Research is for Everyone
A very successful conference
In a lofty space, naturally framed by timber beams – better known as the Kambri Superfloor, a cohort of intelligent and passionate students at the Australian National University came together to present their coursework research in front of a welcoming audience of staff, students, and community members. This was the scene of the much-anticipated 2024 Student Research Conference.
As an interdisciplinary conference, student presentations ranged from green space planning in Singapore and the application of lasers for mineral processing, to questions of dominance between large and small fish – and that was only the morning. The confident presenters supported one another throughout the day and handled exceptionally tricky questions from the audience and judges with the ease that comes from knowing your topic expertly.
Prof. Matt Tomlinson’s Keynote Address about the value of the experience of pursuing research inspired the audience to consider how research opportunities can be shape who you are, how you impact the world, and how you continue to learn throughout your life. In partnership with Immersia 2024 – organised by Prof. Tomlinson’s very own School of Culture, History and Language, the conference welcomed a Garba dance workshop by ACT Desi in the afternoon that had adults and children alike twirling, stepping, and clapping!
The speed-round of poster presentations after the Keynote Address saw highlights from posters about Australian involvement in the Spanish Civil War, advances in gender equality in the pacific and literary awards, and electricity microgrids in rural Australian communities. Student presenters shone light on the issues and offered solutions for our collective future that would bring about a more peaceful and prosperous world. The influence of the pre-conference workshops was especially noticeable in the poster session with students having taken on board the advice of expert Three Minute Thesis trainer, Simon Clews, to present complex ideas in engaging ways in the three minutes allotted to each presentation.
Twinkling black holes started a session after lunch that took the audience from the depths of space to the pages of Irish literature and around the globe closer to home in the Pacific. The final session followed with discussions about Artificial Intelligence (AI), Japanese art, and ChatGPT, including important questions, e.g., Is AI good? While the student presenters did an amazing job, the incredible presentations are also the result of expert training by the Academic Skills team in collaboration with Student Life.
There are many people to thank for the success of the conference and its series of workshops. A big thanks to Lisa Kennedy and Sarah Walker for their support of the conference; to Dr Fern Hyde, Dr Jane McGettigan, and Simon Clews for their partnership to make the workshops a successful experience for the student presenters and other interested students who attended; to the wonderful abstract reviewers and judges – those who gave their time in service of this opportunity for our students and community; to the AMAZING Student Life team who gave their time to make the conference day run smoothly; to Dr Aunty Matilda House for her Welcome to Country; and, finally, to the Vice-Chancellor, Distinguished Professor Genevieve Bell, for presenting the awards to the winners of the six conference awards.
Congratulations to all of the student presenters and, additionally, to the winners of the 2024 Student Research Conference awards: Bianca Suarez, Alicia Fox, Ashley Hai Tung Tan, Hin Yeung Chu, Hyunbin Ryu, and Amelia Peardon.
Research is absolutely imperative to the betterment of society and our world. The ANU Student Research Conference is an insight into the creative solutions that can be proposed, discussed, and challenged by universities. We wish the very best to the 2024 student presenters and hope that their future research and the future and ongoing research at the ANU will drive the solutions to the issues and challenges faced in our world today and into tomorrow.
