12 May – 4 November
Online, and in-person at the Shine Dome, Australian Academy of Science, Canberra

Registration is now open for Science at the Shine Dome, the Academy’s premier annual event. Traditionally, Science at the Shine Dome is an annual three-day event in May where Australia’s science community gathers to celebrate the best of science from around the country.

The Academy will deliver Science at the Shine Dome in a new format in 2021 to accommodate COVID-19 restrictions while engaging new audiences online. Science at the Shine Dome will include online presentations by award recipients, a hybrid-style symposium exploring the theme Science and the Public Good, and a prestigious ceremonies celebrating the admission of the 2020 and 2021 new Fellows to the Academy.

Attendees are welcome to register for individual events, or purchase a season pass for all events. 

Register for events or purchase a series pass

Premier medal lecture series

Science at the Shine Dome will kick off with the inaugural Ruby Payne-Scott Lecture, delivered online by this year's medal recipient, Emeritus Professor Cheryl Praeger AC FAA.

Professor Praeger will speak about her career, the challenges she faced, and her personal connection to Ruby Payne-Scott.

Professor Praeger’s lecture is the first of several given by medal recipients, which will occur throughout the year:

• May 12: 2021 Inaugural Ruby Payne-Scott Medallist Lecture—Emeritus Professor Cheryl Praeger AC FAA
• July 28: 2021 Matthew Flinders Medallist Lecture—Professor Andrew Holmes AC FAA FTSE FRS
• 3 November: 2020 Macfarlane Burnet Medallist Lecture (as part of the 2020 New Fellows presentations)—Professor Marilyn Renfree AO FAA.

Career award presentations

Each year, researchers receive highly sought-after honours for outstanding achievements in their scientific fields. Join the Academy for two online events on September 7 and 14 featuring 10-minute presentations by our 2020 and 2021 awardees, followed by live audience Q&As.

New Fellows

Fellows of the Australian Academy of Science are among the Nation’s most distinguished scientists, elected by their peers for ground-breaking research and contributions that have had clear impact.

The 2020 Fellows and yet-to-be-announced 2021 new Academy Fellows will be formally admitted to the Australian Academy of Science during online events on November 2 and 3. Each new Fellow will present their work and achievements.

The new Fellows for 2021 will be announced in late May.

Symposium: Science and the Public Good

The annual symposium will be held in August 2021 as we explore the value of science to society. Speakers will help us to explore the critical importance of studying mathematics, chemistry, biology and physics, and how this fundamental knowledge is essential to scientific advances and our everyday lives.

Join us for Science and the Public Good via livestream. If you're from a school, university, organisation or government department, or are simply interested in science, you can watch this thought-provoking event live online and have the opportunity to ask questions of the speakers.

See the event program and register for the event

Opportunities to partner

The Academy is delivering a dynamic new format in 2021 to accommodate COVID-19 restrictions while engaging new audiences online. Drawing on the Academy’s Fellowship, 2.4 million social media followers along with its networks within the sector and mainstream media, exposure and reach associated with Science at the Shine Dome for event partners is anticipated to be greater than ever before. To find out how you can become an Event Partner, email Partnership Enquiries to reserve your place.

The Australian Academy of Science pays tribute to His Royal Highness Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh. 

HRH Prince Philip attended Government House when Her Majesty The Queen presented the Royal Charter in 1954, establishing the Australian Academy of Science.

HRH Prince Philip was a keen supporter of science and attended the Shine Dome in 1962 to sign the Charter Book when he was made a Royal Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science.

The Academy offers its sincerest condolences to Her Majesty the Queen and other members of the royal family.

A time capsule containing Fellows’ messages to the future has been placed under the copper roof of the Shine Dome.

The capsule contains a letter from the President of the Academy, Professor John Shine, reflections of Fellows and staff of the Academy, newspaper front pages documenting the tumultuous events of 2020 and other historical documents, including the complete genome of SARS-CoV-2.

​The Shine Dome was heavily damaged in January 2020 in a massive hailstorm. Restoration began in November 2020, with a new copper layer being laid over a timber frame, with waterproofing materials between. The original copper remains beneath these layers.

The project is in the final stage of completion. Over 1888 tiles of copper, each custom made and weighing approximately 15.5 tonnes in total, have been installed on the Shine Dome.

Meanwhile, a project to envision a zero emissions future for the Dome is underway, with several public symposia being held that build a conversation around heritage values and sustainability.

