Twenty researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) have been awarded a total of $23.4 million in the latest round of Australian Research Council (ARC) Future Fellowships, supporting research across quantum technologies, climate and environmental resilience, food security, health, mathematics and the humanities and social sciences.

The ARC Future Fellowships provide four-year funding for mid-career researchers to build their research programs, develop new ideas and contribute to Australia’s research capability and future prosperity.

ANU Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation) Professor Stuart Wyithe said the Future Fellowships recognised the breadth and quality of research at ANU. 

“I congratulate all 20 researchers on this achievement. These Future Fellows exemplify the dedication, excellence and expertise that underpin our world class research at ANU” he said.

Australian Research Council Chief Executive Officer Professor Ute Roessner AM FAA said: 

“These projects demonstrate the value of investing in research that expand knowledge, address complex challenges and create benefits for Australians.”

The 20 ANU researchers and their projects are:

Associate Professor Lucy Aplin: Uncovering the role of cognition in urban adaptation by Australian birds ($1,329,808).

Professor Yuerui Lu: Chip-Integrated and Tunable Entangled Quantum Source with Layered Materials ($1,329,808).

Dr Chengxin Jiang: Uncovering Antarctica’s Hidden Interior through Advanced Seismic Imaging ($1,006,580).

Dr Eliezer Estrecho: Harnessing hybrid particles for on-chip generation of quantum light ($1,168,364).

Professor Kirsten Ainley: Constructing Gender Justice: How to Build Back Better After Conflict ($1,329,750).

Dr Emily Furlong: Exploiting bacterial nickel dependence for antibacterial agent discovery ($1,006,634).

Associate Professor Ruth Morgan: Water-Proof: Exporting Australian water expertise to the world since 1949 ($1,328,083).

Professor Nan Yang: Terahertz Integrated Secure Communications and Sensing for 6G and Beyond ($1,328,705).

Professor Nicholas Chilton: Enhancing spin-electric coupling for quantum technologies ($1,327,544).

Associate Professor Annika Lems: Rewilding, resistance, and belonging in Alpine landscapes ($1,166,358).

Dr Nicola Maher: Drivers of El Niño-Southern Oscillation changes under future climates ($1,000,259).

Dr Thomas Nordlander: New light on ancient stars ($1,150,364).

Dr Mark Hoggard: From rain to riches: Surface processes behind Australia's mineral endowment ($1,159,303).

Dr Andrew Scafaro: Heat-proofing crops by tapping into the superior genetics of wild relatives ($1,164,896).

Dr Teng Lu: Multiscale light-polarisation interactions for future actuation and sensing ($1,006,623).

Dr James Tener: New horizons in conformal quantum field theory: a unified approach ($1,141,176).

Dr Xiaoxiao Zhang: Molecular innovations to defend wheat against stripe rust disease ($1,005,786).

Dr Pieter Arnold: Enabling resilience to climate extremes in future plant communities ($1,001,442).

Associate Professor Janice Scealy: New geometry-driven statistics tools tuned to reveal vital geological clues ($1,329,806).

Dr Adele Morrison: Climate risks of a slowdown in Southern Ocean heat and carbon uptake ($1,160,364).

More details are available at the ARC website.