Flinders University

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Unravelling cell wall polysaccharide biosynthesis in pathogenic zygomycetes. This project aims to define mechanisms that control cell wall composition and stability in Rhizopus oryzae, a zygomycete fungus responsible for life-threatening human infections. The biochemical properties and function of vital enzymes involved in a newly discovered cell wall polysaccharide biosynthetic pathway will be determined using innovative approaches at the interface of biochemistry, microbiology, cell biology and structural biology. Expected outcomes include new knowledge on the enzymes that synthesise major fucose-based carbohydrates, to guide the future development of novel strategies for antifungal therapies. The data will also be applicable to animal protection from related zygomycete pathogens. Field of research: 0601 - Biochemistry and Cell Biology Fungi can cause severe and costly infections in humans, especially in immunocompromised patients and those with underlying conditions, such as diabetes. Life-threatening mycoses caused by pathogenic zygomycete fungi have limited treatment options, and often result in protracted hospital stays costing in excess of $150,000 per episode. This project will exploit our recent discovery of unusual carbohydrate polymers that constitute the major part of the fungal cell wall, essential for infection and fungal stability. Cutting-edge techniques will deliver a complete characterisation of these polymers and the enzymes that synthesise them, providing advanced fundamental knowledge that, beyond high academic impact (publications, training of researchers), will inform novel targets and strategies for improved disease control. The research addresses the Practical Challenge within the Australian Government’s Health Priority by having high potential for the prevention and cure of fungal infections in humans and animals, with social and economic benefits for the health and veterinary sectors, both nationally and globally.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Towards 'zero hunger': improving food relief services in Australia. This project aims to improve the effectiveness of the food relief sector in meeting the needs of >5m Australians experiencing food insecurity annually. Following an innovative co-design process with sector stakeholders and their clients, this project investigates food relief service models that satisfy emergency needs as well as address root causes of food insecurity. Expected outcomes include tested best-practice guidelines and auditing tools for improving, monitoring and evaluating food relief services. These will not only assist >2,500 volunteer-run organisations to deliver more nutritious foods to more people, through a more dignified, fairer and diversified service, but map a pathway for clients out of food insecurity. Field of research: 1605 - Policy and Administration Food insecurity is a major challenge in Australia. More than 1 in 5 Australians have experienced food insecurity in the last 12 months, an increase of 22% from the previous year. Hunger has been proven to lead to significant negative social, health, psychological and economic consequences, which is reflected in stated priorities of the United Nations (Sustainable Development Goal 2 “Zero Hunger”) and the Australian Government (Science and Research Priority 1 Food). The food relief sector in Australia already reports being unable to meet demand, and the economic and social impacts of COVID-19 are expected to increase that demand significantly. By developing systemic, evidence-informed improvements to the sector’s offering, the project will benefit: (a) over 2,500 food relief charities that could meet the demand more effectively; (b) the government and private donors by using, their resources more effectively; and, importantly, (c) over 5m Australians who will get access to better quality food and services supporting them towards exiting food insecurity for good.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Post-parental housing transitions among adults with intellectual disability. This project aims to address the urgent issue of growing numbers of older people with intellectual disability (ID) outliving their parent carers who have not put future care plans in place. This project expects to generate a national evidence-based framework for ensuring successful post-parental housing and care transitions. By using a three-phase mixed methodology design in three Australian cities, expected outcomes of the project include the development of an Australian-first evidence-based resource kit which should provide significant benefits for older people with ID, their family carers and the disability sector, in terms of planning for post-parental housing and care transitions. Field of research: 1117 - Public Health and Health Services A growing section of the Australian community are older people with intellectual disability (ID), many of whom are outliving their parents who have typically been their lifelong primary carers. Many older parents, however, have not put plans in place for ongoing care of their son or daughter with ID and are in urgent need of support to help them plan for the future. This project will assist people with ID and their family carers to plan for future housing and living arrangements, hence reducing the likelihood of an uncertain future. It will also be important in helping them navigate housing decisions in what has become a very dynamic and complex market under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). It will benefit government and the disability and ageing sectors by addressing a current lack of evidence-based policy on which to base services to assist in planning for post-parental housing transitions. An important outcome will be the development of a resource kit co-designed by people with ID and their family members aimed at ensuring greater choice and control.