The Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC) invites you to participate in a short survey about your
interaction with the ARDC and use of our national research infrastructure and services. The survey will take
approximately 5 minutes and is anonymous. It’s open to anyone who uses our digital research infrastructure
services including Reasearch Link Australia.
We will use the information you provide to improve the national research infrastructure and services we
deliver and to report on user satisfaction to the Australian Government’s National Collaborative Research
Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS) program.
Please take a few minutes to provide your input. The survey closes COB Friday 29 May 2026.
Complete the 5 min survey now by clicking on the link below.
Towards sustainable bioproduction systems: harnessing organic nitrogen for plant growth. It is of great concern that over 50% of nitrogen fertiliser applied to crops is lost to the environment, resulting in a large environmental footprint and greenhouse gas emission. Future farming systems have to reduce nitrogen fertiliser use but this threatens crop and biofuel production. Alternatives to man-made nitrogen fertilisers are crop residues and organic materials which are more stable in soils but l ....Towards sustainable bioproduction systems: harnessing organic nitrogen for plant growth. It is of great concern that over 50% of nitrogen fertiliser applied to crops is lost to the environment, resulting in a large environmental footprint and greenhouse gas emission. Future farming systems have to reduce nitrogen fertiliser use but this threatens crop and biofuel production. Alternatives to man-made nitrogen fertilisers are crop residues and organic materials which are more stable in soils but less available to plants. How plants can best access organic nitrogen will be explored, based on our recent discovery that plants can use protein as a nitrogen source for growth. The project will produce essential knowledge for nitrogen-efficient bioproduction.Read moreRead less
Community-level selection: Empirical tests in a microbial system. Given the profile of the question of community-level selection as a long-running controversy, the main benefit of the proposed work, which will critically test the idea in an empirical system, will be to increase recognition of Australia's position as a research nation in evolutionary biology. In exploring mechanisms of floc formation, a key component of wastewater treatment, the work will establish important foundations for impro ....Community-level selection: Empirical tests in a microbial system. Given the profile of the question of community-level selection as a long-running controversy, the main benefit of the proposed work, which will critically test the idea in an empirical system, will be to increase recognition of Australia's position as a research nation in evolutionary biology. In exploring mechanisms of floc formation, a key component of wastewater treatment, the work will establish important foundations for improving the efficiency of wastewater treatment. Improvement in performance of only a few percent will bring important economic savings. This is evidenced by recent commitment of >$US 230 billion to improving the efficiency of wastewater treatment in Germany, Italy and Spain over 5 years.Read moreRead less
Greenhouse gas emission from sugarcane and mangrove communities in coastal Queensland. Greenhouse gases threaten the global climate. Many estimates of vegetation as sinks and sources for greenhouse gases have a high degree of uncertainty. This project will generate important information about greenhouse gas emissions from Queensland coastal vegetation. Characterised by moist and nutrient rich conditions, sugarcane fields and mangrove ecosystems represent significant sources/sinks of potent green ....Greenhouse gas emission from sugarcane and mangrove communities in coastal Queensland. Greenhouse gases threaten the global climate. Many estimates of vegetation as sinks and sources for greenhouse gases have a high degree of uncertainty. This project will generate important information about greenhouse gas emissions from Queensland coastal vegetation. Characterised by moist and nutrient rich conditions, sugarcane fields and mangrove ecosystems represent significant sources/sinks of potent greenhouse gases nitrous oxide and methane. Sugarcane and mangroves exposed to different nutrient inputs will allow to (i) identify mechanisms of N2O and CH4 emission, (ii) model N2O and CH4 emissions under different nutrient and climate conditions, and (iii) control/reduce emissions by improving coastal ecosystem management.Read moreRead less
The ancient symbiosis of crayfish and temnocephalan flatworms in Australian freshwaters investigated using molecules, morphology and biogeography. Freshwater parastacid crayfish are widespread and diverse in Australia's freshwaters. Associated with them (living on external surfaces) since their origins on Gondwana are very many species of temnocephalan flatworms. We will elucidate the molecular, morphological and biogeographic history of this association which appears to be ancient and specific. ....The ancient symbiosis of crayfish and temnocephalan flatworms in Australian freshwaters investigated using molecules, morphology and biogeography. Freshwater parastacid crayfish are widespread and diverse in Australia's freshwaters. Associated with them (living on external surfaces) since their origins on Gondwana are very many species of temnocephalan flatworms. We will elucidate the molecular, morphological and biogeographic history of this association which appears to be ancient and specific. The study will shed light on Australia's biological links with New Zealand and South America. It will also use the association between crayfish and temnocephalans as a model to investigate general features of symbioses, including molecular and morphological evolutionary responses and phenomena such as host-switching and cospeciation.Read moreRead less
450 Million year history of plant gas exchange capacity and the role of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Our planet faces an increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide that is unprecedented in human history, but has occurred in ancient times. By studying the relationship between past changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide, plant gas exchange and climate we will gain powerful global insight into future scenarios of continental carbon and water fluxes. This global perspective is essential for Australia to a ....450 Million year history of plant gas exchange capacity and the role of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Our planet faces an increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide that is unprecedented in human history, but has occurred in ancient times. By studying the relationship between past changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide, plant gas exchange and climate we will gain powerful global insight into future scenarios of continental carbon and water fluxes. This global perspective is essential for Australia to assess its vulnerability to global climate change in relation to other nations, thereby informing national planning of landscape resource use, including primary industry, water infrastructure and carbon trading.Read moreRead less
