Two finalists from Griffith University have been announced as nominees in the prestigious 2022 Australian Museum Eureka Prizes.
Associate Professor Md Sayed Iftekhar, PhD candidate Kelsey Chapman and The Dignity Project team are among the 45 finalists from across Australia.
Associate Professor Md Sayed Iftekhar
Assoc Prof Iftekhar’s Investment Framework For the Economics of Water Sensitive Cities (INFFEWS), a joint venture with The University of Western Australia and an output of the Cooperative Research Centre for Water Sensitive Cities, has been named as a finalist for the NSW Environment and Heritage Eureka Prize for Applied Environmental Research.
“The project focuses on integrating nature-based water management systems into urban design which has many social and environmental benefits for the community,” Assoc Prof Iftekhar said.
“Such benefits are often overlooked when projects are evaluated for funding because financial impacts are prioritised.
“INFFEWS changes this by providing comprehensive social, environmental and financial evaluation for balanced decisions.
“Essentially, it is a one-stop integrated decision support framework for investment in water sensitive cities projects.”
PhD candidate Kelsey Chapman
Ms Chapman leads The Dignity Project, nominated in the Science Engagement category, an online citizen science platform created by — and for — people with disability to help address challenges in healthcare and social services.
“For people with disability and impairment, every experience is different, so it’s important to us to collaborate with citizen scientists at all phases of the project, not just at data collection,” she said.
“It’s asking people about their experiences, of dignity and of violations of dignity, in their everyday life, sharing those experiences with us, and also sharing the methods that they believe we can use to increase dignity experiences across all spheres.
“It’s understanding what dignity means and looking to challenge economic, environmental and attitudinal barriers so that we can produce real change through our research.”
The project is a joint initiative of Griffith University, Menzies Health Institute Queensland and Metro South Health.
The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony on Wednesday 31 August featuring four categories including excellence in Research and Innovation, Leadership, Science Engagement and School Science.
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