Academics and PhD candidates receive prestigious Fulbright Scholarships
Published on the 24 January 2020
The Fulbright Program, now in its 70th year, aims to increase binational research collaboration and exchange of ideas. The 2020 Fulbright Scholars from UNSW include two academics and two PhD candidates, recognised for their high academic and professional merit, a strong proposal with defined potential outcomes, and ambassadorial skills.
Dr Tristan Moss, a lecturer in Modern History at UNSW Canberra’s School of Humanities and Social Sciences, has been awarded the Fulbright Professional Scholarship in Australian-American Alliance Studies (funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade).
For his Fulbright Scholarship, Dr Moss will investigate the development of the relationship between Australia and America in space exploration from the dawn of the space age to the present day. He will be based at George Washington University’s Space Policy Institute, where he will conduct research at the National Archives, at the National Aeronautical and Space Administration, and meet with space policymakers and scholars.
With Australia taking a renewed interest in space, not least through the recent formation of an Australian Space Agency, an examination of the 50-year plus relationship between the US and Australia in space exploration and observation will assist in formulating new policy and strengthen the cooperation between the two nations in space.
Dr Eden Robertson is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Behavioural Sciences Unit, Kids Cancer Centre (Sydney Children’s Hospital), and the Research and Evaluation Manager at the Starlight Children’s Foundation. She has been awarded a Fulbright Future Scholarship (funded by the Kinghorn Foundation).
During her PhD, Dr Robertson developed the world’s first decision aid – Delta – to support families deciding whether to enroll their child with cancer in a clinical trial. For her scholarship, she will first visit St Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis to adapt Delta for the US setting. She will then visit Teen Cancer America to expand Delta to cater for young adults with cancer.
“I am in a unique position where I work in both academic research and also with a leading non-profit organisation for sick kids. This Fulbright Scholarship is an opportunity for me to create synergy between my current roles, with the overall goal of making a real positive change in the lives of sick children and their families.”
Dr Nicole Bart is a postdoctoral scholar and cardiac-clinician researcher at the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute. She is also a UNSW conjoint lecturer, teaching at St Vincent’s Hospital clinical school. Dr Bart has a BSc(Med Sci) and MBBS (Hons) from UNSW Sydney and a PhD from Oxford. She has been awarded a Fulbright Future Scholarship (funded by the Kinghorn Foundation) and will visit Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, in Boston.
"I feel honoured and excited to receive a Fulbright Future Scholarship,” she says. “It will help foster research in the burgeoning field of cardiac genetics to help unlock some of the mysteries behind heart conditions that affect the lives of many patients.
“It will also allow me to deepen the scientific connections between Australia and the USA. Thank you to my supervisors, mentors and colleagues for guiding me on my academic journey to date."
Florence Lui is undertaking a PhD in Professor Charles C. Sorrell’s research group (UNSW Sydney’s School of Materials Science and Engineering) in collaboration with Professor Ralph J. Mobbs of Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney. Her project involves developing multifunctional mineral-biologics coatings for materials used to fabricate orthopaedic devices. She has been awarded a Fulbright Future Scholarship (funded by the Kinghorn Foundation).
Ms Lui will visit Cornell University’s School of Materials Science and Engineering. This opportunity will initiate an Australian-American research collaboration that involves research universities, orthopaedic surgeons and biomaterial device manufacturers. The work has the potential to direct the controlled engineering of next-generation hybrid coatings for orthopaedic devices. The technology shows promise in improving patient outcomes through shorter recovery periods, lowering the risk of failure, and ultimately reducing economic burden on health systems.
“The Fulbright Future Scholarship and my research visit to Cornell University will be truly transformative, through opportunities that broaden my exposure to one of the largest biomaterials markets in the world, deepen my expertise in the research field, and expand my network,” she says.
“I feel very honoured to receive such an esteemed award and I am excited to progress my research through the collaboration. I am very grateful for all the support and guidance I have and consistently continue to receive from my supervisors, mentors, collaborators, lab managers, technicians, and colleagues. The award is a reflection of their investment in me through many matters big and small.”
Joey Rowlands is completing a PhD in quantum physics under the supervision of Professor Michelle Simmons, 2018 Australian of the Year. His research focus is to develop an atomically precise quantum integrated circuit, a major step towards building a quantum computer.
As a Fulbright Future Scholar (funded by the Kinghorn Foundation), Mr Rowlands will work in Professor Amir Yacoby’s Harvard laboratory learning world-leading measurement techniques for quantum computing. The outcome will be to implement these techniques on silicon nanoelectronics devices to accelerate the development of a quantum computer.
“Quantum computation will provide a new toolbox to address the world’s largest problems. From understanding how to capture carbon dioxide efficiently from the atmosphere, to the development of new medicines, the possible applications are incredibly varied,” Mr Rowland says.
“I am very excited to be able to conduct research between Harvard and CQC2T as a Fulbright Future Scholar and hope that my work will help accelerate the development of this technology.”
The Fulbright Program in Australia has grown dramatically over seven decades, becoming the largest bilateral exchange program in the country. More than 5100 recipients have travelled between the two countries for study and research exchange in a wide range of academic disciplines.
This year’s Fulbright Scholars will be officially introduced at a Presentation Gala Dinner at Parliament House, Canberra, on 27 February 2020.