Science at the Shine Dome 2012

Early-career researchers program

The Academy is offering a special program for early career researchers (ECRs), outlined below, in conjunction with Science at the Shine Dome. Those who attend will:

• learn about the latest research across a range of science disciplines
• meet and exchange ideas with renowned scientists, science teachers and other ECRs
• participate in career development workshops.

The CSIRO, CRCs, universities and other research organisations have been invited to send representatives.

The 3-day registration fee of $495 a person includes:

• new Fellows seminar (Wednesday 2 May)
• informal dinner for ECRs and teachers (Wednesday 2 May)
• admission of new Fellows and awards presentations (Thursday 3 May)
• one (1) of the workshops as noted below (Thursday 3 May)
• annual dinner at the National Gallery of Australia (Thursday 3 May)
• annual symposium - 100 years of Antarctic Science (Friday 4 May)
• morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea, Wednesday to Friday inclusive
• a folder containing program information for Science at the Shine Dome, biographical information about other ECRs attending, and notes for your selected ECR workshop

Workshop 1

Title: Media and communicating science

Presenter:

Dr Paul Willis
Director, RiAus

RiAus Director Dr Paul Willis is well-known as a science broadcaster with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, presenting and producing on ABC television science shows including Quantum and Catalyst.
Paul is passionate about informing, educating and amusing people of all ages and backgrounds about science and is keen to seize the opportunity to talk about science in a variety of public forums. He was rewarded for his passion in 2000 when he was joint recipient of the Eureka Prize for Science Communication.

Dr Willis brings a solid research career in vertebrate palaeontology to his work as a science communicator and now as Director of RiAus. He has produced many academic reports and papers, has authored or co-authored seven books on dinosaurs, rocks and fossils, and has written many popular science articles for a variety of publications.

Paul was the resident palaeontologist on seven Antarctic expeditions and brings this enthusiasm and keen sense of adventure to his role as Director of RiAus. He is ready and willing to engage with non-scientists and to stimulate community conversations about science, life, and everything.

Workshop 2

Title: Successful scientific collaborations

Presenters:

Dr Manuel Ferreira
Senior Research Fellow
Genetic Epidemiology
Queensland Institute of Medical Research

Dr Andrew Hogg
Research Fellow
Geophysical Fluid Dynamics
Research School of Earth Sciences
Australian National University

Sharing expertise, results or data has become a key component of a successful career in science. However, initiating and maintaining productive collaborations is not always easy. In this workshop, we will identify and discuss issues that often affect whether these collaborations succeed - things like communication skills, data sharing and publication policies. Participants will be encouraged to share their own experiences and highlight challenging areas. The aim of the workshop is to provide participants with an understanding of different collaborative strategies and the confidence to embark on new collaborations.

The workshop will consist of brief presentations, brainstorming activities in small groups, and open discussions.

Workshop 3

Title: Grant writing skills – getting your research ideas funded

Presenters:

Professor Tanya Monro
ARC Federation Fellow
Director – Institute for Photonics and Advanced Sensing
Director – Centre of Expertise in Photonics
School of Chemistry and Physics
University of Adelaide

Professor Katharina Gaus
NHMRC Senior Research Fellow
Centre for Vascular Research
University of New South Wales

The aim of this workshop is to develop more effective approaches to getting your research funded. We will explore strategies for pitching your research ideas and see what happens when grants are assessed. Research can be funded in many ways, and this workshop will share insight into successful approaches to diversifying funding sources. In addition, we will provide tips to assist with grantsmanship for the conventional ARC and NHMRC funding schemes, and there will be opportunities to share insights with other participants as well as to learn success strategies from the facilitators. Other topics to be covered include the role of mentoring and senior researchers in funding success for early to mid-career researchers, and approaches to building a successful career and research team via fellowship and other grant funding schemes.