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Signaling in the crypt: a novel metabolic pathway in intestinal stem cells. The gut is the most rapidly renewing tissue in the body, driven by a highly active stem cell niche. Bile acids are emerging as critical regulators of this stem cell niche and disruption of bile acid homeostasis has profoundly adverse effects on intestinal renewal and hence gut health. We are addressing a critical gap in our understanding of how bile acids are controlled within stem cell niche. The aim of the project is to define the critical role of a novel enzyme called UGT8 in controlling intestinal stem cell response to bile acids; this is achieved by modulating UGT8 activity in intestinal stem cell models and determining the effects on stem cell function and the key signalling pathways that control intestinal homeostasis and renewal. Field of research: 0601 - Biochemistry and Cell Biology This project will build on a timely alliance between researchers in Australia and the USA who will bring a cross-disciplinary approach to understanding the factors that control the normal process of intestinal turnover, which is essential to gut health. This team recently made major inroads into understanding how intestinal turnover is controlled by critical chemical regulators known as bile acids. In doing so, they identified a major gap in our understanding of how the intestinal stem cell modulates the bile acid signal. This team will now combine extensive expertise in stem cell biology, metabolism, and mouse genetics, to fill this gap by defining a new pathway for bile acid metabolism within the stem cell. This should enable the development of novel approaches to intervene where bile acid metabolism, and hence gut turnover, is dysregulated, for example by dietary factors or disruption of the microbiome. The team’s extensive research commercialization experience supports development of such interventions within the biotechnology space, ultimately benefiting Australian industry.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

New technologies for e-waste recycling. This project aims to provide commercially viable methods for recycling electronic waste (e-waste), with a focus on plastic recycling and precious metal recovery from circuit boards. This project expects to generate new knowledge in the separation and recovery of gold, silver, and palladium using novel leach reagents and sorbents. Additionally, new techniques will be evaluated for converting e-waste plastic into construction materials. Expected outcomes of this project include new capabilities for Australia's e-waste recycling industry, as the majority of circuit board waste is shipped overseas. This should provide significant economic benefits such as the recovery of valuable metals and the development of novel construction materials. Field of research: 0303 - Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry Australia currently ships the majority of its circuit board e-waste overseas for recycling. This project aims to develop commercially viable techniques for e-waste recycling that can be used to build this industry in Australia. The global e-waste recycling market is estimated to be nearly $80 billion AUD. Each year in Australia, nearly $200M AUD worth of gold, silver, and palladium is discarded in e-waste. Accordingly, there is a strong economic incentive to recover these valuable metals in Australia. Recovering these metals from e-waste is also beneficial to the environment, as it decreases the reliance on primary mining. This project also aims to repurpose the plastic in e-waste, which is too-often sent to landfill. The aim is to convert the plastic into novel construction materials that could serve as an alternative to concrete. Partner organisation, Clean Earth Technologies, will use the knowledge generated in this project to design a pilot e-waste recycling plant at their industrial hub in Adelaide, South Australia. This project has the potential to brings jobs and new economic activity to Australia.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Polymer technologies for oil spill remediation and slow-release fertilisers. This project aims to evaluate a patented sulfur polymer in commercial oil spill remediation and slow-release fertilisers. Key objectives are to determine how the polymer degrades, assess the effectiveness of the polymer in oil spill sorption in different contexts, and investigate the polymer as a matrix for slow-release fertilisers. The project expects to generate new approaches to sustainable remediation and crop production. Expected outcomes include new knowledge about the biodegradation of the polymer, new methods for deploying the polymer in oil spill cleanup, and new fertilisers that prevent nutrient waste and runoff. Significant benefits are expected for the environment, as well as economic benefits to the manufacturer and end-users. Field of research: 0303 - Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry This research has significant likely benefit to the economy and environment in Australia. The project builds on research and commercialisation that has already seen the establishment of a new Australian factory with new Australian jobs. In the research proposed here, the domestically manufactured polymer will be tested in entirely new commercial areas such as oil spill sorption, which has the potential to protect Australia's precious waterways and coastlines, including the Great Barrier Reef. The research also aims to make novel slow release fertilisers using the same polymer, which is likely to benefit Australian farmers economically, for instance Australian sugarcane farmers who will collaborate in this project. The fertiliser application will also benefit the environment because the fertiliser is designed to reduce harmful nutrient runoff.