Proudly announcing our 2025 Student Awardees!
July 22, 2025
Eighteen talented university students from around Australia have been awarded our highly sought after 2025 Student Awards. The Student Awards, offered by our State and Territory Committees, are part of our NextGen program to support and encourage young people in studies, careers and volunteering in international agricultural research and development. The successful applicants have the opportunity to experience international agricultural research and development first-hand.
This year, our students come from an increasingly diverse number of universities, including the Australian National University, University of New England, University of New South Wales, University of Sydney, Charles Darwin University, University of Sunshine Coast, James Cook University, University of Queensland, Queensland University of Technology, University of Adelaide, University of Tasmania, La Trobe University, University of Western Australia and Murdoch University.
They will be carrying out research across a diverse range of topics focused in Bhutan, Cambodia, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Laos, Mauritius, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka, Timor-Leste, The Philippines and Vietnam.
These awards not only allow students to travel overseas and experience different cultures and research environments, they also present opportunities for collaborating and networking. These awards largely exist because of connections between Australian researchers and organisations with their counterparts globally.
Thank you once again to all the university supervisors and project leaders at home and at collaborating institutions overseas, who make it possible for these awards to take place.
We are also so lucky that there is a strong network of organisations with which the students connect for their research. This year we wish to thank the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research, South Asia Institute for Advanced Studies (SIAS), Palawan State University (PSU), National Fisheries Authority PNG, The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, Griffith University, Agusan del Sur State College of Agriculture, Technology University of Southern Mindanao, AgCoTech, Laos Buffalo Dairy, Royal University of Agriculture, Cambodia, CGIAR, WorldFish, TERN, PHAMA Plus, Future Food Systems CRC, Bogor Agricultural University (IPB), Central Queensland University, Research Institute for Aquaculture No.2 (RIA2)-National Breeding Centre for Southern Freshwater Aquaculture, SHELLFISH Marine Invertebrate Small-Scale Fisheries in Timor-Leste (French Institute of International Development and WorldFish Timor-Leste), Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya (UBKV), (North Bengal Agricultural University), Blue Resources Trust, Kalkudah, Sri Lanka, University of Nottingham, the World Vegetable Centre, University of Mauritius and Royal University of Bhutan.
We look forward to sharing the experiences of our awardees with you, and we wish them well in their travels and studies.
Congratulations to our 2025 Student Award Recipients!
Australian Capital Territory
Ananda Devkota, Australian National University
Location/Focus: Nepal
Research: Rural Livelihoods and Vulnerability to Environmental and Socio-economic Change: A Case of High-Value Agriculture Communities in the Middle Hills of Nepal
Other collaborating institutions: South Asia Institute for Advanced Studies (SIAS)
Maria Noriza Herrera, Australian National University
Location/Focus: Philippines
Research: Socio-ecological assessment of the seaweed farming communities in Palawan, Philippines
Other collaborating institutions: Palawan State University (PSU)
New South Wales
Melissa Abdallah, University of New South Wales
Location/Focus: Papua New Guinea
Research: Developing a sustainable cage farming model in reservoirs using isotopic and nuclear data to enhance inland fish farming in Papua New Guinea
Other collaborating institutions: ACIAR (FIS/2018/154), National Fisheries Authority PNG, The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO)
Brianna Biddle, University of New England
Location/Focus: Philippines
Research: Developing soil knowledge, information and capacity to improve the productivity and sustainability of key cropping systems in Philippines
Other collaborating institutions: ACIAR (SLaM 2023/146), Griffith University, Agusan del Sur State College of Agriculture, Technology University of Southern Mindanao.
