Today the Australian Research Council (ARC) has announced $7.5 million for 10 new projects and 2 Discovery Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Awards (DAATSIAs) under the ARC’s Discovery Indigenous scheme.
The scheme reflects the Australian Government’s commitment to strengthening outcomes for Indigenous Australians through funding research projects across a range of disciplines led by an Indigenous Australian researcher, independently or in collaboration with other research colleagues.
Under the scheme, a DAATSIA may be awarded in combination with a Discovery Indigenous project. The award provides salary support for up to five years, for an eligible Indigenous Australian researcher.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Ms Judi Zielke PSM, said that Discovery Indigenous ensures that outstanding researchers have the opportunity to contribute to Australia’s broader research and innovation goals.
“Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander researchers will lead projects that investigate issues impacting their communities and that lead to outcomes that benefit all Australians,” Ms Zielke said.
“The research outcomes of the projects announced today will enrich Australia’s knowledge base and build on and strengthen the participation of Indigenous Australians in academia and industry, delivering a range of economic, commercial, environmental, social, and cultural benefits.”
Some of the research projects to be undertaken in 2023 include:
- Dr Rowena Ball from the Australian National University as a DAATSIA recipient will unify the Indigenous mathematics that produced sophisticated ‘star maps’ with the European-based mathematics that underpins today’s signal and image analysis
- Honorary Professor Henrietta Marrie, a DAATSIA recipient from the University of Queensland, will build community-based databases to protect, preserve and facilitate community-controlled use of ethnobotanical knowledge – the study of indigenous or traditional knowledge of plants
- Associate Professor Bindi Bennett from Bond University will enhance the skills of social work and allied health graduates to be culturally responsive by engaging students in an Aboriginal-based virtual reality program
- Dr Dylan Crismani from the University of Adelaide aims to redress the cultural power imbalance between Indigenous and western musical traditions and ensure a more prominent role for Indigenous music in Australia’s national voice.
For the full list of funded Discovery Indigenous projects, please view the funding announcement kit
