies in high-speed data processing. Australia is leading the transition to new technologies with projects like the National Broadband Network, replacing copper-based electron transmission with photon-based optical fibers. Moving towards photon-based technologies involves creative work to make optical components smaller because current optical devices struggle with issues like high power consumption, slow data transfer, and meeting cybersecurity standards. The aim of the project is to develop a next-gen set of tiny photon-related components using nanostructures much smaller than the width of a human hair. These devices can encode information as a binary code of 0s and 1s by transforming the polarisation of light. This project holds immense significance as it could revolutionise data processing, directly impacting crucial sectors for Australia's growth. Economically, the transition promises a competitive edge in technology and cybersecurity, fostering new industries and jobs, with potential applications in optical computers, sensors for disease detection, and mineral location. Socially, it promises nationwide improvements in connectivity. Environmentally, it promotes reducing energy consumption, aligning with sustainability goals. Additionally, the project offers extensive training for future scientists, shaping careers in academia and industry.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Roads and Road Transport in India: An Environmental and Economic History. This project aims to investigate how roadbuilding and transportation has spurred economic progress and driven environmental change in India. Focused on the 1940s-70s, it aims to conduct three site studies of important roads. The project expects to generate new knowledge on infrastructure creation and its consequences via road ethnography, archival research, and quantitative and qualitative analysis of published sources. Expected outcomes include a new economic-environmental postcolonial history of India and global research collaboration to study Asian infrastructure’s history. The anticipated benefit is to expand Australia’s understanding of tradeoffs been economic development and environmental change of a major trading partner and ally. Field of research: 4303 - Historical Studies India is Australia’s fifth largest trading partner, a key market for its fossil fuels, and a strategic partner in the Indo-Pacific Quad. Building roads and registering motor vehicles at an unprecedented pace, India is also attempting an ambitious transition to alternative energy sources. India’s experiences are instructive for Australia, which confronts similar challenges, albeit on a smaller scale, of reconciling infrastructure development and growing motor vehicle usage alongside transitioning to alternative energy. Combining ethnography on roads, archival research, statistical analysis and extensive readings of industry and government publications, this project will provide an historical examination of road building and transportation in India. It will uncover the drivers of increased energy demand and provide new understandings of the potential environmental impacts for future infrastructure planning. Findings will be shared with policymakers through open access videos of policy-related discussions conducted at a major infrastructure conference and a major open access data series of road and transport statistics. Their use of the findings and data will enable them to guide Australia’s future energy planning, and in doing so, balance similar tensions between Australia’s future infrastructure development and energy transition.

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2024 · 2024-12

The impact of settler-colonial risks on Aboriginal and Torres Strait... Category: Medical Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2024 · 2024-12

Reducing childhood psychological distress in disasters: Evaluation of... Category: Medical Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2024 · 2024-12

Reducing childhood psychological distress in disasters: Evaluation of... Category: Medical Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2024 · 2024-12

Co-designing preference-based cervical cancer screening support for... Category: Medical Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2024 · 2024-12

Improving First Nations Experiences of Genetic Health Services Through... Category: Medical Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2024 · 2024-12

Co-designing preference-based cervical cancer screening support for... Category: Medical Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2024 · 2024-12

Co-designing preference-based cervical cancer screening support for... Category: Medical Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2024 · 2024-11

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Seventh Assessment Category: Climate Change

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2024 · 2024-11

Climate Change Process Category: Climate Change

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2024 · 2024-11

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Seventh Assessment Category: Climate Change

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2024 · 2024-11

Joint Impact Assessment of Critical Emerging Technologies in Support of... Category: Technology