People’s choice award
Australian research changes lives. It’s led to innovative breakthroughs and new industries, to improvements in everything from crop yields to advances in health care.
Our research system is one of the best in the world and this year’s entries further highlight that point.
Scroll down below to see all 43 entries and vote for your favourites by clicking on the hearts.
Your hearts will give one hardworking researcher the chance to win this year’s People’s Choice Award.
Voting for the People's Choice Award has now been closed.
Enabling Climate Resilient Communities
Tanya
Dobson
University of Southern Queensland
Interventions that integrate traditional knowledge may hold the key to climate-resilient communities. Tanya’s research implements and analyses an intervention with small scale farmers who are vulnerable to escalating climate variability, to improve their response to these impacts.
143
Innovative technology for transferring waste PPE into roads/concrete to combat COVID-generated waste
Dr
Mohammad
Saberian Boroujeni
RMIT University
Mohammad's research on demonstrates how disposable face masks could be recycled to make roads and concretes in a circular economy solution to COVID-19 pandemic generated waste.
95
Let's beat microplastic pollution at the source!
Michael
Stapleton
University of Wollongong
Microplastic pollution is wreaking havoc on our environment. Michael’s research endeavours to locate all possible sources of this pollution before its effects become irreversible.
242
Probiotics for better respiratory health
Dr
Ritika Kar
Bahal
The University of Western Australia
Lower respiratory tract infections are a leading cause of death in children. Ritika’s research investigates the role of complex bacterial communities of the respiratory tract in childhood airway infections to help identify better early life interventions and promote respiratory health.
544
The possibility of using microbes to cure neurodegenerative diseases
Ossie
Avakh
Griffith University
Microbial infections are recognised as important risk factors causing neurodegenerative diseases. On the other hand, gut microbiota has been proven to prevent or slow down such disorders. The aim of Ossie's research is to cure neurodegenerative diseases using gut microbes.
1406
Suicide capability: Differentiating people who think about suicide and people who attempt suicide
Luke
Bayliss
University of Southern Queensland
After 50 years of suicide research, our understanding of who will act on suicidal thoughts is no better than random guessing. Luke is advancing the field towards improving this understanding to prevent suicide attempts and save lives.
233
Men Don’t Get Anxious…Right?
Krista
Fisher
The University of Melbourne
Anxiety is often undetected in men. So, in world first research, Krista is uncovering what anxiety feels like for men and developing interventions for enhanced detection.
193
Durable polymeric implants fabricated via desktop 3D printers
Hamed
Bakhtiari
Edith Cowan University
Using metallic implants inside the human bone is risky, costly, and may cause inflammatory reactions. To address this issue and in response to the growing number of bone surgeries, Hamed's pitch aims to design and fabricate durable polymeric implants using commercial 3D printers
67
The 3D Whiteboard: Transforming 3D content in the classroom
Dr
Fernando
Jativa
The University of Melbourne
3D Whiteboard is a platform that enables real-time annotations in virtual environments. Educators can interact with real and virtual objects, while students easily access their viewpoint through a web browser. Fernando's research explores these possibilities.
325
The next generation early warning AI environment tools
Ekta
Sharma
University of Southern Queensland
Wish to take pre-emptive actions for environment pollutants? Ekta’s research develops early warning tools to measure and forecast the effects of air contaminants.
525
New life for food waste
Ekanayake Mudiyanselage
Krishmali Nipunika Ekanayake
Deakin University
Food waste is a global challenge. WasteMaster equipment is another milestone in reducing food waste. Ekanayake's research pitch aims to improve the materials treated after WasteMaster or the WasteMaster residues.
103
Next generation neural stimulation device
Ajmal
Abdul Azees
RMIT University
Ajmal's research pitch explores artificially stimulating nerves, using light to improve the resolution of the bionic eye and the cochlear implant.
1192
Australian Orphans
Hope
Kachila
The University of Notre Dame
Hope’s research pitch delves into health outcomes for vulnerable populations under government guardianship.
32
Floating wetland for stormwater treatment
Md
Nuruzzaman
Curtin University
Rain often pollutes our water resources, killing fish in the rivers and lakes. This research pitch on floating wetlands is about safeguarding our water resources and the environment from stormwater pollution.
