[Aqualist] Recent ARC Grant outcomes

[Simon Haberle]

Dear Colleagues,

The ARC have recently announced the outcomes of the Future Fellowships, Industry DECRAs and Laureate Fellowships for 2025. Successful projects broadly related to Quaternary research (including Archaeology and Indigeous Ecological Knowledge) are listed below, and as always, congratulations to those who were successful.

Overall, there where 2 Future Fellowships, 3 Industry DECRAs and 4 Laureate Fellowships funded to around $19.4M

It is also important to acknowledge the huge amount of effort and sacrifice of time that is required to submit these grants. To those who were not successful, thank you for continuing to generate great ideas and push the boundaries of our disciplines. Hopefully there will be future opportunities to fund the great work you are doing.

The successful projects are listed below.

Best wishes for 2025, Simon

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FUTURE FELLOWSHIPS

Professor Kathryn Fitzsimmons (FT250100881) - Monash University
Aridification of the Australian dryland margins.
This project aims to investigate how Australia evolved to become a fossil desert, and to identify what climatic conditions might cause these landscapes to become active again in future. Insights into the rates and timing of desert margin expansion will be gained using novel generation of large spatial and temporal datasets, and innovative integration of these data with climatic and hydrological models. Expected outcomes include clarifying how, and at what rate, aridification developed over time; the impact of land-use following European settlement; and recent triggers for dryland activity. The knowledge generated will improve our resilience to future climate change and enhance Australia’s reputation as a world leader in dryland research.
$1,280,213.00

Dr Emilie Dotte-Sarout (FT250100854) - The University of Western Australia
How the land became Country: the archaeology of people and trees in Oceania.
Trees are essential to human life. Archaeobotany explores the deep history of this relationship through anthracology (wood charcoal analysis) and this project will position Australia as a global leader in the discipline. It will establish its application across Australia and the Pacific, developing essential resources, pioneering new methods and studies, to deliver unique datasets evidencing the combined history of people and trees across Oceania. The project will generate new knowledge on the archaeology of traditional ecological practices and the creation of cultural landscapes. Benefits include supporting two-ways science for Indigenous-led environmental management and the solutions offered for a sustainable future.
$1,131,488.00


EARLY CAREER INDUSTRY FELLOWSHIPS

Dr Shimona Kealy - The Australian National University
This project will investigate the biogeography of marsupials beyond Australia and New Guinea, exploring whether island distributions are due to natural dispersal or prehistoric human introductions. In partnership with the Australian Museum, this Fellowship integrates interdisciplinary methods to generate new insights into marsupial evolution and human-animal interactions. Outcomes include improved understanding of marsupial dispersal mechanisms, taxonomic classifications, and showcasing Australia’s museum collections. The project will foster public understanding of conservation efforts and position Australia as a leader in Asia-Pacific biodiversity research through international collaboration.
THE AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM
$481,488

Dr Simon West - The Australian National University
This project aims to strengthen Indigenous rules, protocols and practices for the use of cultural knowledge in Indigenous Land and Sea Management (ILSM). This project expects to generate new knowledge about the practical steps needed to implement Indigenous Data Governance in ILSM, using a novel Indigenous-led interdisciplinary methodology. Expected outcomes of this project include tools and practical exemplars that can be used to support the implementation of Indigenous Data Governance across the Australian land management and conservation sectors. This should provide significant benefits, such as the intergenerational renewal of Indigenous knowledge, language and governance systems, and improved cultural heritage and ecosystem management.
ARAFURA SWAMP RANGERS ABORIGINAL CORPORATION; BUSH HERITAGE AUSTRALIA
$512,609

Dr Alice Twomey - The University of Queensland
Climate change is accelerating sea level rise and the severity of storms, increasing coastal flooding and erosion. Mangroves can mitigate these by increasing land elevation through sediment accretion however, sea level rise threatens to drown them if they cannot recover after storm events. Through the innovative use of drone surveys and hydrodynamic models, this project aims to generate new knowledge on how mangroves increase elevation and recover after storms. Expected outcomes include predictive models of elevation change based on mangrove forest structures and the potential for recovery under future sea level rise scenarios. This work should provide valuable insights to support decision-making in coastal conservation and management.
CAIRNS AIRPORT PTY LTD; RESTOREBLUE PTY LTD
$410,640


LAUREATE FELLOWSHIPS

Professor Anya Reading (FL250100087) - University of Tasmania
The expedited discovery of subsurface Antarctica.
This Fellowship aims to transform knowledge of subsurface Antarctica, which shapes how its ice sheets will respond to changing Southern Hemisphere climate regimes and new temperature extremes. Using innovative computation, and insights from seismic and interdisciplinary approaches, the research will expedite the discovery of new continental domains, hidden landscapes, geothermal heat and subglacial water flows. The overarching outcome will be a profound deepening of Australia’s ability to provide ongoing stewardship of the knowledge that underpins ice sheet response prediction. It will better enable the anticipation of environmental crises, such as accelerated sea level rise, and thus the mitigation of their social and economic impacts.
$3,760,000.00

Professor Matt King (FL250100022) - University of Tasmania
Tracking and predicting the future of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet.
Every one centimetre of extra sea-level rise affects an additional one million people globally. This project aims to robustly estimate the multi-decadal to centennial contribution of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet to sea-level change. The project will combine new data, methodologies, and numerical tools to produce unambiguous observations of ice sheet changes, state-of-the-art sea-level projections, and a skilled workforce knowledgeable in land ice change. The research will provide critical data to improve climate models, enhance our understanding of ice sheet dynamics, inform domestic and global climate risk assessments, and aid in developing effective strategies to mitigate and adapt to sea-level rise.
$3,914,319.00

Professor Josephine McDonald (FL250100084) - The University of Western Australia
Pilbara Dreaming: Rock Art, Water and Heritage Futures.
This project will demonstrate the critical role that Pilbara rock art has in the peopling and maintenance of the arid zone of Australia, from 50,000 years ago to the present. The interconnectivity of creation stories, art and water provides a unique lens on intergenerational knowledge transmission and cultural connections. The Pilbara’s mineral wealth is crucial to Australia’s economy with mining already covering 55% of the region. Yet there is no heritage conservation strategy to protect this region’s cultural assets. This collaboration with Aboriginal Traditional Owners will reform policy and lead to improved conservation of heritage places of global significance.
$3,916,944.00

Professor Felicity Meakins (FL250100115) - The University of Queensland
Amplifying Indigenous Ecological Knowledge in Western Science with Language.
Indigenous Ecological Knowledge (IEK) is critical for the health of Country and people—Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians alike. Indigenous languages are key to accessing and understanding IEK; and bridging the divide between IEK and Western Science. This FL aims to show how Indigenous languages are shaped by Country, structure knowledge about Country and encode social dynamics of Indigenous groups over time. This FL expects to pivot our understanding of the Australian continent through a genuine engagement with Indigenous languages. In doing so, it will reshape policy and practice in Australia, serving as a model for other countries. This work is urgent given that Australia has one of the highest rates of language loss worldwide.
$4,003,621.00

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Prof Simon Haberle
Professor of Natural History & Palaeoecology
Director, Canberra Pollen Monitoring Program
School of Culture, History and Language
College of Asia & the Pacific
Coombs Building (Rm 3.218), Fellows Rd
The Australian National University
Canberra ACT 2600
+61 2 6125 5125 (ph)  0424453861 (mob)