News and views

The Australian Academy of Science congratulates its Fellows Professor Michelle Simmons and Professor Graham Farquhar AO, who have been named the 2018 Australian of the Year and Senior Australian of the Year respectively.

Multiple Academy videos have gone viral internationally on Facebook since the launch of the Academy’s new daily commitment to answer everyday questions and introduce people to science.

The Academy has awarded more than $200,000 to a number of high-quality research projects and conferences, generously supported by donations to the Academy. In 2018 these will, among other things, fund cutting-edge Australian marine, soil and plant biology research and help the survival of some of Australia’s endangered species. There is also support for specialist conferences on subjects such as the rapid collapse of ecosystems in a changing world.

The December 2017 issue (Volume 28 Number 2) of the Academy’s journal, Historical Records of Australian Science, is now available. This issue contains five articles on the history of Australian science, four biographical memoirs of Fellows, and a selection of book reviews.

The urban built environment, the marine environment and energy transformation are key areas where Australian researchers and industry partners could collaborate more effectively to address issues of sustainability, according to Future Earth Australia.

PhD students Ms Melissa Houghton from the University of Queensland and Mrs Charlie Phelps from Edith Cowan University are the 2018 recipients of the Australian Academy of Science Max Day Environmental Science Fellowship Award.

PhD students Ms Melissa Houghton from the University of Queensland and Mrs Charlie Phelps from Edith Cowan University are the 2018 recipients of the Australian Academy of Science Max Day Environmental Science Fellowship Award.

Australian Academy of Science Fellow Professor Stephen Powles has won the American Chemical Society International Award for Research in Agrochemicals.

A meeting hosted by the Australian Academy of Science this week, through its Future Earth Australia initiative, has reinforced the importance of close collaboration across Australia’s research sector both domestically and internationally.