|
|
|
Dear Fellows and friends,
I hope that you have all had a restorative break over summer. As the new year is progressing, there is lots of Academy activity and Fellow achievements to report on.
Congratulations to Fellows who were recognised at the recent Order of Australia awards:
- Professor Henry Brodaty AO FRACP FRANZCP FAHMS FASSA was named the Senior Australian of the Year in recognition of his sustained contribution to improving the lives of all those living with dementia, and his contributions to policy, research, and public understanding of ageing and cognitive health. Read more here.
- Professor Jeff Borland AO FASSA Truby Williams Professor of Economics from the University of Melbourne was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for his distinguished service to business as a labour market economist, to tertiary education, to microeconomic research, and to public policy development.
- Emeritus Professor John Wanna AO FASSA from the Australian National University and the Australia and New Zealand School of Government was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to political and policy research, to tertiary education, to democratic innovation, and to the development of public administration frameworks
- Professor John Rolfe AM FASSA from Central Queensland University was made a Member of the Order of Australia in recognition of his significant service to regional economic development as an economist and author.
Read more here.
The Academy also notes appointments of Fellows to key national roles:
-
Professor Tom Calma AO FAA FASSA FAHA, who has been appointed as ATEC’s interim First Nations Commissioner. More here.
-
Professor Alex Broom FASSA has been appointed as the new Academic Director for Social, Economic and Behavioural Sciences at the Australian Research Council. More here.
In January, the Academy made a submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Education and Employment inquiry into the Universities Accord (Australian Tertiary Education Commission) Bill 2025. While the Academy supports the establishment of the Australian Tertiary Education Commission (ATEC) the submission makes five recommendations to strengthen the Bill, including reinforcing ATEC’s independence, leadership capacity and access to sector expertise, and ensuring mission-based compacts and funding arrangements support both innovation and equity. Fellows are encouraged to read the submission in full on the Academy website.
As the Academy moves ahead with its 2026-30 Strategic Plan, there are many opportunities for Fellows to be involved through membership of its committees and participation in its events, workshops, submissions and reports. See below for details of current vacancies on the Policy Committee, Education Committee, Reconciliation Action Plan Working Group, and a new Editorial Advisory Group, along with State Convenor roles in WA, Victoria and Queensland.
Finally, do note for 2026 calendars:
-
Social Sciences Week will take place from 12 to 20 September, with the Academy’s feature event The Great Debate scheduled for the evening of 17 September at the National Library of Australia (and see below for a link to the audio recording by the ABC of the 2025 debate).
-
The Academy’s Gala Dinner will be held at the State Library of Victoria, Melbourne on Wednesday 11 November.
Best wishes for a productive month ahead,
Kate Darian-Smith
President |
|
|
|
|
|
Celebrating Fellows |
|
Distinguished Professor Anthony Elliott AM FASSA has been elected an International Fellow of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA) – the world’s oldest engineering academy. Read more here.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Policy |
|
Decadal Plan for Australian Education Research 2026-35 |
|
The Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia and the Australian Association for Research in Education (AARE) have joined with other partners to lead the development of a Decadal Plan for Australian Education Research 2026-35. This plan will identify the priorities and opportunities for education research to shape policy, funding and practice over the next 10-years. A Consultation Paper has been developed to support this process and we are inviting written responses to the consultation questions. Whether you work in research, policy, practice, or are interested in education as a stakeholder, we encourage you to share your experiences and insights on how the education research ecosystem can better serve Australian researchers, learners and educators.
Read more about the Decadal Plan and the consultation process on the Academy website. |
|
Workshop Program reports |
|
A report is now available from the 2025 Academy funded workshop: Deaths by suicide in the context of domestic and family violence: Examining context, prevention and responses. This workshop was led by Academy Fellow Professor Heather Douglas AM along with Professor Kyllie Cripps, Professor Kate Fitzgibbon and Dr Stefani Vasil.
View the full report here. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Save the Date: Social Sciences Week 2026 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
Opportunities for Fellows |
|
There are several opportunities for Fellows interested in becoming more involved in the Academy’s core work.
-
Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) Working Group Fellows interested in joining the Academy’s RAP Working Group, and in contributing to reconciliation and our commitment to working in close collaboration with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities, as well as with partners across our sector, are invited to email info@socialsciences.org.au outlining their interests and background.
-
Education Committee The Academy invites expressions of interest from Fellows to join its Education Committee as a member. The purpose of the Academy Education Committee is to provide the Academy’s Executive Committee with advice on the development of the Academy’s Seriously Social school program, and to oversee the development of resources, contribute expertise, identify stakeholders, networks and potentially partnership in support of the program. To register your interest or discuss the role, please contact the Education Director cindy.bintahal@socialsciences.org.au, CEO chris.hatherly@socialsciences.org.au or the Committee Chair, Professor Lyn Yates.