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Strategic Friendship: Anglo-German Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific Region. This project aims to investigate the untold history of Anglo-German cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region through hitherto neglected German archival materials. These materials point to thriving and thick webs of mutual assistance in cultural, scientific, economic, military and political affairs that successfully weakened local sovereignty but ended abruptly with World War One. The project expects to produce a new history challenging century-long Anglophone understandings of Anglo-German antagonism in the Asia-Pacific region. Its benefits include providing new knowledge of the history of great power relations in the Asia-Pacific region and establishing an improved historical framework for understanding strategic cooperation in our region. Field of research: 2103 - Historical Studies Australia is currently navigating between the increasing regional power of China, our largest trading partner, and the United States, our primary foreign affairs and defence ally. The need to understand the historical nature of this foreign policy situation is particularly urgent given the many predictions of conflict between the two. Testing the validity of such predictions of conflict is of intense national interest, given the effects such a conflict would have on Australia. Such great power conflicts in our region are not new, however, and this project tests historically the propensity for war between a rising and an established power in our region. It investigates a key earlier version of this conflict, namely Anglo-German rivalry in the Asia-Pacific region and Australia’s response to it, as a precursor to the current situation. By analysing hitherto unused archival materials to test the conflict model, it seeks to offer a deeper understanding of strategic competition in the region, shedding important new light on the ways Australia, China and the United States might avoid conflict.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Molecular movies using time-resolved momentum spectroscopies. This project aims to use time-resolved momentum spectroscopies to take snapshots of chemical and physical processes as they evolve in time. This project expects to use these molecular movies to track the changes to electron motion after they have absorbed light. Expected outcomes of this project include understanding how the motion of electrons can drive physical processes and induce chemical changes. This will provide significant benefits through expanding knowledge that will assist in controlling chemical reactions and developing technologies with improved performance, such as sensors and solar cells. Field of research: 0202 - Atomic, Molecular, Nuclear, Particle and Plasma Physics This project contributes to Australia’s national interest through its focus on Energy – one of Australia’s key Science and Research Priorities. Understanding the evolution of chemical processes and electron motion in materials will assist in understanding the mechanisms of photo-initiated processes relating to photochemistry, energy generation in solar cells, and the efficiency and selectivity of photo catalytic processes. The anticipated goal of the project is to use this chemical knowledge to significantly benefit advanced manufacturing, where the creation of high performance optoelectronics devices requires an accurate understanding of how the electrons move within devices. Through knowledge of these processes, we can design new technologies with improved performance and function over existing technologies. This is essential for realising a competitive advantage in industrial applications and therefore providing economic and commercial benefit to the Australian community.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

A National Facility for the 3D Imaging of the Near Surface. This proposal aims to fund the establishment of a National Facility for the 3D Imaging of the Near Surface. It aims to provide Australian researchers with access to next-generation geophysical instruments for high-resolution landscape scale mapping of the shallow subsurface. The expansive size and impressive density of these data can fundamentally change the research questions that can be asked in the fields of archaeology, earth, environmental and forensic science. This integrated suite of equipment is currently not available in the Southern Hemisphere and will, if funded, position Australia at the forefront of the exciting field of near surface geophysics and facilitate collaboration with partner institutions in Asia, Africa and Oceania. Field of research: 2101 - Archaeology This unique facility will have important social, cultural and economic benefits, particularly in the fields of cultural heritage management, law enforcement, mining, agriculture and tourism. The equipment to be funded through this proposal will revolutionize the location of unmarked graves and archaeological sites by dramatically increasing the efficiency and speed of subsuface mapping using geophysical techniques. This will have considerable benefits for communities impacted by crime, Indigenous Australians, business associated with heritage tourism and industries undertaking cultural heritage management assessments. This facility will also be used to provide economically important high-resolution data to locate shallow groundwater sources, map mineral deposits and understand changes to coastlines relating to sea level variation.