The importance of early-career researchers at UWA was the focal point of Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Anna Nowak’s stirring address at The UWA Institute of Agriculture 2022 Postgraduate Showcase in June.
“There are many ways of measuring success…when we consider our highly cited authors and research funding success, many of our celebrated academics have roots in the Institute,” Professor Nowak told the 80-strong audience.
“We can also look at the many PhD students … being immersed in an environment of excellence and with opportunities like today to discuss and present their work with leading researchers.”
"The Institute demonstrates a critical mass that is contributing strongly to UWA, to our next generation of researchers, to our community, and to the world."
DVCR Professor Anna Nowak
Under the mentorship of Emeritus Professor Graeme Martin, six of UWA’s best and brightest postgraduate students in agriculture and related areas presented their research at the 16th annual event.
First session chair CSIRO scientist and the Institute’s Industry Advisory Board member Dr Hayley Norman introduced Md Khairul Islam from the School of Allied Health.
Mr Islam’s project, funded by the CRC for Honey Bee Products, explored the use of High-Performance Thin-Layer Chromatography as a novel approach for analysing different varieties of WA honeys.
The UWA School of Agriculture and Environment (SAgE) PhD candidate Tanushree Halder then discussed her research aim to unravel the genetics of wheat root system architecture.
Third speaker Joe Gebbels from SAgE, who also works as a program manager at Meat & Livestock Australia, expanded on his recent findings that improving productivity reduces methane intensity but increases the net emissions of sheep meat and wool enterprises.
Image: UWA Emerita Professor Lynette Abbott, Professor Anna Nowak, Emeritus Professor Graeme Martin and Hackett Professor Kadambot Siddique with the student presenters.
Following the afternoon tea break, second session chair UWA Emerita Professor Lynette Abbott introduced Sajeevee Sarathchandra from SAgE.
Soil scientist Ms Sarathchandra presented her research on remediating iron ore mine tailings by growing perennial ryegrass with organic amendments.
Having recently submitted her PhD thesis, Bhagya Dissanayake from the ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology and School of Molecular Sciences was pleased to discuss her success in uncovering the hidden adaptations of bread wheat roots under salinity stress.
The final speaker of the afternoon was Isobel Sewell from the School of Biological Sciences and UWA Ocean Institute, whose project at the Shenton Park Field Station investigated the use of black soldier fly protein in freshwater aquaculture diets.