-
Editorial Committee - the Academy is looking to establish a small committee of Fellows to oversee editorial content and direction of the new Socium magazine, as well as a forthcoming Social Science Matters book series. If interested, please contact chris.hatherly@socialsciences.org.au.
-
Panel D Fellows The Academy welcomes expressions of interest from Panel D Fellows for one vacancy on the Membership Committee. Please email Zoe at fellowship@socialsciences.org.au with questions or if interested.
- Western Australia, Victoria & Queensland State Convenors The Academy thanks Professors Garry Rodan and Kanishka Jayasuriya (Western Australia), Professor Dennis Trewin (Victoria), and Professor Ross Homel (Queensland) for their work co-convening their respective state branches. Expressions of Interest are now sought for new co-convenors in each of these three states. Please email Zoe at fellowship@socialsciences.org.au if interested.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Grants |
|
The Academy's Australia-France Workshop Grants are open until 10 March. Read more here. |
|
|
|
Applications for the 2027 National Library Fellowship and Scholarship awards open soon.
National Library of Australia (NLA) Fellowships are open to all established researchers across the world. Applications open 23 February 2026. For more information, and to apply, go to the NLA’s Fellowships webpage. Creative Arts Fellowships also open 23rd February 2026.
National Library Scholarships are open to PhD students who are either Australian or studying at an Australian university. Applications for the 2027 round open 23 March 2026.
For more information, and to apply, go to the NLA’s Scholarships webpage. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FEATURED FELLOW |
|
Professor Michael Berk |
|
|
|
|
|
Discipline: Health Sciences
Affiliation: Institute for Mental and Physical Health and Clinical Translation, Deakin University
|
|
|
|
How would you describe your work at a dinner party? |
|
|
What are you most proud of?
|
|
|
|
I work on developing novel treatments for mental health problems. Most recently, to bypass the lack of an established pathophysiology, we have worked with stem cell experts who have developed stem cell models which allow us to repurpose medications that might work for mental health problems. |
|
|
I am most proud of the kinds of research, invariably clinical trials, that support novel treatments for neglected mental health problems. The bad news is that we have many unmet needs, but we have been fortunate enough to have a few treatments that we have worked on enter routine clinical care.
|
|
|
|
What should your field of study be doing more of right now? |
|
I believe that convergence science approaches are necessary to solve the complex issues of the non-communicable and particularly mental health disorders. This is the cross pollination between superficially unrelated disciplines which leverages the skills and approaches of complementary fields which allows a deeper understanding and is better suited to develop solutions for complex multi systemic problems for which single discipline approaches have not been effective. The social sciences are a keystone approach in this matrix.
|
|
What initially drew you to your field of study? |
|
I was drawn to research by inspirational mentors who installed a love of the generation of knowledge and the curiosity to understand the underpinnings of mental health problems in order to better tackle them.
|
|
Tell us about a recent moment of motivation or inspiration? |
|
|
|
The stem cell models that our partners have developed have given us a series of lead compounds which we have been able to take into clinical trials that might be useful for disorders like depression bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. These have allowed us to examine molecular targets that have not yet being evaluated as treatment approaches such as mitochondrially targeted therapies. Mitochondria are the organelles that generates energy inside cells. We have been able to take potential mitochondrial agents into clinical trials of bipolar disorder and most recently chronic fatigue syndrome. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Professor Heather Goodall AM, FASSA, FRSN
The Academy is saddened to share the passing of Professor Heather Goodall on 29 January 2026.
Professor Goodall was elected a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia in 2007 and was Professor Emerita of History in the School of Communications at the University of Technology Sydney. A distinguished historian, she specialised in Australian Aboriginal history, environmental history, and intercolonial studies, with a particular focus on connections between Australia, South Asia and the eastern Indian Ocean. |
|
|
|
Her research was widely recognised through multiple ARC Discovery and Linkage grants and influential publications.
Heather’s outstanding contributions were acknowledged through numerous awards, including the NSW Premier’s Award for Australian History (1997), the Magarey Medal for Australian Women’s Biography (2005), and appointment as a Member of the Order of Australia (2024).
Heather remained a committed supporter of the Academy and of many community organisations, including the Knitting Nannas. She generously contributed her knowledge and time to the Academy’s Reconciliation Action Plan Working Group and to the development of Seriously Social school program resources, reflecting her deep commitment to reconciliation, environmental sustainability and education.
Heather will be sorely missed by colleagues, students, friends and all who were inspired by her scholarship, activism and kindness. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The audio recording of The Great Debate (Social Sciences Week 2025) is now available on the ABC Big Ideas website.
Listen here.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Have you seen Socium?
The Academy’s new bi-annual magazine Socium was posted to all Academy Fellows in November last year. If you have not received your copy, please contact the National Office via email at fellowship@socialsciences.org.au to ensure we have the correct mailing address listed.
The magazine is also available as a digital download here. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia.
We acknowledge and pay our respects to the traditional owners of the land on which our national office is located, the Ngunnawal and Ngambri peoples, and
to their elders past and present. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
