26 - 11 - 2021
Join us for this week's roundup of inspiring Scholar news...
Meet Lieutenant Matthew Newman
2022 Zelman Cowen John Monash Scholar Lieutenant Matthew Newman was congratulated by University of New South Wales in Canberra. Talking to UNSW on being awarded the John Monash Scholarship, Matthew said “I look to previous scholars in awe of their contributions to Australian society and hope to replicate that in my own work. As part of the John Monash Scholar community, I am excited about the prospects of collaborative and inter-disciplinary work aimed at the big challenges our country will face over the coming decades.” Matthew has been recognised as one of Out for Australia’s 30 Under Thirty LGBTI Leaders for his work supporting the inclusion of sexually and gender diverse personnel in the Australian Defence Force. He looks forward to studying a Master of Philosophy in International Relations at the University of Oxford, researching how professional armed forces can cooperate on climate change to reduce the risk of environmental conflict.
Meet Milan Gandhi
Our 2022 Lee Liberman John Monash Scholar Milan Gandhi has a Bachelor of Laws (1st Class Honours) from The University of Queensland and is a former Australian Law Student of the Year. With the support of his John Monash Scholarship, Milan will undertake a Master of Public Policy at Sciences Po and plans to identify policy solutions that will safeguard Australia’s democracy from the harmful effects of digital technologies like social media. Milan currently works for DMTC who have proudly announced his achievements via their online News channel. The Asia-Pacific Defence Reporter, which is Australia’s longest established defence magazine, has also cited Milan’s already significant contributions to policy security work to date.
Meet Emma Garlett
Emma Garlett, a Nyiyaparli-Yamatji-Nyungar woman from Geraldton, is the 2022 Wesfarmers John Monash Scholar. A recent graduate of Curtin University’s Law School, she will work to further protect Aboriginal culture heritage in mining decisions as she undertakes a Master of Business Administration and Bachelor of Civil Laws at the University of Oxford. Emma has been described as a trail blazer who will inspire another generation of First Nations lawyers in Australia.
Meet Dr Sean Carter
Dr Sean Carter, 2022 Chairman’s Circle John Monash Scholar has recently featured on The University of Western Australia’s news channel as well as Western Australia’s Subiaco Post. In detailing his ambitions, Sean says: “I want to care for the highest risk pregnancies, and in doing so, directly contribute to the health and wellbeing for women and babies born in Australia”. Sean is a UWA alumni who has worked for the Women & Infants Research Foundation at the King Edward Memorial Hospital. He plans to undertake his PhD at the National University of Singapore. His long-term plan is to return to WA as an obstetrics and gynaecology senior registrar, to eventually become a maternal fetal medicine specialist.
Featured Podcast – Dr Matthew Lennon
Dr Matthew Lennon is the 2020 Tim Fischer John Monash Scholar and the first to receive this prestigious scholarship. After recently completing his PhD at Oxford, he has returned to Wagga Wagga NSW with the intention of bringing improved dementia research, therapeutics and care back to Australia. Matthew is not only working on the miracle cure for Alzheimer’s dementia, but he is also working on the best methods of prevention. He believes that Australia will see an epidemic of dementia in the next 30-40 years. Matthew’s research specifically focusses on how to mitigate this epidemic, one strategy being to manage high blood pressure. Listen to his episode here.
Young scientists at the sharp edge of change
A group of inspiring young scientists took centre stage at COP26, among them was Dr Brett Parkinson, 2017 Woodside John Monash Scholar. At the Next Gen forum Brett was the first panellist in this segment and he spoke about his work at C-Zero which involves commercialising a way to decarbonise natural gas. You can watch his excellent presentation via YouTube where he demonstrates his role in contributing towards a positive and sustainable future.
International climate change relations
The UK in a Changing Europe is an independent research publication affiliated with King’s College London. They have recently published an opinion article by Dr Fergus Green, 2012 John Monash Scholar: “UK-Australia climate cooperation? Not while Australia is run by the fossil fuel industry”. In his report, Fergus provides an opinion on the scientific, economic and ethical analysis of phasing out fossil fuels.
Congratulations Carolyn Kay
Carolyn Kay is a Director and Co-Chair of the Investment, Audit and Risk Committee of the General Sir John Monash Foundation. This week, The Treasury announced her appointment as a part-time member of the Foreign Investment Review Board for a five-year term by the current Federal Government. "The appointment of Ms Kay continues the high level of skills and experience on the Foreign Investment Review Board that is required to deal with the increasingly complex foreign investment proposals it examines," Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said.
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