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Fire and rain: Drivers of deep-time ecosystem assembly in Australia. This project aims to investigate the influence of bushfires and shifting rainfall patterns on the development of Australia’s dominant ecosystems. By combining a range of novel geochemical, isotopic and palaeontological techniques, this research seeks to reveal the causes and consequences of Australia’s transformation from a forested to mainly open landscape of grassland, shrubland and savannah. The expected outcome is detailed knowledge of how changes in fire and rain shaped the ecology and evolution of plants and animals. This knowledge is key to understanding how Australian ecosystems function and to protecting their cultural, economic and environmental values, especially as climate and fire regimes continue to change into the future. Field of research: 0402 - Geochemistry Australia’s wide-open landscapes are central to our cultural identity, environmental health, and economic prosperity. The grasslands, shrublands and savannahs that cover 70% of the continent support a vast diversity of plants and animals found nowhere else on Earth. These natural wonders attract international tourists that contribute over $40 billion to the economy, while our rangelands support a $17-billion beef industry. Anticipating how these ecosystems will respond to changes in bushfire and climate is difficult because of complex ecological feedbacks and the unprecedented scale of change. By combining a novel array of techniques, this project will document how Australia’s dominant ecosystems were shaped by changes in rainfall and bushfire over the last 15 million years. By using both local and regional environmental archives, it will identify what drove the evolution of Australia’s unique vegetation and fauna. The outcomes of the project will provide crucial knowledge about Australia’s past to aid in better managing our iconic and valued landscapes into the future.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Life or death decisions: making fast, accurate choices in a complex world. This project aims to understand how hoverflies and honey bees, with tiny brains and sensory systems, excel at making fast and accurate decisions while on the fly in a complex world. The project will combine brain recordings with flight analyses and computational modelling to generate new knowledge on how animals may utilize movements to simplify information sampling. Expected outcomes are a novel, comprehensive understanding of how animal movements could enhance decision speed and accuracy. This should provide substantial benefits for neuroscience, and for enhancing performance of autonomous robotic systems operating in challenging environments, such as disaster relief, mining and remote exploration. Field of research: 0608 - Zoology Our project will provide a comprehensive understanding of how biological systems use movements to enhance decision speed and accuracy. The speed and accuracy of movements is a performance issue in a range of important activities, such as in autonomous robotic systems. This project will provide a basis for improved performance in autonomous robotic systems especially those operating in challenging Australian environments, such as those encountered during disaster relief, mining and remote exploration. In addition, the project will directly promote international collaboration with the UK, India and Sweden, including with one of the top biorobotics groups in the world, as well as enhancing Australia’s standing in neuroscience. Finally, by furthering our understanding of the biology of two of our most important pollinators, our project could have a direct impact on Australian agriculture.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Mechanisms of memory function involving site-specific tau phosphorylation. This project aims to understand the molecular principles that facilitate encoding, maintenance and retrieval of memories in the brain. To store memories in brain circuits, electrical and chemical signals are crucial. Brain cells can integrate signals into biochemical modifications of intracellular proteins. The nature of the protein modifications that represent memory within brain cells is unknown. This project uses innovative genome editing, mathematical modelling and proteomic approaches, to study how biochemical modifications of a key protein called tau help encode and retrieve memories. These molecular insights will make a significant advance in the current understanding of a brain function that is essential to all human activities. Field of research: 0601 - Biochemistry and Cell Biology Aging in a productive way is of utmost importance to individual and population health. Maintaining memory is crucial for healthy aging. This project will address a fundamental question – the basis of memory in the brain at the molecular level. This work will provide a deeper understanding of mammalian memory and thus will result in improved knowledge to maintain cognitive capacity in ageing. Furthermore, these insights will impact on brain performance and will help increase social and economic contribution of ageing Australians. Most human activities are based on memory of previous experiences. Understanding such an essential brain function as memory has wider implications beyond health, for example in education and information technology.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