The following letter and items were included in the time capsule.

Note from the President and Chief Executive, 7 April 2020

2020 was a tumultuous year in Australia and around the globe. Australia had experienced bushfires of unprecedented intensity over the summer of 2019/2020 – a reminder of the impact on Australia of a warming globe due to anthropogenic climate change.

On 20 January 2020, Canberra was struck by a severe hailstorm that, in a matter of minutes, caused widespread damage. This included significant damage to the Australian Academy of Science’s two buildings: Ian Potter House and the heritage listed Shine Dome.

Whilst this was unfolding a “pneumonia of unknown cause” was spreading across the globe. This was to become known as SARS-CoV-2, a highly transmittable respiratory virus that triggered a global health pandemic, COVID-19. By 7 April 2021, COVID-19 had caused 130 million recorded cases and 2.86 million recorded deaths worldwide.

Following the hailstorm, the repairs to the Academy’s building included copper recladding of the Shine Dome. The original copper roof remained in place and a new structure was built over it to allow a new copper layer to be installed, improving the integrity and thermal performance of the building and rendering it waterproof. The apex of the Shine Dome was slightly elevated to assist water run-off and avoid water pooling at the top. In doing so, a cavity was created beneath the apex.

This time capsule was inserted into the cavity on Wednesday 7 April 2021. It contains the documents and historical materials listed below. They are but a small sample of the history of the Academy, of its building and of the extraordinary knowledge created and disseminated by its Fellowship. The time capsule seeks to capture the significant and tumultuous events of 2020, many of which shaped the way we live in Australia and across the world.

Professor David Curtis AC FAA FRS was a former President of the Academy. In an interview by Dr Max Blythe in 1993, Blythe asked Curtis “…your Presidency of the Academy of Science from 1986 to ’90. That must have been an interesting and fruitful time?”

Curtis replied “It was an interesting time. I can’t really judge how fruitful it was – you can’t do that yourself. You need to look back at it from the future and see what it looks like.”

Should you discover this time capsule, we ask that you look back from the future in order to assess our actions and inactions and to inform your way forward as custodians of our planet and all its biodiversity.

Time capsule contents

Books and reports 

• Roberts, Alan. & Australian Academy of Science (2010). A big, bold, simple concept: a history of the Australian Academy of Science Dome.
• The Association of Academies and Societies of Science in Asia (2018). Profiles of Women Scientists in Asia: Their inspirational stories.
• Australian Academy of Science (2021). The risks to Australia of a 3°C warmer world.
• Australian Academy of Science (2020). Science Matters
• Australian Academy of Science (2019). Women in STEM Decadal Plan
• Frank Fenner (2008). The Australian Academy of Science: The First 50 Years

Newspaper covers 

• Front page, Canberra Times, 1st January 2020 
• Front page, Canberra Times, 21st January 2020 
• Front page, Canberra Times, 29th January 2020 
• Front page, Canberra Times, 2nd February 2020 
• Front page, Canberra Times, 3rd March 2020 
• Front page, Canberra Times, 13th March 2020 
• Front page, Canberra Times, 22nd March 2020 
• Front page, Canberra Times, 8th July 2020 
• Front page, Canberra Times, 27th October 2020 
• Front page, Canberra Times, 15th November 2020 

Other documents

• Shine Dome restoration design plans   
• Australian Academy of Science By-Laws, December 2020
• Reflections from Fellows of the Australian Academy of Science and early- and mid-career researchers 
• 65 years of the Australian Academy of Science commemorative list of Fellows [poster] 
• Images from staff of hail damage to Australian Academy of Science grounds and property and selection of events over the course of 2020  
• First Rapid Research Information Forum report: Re-infection with SARS-CoV-2, Office of the Chief Scientist, 19 April 2020 
• SARS-CoV-2 genome sequence: 
  • GenBank accession number MN908947/NCBI Sequence Read Archive Bioproject accession number PRJNA603194 from Wu, F., Zhao, S., Yu, B. et al. A new coronavirus associated with human respiratory disease in China. Nature 579, 265–269 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2008-3 

Objects

• Australian Academy of Science lapel pin received by every Fellow elected to the Australian Academy of Science

The Australian Academy of Science along with the Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources (DISER), today congratulates the 26 recipients of the Regional Collaborations Programme COVID-19 Digital Grants.

