07-07-2023

Welcome to the new financial year. Applications for the 2023 Scholarships are closing next week on 14 July! With a considerable number of applications already received, we expect it will be a very competitive selection process and are looking forward to learning about these talented potential 2024 John Monash Scholars.

In this edition we celebrate NAIDOC Week, spotlight breakthrough medical research, share a broad range of John Monash Scholar achievements and our Leadership Academy professional development. We hope you enjoy the news that follows.

NAIDOC Week 2023

Emma Garlett, 2022 Wesfarmers John Monash Scholar, (Noongar, Yamatji & Nyiyaparli Peoples) is a First Nations woman who applies an Indigenous lens to current issues and is seeking to make a more inclusive Australia through sharing a journey of reconciliation. As we celebrate NAIDOC Week 2023, we shine a spotlight on Emma’s meaningful work supporting First Nations justice and learn what this year’s theme ‘For our Elders’ means to her.

“Our elders are our leaders, our trailblazers, our family anchors. They have paved the path for us to follow, created opportunities for us as the next generation and left us with a better place than they experienced. We are guided by their wisdom; they are the custodians of our culture. Elders play an integral role in Aboriginal governance systems, a way of working and living which has been effective for millennia. If it was not For Our Elders, we would not be where we are today.”

Read Emma’s Op-Ed in the West Australian to learn more about her thoughts and reflections for NAIDOC Week 2023 here.

Emma was interviewed by SBS NITV Radio where she reflected on the importance of the deal struck between the government and the opposition on the management of the Voice referendum, the significance of the vote and what else needs to be considered.

Emma is also featuring as one of the judges of the Best Australian Yarn 2023, which this year we award an inaugural First Nations storytelling prize. The winner of the First Nations prize is also eligible to win the overall winners’ prize as well which is $50,000 dollars, making it Australia's largest story writing award. The Best Australian Yarn competition is open to anyone over the age of 12 including published and unpublished writers as well as students.

Harrison Steel amongst those named Young Engineers of the Year by Royal Academy of Engineering

Professor Harrison Steel, 2016 Roden Cutler NSW John Monash Scholar, was fortunate enough to be awarded the Royal Academy of Engineering's Sir George Macfarlane Medal, and one of five "Young Engineer of the Year Awards" for the United Kingdom (UK). This is an outstanding achievement and we celebrate Harrison’s success.

Named after the wartime radar pioneer, the award recognises the potential of engineers working in the UK who have demonstrated excellence in the early stage of their career. Professor Steel’s award recognises his contributions to engineering, including research in biotechnology, development of open-source tools such as the Chi.Bio Bioreactor platform, as well as other contributions including working on COVID-19 response projects during the pandemic.

Professor Steel works at the interface of control engineering, synthetic biology, and robotics. He builds new technologies that combine electronic and biological components and applies these to address new scientific questions as well as industrial and environmental applications.

"I very much appreciate the spotlight this award puts on our past work on open and accessible Engineering. None of this would have been possible without the efforts of our lab team, collaborators, and mentors who have contributed so much over the past several years toward helping build our research program. Similarly, the resources at Oxford and in the Department of Engineering Science have been integral to our success; we've been able to quickly prototype new technologies, test these on biological challenges, then work to scale-up their manufacturing to get them in the hands of users worldwide. Support from the John Monash Foundation was what allowed me to come to Oxford and begin building my career in Biotechnology, so thank you for that vote of confidence back in 2016!”

International collaboration to fund breakthrough research to shape the future of precision medicine

Groundbreaking research aiming to overcome acquired resistance to anti-cancer cellular immunotherapies, such as CAR T-cell therapy, is the latest Australian research to be funded through the prestigious Translational Research Program (TRP). This year's TRP recipient is 2006 John Monash Scholar, Professor Mark Dawson a clinician-scientist based at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.

Professor Dawson’s team has developed cutting-edge, pre-clinical models that simulate resistance to CAR T-cell therapy. By harnessing the power of the models, Professor Dawson aims to uncover the intrinsic properties of cancer cells that enable them to evade new cellular therapies, paving the way for the design and development of novel therapeutic approaches.

Read here

World premiere ‘Sfidare’ by Michael Grebla with Fremantle Chamber Orchestra and John Keene

New York-based, WA composer and 2016 Zelman Cowen John Monash Scholar, Michael Grebla has made waves with his orchestral work Sfidare (Defiance) even before its world premiere by Fremantle Chamber Orchestra this month. Based on a string quartet of the same name that won the Zodiac Festival’s composition award in 2018, this orchestral version was joint winner of the Greater Bridgeport Symphony’s Emerging Composer Competition and semi-finalist in The President’s Own US Marine Band Call for Scores Competition.

“Sfidare for String Orchestra is a reimagining of String Quartet #1 Sfidare, the first in a set of four works titled Music for Transitions,” Michael said.

We are so delighted to see this recognition of Michael’s talent and that he is demonstrating that as an Australian composer based in the US his work is truly global.

Read here

Confronting carbon in the state sector

"Most of the global emissions problem comes from the energy sector and most of the world's energy supply is owned by state-owned enterprises (SOEs). Yet policymakers, investors and advocates have not grappled deeply with this fact."