‘Slow' digitisation, community heritage and the objects of Martindale Hall. This project aims to investigate how community history, heritage, and cultural collections can be better preserved and made accessible through slow digitisation techniques. The project will generate new interdisciplinary knowledge about Martindale Hall, SA, the historically significant objects it contains, and digitisation. Expected outcomes include a new method that embeds digitisation in historical and cultural knowledge, and assists organisations to make sustainable decisions about when and how to digitise. Benefits include improved public access to significant cultural heritage assets, return on investment for local history organisations, and protection of cultural heritage places and objects by the communities that care for them. Field of research: 2102 - Curatorial and Related Studies This project will generate new knowledge about Australia's rich colonial history through a community-based investigation of preserved historical objects, conducted in partnership with local Aboriginal Elders. Australia is committing large budgets to digitise its historical documents, objects and artefacts but it is lacking the research, knowledge and frameworks to ensure best practice and best outcomes for that investment. The proposed research will develop new knowledge to inform future digitisation projects across the humanities, with particular relevance to Australian history. The knowledge, methods and tools created will improve the efficiency and reach of digitisation projects and maximise the return on investment in regional museums and heritage sites. It will allow them to make better decisions about what objects to digitise and how to make them accessible and relevant to local and international audiences.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Australian Seasonal Workers Programme and well-being impacts in Timor-Leste. This research aims to investigate the impacts of Australia’s Seasonal Workers Programme and South Korea’s Employment Permit System on the well-being of migrant workers and their families in Timor-Leste (East Timor). The contribution of this research to scholarship would be the creation of a sound method to measure the impact of temporary labour migration on well-being across various aspects of life that can be used by researchers in Timor-Leste and elsewhere to evaluate the development impacts of such migration schemes. The data will inform evidence-based policies to improve temporary labour migration schemes, meet urgent development priorities in Timor-Leste, and maximise the benefits of Australian aid funded labour migration schemes. Field of research: 1603 - Demography This project reinforces Australia’s close relationship with and commitment to its nearest neighbour, Timor-Leste. As migrant remittances are now several times larger than foreign aid across the globe, this timely and comprehensive study contributes to Australia’s national interest in three ways: -The research-based evidence can help the Australian government enhance the effectiveness of its temporary migration programs in terms of poverty reduction and social development in Timor-Leste. -Creating an analytical tool to measure the well-being impacts of migration in migrant families in Timor-Leste, and building research capacity in Timor-Leste, will support an equitable and strategic development partnership between the two countries. -New information about the well-being of Timorese labour migrants in Australia and their reintegration in Timor-Leste will enable the Australian government and Australian employers to improve the quality equity and management of temporary migrant employment for mutual social and economic benefits.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

The ABC’s of listening and learning: a study in the Northern Territory. Indigenous Australian children experience middle ear disorders earlier in life and for longer periods than their non-Indigenous counterparts. The resulting listening challenges can have implications for academic achievement and future health and well-being, despite normal hearing thresholds. The current project aims to determine the effects of pervasive otitis media and related hearing loss on Indigenous children’s listening and pre-literacy skills in the Northern Territory, and how to better identify those at most risk for poor educational outcomes. The findings will lead to policy recommendations to help improve these children’s learning potential. Field of research: 1303 - Specialist Studies In Education This project will have significant education and health economic benefits for Australia’s Indigenous children in the Northern Territory, who have one of the highest incidences of middle ear disorder in the world. Preliminary data has shown about 50% of youngest children had some degree of middle ear disorder across 4 communities. This project addresses the fundamental question of listening abilities in these children, and the impacts this may have on their pre-literacy skills. Given the importance of reading in Australian society today, this will help ensure that these children can reach their full potential at school and beyond, becoming productive members of society, and contributing to Australia’s increasingly high-quality workforce. This project also aims to train the teachers within the community schools to support children with middle ear disorder as well as train Audiology students a community-based multidisciplinary clinical practice that will translate into better hearing health for participating communities and strengthen Australia’s position as a world leader in hearing research and care.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

A history of domestic violence in Australia, 1850-2020. The project aims to investigate similarities and differences in women's lived experiences of domestic violence across ethnic, cultural and class contexts; to historicise its cultural representations and their impacts; and to identify and assess policy and legal measures to constrain domestic violence. Its significance lies in its goal to address a persistent threat in Australia. Expected outcomes are the first book-length history of domestic violence in Australia, articles, direct sector engagement and a digital database to build future research capacity. Its anticipated benefit is new analysis that assists policy makers, service providers, the media and public to understand historical processes that have shaped Australian gender relations. Field of research: 2103 - Historical Studies One in six Australian women has experienced