Welcome to this, the third edition of Brave Minds, showcasing just some of the transformative research Flinders University is fearlessly undertaking to change lives and change the world.

In these pages you’ll find inspiration, enlightenment, discovery, and hope, where research expanding our understanding of our world and addressing problems we all face is brought to life, with important and even amazing consequences. 

We’ll take you on a journey into the stomach of sharks and how fatty acids could be a key to the survival of these apex predators so crucial to ocean health. 

Still with the sea, we’ll give you a glimpse into an extraordinary suite of research into marine bioproducts that have the ability to transform our thinking and actions on sustainability.

Or perhaps you’d prefer to journey to space, where our researchers are looking at the “rules of engagement”, the management of space debris, and what happens if there’s a space dispute – all critical to the escalating race into this last frontier. 

Back on earth to some very human concerns, our researchers are examining how veterans who are making the difficult transition back to civilian life can be offered a pathway that not only values their past contributions but also their future potential. 

We examine a crisis of confidence among parents amidst the epidemic of childhood obesity and the cultural divide that needs to be bridged if we’re to give children a healthier start to life and a healthier outlook for the future, whatever their circumstances.

Fighting glaucoma to give the gift of sight, tracking ancient superhighways to inform how species including humans may be able to adapt to our fast-changing climate, deep diving into the durability – or otherwise – of democracy, or how wriggly critters barely a millimetre long are helping us unravel secrets of the human nervous system to address chronic pain; all expand our understanding and contribute to better lives. 

And the all-pervading challenge of COVID-19 – which featured so prominently in our last Brave Minds – is central to a success story of international relevance, with Flinders front and centre in developing a test which diagnoses COVID-19 in rural and remote areas within an hour, rather than days, with remarkable flow-on benefits.

I invite you to immerse yourself in these and the other amazing stories that make Brave Minds a fascinating read.

President and Vice-Chancellor
Professor Colin J Stirling

Finding solutions to the world’s challenges takes dedication, expertise and innovation. For most problems, they also require teams with a range of expertise and close engagement with research partners and end-users.

At Flinders, we know that our people are our strength, but our partnerships provide the stimulus, guidance and opportunity to translate our research so that it makes a difference.

Two exciting recent initiatives illustrate this well. A Flinders team, led by Professor Sue Gordon, is amongst a strongly competitive national field in contention to lead a $34 million commonwealth-funded initiative to transform Australia’s aged care by tackling the sector’s workforce challenges – so important to us all as we get older and need and expect high quality care. The strength of our bid is underpinned by our engagement with our industry partners. They will provide the staff who will work with our researchers to develop innovative ideas, the industry setting to show whether or not the ideas actually work to improve aged care and of course the setting to show that the innovations can be implemented in real-life aged care situations. Our aim is that this will comprehensively transform aged care in Australia.

We have taken a related approach to an entirely different type of challenge. A Flinders team led by Professor Wei Zhang has partnered with 68 Australian and international research and industry partners to win $59 million in federal funding towards a $270 million Marine Bioproducts Cooperative Research Centre. The Centre is designed to transform an industry from a relatively small economic player to a major export industry for Australia through the sustainable production of new, highvalue marine products - from foods and fuels to bioplastics, antivirals and agrochemicals. In doing so, it aims to create employment opportunities around Australia, including in Indigenous and regional communities.

These and many other new research initiatives have seen Flinders grow its research activity dramatically – over 40% in the last three years, with further growth this year. While this includes our highest ever total for nationally competitive grants, reflecting our strong research base, our strength in building research partnerships also means that it is our highest ever funding from industry. Partnerships were also a key factor in the award to chemistry researcher Associate Professor Justin Chalker, of the Prime Minister’s Prize for New Innovators in 2020. Our underlying research performance underpins our continued climb in international rankings – this year climbing 17 places in the influential Times Higher Education ranking to 266 in the world, taking us to the very cusp of the top one percent of the world’s universities.

As you’ll see in this edition of Brave Minds, our research is having a significant and globally important impact. You can be assured we will fearlessly continue to pursue research that makes a difference.

Deputy Vice-Chancellor(Research)
Professor Robert Saint