Isabelle Clift, University of Sydney
Location/Focus: Laos
Research: Investigating the impact of Emission Control Blocks on Production and Enteric Methane Emissions in Dairy Buffalo
Other collaborating institutions: ACIAR (AH/2012/068), AgCoTech, Laos Buffalo Dairy
Rosa Ratha, University of Sydney
Location/Focus: Cambodia
Research: Identifying Smallholder Farmers’ Challenges and Gender Roles in Adopting Vegetable Farm Mechanisation Technology
Other collaborating institutions: ACIAR (CROP/2023/129), Royal University of Agriculture, Cambodia
Northern Territory
Madeline Goddard, Charles Darwin University
Location/Focus: Timor-Leste
Research: Enhancing regional capacity for assessing mangroves resilience sea-level rise in Timor-Leste and the implications for fisheries and Blue Carbon
Other collaborating institutions: CGIAR, WorldFish, TERN
Queensland
Hannah Churton, Queensland University of Technology
Location/Focus: Fiji
Research: Policy Pathways for Place-Based Horticultural Value Addition in the Pacific: A Fiji Case Study.
Other collaborating institutions: PHAMA Plus, Future Food Systems CRC
Rebecca Cotton, University of Queensland
Location/Focus: Indonesia
Research: Co-designing performance indicators with research team members and dairy cooperatives for their smallholder dairy farmers
Other collaborating institutions: ACIAR (AGB/2021/124), Bogor Agricultural University (IPB), Central Queensland University
Thi Mai Huong Tran, University of the Sunshine Coast
Location/Focus: Vietnam
Research: Genetics and Genomics in giant freshwater prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii)
Other collaborating institutions: Research Institute for Aquaculture No.2 (RIA2)-National Breeding Centre for Southern Freshwater Aquaculture
Benedetta Longoni, James Cook University
Location/Focus: Timor-Leste
Research: Understanding Dry-Season Variability in Invertebrate SSF: Supporting Food Security and Capacity Building
Other collaborating institutions: SHELLFISH Marine Invertebrate Small-Scale Fisheries in Timor-Leste: Monitoring, Management and Sustainability (ID 101026000). SHELLFISH is a collaborative project between the French Institute of International Development (IRD) and WorldFish Timor-Leste.
South Australia
Alex Karami, University of Adelaide
Location/Focus: India
Research: Enhancing Sustainable Goat Nutrition through Duckweed-Based Feed Systems in Climate-Vulnerable Regions of India
Other collaborating institutions: ACIAR (WAC/2020/148), Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya (UBKV), (North Bengal Agricultural University)
Tasmania
Zoe Witkowski, University of Tasmania
Location/Focus: Sri Lanka
Research: Sri Lanka Elasmobranch Project – to better understand the magnitude and composition of fishery landing sites on the east and west coasts of Sri Lanka, and how they change over time.
Other collaborating institutions: Blue Resources Trust, Kalkudah, Sri Lanka
Victoria
Joanne Bell, La Trobe University
Location/Focus: Philippines
Research: Informal fruit and vegetable markets in Low middle Income countries (LMICs): Consumer behaviour and food security for low-income urban households
Other collaborating institutions: ACIAR (HORT/2023/147)
Niamh Ritman, La Trobe University
Location/Focus:
Research: Computer Tomography (CT) scanning to uncover the soil compaction response of Themeda triandra, a perennial tussock grass endemic to Africa, Australia and Asia.
Other collaborating institutions: University of Nottingham
Jayde Evison-Rose, La Trobe University
Location/Focus: Philippines
Research: How do gendered social norms influence women’s food related decision-making in urban agri-food systems in the Philippines?
Other collaborating institutions: ACIAR (HORT/2023/147), World Vegetable Centre
Western Australia
Jemma Thévenau, University of Western Australia
Location/Focus: Mauritius
Research: Understanding of the role of subjective wellbeing on non-compliant behaviours in small-scale fisheries
Other collaborating institutions: University of Mauritius
Ugyen Yangchen, Murdoch University
Location/Focus: Bhutan
Research: Evaluation of transition to organic agriculture in Bhutan: Farmers’ readiness, consumer preferences and institutional support
Other collaborating institutions: Royal University of Bhutan
