Three researchers from the Australian National University (ANU) have been awarded prestigious Laureate Fellowships from the Australian Research Council (ARC).
Vice-Chancellor of ANU, Brian Schmidt congratulated Professor Yun Liu (pictured left), Professor Sharon Friel (pictured centre) and Professor Naomi McClure-Griffiths (pictured right) on their “highly-deserved” recognition.
“ARC Laureate Fellowships are Australia’s most prestigious research funding scheme, recognising the very best of the best,” Professor Schmidt said.
“Sharon, Yun and Naomi are world-class researchers who are examining some of the most fundamental and pressing issues we face today,” he said.
“They epitomise the spirit of ANU – research that transforms our understanding of the world and the development of new knowledge that makes all our lives richer and better.”
Professor Schmidt said all three researchers would embark on ambitious, multi-year, multimillion-dollar projects to answer some of the complex questions facing Australia and the world.
The Vice-Chancellor said Professor Liu had been awarded the 2021 ARC Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Fellowship and her $3.1 million project would examine how to use crystal chemistry to build new functional materials for industry.
“Applications include solar panels, carbon capture technology and sensors in smart devices,” he said.
Professor Schmidt said Professor Friel would use her $3.4 million project to explore how to achieve planetary health equity, the “environmentally sustainable and equitable enjoyment of good health”.
He said Professor McClure-Griffiths would use her $3.2 million project to examine how gas and magnetism determined the fate of galaxies.
