Each recipient receives up to $16,500 in funding to conduct research at some of India’s leading research institutions.
The fellowship opens doors for connections with global experts within an early- or mid-career researcher’s field, provides leadership opportunities and paves the way for long-term international collaborations.
Fellowship recipients work on a diverse range of subject areas. The Australian National University’s Dr Sergey Kruk is one of the researchers heading to India next year. He is working on developing new technologies in photonics to create miniaturised optical systems for use in the telecommunications industry, collaborating with scientists at the Tata Institute in Mumbai.
Deakin University’s Dr Fiona Mckay will investigate the roles of Punjab women in food production, and the wider issue of global food security. Dr Mckay is interested in how people from different groups across the world react to adversity, and her research and collaborations in India with researchers at Chitkara University will build on this. The long-term aim of her work is to influence policy changes to improve food security and gender equity.
Dr Alison Pearce from the University of Sydney has previously led a research project on the impact of cancer across a range of nations. With the fellowship funding she will study the loss of productivity that results from cancer in an Indian population. She will collaborate with the Healis Public Health Institute in Mumbai and the Public Health Foundation India.
The full list of 2020 recipients are:
Dr Sumeet Walia, RMIT University – Harness atomically thin materials for pollution sensors and efficient industrial lubricants
Dr Nagendrakumar Singanallur Balasubramanian, CSIRO – Systems-immunology based approach to study early immune responses to foot-and-mouth disease vaccination in Asian buffalos
Dr Ravinesh Deo, University of Southern Queensland—Developing resilience to climate change and variability for water resources management and food security with artificial intelligence
Dr Sergey Kruk, Australian National University—Photonics at the nanoscale: new disruptive ways to control light with nanotechnology
Dr Morteza Saberi, University of Technology Sydney—Scholarly solution support system
Dr Fiona Mckay, Deakin University—Documenting the food insecurity experiences and nutritional status of women in India
Dr Suvash Saha, University of Technology Sydney—Respiratory particle transport: ageing effect and targeted drug delivery
Dr Jegadesan Subbiah, University of Melbourne—In-situ vibrational spectroscopic studies on the electrode interfacial process for renewable energy storage devices
Dr Alison Pearce, University of Sydney—The cost of cancer in India: local estimates of lost productivity due to premature cancer mortality
Dr Shuaifei Zhao, Deakin University—Closing the CO2 loop in biogas production by innovative membrane technology
Dr Siva Krishna Karuturi, Australian National University—New-generation materials for low-cost and high efficiency solar hydrogen generation
Dr Thanh Thi Nguyen, Deakin University—A human–machine teaming framework based on deep reinforcement learning for disaster management
Dr Sonika Tyagi, Monash University—Using machine learning to develop robust and reproducible miRNA biomarkers to detect preterm labour
Dr Sanjay Nimbalkar, University of Technology Sydney—Sustainable performance of future high-speed rail and heavy haul freight corridors: effect of climate change and mitigation measures
Dr Christina Aggar, Southern Cross University—A mobile digital learning program to support nurses’ leadership and communication skills in chronic disease management: a primary healthcare initiative
Dr Rebecca Zwart, University of Southern Queensland—A genomics approach to understanding root-lesion nematode resistance in chickpea
Dr Jency Thomas, La Trobe University—Metabolic syndrome influencing neurodegenerative disorder (MIND project)
Dr Ashmita Sengupta, CSIRO—Developing functional environmental flows framework to enhance resilience and improve water security under climate change and urbanisation scenarios
Dr Kaya Klop Toker, University of Newcastle—Identification of frog and disease diversity in a remote part of India (Nagaland).