Monash University Innovation, Industry, Science Research Projects
Monash University has cemented its reputation for strong industry links, securing increased funding from both the government and partner organisations in the latest round of Australian Research Council (ARC) funding.
Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator the Honourable Kim Carr today announced funding for more than 1000 research projects nationwide at Parliament House in Canberra.
Monash received more than $31 million in funding, supporting 79 ARC Discovery Projects, 17 Linkage Projects and five Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) Projects schemes, placing fourth among universities nationally.
Vital research funded under the Discovery Projects scheme includes the first major study of the Pilbara Aboriginal pastoral strike, the response of Australian bird species to climate change and advances in engineering heart tissue.
In addition, highly prestigious Discovery Outstanding Researcher Awards were presented to Professor John Lattanzio, Mathematical Sciences, to investigate stellar nucleosynthesis and to Professor Ralph MacNally, Biological Sciences, to study the future of biodiversity in Australia.
Monash has more than doubled its government funding under the LIEF scheme to develop research infrastructure, and commitments from collaborating institutions have increased more than five fold to $9.9 million.
In a boost for sustainability, Monash obtained LIEF funding to establish testing facilities for clean energy transformation technologies – increasingly important as the world approaches peak oil production. To be led by Associate Professor Sankar Bhattacharya, the facilities will assist in the development of low-carbon fuels.
The University also increased its funding and moved into second place overall for Linkage Projects, a scheme which encourages partnerships between universities, industry and community organisations. Commitments of $10.1 million from partner organisations, an increase of more than $2 million, were secured to support the funded Linkage Projects.
The ARC today announced funding of $310 million. The funded projects will begin in 2012 and run for a period of up to five years.
