Internationally significant Australian Research Council linkage grants worth more than $1 million to SCU

Southern Cross University’s reputation as an emerging player in internationally significant research has been boosted this week with $585,000 in funding under the Australian Research Council’s linkage grants program.

The grant program supports research and development projects that are undertaken to acquire new knowledge and that involve risk or innovation.

It backs collaborative research projects between higher education researchers and industry and identifies an allocation to projects of benefit to regional and rural communities.

Proposals must contain an industry contribution and partner funding for the two successful projects brings the total budget to $1.03 million.

The two research projects to receive funding are:

• A School of Education project to investigate how teachers can better teach Information Communication Technology to their students at both primary and secondary level. To be undertaken by Renata Phelps and Anne Graham, the project has received $135,000 from the ARC and $187,000 from Catholic Education and;

• An environmental science project which aims to restore 40 km of river to a pristine environment and investigate the salt uptakes by the river. It will be undertaken by Richard Bush and Leigh Sullivan with an ARC grant of $450,000. Leading Australian businessman Gerry Harvey, NSW State Forests, the Department of Land and Water Conservation and the Hunter Catchment Management Trust are supporting the project with $266,000.

SCU Pro Vice Chancellor (Research) Professor Peter Baverstock said the most pleasing aspect of the grants was that three of the four participants were early career researchers.

“This augurs well for the research reputation of the University well into the future,” he said.

“Southern Cross is clearly, in relative terms, among the top half of Universities in its ability to attract ARC linkage funding, which is amongst the most prized in the nation.

“In terms of this round of grants we have been more successful than many much bigger and more prestigious universities.”


For further information: Nigel Tapp (02) 6620 3039 or 0418 431 484