An investigation of the impacts of increased power supply to the national grid by wind generators on the Australian electricity industry. The aim of this project is to discover the most economical and effective way to accommodate large increases in wind power into the national grid and to understand the effects on the national electricity market. This is crucial to ensure stability of electricity supply and affordable prices in the transition towards a low carbon economy.
Putting death in its place. The project aims to link 890,000 population records to place of residence from 1838 to 1930, to examine the relationships between where people live, mortality, life expectancy and health. Where people live impacts their life-course outcomes. Using novel matching techniques, the project expects to identify intergenerational changes and the spatial dynamics of inequality and social mobility. Expected outcomes include the creation of a public resource of linked data and ....Putting death in its place. The project aims to link 890,000 population records to place of residence from 1838 to 1930, to examine the relationships between where people live, mortality, life expectancy and health. Where people live impacts their life-course outcomes. Using novel matching techniques, the project expects to identify intergenerational changes and the spatial dynamics of inequality and social mobility. Expected outcomes include the creation of a public resource of linked data and a better understanding of long-run health and inequality. These should provide economic and social benefits by informing policy aimed at contemporary social and health challenges, enhancing our understanding of Australian history, and developing public resources.Read moreRead less
Mitigating ecosystem impacts by improving the way we breed and manage devils. The Tasmanian ecosystem faces irreversible change due to the decline of the apex predator. An insurance population of Tasmanian devils has been established to prevent extinction of the species. Using the latest sequencing technologies the project aims to determine whether the Tasmanian ecosystem can be restored with Tasmanian devils that are more resilient to a changing environment by improving the way that devils are ....Mitigating ecosystem impacts by improving the way we breed and manage devils. The Tasmanian ecosystem faces irreversible change due to the decline of the apex predator. An insurance population of Tasmanian devils has been established to prevent extinction of the species. Using the latest sequencing technologies the project aims to determine whether the Tasmanian ecosystem can be restored with Tasmanian devils that are more resilient to a changing environment by improving the way that devils are bred and managed in captivity.Read moreRead less
Promoting active travel and public transport for a post-pandemic world. In many major cities, COVID-19 stimulated the provision of open streets, pop up bike lanes and widened pedestrian access, prompting unprecedented increases cycling and walking. While this type of infrastructure has always been supported by urban planners and designers, the pandemic has served as a vital inflection point, enabling cities to pursue long-term sustainable transport initiatives, including investment in Active Tra ....Promoting active travel and public transport for a post-pandemic world. In many major cities, COVID-19 stimulated the provision of open streets, pop up bike lanes and widened pedestrian access, prompting unprecedented increases cycling and walking. While this type of infrastructure has always been supported by urban planners and designers, the pandemic has served as a vital inflection point, enabling cities to pursue long-term sustainable transport initiatives, including investment in Active Travel (AT). There is an opportunity to promote AT as part of an integrated transport strategy, and to develop tools for the robust evaluation of AT impacts to inform future investment strategies. This proposal will provide our partner organisation Transport for New South Wales (with the knowledge required to achieve this.
