From a highly competitive field of candidates, the Prime Minister, the Hon. Kevin Rudd, and the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Kim Carr, will tonight announce the award of Australian Research Council (ARC) Federation Fellowships worth more than $23 million over five years to 14 outstanding researchers.
The winning researchers are:
* Dr Christopher Carilli
* Professor Dr Peter Teunissen
* Professor Frances Baum
* Professor Michael Bird
* Associate Professor Trevor Lithgow
* Dr James Whisstock
* Professor John Dryzek
* Professor Michael Eastwood
* Professor Tanya Monro
* Professor Brett Neilan
* Professor Michelle Simmons
* Professor Aibing Yu
* Professor Gaoqing (Max) Lu
* Professor Peter Robinson
For more information visit www.arc.gov.au
Speaking at the Prime Minister's Science, Engineering and Innovation Council dinner the Prime Minster said:
"We want to give our best and brightest researchers opportunities to build careers in Australia.”
"We want to give those at the top of their fields to have access to an elite funding scheme with a strong international focus.”
"The Federation Fellowships will support ambitious research that will have a significant impact on all our lives."
Solar and other renewable energies, social inclusion and the future of the world's large radio telescope are just some of the subjects being investigated by the nation's leading researchers.
Two foreign nationals working in Australia and one expatriate have been awarded fellowships.
Senator Kim Carr said:
“The ARC has done an excellent job of attracting to Australia's shores, and retaining, so many world class researchers. It is with great enthusiasm that I congratulate these exceptional individuals, who make a critically important contribution to our innovation system."
“I am particularly delighted that, in this group, strong expertise is held in the physical sciences and mathematics. These are fields in which Australia has experienced fewer university enrolments in recent years and in which we must develop greater capacity to be globally competitive.”
In this round, three Federation Fellowships will be awarded to researchers to undertake their work at The University of New South Wales, with two each going to Monash University and The Australian National University.
One each will go to the CSIRO - Australia Telescope National Facility; Curtin University of Technology; Flinders University; James Cook University; The University of Adelaide; The University of Queensland; and The University of Sydney.
The Minister approved all of the projects recommended by the ARC for funding.