2019 Premier’s Science Awards saw medical and exercise expert Prof Robert Newton (ECU) share top honours with planetary scientist Prof Phil Bland (Curtin). Ms Sharynne Hamilton (UWA and Telethon Kids Institute) took out the Shell Aboriginal STEM Student of the Year. Prof Carol Bower was recognised for her lifelong contribution to child health, most notably her research on folate and neural tube defects which has saved hundreds of children from debilitating birth defects.
Clin A/Prof Deborah Lehmann was nominated for a Eureka Prize for Outstanding Mentor of Young Researchers. We went to press before the results were announced. We will update next edition.
Jennifer McGrath is acting Mental Health Commissioner after Tim Marney’s resignation. Mr Marney has been appointed a principal at the Nous consulting group.
Julia Stafford and Miriam Rudd are newly appointed to the Alcohol and Other Drugs Advisory Board joining existing board members Dr Rosanna Capolingua, Dr John Edwards, Prof Colleen Hayward (Chair), Jill Rundle and Superintendent Mick Sutherland.
Curtin University and the Lions Cancer Institute Inc. have announced a new PhD scholarship that aims to improve the outcomes of people living with liver cancer around the world. The Lions-Lotus PhD Scholarship has been fully funded by the Lions Cancer Institute and will be based in the Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute (CHIRI) at Curtin University. The scholarship recipient, who will be supervised by A/Prof Nina Tirnitz-Parker from CHIRI and Curtin’s School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, will conduct cutting-edge research dedicated to the prevention and treatment of liver cancer.
The newly appointed chair of the Telethon Kids Institute Julie Bishop has been appointed to the board of the Human Vaccines Project based in New York.
Medical indemnity insurer MIGA was recognised as a 2019 Aon Best Employer, one of only 12 companies in Australia and New Zealand to receive this award. Aon Best Employers certification evaluates employee opinions to measure effective leadership, talent focus, organisational agility and employee engagement.