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Will genetic rescue save the Tasmanian devil? This project aims to measure the long-term genetic impacts of the Save the Tasmanian Devil Program’s ‘Wild Devil Recovery’ initiative. The project will determine whether supplementing small populations with individuals that are genetically diverse reduces inbreeding depression. The project will also monitor the impact of supplementation on the evolutionary trajectory of Devil Facial Tumour Disease. The project will train a cohort of conservation scie ....Will genetic rescue save the Tasmanian devil? This project aims to measure the long-term genetic impacts of the Save the Tasmanian Devil Program’s ‘Wild Devil Recovery’ initiative. The project will determine whether supplementing small populations with individuals that are genetically diverse reduces inbreeding depression. The project will also monitor the impact of supplementation on the evolutionary trajectory of Devil Facial Tumour Disease. The project will train a cohort of conservation scientists to translate genetic data into management actions. The outputs will directly inform the management actions of the Tasmanian Department of Primary Industries Parks, Water and the Environment and will help shape other species recovery programs.Read moreRead less
When caring ends: Understanding and supporting informal care trajectories. This project aims to advance understandings of how, why, when, and for whom caring ends, including the socio-cultural and relational factors that shape experiences before, during, and after caring. Using an innovative, multi-method sociological approach, and foregrounding carers’ voices, this project expects to generate new knowledge on the meaning and experience of care and caring. This project is significant in bringing ....When caring ends: Understanding and supporting informal care trajectories. This project aims to advance understandings of how, why, when, and for whom caring ends, including the socio-cultural and relational factors that shape experiences before, during, and after caring. Using an innovative, multi-method sociological approach, and foregrounding carers’ voices, this project expects to generate new knowledge on the meaning and experience of care and caring. This project is significant in bringing together leading researchers and key carer-focused organisations, spanning service sectors and moving across care relationships, life stages and contexts. Expected outcomes include enhanced service capacity with tangible policy and practice benefits that will enable sustainable and fulfilling informal caring experiences.Read moreRead less
Developing a chlamydial vaccine for koalas. Developing a chlamydial vaccine for koalas . This project aims to produce an optimised, safe, field-tested, protective Chlamydia vaccine for koalas. In many regions of Australia, Chlamydia infection severely reduces female koala reproductive rates, threatening the species’ long term survival. This project builds on work developing a prototype vaccine for koala Chlamydia, and intends to produce a vaccine ready for potential registration and use by koala ....Developing a chlamydial vaccine for koalas. Developing a chlamydial vaccine for koalas . This project aims to produce an optimised, safe, field-tested, protective Chlamydia vaccine for koalas. In many regions of Australia, Chlamydia infection severely reduces female koala reproductive rates, threatening the species’ long term survival. This project builds on work developing a prototype vaccine for koala Chlamydia, and intends to produce a vaccine ready for potential registration and use by koala care centres, wildlife hospitals and government departments.Read moreRead less
The recovery of seagrass beds: the role of catchments and options for management responses. Seagrass beds once dominated tidal flats but are disappearing at an increasing rate due to human actions, both in Australia and around the world. This project will develop an understanding of the processes that cause these losses, the factors that prevent seagrass-bed re-establishment, and provide a framework for evaluating alternative management options.
Protecting Australia's pine plantations from exotic pests and climate change. This project will protect pine plantations (representing 57% of Australia's $3.3 billion pa forestry industry) from the dual threat of exotic pests and climate change. Sirex wood wasp has been well controlled until the recent, unprecedented, increase of ips bark beetles. The ips beetle is now disrupting biological control of sirex by its feeding activity so work is required to understand and combat this effect. The wor ....Protecting Australia's pine plantations from exotic pests and climate change. This project will protect pine plantations (representing 57% of Australia's $3.3 billion pa forestry industry) from the dual threat of exotic pests and climate change. Sirex wood wasp has been well controlled until the recent, unprecedented, increase of ips bark beetles. The ips beetle is now disrupting biological control of sirex by its feeding activity so work is required to understand and combat this effect. The work is made more urgent by looming climate change because storm-damage, drought and heat stressed trees are especially vulnerable to sirex attack. It is estimated that this novel pest management approach could save the industry at least $188 million pa based on a conservative estimate of reducing losses by 10%.Read moreRead less
Finding damage thresholds in pyrethrum to optimise crop profitability. This project aims to use a new vascular approach to develop a quantitative stress tolerance framework for the crop species pyrethrum, defining the risks to plant production of water, heat and frost stress. Using novel optical and x-ray technology, this project seeks to pinpoint damaging stress thresholds and combine this knowledge with crop monitoring technology in a way that will allow crop managers to avoid damaging stress ....Finding damage thresholds in pyrethrum to optimise crop profitability. This project aims to use a new vascular approach to develop a quantitative stress tolerance framework for the crop species pyrethrum, defining the risks to plant production of water, heat and frost stress. Using novel optical and x-ray technology, this project seeks to pinpoint damaging stress thresholds and combine this knowledge with crop monitoring technology in a way that will allow crop managers to avoid damaging stress events. The intended outcome is to enable the pyrethrum industry, and ultimately a diversity of crop managers, to better utilise new advances in monitoring technology to maximise the benefits of irrigation such that yields are high relative to water use and damage by stress is avoided. Immediate beneficiaries will be the pyrethrum industry, but the research will provide a model, applicable to the multitude of irrigated crops in Australia. Read moreRead less