Just over $250,000 in funding has been awarded to early-career and mid-career researchers to increase connectivity and engagement between Australian and Asia–Pacific economies in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr Jin Han, an early-career researcher from the Black Dog Institute, will use her $8,940 grant to deliver an online mental health course, aimed at helping international university students develop effective stress coping strategies and psychological resilience post COVID-19.

“International students are more prone to social isolation with less access to public resources due to potential financial, informational, language or cultural barriers,” said Dr Han.

“This project will address an important gap in the current Asia–Pacific regional economics and public health.”

Professor Tanja Junkers, a mid-career chemist from Monash is also a grant recipient. Her $9,000 grant will go towards building a machine-readable cloud database of chemical reactions that can be combined by different laboratories around the world.

“This project is a completely new way of collaboration and interaction in the chemical space, be it across laboratories in one country, or across borders in the Asia–Pacific region,” said Professor Junkers.

This funding initiative, part of the Australian Government’s Global Innovation Strategy under the National Innovation and Science Agenda, supports projects that utilise digital methods of collaboration to address shared regional challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic response and recovery.

The Regional Collaborations Programme (RCP) is managed by the Australian Academy of Science on behalf of the Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources.

The grant recipients are:

Other activities being undertaken with the Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources in response to COVID-19 include a project examining the impact of the pandemic on women in STEM in the Asia-Pacific and a series of webinars discussing how science, technology and innovation are assisting in the response to the pandemic.

Background

The Regional Collaborations Programme COVID-19 Digital Grants aims to build strong regional linkages in the Asia–Pacific by funding multi-partner activities that facilitate greater collaboration in science, research and innovation and delivering innovative solutions to shared regional challenges.

These activities will reduce collaboration barriers and promote an open approach to science, research and industry collaboration through Australian-led projects and multilateral fora.

This investment in collaborative engagement will help establish enduring and impactful networks.

Read more about the Regional Collaboration Programme COVID-19 Digital Grants.

The Australian Academy of Science thanks outgoing Minister for Industry, Science and Technology Karen Andrews for her long-term and authentic commitment to science and technology.

The Academy congratulates Minister Andrews on her outstanding achievements including her leadership with the Rapid Research Information Forum, a critical independent scientific advisory function that has assisted the Prime Minister navigate the pandemic and that continues to be a valuable tool to assist evidence-informed decision making across portfolios; growth of the space sector; setting in train growth of onshore manufacturing capability much of which is driven by science and technology; and boosting the cooperative research centre programs that enhance collaboration between academia and industry. 

In particular, we acknowledge Minister Andrews’ commitment to women in STEM and for advancing the recommendations of Australia’s 10-year plan for Women in STEM. The plan is aimed at achieving sustained increases in girls’ and women’s STEM participation. The plan was jointly developed by the Australian Academy of Science and the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering.

Minister Andrews brought a wealth of knowledge and experience to the portfolio. An engineer before entering the parliament, she previously held the position of Assistant Minister and Parliamentary Secretary for Science and co-convened the Parliamentary Friends of Science group since its inception.

The Academy looks forward to continuing to advance science in Australia with the new Minister for Industry, Science and Technology, Christian Porter.

Scientists release landmark climate change report

The Australian Academy of Science is calling on the Australian Government to accelerate Australia’s transition to net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions over the next 10 to 20 years to play our part in avoiding the worst impacts of climate change.

The key recommendation is included in a landmark Academy report published today.

The report, which explores the risks to Australia’s future based on the current global trajectory of greenhouse gas emissions, states that the world reaching net zero emissions by 2050 is an absolute minimum, if Australia is to avoid potentially insurmountable challenges to its cities, ecosystems, industries and food and health systems.

The report says Australia is well positioned to play its part in meeting this challenge, with a skilled workforce, strong industrial base and plentiful renewable energy resources facilitating easier emission reductions compared to many other countries.

It highlights that even if the world’s governments meet their current Paris pledges on time, Earth is likely to reach average global surface temperatures of 3^oC above the pre-industrial period during this century, with catastrophic consequences.

Further pledges to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 are required for the world to stay well below 2^oC of warming, the goal agreed to under the Paris Agreement.

To achieve net zero, the report says Australia will need to rapidly remove greenhouse gas emissions from a range of sectors including electricity generation and distribution; electrify the transport sector, industry and buildings; increase energy efficiency across the board; and reduce non-energy related GHG emissions from all sectors including industrial processes and agriculture.

President of the Australian Academy of Science, Professor John Shine, welcomed the report.