domestic violence at the hands of their current or former male partner. This project will deliver vital context for this long-standing problem. It aims to inform policy responses and enrich public conversation with historical knowledge and analysis. The 2016 report of the Victorian Royal Commission into Family Violence highlighted the need for cultural change. By illuminating the cultural conditions that have produced domestic violence, and those that have helped reduce rates of violence, this project will feed into debates over strategies for positive cultural change. The historical research will be informed by direct engagement with Indigenous and non-Indigenous staff currently in the sector to ensure the project’s outcomes will provide a useful past for practitioners in domestic violence policy-making and services. It will produce the first book-length history that spans the period from 1850 to the present, several journal articles on specific issues aimed at a range of audiences, including in the media, and an accessible digital database for future researchers.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Nanofluid stickiness will transform the Energy and Biotechnology Industries. This project aims to determine how minuscule particles behave on surfaces with different nano-architecture. Modern technologies already use nanodecorated materials to lubricate engines or capture tumour cells. Yet, their potential in applications for sustainable catalysis, gas treatment or water splitting cannot be realised until we understand how nano-objects adsorb to surfaces with features of comparable size. The expected outcomes include new methods, models and a workable map of protein adsorption allowing us to 1) create advanced substrates for targeted applications and 2) understand existing phenomenon governed by naturally occurring nanoroughness. It will benefit manufacturing in fields ranging from biology to energy production. Field of research: 0303 - Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry This project will fabricate new advanced materials in which the surface roughness can be controlled with nanoscale precision so that the wetting behaviour of these materials can be tested and modelled. The wetting behaviour of materials depends on the surface roughness and understanding this and how to control it will allow new materials to be applied in critical industries. In one example, materials with controlled surface roughness will be used to develop new biosensors to support Australian-based manufacture of new diagnostic testing platforms, such as for early stage cancer detection, viruses or other pathogens. In another example, this project will develop model systems that mimic the interaction between rocks and fracking fluids for nanofracking, a new, enhanced and sustainable oil recovery process. This process requires nanofluids to effectively wet and penetrate the surface of nanoporous rock deposits. This project will be used to enhance extraction for commercial fluids in the Australian Cooper Basin thorny shale deposits with direct financial benefits for Australian oil and gas operations.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Spatio-temporal activation of genes in cells and mice. This project aims to develop novel genetic methods and instrumentation for the local, rapid and reversible activation of genes in cells and mice. This project expects to generate highly innovative light- and sound-based technologies that will permit to study living systems on the gene-level with unprecedented precision. Expected outcomes include new research and technology capacity to broadly address fundamental biological questions and to create new applied processes. This project intends to provide significant benefits, such as enhanced knowledge generation, multidisciplinary training opportunities and patentable technologies. Field of research: 0604 - Genetics This project will prototype and develop proof-of-principle technologies to rapidly turn genes on or off within cells. Prototypes will use wireless technologies, including light and ultrasound, to change the way genes function. In unlocking these genetic switches, the research will focus on ways to harness the discoveries into new devices and tools. The project is in the national interest because it will put Australia at the forefront of the invention of new genetic switches for use in valuable biotechnology industries. This technology could unlock new economic benefits in the biotechnology and materials science-based sectors. Specifically, the project will engage with companies and with the CSIRO to develop and commercialise new devices and approaches to drug development involving light- and sound techniques. The project will also enable new advanced manufacturing capability, and will contribute to major national programs including the National Research Infrastructure Synthetic Biology Roadmap and the CSIRO’s Future Science Program.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Self-zoning in natural uraninite: radiation driven chemical separation. In this project we aim to explore and define the effects of the substitution of lead and rare earths on the crystal chemistry of uranium dioxide (uraninite) and related minerals, towards establishing the oxygen stoichiometry (as a measure of oxygen fugacity) of these materials both in nature and in synthetic materials. This project will use synthetic materials to understand the variability of oxygen stoichiometry, establish accurate and precise structures for the oxides, and distinguish both long range and short-range order which is critical to understanding both natural and synthetic U-oxides. This will help to define the geochemical conditions leading to the formation of deposits like Olympic Dam towards potential economic benefit. Field of research: 0306 - Physical Chemistry (Incl. Structural) This project falls within the current National Science and Research Priorities – Resources Technologies to optimise yield through effective and efficient resource extraction, processing and waste management. A significant innovation of this project is a detailed understanding of the chemical controls on the mechanism of uraninite oxidation and remobilization. This knowledge will help to define the geochemical conditions over the evolution of Olympic Dam and other IOCG deposits in the Gawler Craton of South Australia. This will feed into improved models for exploration in this region and the discovery of further large IOGC system. The research may underpin new developments for the recovery or suppression of uranium and rare earth elements in processing IOCG ores, which has major economic implications.