Emerging UQ researchers secure ARC boost

Researchers from The University of Queensland have secured more than $7.2 million through the Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) program to strengthen national research and innovation capacity.

The scheme will support 16 UQ researchers across a range of areas, from health and medicine to languages and culture.

UQ ARC DECRA 2025 recipients:

• Dr Charles Bell – improve understanding of the gene regulation process and predictability of cell behaviour.
• Dr Emma Cole – strengthen understanding of gender bias in English-language translations of ancient Greek tragedy to inform new translations.
• Dr Josephine Dias – develop building blocks for a future quantum internet with secure communication to improve cybersecurity and data protection.
• Dr Mile Gao – develop techniques to analyse electric charge behaviour in organic semiconductor devices to improve energy efficiencies.  
• Dr Adam Hannah – inform strategies to improve health workforce policymaking and develop resources to reduce work shortages in the industry. 
• Dr Xia Huang – develop next-generation lithium-ion batteries with improved energy storage, reduced cost and longer lifespan.
• Dr Bhavesh Khatri – improve understanding of the pharmaceutical properties of natural peptides, including from venom of cone snails, for potential therapeutics.
• Dr Min Liu – develop technologies for direct air capture of carbon dioxide to help reduce emissions.
• Dr James Orr –investigate how the timing of antibiotics and viruses impacts the ecology of bacterial communities and the evolution of antimicrobial resistance.
• Dr Cassandra Pattinson – improve understanding on the impact of artificial and environmental light on children’s sleep, cognitive function and wellbeing.
• Dr Ruihong Qiu – develop dynamic machine learning technology to support user decision-making on platforms such as e-commerce websites.
• Dr Hema Preya Selvanathan – investigate the phenomenon and impact of everyday resistance – when individuals routinely and quietly oppose injustices in daily life.
• Dr Zhigang Yu – strengthen understanding of antimicrobial resistance in water-borne pathogens and develop technology to reduce contamination in urban water systems.
• Dr Junliang Yu – develop processes to improve the efficiency of recommender systems which analyse large datasets.
• Dr Xueqin Zhang – enhance understanding of global methane emissions and their contribution to climate change.  
• Dr Qiuda Zheng – develop wastewater analysis and human biomonitoring methods to evaluate vaping patterns within communities and shape policies. 

The UQ researchers are among 200 recipients awarded more than $92.9 million through the DECRA scheme.