“The Australian Academy of Science is proud to have played an active role in assessing the science of climate change since the 1970s. This new report makes clear that while the planet is well on the path to harmful climate change, as with COVID-19, science has solutions,” Professor Shine said.

“Australia is well positioned to meet the climate change challenge by combining our scientific knowledge with economic opportunities associated with moves to net zero greenhouse gas emissions.

“We urge the Australian Government to implement the recommendations of this report. The Academy stands ready to assist by providing sound scientific advice on climate change to inform the Government’s multifaceted policy response.”

Academy Fellow Professor Ove Hoegh-Guldberg is the chair of the expert panel that developed the report. He said limiting climate change to 1.5°C is now virtually impossible and that a rapid transition to net zero greenhouse gas emissions is required if the international community is to limit warming to well below 2°C.

“Current international commitments to greenhouse gas emission reduction, if unchanged, would result in average global surface temperatures that are 3°C above the pre-industrial period in the lifetimes of our children and grandchildren,” said Professor Hoegh-Guldberg, from the University of Queensland.

“Australia must revisit its emission reduction commitments and work with other countries to provide the leadership and collaboration required to place Australia and the world on a safer climate trajectory.

“Australia has a stable business landscape. We have a great scientific tradition. We have enormous resources for the next wave of innovative technologies. We not only have a responsibility to be an international leader on climate action but need to grasp the enormous economic opportunities presented by the ‘new’ economy,” said Professor Hoegh-Guldberg.

The report says Australia can become a clean energy exporter and potentially a global renewable energy superpower. It highlights Australia’s relative advantage with its abundant natural resources for solar and other renewable energy generation, as well as significant deposits of new economy minerals critical for developing batteries and other low emission technologies.

The report focuses on the consequences of 3°C of global warming for four areas of importance to Australia’s future: ecosystems; food production; cities and towns; and health and wellbeing. It also focuses on Australia’s contribution to what must be done to stay well below 2°C and thus limit these impacts. 

The impacts of climatic changes on the lives and wellbeing of Australians are also discussed in detail in the report.

The report makes a total of 10 recommendations (see page 13). They include to:

• scale up the development and implementation of next-generation zero greenhouse gas technologies.
• systematically explore how our food production and supply systems should prepare for the challenges of climate change under growing extremes including the implications for carbon sequestration.
• improve our understanding of climate impacts, including tipping points, as well as the compounding effects of multiple stressors at global warming of 2°C or more so that we can develop effective adaptation responses.

Expert panel member Distinguished Professor Lesley Hughes, focusing on ecosystems, said most Australian species cannot evolve quickly enough to cope with the rapid increases in temperatures and associated increases in the frequency and severity of extreme weather events we now observe and feel.

“The unprecedented bushfire season in 2019–20 and the mass dying of corals on the Great Barrier Reef demonstrate how rapidly and fundamentally our global environment is changing with only 1.1°C of global warming,” said Professor Hughes, who is Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research) at Macquarie University.

“It’s not too late to avoid 3°C. We should still be aiming for a stable global temperature below 2°C but to get to that point, we must reduce emissions very rapidly—in particular accelerating the energy transition in the next decade. This must be one of the most urgent national and international priorities.”

Read the report.

There are medical and scientific explanations for the death of each of Kathleen Folbigg’s children.

Today the NSW Court of Appeal has dismissed Kathleen Folbigg’s appeal, which requested that the findings of the Commissioner of the 2019 inquiry be overturned.

The appeal reviewed the legal processes undertaken by the Inquiry but did not consider an assessment of the scientific evidence available since the Inquiry.

These points were made clear in the petition recently submitted to the NSW Governor and which is currently being considered by the NSW Attorney-General as a separate matter to today’s Inquiry. 

The petition argues that Ms Folbigg should be granted a pardon based on the significant scientific evidence of natural causes of death for her children.

This includes new peer-reviewed genetic findings by an international team of 27 scientists published in a top international cardiology journal last year.

Australian Academy of Science President, Professor John Shine AC PresAA FAHMS(Hon) FRS was among 22 Fellows of the Academy and 90 scientists to sign the petition.  

“It is deeply concerning that there is not a mechanism to appropriately weigh up all medical and scientific evidence in a case of this nature. There is now an alternative explanation for the death of the Folbigg children that does not rely on circumstantial evidence” – Professor John Shine.