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Religion and domestic violence: exploring men’s perpetration. The project will generate new knowledge about how religious beliefs and practices are used by men to perpetrate domestic violence. Using a qualitative design this project will gain insights into how churches understand and respond to domestic violence; and identify and analyse the perpetration of spiritual abuse as a form of domestic violence. The significant innovation and benefit is interviewing Australian men about their understandings and use of violence through an ecclesiastical lens. The outcomes will enhance the knowledge base of domestic violence theory, serving as a platform to develop more effective policies and practice inside and outside religious settings to prevent domestic violence. Field of research: 1607 - Social Work The project will benefit religious communities and domestic violence agencies across Australia by providing foundation knowledge of how spirituality and religion influence intimate couple’s lives, shape their experiences and perpetration's of abuse, and potentially aid in recovery from domestic violence. National impact on policy and practice inside and outside religious contexts is made possible by providing an evidence base in collaboration with a national church. By interviewing men firsthand about their use of violence opens up new opportunities to examine how specific religions confer legitimacy on gendered violence.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Hydrogeological drivers and fate of spring flow in a semi-arid setting. In arid and semi-arid climates, aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems often rely on groundwater springs. Spring hydrology depends on complex relationships between underlying aquifers and surface conditions, leading to high uncertainties in understanding aquifer-spring-wetland hydrology, which is critical for spring ecosystem protection and to inform management of relevant groundwater-affecting activities. This project will apply novel hydrogeophysical and hydrochemical methods, and computer modelling, to investigate the source aquifer of, and fate of discharge from the Doongmabulla Springs Complex (DSC), located in an area of future development. Project results will inform spring vulnerability to development pressures and climate effects. Field of research: 0406 - Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience The improved knowledge of hydrologic relationships between the Doongmabulla Springs Complex (DSC), surrounding aquifers and surface water systems, arising from this project, responds to existing high uncertainties in the potential impacts to the DSC from proposed groundwater-affecting enterprises in this region. As such, the project is expected to contribute to Australia's national interests through economic, environmental, social and cultural benefits to the Australian community, as follows: (1) Informed planning of development in this region will benefit from reduced uncertainty of hydrogeological linkages between aquifers, springs and surface ecosystems. (2) Improved knowledge of the DSC, and spring-aquifer relationships and methods of assessment more generally will assist in protecting nationally important environments. (3) Spring discharge has created culturally significant sites of high ecological value (4) Recreational uses of, and landholder dependency on, discharge from the DSC are experienced locally and downstream in the Carmichael River.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Optimising seed sourcing for effective ecological restoration. This project aims to address the sourcing of native seed for ecological restoration under global change. The great demand for native seed to deliver ecological restoration provides a clear need and responsibility to use this seed as efficiently as possible. This project expects to develop detailed new knowledge that links plant and environmental genomics, plant physiology, seed and soil biology in embedded experiments at post-mining rehabilitation sites. Expected outcomes include clear industry guidelines that refine seed sourcing strategies for ecological restoration for current and future climates. This should provide significant benefits for improved ecological restoration outcomes when using native seed today and into the future. Field of research: 0502 - Environmental Science and Management This research contributes to the National Science and Research Priorities of ‘Resources’ and ‘Environmental Change’ for economic, environmental and social benefits. We will address the practical research challenge of increasing knowledge of environmental issues associated with resource extraction. We aim to better understand the issues around sourcing the best native seeds in ecological restoration projects, which impact the planting success and economic efficiency of post-mining restoration projects. We will provide options for responding and adapting to the impacts of global change on biological systems, urban and rural communities, and industry. We will develop predictive seed sourcing techniques by testing the resilience of local and non-local seed to climate change predictions. This will provide environmental benefits to the Australian community, firstly by improving the condition of ecosystems at mining restoration sites, and secondly by enabling restoration projects everywhere to be more sustainable and resilient under a changing climate.