130
What if the answer to Spinal Cord Injury lives right at the top of our noses?
Francesca
Oieni
Griffith University
OECs, residents of our noses, have amazing neuro-regeneration powers. However, they live and collaborate with other cell types. Defining the optimal ratio of OECs and fibroblast will lead to a safe and consistent transplantation cocktail for a cell-based therapy for SCI, according to her pitch.
192
Towards a cavity and oral disease free future…. and no, I’m not a dentist!
Tan
Nguyen
Deakin University
Oral health is largely excluded from universal healthcare coverage. Tan's research uses a priority setting approach to inform resource allocation. It develops economic evaluation methods to ensure healthcare investment decisions are possible for tooth decay and severe gum disease.
104
Discovering the Role of Bacterial Interactions in the Human Upper Respiratory Tract
Kan
Yu
The University of Western Australia
Kan’s pitch seeks to improve our understanding of how the nasopharyngeal bacterial communities maintain human health, as well as identify novel therapeutic strategies to prevent respiratory infectious diseases.
118
Sustainable oxygen steelmaking by increased scrap steel utilization
Nirmal
Madhavanpillai Sajeevkumar
Swinburne University of Technology
Should we take a leap of faith to hydrogen steelmaking or optimise oxygen steelmaking? Nirmal’s research pitch explores these questions.
1367
Transforming occupants to inhabitants: post-pandemic dilemma
Dr
Subhadarsini
Parida
University of South Australia
The nation’s central business districts bore the brunt of restrictions and working from home arrangements during the pandemic. Subhadarsini’s research reveals the need for employees to return to work to reverse these impacts.
92
Using drug fingerprint matching to develop new treatments for depression
Dr
Jiayue (Clara)
Jiang
The University of Queensland
Can cholesterol-lowering statins be repurposed for treating depression? Jiayue explore this question by comparing the gene expression fingerprints of statins and antidepressants. The pitch suggests that these popular cardiovascular drugs have a lot in common with antidepressants!
77
The Entrepreneurial Mindset of Young Rural, Regional and Remote Women
Simone
Lee
University of Southern Queensland
Simone's research endeavour is dedicated to breaking the entrepreneurial career progression barriers for young rural, regional and remote women.
56
Exploring the underwater world
Kazi Yasin
Islam
Edith Cowan University
How do you communicate quickly, reliably, and energy-efficiently in pursuit of discovering the mysteries of a world where Wi-Fi/cellular data doesn’t work? Kazi's pitch presents a solution by combining light and sound into an innovative wireless tech for underwater exploration.
155
The 'Lightning Tek' process
Farzan
Zare
The University of Queensland
Why do mushrooms grow near lightning strikes? This pitch showcases how it is done through a technique known as the 'Lightning Tek' process.
38
Sustainability and equity of seafood nutrients
Vania
Andreoli
The University of Western Australia
Vania’s research explores how mapping and quantifying the nutrients available in the seafood catches of the Indian Ocean fisheries can help tackle nutrient insecurities and make the seafood trade network more sustainable and equitable.
43
Burns and Brains
Amira
Allahham
The University of Western Australia
Burns are more than skin deep. Amira and her team’s discoveries show that burn injuries affect the brain physiologically in the long term, therefore increasing the risk of burn patients developing neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s later in life.
136
Online social identity mapping: Powering social connections
Dr
Sarah
Bentley
The University of Queensland
Social identity mapping provides a way for researchers to measure, and practitioners to understand, the power of social connection. Sarah’s pitch looks at social identity mapping to deliver a social cure.
61
Creating healthy active places, it's win-win research!
Matthew
Mclaughlin
The University of Western Australia
We know what works to get people more active. Matthew’s research focuses on getting this physical activity research into practice through "win-win" scenarios — for health, traffic, liveability, children, businesses, congestion, crashes & pollution.
120
Better engagement for people with direct experience of suicide
Hayley
Purdon
The University of New England
Hayley's research unpacks better engagement for people with lived experience of suicide.