Interactive effects of salinity and nutrients: linking physiological processes with patterns in mangrove forest productivity. The proposed research will provide insight into physiological mechanisms that underpin mangrove productivity along salinity and aridity gradients, and determine how these factors affect plant responses to nutrient enrichment. Plant traits that increase salt and drought tolerance will be identified, thereby assisting development of plant varieties suited to Australian cond ....Interactive effects of salinity and nutrients: linking physiological processes with patterns in mangrove forest productivity. The proposed research will provide insight into physiological mechanisms that underpin mangrove productivity along salinity and aridity gradients, and determine how these factors affect plant responses to nutrient enrichment. Plant traits that increase salt and drought tolerance will be identified, thereby assisting development of plant varieties suited to Australian conditions. The results will also contribute to development of process-based models to better manage mangrove resources with climate change and increasing nutrient influx from urban or agricultural activities. Such models are essential for managing mangrove productivity for sustainable fisheries, and protecting the ecological well being of the coastal zone.Read moreRead less
Salinity tolerance along an aridity gradient: linking physiological processes with morphological constraints on leaf function in mangroves. The proposed research will provide insight into the physiological and morphological features that control the productivity of mangrove forests across broad gradients in salinity and aridity. Central to this is this identification of plant traits that increase salt and drought tolerance, which will assist in the development of plant varieties suited to Austra ....Salinity tolerance along an aridity gradient: linking physiological processes with morphological constraints on leaf function in mangroves. The proposed research will provide insight into the physiological and morphological features that control the productivity of mangrove forests across broad gradients in salinity and aridity. Central to this is this identification of plant traits that increase salt and drought tolerance, which will assist in the development of plant varieties suited to Australian conditions. The results will also contribute to development of process-based models to better predict the response of mangrove vegetation to changing climate. A deep understanding of the processes that influence the growth and survival of mangroves is of fundamental importance to sustainable fisheries and protection of wildlife reliant on coastal ecosystems. Read moreRead less
The molecular biology and biochemistry of bacterial manganese oxidation. This project will further the understanding of bacterial manganese (Mn2+) oxidation. A multi-disciplinary approach will be used to further investigate the genetics and biochemistry of the Mn2+-oxidising systems of Pseudomonas putida, Leptothrix sp. and Pedomicrobium sp. This work will focus in particular on comparing the Mn2+-oxidising systems from unrelated bacteria. A combination of molecular biology, protein biochemis ....The molecular biology and biochemistry of bacterial manganese oxidation. This project will further the understanding of bacterial manganese (Mn2+) oxidation. A multi-disciplinary approach will be used to further investigate the genetics and biochemistry of the Mn2+-oxidising systems of Pseudomonas putida, Leptothrix sp. and Pedomicrobium sp. This work will focus in particular on comparing the Mn2+-oxidising systems from unrelated bacteria. A combination of molecular biology, protein biochemistry and spectroscopy will be used. This will be the first time that the enzymes of bacterial Mn2+-oxidation will have been characterised in such detail and will lead to a greater understanding of the process of bacterial manganese oxidation.Read moreRead less
Eco-Turf: Water and nutrient use efficient turfgrasses from Australian biodiversity. Domestic water consumption in Australia is approximately 30% higher than the OECD average. Approximately one third of domestic water consumption is applied to the garden, including turfgrass lawns. Turfgrasses are significant users of fertilisers, which can lead to problems with runoff and infiltration into the water table. We will use the unique diversity of Australian couch grasses to identify new turfs for ....Eco-Turf: Water and nutrient use efficient turfgrasses from Australian biodiversity. Domestic water consumption in Australia is approximately 30% higher than the OECD average. Approximately one third of domestic water consumption is applied to the garden, including turfgrass lawns. Turfgrasses are significant users of fertilisers, which can lead to problems with runoff and infiltration into the water table. We will use the unique diversity of Australian couch grasses to identify new turfs for domestic, sportsground and amenity lawns. This project will develop tools to select turfgrasses that maintain quality with reduced inputs of water and nutrients, leading to an overall reduction in resource use and downstream ecological effects. Benefits of this project extend to urban and rural communities Australia-wide.Read moreRead less
Directed evolution of enzymes for bioremediation: structure function studies of bimetalloenzymes. We will evolve enzymes that degrade organophosphate pesticides (OPs) that are used in Australian agriculture. Although these OPs were designed to kill insects they are closely related to chemical warfare agents and are known to be toxic to humans. Bacteria have acquired a number of enzymes that degrade some OPs. One such enzyme has been used in field trials demonstrating its potential to degrade OP ....Directed evolution of enzymes for bioremediation: structure function studies of bimetalloenzymes. We will evolve enzymes that degrade organophosphate pesticides (OPs) that are used in Australian agriculture. Although these OPs were designed to kill insects they are closely related to chemical warfare agents and are known to be toxic to humans. Bacteria have acquired a number of enzymes that degrade some OPs. One such enzyme has been used in field trials demonstrating its potential to degrade OP residues. However, many pesticides are not removed rapidly and OP-degrading enzymes require modification(s) if they are to be useful environmental reagents - this can be achieved with directed evolution. Read moreRead less