Dr Arjuna Dibley, 2016 Woodside John Monash Scholar recently published a paper in the Harvard Environmental Law Review on SOEs and green transitions, a summary featuring recently in the European Corporate Governance Institute.

Read here

From Elite Sport to Executive

Ryan Carters, 2018 Roth/Segal John Monash Harvard Scholar, caught up with the inspiring Toby Jenkins and Medoo about lessons from sport for coaching and team performance in other fields.

Ryan shared how coaching has taught him the necessity of learning to cope with "those ups and downs” and helped him maintain belief in himself and trust in his abilities regardless of the situation.

"You practice for a long time to become an expert, but ultimately what unlocks the best performance is to allow yourself the freedom to just let the magic happen and get out of your own way."
Watch the recording here

Should Cancel Culture Be Cancelled?

Jessie Hughes, 2020 Lee Liberman John Monash Scholar, will be partaking in a debate which aims to unpack how cancel culture can determine how the rest of a person's life plays out.

Time and date: 6.30pm, 13 July
Location: Brisbane Powerhouse - 119 Lamington Street, New Farm
Register here

JMFLA Professional Development Series - Supporting Career Transitions with Rilka Warbanoff

Last week, the Academy hosted a group of 2023 Scholars for a career-building workshop as part of our Leadership Academy Professional Development series, facilitated by Rilka Warbanoff who as a highly successful entrepreneur and a great voice on ‘culinary culture’ also established an Executive Placement business. With so much knowledge and experience across varied businesses and recruitment, in addition to being a selection panellist on the South Australian panel for many years, Rilka was the perfect person to impart wisdom and practical guidance to the Scholars.

Many Scholars have identified the unique range of challenges they face when shifting their career back to Australia which can be complicated after many years abroad, the loss of connection to their professional networks, the need to establish new industry connections, seek professional mentors and finding the right position that fits the next career move, particularly when they have gained high level skills that warrant the opportunity to be fully utilised.

Leveraging the experiences, knowledge and networks of the John Monash Community prior to commencing their studies can help make this a smoother transition down the track, so this workshop was timely for the 2023 cohort able to attend before departing to begin their study overseas. This workshop highlighted strategies that they can use when planning their future career trajectory. Supporting the pipeline for Scholars to transition their careers back to Australia into roles of influence and impact after their studies is important for the Foundation community.

L-R: Jessica Cong, Roden Cutler NSW John Monash Scholar, Karri Walker, Victorian Government John Monash Scholar, Alex Schutz, John and Anna Belfer Trust John Monash Scholar, Mathilde Ritman, Wesfarmers John Monash Scholar, Bridget Dunne, Zelman Cowen John Monash Scholar.

Luncheon with Herbert Smith Freehills

On the 27th of June, Herbert Smith Freehills hosted a special lunch for the Foundation to celebrate the 20th anniversary of awarding scholarships with a small group of friends and supporters.

A select group of John Monash Scholars including Karri Walker, 2023 Victorian Government John Monash Scholar, Ryan Carters, 2018 Roth/Segal John Monash Harvard Scholar and Andrew Hudson, 2005 John Monash Scholar, shared their career insights and discussed the importance of bringing a diverse, global perspective to Australian law reform as we work to address the issues of today and prepare for the challenges of tomorrow.

PODCAST: Breaking the silence - Empowering lives and changing habits with Chris Raine

In this new podcast episode, we speak to Chris Raine, 2023 Roth/Segal John Monash Harvard Scholar and mental health advocate about his journey towards supporting those with alcohol addiction and his latest business venture Clean State Clinic.

Listen here

The Weizmann Institute of Science launches new scholarship in partnership with the General Sir John Monash Foundation

The Weizmann Institute of Science (WIS) has launched a new scholarship in partnership with the General Sir John Monash Foundation which will seek applications who are excellent Australian science students to continue their post graduate studies at the prestigious Feinberg Graduate School at the Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel.

The scholarship, conceived by Jillian Segal AO who is both an international board member of the Weizmann Institute of Science and Chairman of the General Sir John Monash Foundation, will be offered to either an MSc or PhD student, commencing studies in September or October 2024. The program is aimed at matching global distinction at the Weizmann Institute with the best Australia has to offer in student applicants, while helping young researchers build networks within the world of science in Israel and around the world.

Read here

A fresh new face for the new Financial Year

The team at HQ are pleased to have finalised our new promotional collateral, featuring may of our Scholars, partners and friends. The set includes a promotional book, a handbook featuring ways to support the Foundation and Academy and a new guide for leaving a Gift in your Will. You can view them below.

Read here

In the media

Andrew Hudson, 2005 John Monash Scholar, wrote an opinion piece for The Australian (paywall) and was interviewed by ABC Radio National discussing why Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Anthony Albanese should create partnerships on climate transition and forced migration that endure beyond Indonesian Presidential elections next year, according to the recent work led by the Centre for Policy Development.

Sarah Schwartz, 2019 Roden Cutler NSW John Monash Scholar, wrote an article in The Conversation which explains why Victoria needs an independent police accountability body.