Australian Research Council (ARC) Chief Executive Officer, Professor Sue Thomas, today welcomed the announcement by Minister for Education and Training, Senator the Hon. Simon Birmingham, of $1.15 million for five research projects under the Australian Research Council Linkage Learned Academies Special Projects (LASP) scheme.
Professor Thomas said the LASP scheme supports the development of Australian research by funding research projects through the Learned Academies and the Australian Council of Learned Academies.
“This investment will enable Australia’s Learned Academies to undertake new research projects that will advance knowledge in areas of national significance, support collaboration in research—both within and between disciplines—and contribute to the professional development of early and mid-career researchers, ” said Professor Thomas.
The five projects for funding commencing in 2017 include:
- $170,000 to the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia for a project led by Professor Janet Chan to investigate the benefits and risks of using big data and analytics for social policy.
- $118,098 to the Australian Academy of Science for a project to be led by Professor Stephen Simpson to develop a plan to address the complex health and environmental challenges associated with changes in food production and consumption.
- $210,000 to the Australian Academy of Science for a project to be led by Professor Michael Barber to explore better utilisation of big data for the research sector, by mapping existing capability and infrastructure within and across disciplines, and identifying challenges and opportunities.
- $306,467 to the Australian Academy of the Humanities for a project led by Professor Joy Damousi to provide an account of Australia’s humanities academic workforce and plan for its future knowledge and skills requirements.
- $345,000 to the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering for a project led by Professor Hugh Bradlow to assess the research needs of key Australian industry sectors, based on likely scenarios for Australia in 2030 and industry’s readiness to adopt new technology.
This LASP scheme announcement is part of today’s ARC schemes grant announcements totalling $333.5 million for 859 research projects.
For more information about the LASP scheme, visit the Linkage Learned Academies Special Projects page on the ARC website.