40
Terminally ill children and their families have a special place to call home
Hedyeh
Gamini
Deakin University
The Maggie Centre model is a healing space for adult cancer patients. However, there is no similar option for children. This pitch proposes a Young Maggie Centre for terminally ill children and families by adapting the Maggie Centre paradigm.
88
Childhood trauma; Addressing the Silent Pandemic
Dr
Alix
Woolard
The University of Western Australia
Childhood trauma increases your risk for 7 out of 10 leading causes of death and affects 3/4 of Australia's population. Alix’s research aims to understand, intervene and treat childhood trauma.
48
Drug Resistance in Cancer Therapy
Rohina
Alim
Charles Sturt University
Although cancer treatments have improved dramatically, drug resistance is becoming problematic. Through this research pitch, Rohina is exploring one method of overcoming drug resistance with research drugs.
37
Terrorist Cell Profiling and Disbandment
Samantha
Jones
Charles Sturt University
Over 300,000 people have died from across the globe because of terrorist related incidents between 2009 and 2020. Charles Sturt University is developing a profiling technique and profile that will change the way we understand and combat terrorism.
55
Using cooperative video games as tools for developing social skills for neurodiverse children
Dr
Matthew
Harrison
The University of Melbourne
How can we support neurodiverse children and young adults using interests and strengths? Matthew's research project designed a support program using cooperative video games as spaces for participants to practice and reflect on the skills required for collaborative problem solving.
44
Accelerating gender equity in the workplace – A ‘How to’ Guide
Ashley
Speers
Edith Cowan University
Ashley's research pitch examines inclusion and diversity programs and their outcomes to generate the secret ingredients for gender equity success.
119
The future of robotic teachers
Dr
Kristyn
Sommer
Griffith University
As we hurtle toward the future it’s likely our children will soon learn from robot teachers. But before robots and children are thrust together in the classroom, we must first figure out whether kids can actually learn from robots. This is where Kristyn's research comes in.
58
Gender & Patents - Supporting Women in STEM
Dr
Vicki
Huang
Deakin University
Are women as successful as men in securing a patent for their invention? Vicki and the Deakin team found that inventors with a male-sounding first name had a higher chance of getting a patent, irrespective of scientific field. Their pitch unpacks why.
180
Could congestion pricing be the solution for Melbourne’s post-Covid traffic woes?
Tariq
Munir
Swinburne University of Technology
Tariq's research pitch looks into innovative road network pricing for managing travel demand and promoting low carbon mobility.
239
The Starving Artist- Understand eating disorders through contemporary art
Ally
Zlatar
University of Southern Queensland
The Starving Artist seeks to redefine the current narratives and treatment surrounding Eating Disorders. Through the power of creative voices through arts-based research, artwork creation and public discourse, Ally’s research explores the depths of enduring an eating disorder.
57
Using satellites to track plant growth
Dr
Qiaoyun
Xie
University of Technology Sydney
From crop yield to bush fire fuel load, carbon cycling to natural habitats, the health of plants is essential to daily life. Dr. X presents how she tracks when, where, and how plants grow using satellites.
30
The future of health care fits in the palm of your hand
Dr
Teegan
Green
The University of Queensland
If I told you that you held the future of healthcare in the palm of your hand, would you believe me? Teegan and her team at The University of Queensland are researching the use of mobile apps for telehealth.
41
Video game audiences: more diverse than you or the industry realises
Dr
Jacqueline
Burgess
University of the Sunshine Coast
The video game industry rarely takes a chance on female characters, but Jacqueline’s research demonstrates their audiences are more diverse than they think and the industry is missing out on the resulting marketing and financial benefits.
35
A SMART move to stop hip pain
Dr
Laura
Diamond
Griffith University
Pain from hip osteoarthritis may mean you move in a detrimental way. Our SMART wearable tech combines models of the musculoskeletal system & artificial intelligence to retrain you to move in a beneficial way that relieves pain & could help avoid a joint replacement in the future!
34
Writing a historical novel about WW2 Poland
Andrew
Clinnick
Federation University of Australia
Andrew's historical novel is an engagement between the stories told to him by his Polish grandmother, the historical records, and his imagination.
33