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Genomics and mixed source populations in wildlife translocations. Translocation is a conservation strategy to help the plight of endangered species, and is becoming increasing important to mitigate against climate change. However translocations often fail. Theory suggests mixing individuals from different source populations would benefit species' genomic diversity and potentially success rates, however this is untested in animals. Also unclear is what parts of the genome are important for mitigating against climate change. Using an endangered lizard model, this project aims to understand how to best start new populations by 1) providing the first empirical test in terrestrial vertebrates of using mixed source populations; and 2) uncovering regions of the genome important for considering in translocations. Field of research: 0502 - Environmental Science and Management Australia has a unique flora and fauna and these are under threat from environmental changes. This project examines how to best preserve species under threat using a truly unique lizard, the pygmy bluetongue, as an exemplar. The pygmy bluetongue only exists on sheep grazed land in the mid-north of South Australia and is, currently, dependent on the goodwill of farmers for its survival. Ultimately, climate change will impact the lizards survival so we need to know how to move its distribution south and this project will create new knowledge about how we can best achieve this. The project has wide support from the Australian community, government and industry. Partners include The SA Museum, Adelaide Airport, renewable energy companies (FlowPower and RES Power), partners with management responsibilities ( Department for Environment and Water SA) and conservation groups such as the Nature Foundation and Conservation Volunteers Australia Enterprises, evidencing the environmental and social benefits of this project to the Australian community.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Sulfur Polymers: A New Class of Dynamic, Responsive & Recyclable Materials. This project aims to establish design principles for the manufacture of polymers made from sulfur, an abundant yet underused building block. These novel materials will be tested as next-generation rubber and plastic. This project expects to generate new knowledge in how these materials can be assembled and recycled, and also how they can be used to extract valuable gold from ore and e-waste. Anticipated outcomes of the project include access to entirely new materials useful in sustainable plastic manufacturing and sustainable gold extraction. These outcomes should provide significant benefits including functional replacements for non-recyclable plastics and elimination of toxic mercury and cyanide in gold mining and e-waste processing. Field of research: 0303 - Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry This research will introduce new and sustainable plastics, rubbers, and glasses to the Australian and global markets. These novel materials have significant potential in the plastics and rubber industry, as well as the mining industry. An attractive feature of this technology is the capability to assemble, repair, recycle and reform these materials in ways that is not possible with current plastics and other construction materials. These unique materials featured in this research project also have the potential to benefit the environment through their use in sustainable mercury- and cyanide-free gold mining. The fundamental science in this project will provide methods for the manufacture of these materials, which can directly benefit the Australian economy with high-tech jobs and production of useful materials for domestic use and global export.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Before Cook: Contact, Negotiation and the Archaeology of the Tiwi Islands. The narrative of culture contact in Australia is dominated by British colonisation, yet Indigenous Australians in Northern Australia had a much earlier connection with global explorers and traders. We aim to conduct the first systematic maritime and terrestrial archaeological investigations of the Tiwi Islands, alongside the study of material culture, oral history and archival materials associated with early Dutch explorers, British colonists, and Macassans. This multi-disciplinary approach will broaden our understanding of long-term race relations in Australia, the past presence of foreign visitors to Northern Australia, develop cultural heritage public policy and consolidate Tiwi cultural identity and history into the historical record. Field of research: 2101 - Archaeology This project will redefine, deepen and reconcile divergent narratives of early cultural encounters between the Dutch, Macassans, British and Indigenous Australians and the responses of Traditional Owners to globalisation. Focussing international attention on the Tiwi Islands will contribute to the Northern Territory tourism economy. National heritage areas have significant potential to contribute to local Indigenous tourism enterprises. The project will create substantial international collaborations between Australia, the Netherlands, Indonesia and Indigenous Australians. It will contribute to capacity building for Traditional Owners to manage the nationally and internationally outstanding cultural heritage values of the Tiwi islands and provide many allied social, health and economic advantages for the Indigenous community to be on country.