“The science in this particular case is compelling and cannot be ignored. Despite the new knowledge gained from sequencing the human genome almost 20 years ago, we still have some way to go when it comes to both understanding the complexities of genetic disorders and educating the community about these issues” – Human geneticist and researcher Professor Jozef Gecz FAA FAHMS.

“Expert advice should always be heard and listened to. It will always trump presumption” – Former Chief Scientist Professor Ian Chubb AC FAA FTSE.

Read the petition.

2030 is the deadline to make the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) a reality.

The UN goals were set in 2015 and the SDGs form the basis of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which seeks a global shift to a sustainable and resilient path that promotes prosperity and is free of poverty.

The global community is now in the Decade of Action to make the SDGs a reality. In its latest Science Policy and Diplomacy Newsletter, the Academy outlines its events, programs and initiatives that align with and support the SDGs.

Academy initiatives include STEM Women, the Rapid Research Information Forum, the Early- and Mid-Career Researcher Forum, Taxonomy Australia and Future Earth Australia. 

In the foreword to the newsletter, Academy Chief Executive Anna-Maria Arabia writes that the Academy holds these goals in high regard, and much of its work contributes to creating a sustainable and equitable world.

“Whilst 2020 was a year of disrupted progress towards achieving the SDGs, it was also a year that called attention to the importance of addressing inequalities. The science community and the world more broadly can use the opportunity that disruption to business-as-usual provides to accelerate progress towards an inclusive, sustainable and resilient 2030.”

By championing the SDGs, the Academy is representing the role of science in supporting the 2030 Agenda and for positioning Australian science, technology, engineering and mathematics as leaders in sustainable development.

Publishing the Academy’s contributions and achievements that align with the SDGs acknowledges the impact that various initiatives can have on the goals.

It is critical that organisations acknowledge their contributions to the 17 SDGs and continue to support the 2030 Agenda.

The Science Policy and Diplomacy Newsletter shares resources, updates and events that relate to science policy discussion in Australia and around the globe. It reports on the involvement of science in national and international policy and diplomacy and the Academy’s contributions to these discussions.

Read and subscribe to the newsletter.

Four early-career researchers have been awarded a prestigious top-up grant that recognises and supports excellence in science research.

The J G Russell Award provides an additional $7000 to projects funded through the Australian Research Council’s Discovery Early Career Research Award. It is aimed at helping talented younger researchers as a token of the community’s regard for them. It recognises the costs involved in experimental research, and can be used towards the costs of equipment, maintenance and travel.

The award is made possible by the generosity of the late Miss J Russell.

2021 recipients

Dr Yaoxin Hu

Dr Hu is a chemical engineer who is improving the energy efficiency of heating large structures through the development of new construction materials. She will use the award to purchase an additional air-based cooling apparatus to investigate cooling performance of the materials.

Dr Amandeep Kaur

Dr Kaur develops new chemical tools to provide super-resolution imaging for the study of biological nanostructures and biochemical mechanisms relevant to food security, antibiotic resistance and viruses. She will use the award to establish new capabilities for her research group’s current super-resolution imaging microscope.

Dr Zhiliang Wang

Dr Wang researches ways to improve the generation of energy. He develops materials to convert sunlight into hydrogen-based energy sources, helping to address clean energy challenges. He will use the award to visit a top research group in the United States to discuss ways to incorporate artificial intelligence tools into his research.

Dr Xiaoxiao Zhang

Dr Zhang investigates disease resistance in cereal crops. Her aim is to reduce waste in global food production and address the environmental impact of toxic pesticide use. She will use the award to fund attendance at a conference of synthetic biologists, and to provide additional lab materials for gene editing and protein structure determination.

Applications are not sought for the J G Russell Award. Awardees are chosen from recipients of Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Researcher Awards.

Outstanding contributions to science have been recognised by the Australian Academy of Science today with 24 current and future stars of science receiving prestigious 2021 honorific awards.

The scientists’ discoveries are changing the world, including revealing the physics of sea-level change, leading the discovery of gravitational waves, harnessing the immune system to fight cancer, answering unsolved mathematical problems and creating cheap, flexible, stable and non-toxic solar cells.

Emeritus Professor Cheryl Praeger receives the inaugural Ruby Payne-Scott Medal and Lecture. It is one of the Academy’s most prestigious awards and honours Ruby Payne-Scott’s pioneering contribution to radiophysics and radio astronomy.

Professor Praeger’s work on problems of symmetry has led a revolution in mathematics, and the algorithms she developed are used in technology around the world.

