Monthly Archives: August 2018

News

Australian Museum Eureka Prizes

Comment

A number of our Precinct Partners were represented in the teams and individuals shortlisted as finalists this year, including Associate Professor Alan Duffy from Swinburne University of Technology who took home the 2018 Celestino Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Science.

Presented on 29 August 2018, the annual Australian Museum Eureka Prizes reward excellence in the fields of research & innovation, leadership, science engagement and school science.

Congratulations to Associate Professor Alan Duffy, as well as the other Melbourne Biomedical Precinct finalists:

Associate Professor Alan Duffy
Winner of the Celestino Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Science
Associate Professor Alan Duffy is a regular and recognisable personality in the Australian media, promoting science to all Australians. Through a combination of mainstream and social media channels, he has demonstrated that astrophysics can stand alongside sport or business as a news segment, making science a part of everyday life.

 

The Biopen Team
Finalist for the UNSW Eureka Prize for Excellence in Interdisciplinary Scientific Research
A multidisciplinary team of scientists, engineers and clinicians has produced the ‘Biopen’, a handheld 3D printer that can be used in surgery to repair damaged cartilage. The technology was developed with a view to preventing osteoarthritis, a debilitating and painful condition that affects over 1 million Australians.

 

Dr Jason Brouwer
Finalist for the 3M Eureka Prize for Emerging Leader in Science
The Walter and Eliza Hall Institutes’s Dr Jason Brouwer is a structural biologist committed to making science and scientific institutions more accessible and accountable to all Australians. He has made contributions to gender equality and reconciliation initiatives, and endeavours to progress the social landscape within science and beyond.

 

Jo Chandler
Finalist for the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science Eureka Prize for Science Journalism
Thirty years after the world launched a campaign to wipe out polio, the virus clings on in some of the most dangerous corners of the planet. Extremist groups are preventing the polio vaccine from reaching children, creating a possible lifeline for the disease to rise again. In Amid Fear and Guns, Polio Finds a Refuge, Jo Chandler investigates from the frontline of Northern Nigeria. (Commissioned and published by Undark.org, 16 October 2017)

News

Land Use Framework Plan for the Melbourne Biomedical Precinct – Project Update

Comment

The Victorian Planning Authority (VPA) has released a project update regarding its work to develop a land use framework plan for the Parkville National Employment & Innovation Cluster (NEIC).

The VPA is working with the Melbourne Biomedical Precinct Office, City of Melbourne and government agencies to prepare the Parkville NEIC Framework Plan.

The VPA has released a project update which provides an overview of what has been learned since the project commenced in July 2017, including the stakeholders engaged thus far, how the Framework Plan relates to the Victorian Government’s 10-year strategic plan for the Melbourne Biomedical Precinct and the City of Melbourne’s work on the Melbourne Innovation Districts.

It also includes more information about the timelines for project timeline for the development of a draft plan for consultation (expected in early to mid 2019).

You can download the project update here.

You can read the Victorian Planning Authority’s work on the Parkville National Employment and Innovation Cluster here.

 

Media contact: Julie Browning 0419 003 063

News

Building international partnerships – Sky Gross and Nathan Elia visit Melbourne

We were delighted to introduce Nathan Elia and Dr Sky Gross to the Precinct in July when they visited Melbourne for a series of meetings, workshops and presentations with government, industry and Precinct Partners

Nathan is the Victorian Government’s Investment & Trade Director in Boston, where he focuses on biotechnology, life sciences, medical R&D and tech. Sky is the inaugural Biomedical Director at Victoria’s new trade and investment office in Tel Aviv and will be instrumental in not only building relationships between here and Israel, but also in facilitating a more commercial approach to the translation of our research.

Sky and Nathan met with more than 100 people during their visit and were both impressed with the breadth of experience and talent in the Precinct, and the world-class work we are doing here.

“There’s no doubt about the exceptional calibre of the work and people within this precinct, who are all united in creating better patient outcomes. What we now need to foster is a better relationships internationally and with industry to ensure not only patient success, but commercial success. Israel is the world’s leader in this regard and now I’ve seen first-hand the Precinct at work here, I think there are significant opportunities for growth,” Sky said.

Thanks to all those who gave of their time so generously to meet with Sky, Nathan and our team during their visit.