Dr Annie Colebatch was awarded The J G Russell Award in 2020 for her research activity. Dr Colebatch's research focuses on using liquid organic hydrogen carriers (LOHCs), which can release energy on demand and be "refuelled", to meet the challenge of clean energy. She will use the award to purchase a second pressure reactor to facilitate multiple students conducting experiments concurrently, allowing flexibility in project design and improving productivity.

This award is valued at $7,000 each and is supported by the generosity of the late Miss J Russell.

Congratulations to Professor Michelle Coote on being awarded the Vice-Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Research.

Professor Michelle Coote is an ARC Laureate Fellow who has made sustained contributions to chemistry at the highest level, and is also recognised for her contributions to the profession and to advancing equity and diversity in STEM.

Her research, which spans both computational and experimental chemistry, can be summarised in two broad areas: polymer chemistry and synthetic method development.

She is a fellow of the Australian Academy of Science, has received numerous national and international numerous awards including every major research award of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute, and has published 270 research publications (1/3 in the last 5 years) that have attracted over 8500 citations at an h-index of 52.

She is best known for her contributions to the polymer field; materials which now dominate every aspect of our lives.

Her more recent research has focussed on changing the way in which chemical reactions are triggered. They are usually driven by heat in conjunction with expensive (and often toxic) catalysts to lower the energy requirements.

Michelle's recent work has focussed on harnessing alternative drivers of chemical reactions (electricity, light and mechanical force). For instance, she has recently shown that charged groups can be used to selectively manipulate photochemical processes, developed a new safe methylation technique based on electrochemistry, and provided the first demonstration that electric fields can catalyse chemical reactions. In the latter case, her 2016 Nature paper is already cited more than 160 times and has sparked a new field of research.

Associate Professor Luke Connal was awarded the Grimwade Prize in Industrial Chemistry.

In 1906 Frederick Sheppard Grimwade presented a prize of one thousand pounds to the University for the promotion of the study of Industrial Chemistry. Eligible candidates consist of undergraduates, graduates of the University of Melbourne and graduates from other tertiary institution whose degrees are recognised by the Faculty of Science. Candidates must have spent at least three terms in study or research in a laboratory or laboratories of the University of Melbourne. A candidate should submit an original thesis within 5 years of completion, embodying the results of an investigation pursued by the candidate in Victoria, in connection with some branch of industrial chemistry (in a subject approved by the Faculty). The committee for the Grimwade Prize consists of the Head of the School of Chemistry and one or more members appointed annually by the Faculty of Science.

Congratulations to Dr Christoph Nitsche on being awarded the ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award.

The DECRA scheme is a separate element of the Discovery Program. The DECRA scheme provides focused research support for early career researchers in both teaching and research, and research-only positions

Dr Lara Malins was awarded the ACT Young Tall Poppy Award for her research which aims to unlock peptides and proteins for their therapeutic potential.