She has a long track record of mentoring and inspiring others, supporting women, advocating for mathematics in schools and promoting mathematics in emerging economies.

“I feel very humbled to receive the inaugural Ruby Payne-Scott Medal and I feel it a great honour: Ruby Payne-Scott was a trail-blazer for women in science,” said Professor Praeger.

“Along with all women who have had the opportunity of a life-long career in STEM, I feel enormous gratitude to Ruby for her courage in fighting against the restrictions which prevented this for married women in the 1950s.

 “Although I never had the opportunity of meeting Ruby, I am grateful to have known and worked with her son, mathematician Peter Hall.”

Professor Andrew Holmes is the recipient of the Academy’s other Premier award, the 2021 Matthew Flinders Medal and Lecture.

Professor Holmes is recognised for his world-leading contributions to materials science and biology, including plastics that emit light when sandwiched between electrodes connected to a power source—technology that forms the basis of flexible OLED televisions and plastic solar cells.

“Printed plastic solar technology is certainly going to be a technology in the [energy] marketplace,” said Professor Holmes, in a video published today to highlight his award.

“It has the advantage that it’s lightweight, it’s flexible and, in principle, it’s significantly cheaper than the silicon solar cell technology.”

In the career awards, Professor John Endler and Professor Susanne von Caemmerer are each awarded the inaugural Suzanne Cory Medal, which honours the former Academy president and molecular biologist.

Professor John Endler, a world-leading evolutionary biologist, has pioneered the field of sensory ecology, which explores how an animal’s environment helps determine how their specific senses and signals evolve.

Professor von Caemmerer, an expert in the processes underpinning how plant leaves use CO₂, has changed the way we think about photosynthesis. Her research, aimed at improving photosynthesis in crops to increase their yields and adapt to climate change, is now applied worldwide.

One of the early-career researchers also honoured this year is Dr Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick, a world expert on heatwaves—their causes, impacts and how they are changing as the earth warms.

She led a global study that found heatwaves have been increasing in frequency since 1950, and receives the 2021 Dorothy Hill Medal, which honours Australia's first woman professor.

President of the Australian Academy of Science, Professor John Shine, said the research of this year’s awardees is at the forefront of science, not only in Australia but around the world.

“While many of these researchers are having direct impacts on our technology and everyday lives, others are pushing the boundaries of basic research—both of which are vital to the advancement of science.

“The Academy is proud to honour such a diverse range of researchers this year, reflecting the people driving Australian science.”

Award recipients

The Academy’s 2021 honorific awards go to: 

Premier honorifics

• Matthew Flinders Medal and Lecture—Professor Andrew Holmes AC FAA FRS FTSE
• Inaugural Ruby Payne-Scott Medal and Lecture—Emeritus Professor Cheryl Praeger AC FAA

Career honorifics

• David Craig Medal and Lecture—Professor Thomas Maschmeyer FAA FTSE
• Hannan Medal—Professor Mathai Varghese FAA
• Jaeger Medal—Professor John Church FAA FTSE
• Inaugural Suzanne Cory Medal—Professor John Endler FAA FRS
• Inaugural Suzanne Cory Medal—Professor Susanne von Caemmerer FAA FRS
• Thomas Ranken Lyle Medal—Professor David McClelland FAA

Mid-career honorifics

• Jacques Miller Medal—Professor Mark Dawson
• Jacques Miller Medal—Associate Professor Michele Teng
• Nancy Millis Medal for Women in Science—Professor Angela Moles
• Nancy Millis Medal for Women in Science—Associate Professor Cathryn Trott

Early-career honorifics

• Anton Hales Medal—Dr Nicolas Flament
• Christopher Heyde Medal—Dr Kevin Coulembier
• Christopher Heyde Medal—Dr Vera Roshchina
• Dorothy Hill Medal—Dr Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick
• Fenner Medal—Associate Professor Eve McDonald-Madden
• Gottschalk Medal—Associate Professor Francine Marques
• John Booker Medal—Dr Bishakhdatta Gayen
• Le Fèvre Medal—Associate Professor Debbie Silvester-Dean
• Moran Medal—Professor Christopher Drovandi
• Moran Medal—Dr Janice Scealy
• Pawsey Medal—Associate Professor Xiaojing Hao
• Ruth Stephens Gani Medal—Professor Joseph Powell

The awards will be presented in online ceremonies over the course of the year.

Read more about the 2021 awardees