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Professor Yasmina Sultanbawa's research is focused within the agribusiness development framework, specifically in the area of food processing, preservation, food safety and nutrition. Her current research includes the minimisation of post harvest losses through value addition and the search for natural preservatives to replace current synthetic chemicals. In addition, her research area also includes the challenge of nutrition security, in particular micronutrient deficiency (hidden hunger), lack of diet diversity and nutritional losses in the food supply chain, which are addressed by her work with underutilized Australian plant species and potential new crops. Her work on Australian native plant foods is focused on incorporation of these plants in mainstream agriculture and diet diversification Working with indigenous communities to develop nutritious and sustainable value added products from native plants for use in the food, feed, cosmetic and health care industries is a key strategy. The creation of employment, economic and social benefits to these remote communities is an anticipated outcome. She considers it a privilege to engage with these communities and is very passionate that her work will have a positive socio-economic impact.

Research Focus

• Functional ingredients (natural additives)

Functional food/feed/nutraceutical ingredients with enhanced nutritional and phytochemical profiles are obtained from specialty crops (Australian native plant foods) and industry co/by-products. Natural additives are obtained from raw materials of vegetable, fruit, herbs/spices or microbiological origin. An example is plant extracts which can provide e.g. antioxidants, shelf-life extension (natural antimicrobials), trace-nutrients (vitamins/ minerals) and novel flavours. Innovative technology solutions

• Novel packaging systems

Development of active, biodegradable packaging material with natural additives for shelf life extension, smart packaging with nanosensors for the effective detection of food contaminants, microperforated packaging systems with optimised modified atmospheres for fresh foods and high barrier packaging material for herbs and spices are practical objectives of her research. Engineered nano-delivery systems for plant bioactives Develop nano-platforms for targeted delivery and controlled release of plant bioactives including antioxidant and antimicrobial products, through testing of in vitro activities and shelf life under various conditions.

• Photodynamic treatment

Photodynamic treatment or photosensitization is a novel light and photo dye based approach which offers promising alternatives to conventional methods for the control of microorganisms. Plant bioactives such as curcumin has been successfully used to control mycrotoxigenic fungi. This technology has potential as a decontamination tool to reduce the microbial load in food and feed.

• Food safety

Her research focus in this field includes intervention strategies to inhibit and prevent food-borne pathogens and spoilage organisms in fresh food and beverages, elucidating mechanisms of antimicrobial action, shelf-life extension with natural antimicrobials, retaining bioactivity during processing and storage, search for natural inhibitors from Australian native plants, use of bioactive honey from Leptospermum polygalifolium (Jelly bush) in treating microbial wound infections.

Dr Hongfu Sun completed his PhD in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Alberta in 2015, followed by postdoctoral training in Calgary until 2018. He joined the Imaging, Sensing and Biomedical Engineering team in the School of ITEE at UQ in 2019 and was awarded the ARC DECRA fellowship in 2021. His research interests include developing novel magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast mechanisms, e.g. Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping (QSM), fast and multi-parametric MRI acquisitions, and advanced image reconstruction techniques, including deep learning and artificial intelligence, to advance medical imaging techniques for clinical applications.

Dr Sun is currently recruiting graduate students. Check out Available Projects for details. Open to both Domestic and International students.

Dr Sun’s research addresses tourism sustainability, focusing on economic impacts and environmental footprinting. Her work on tourism economic impacts is to use the input-output modelling to provide quantitative estimates on jobs, income and GDP with respect to changes in national tourism policy, market development or special events and disasters. In addition, she also works on the environmental perspectives of travel behaviour, quantifying the tourism carbon footprint and tourism water footprint. She successfully constructed and analysed tourism impacts for individual countries (Taiwan, China, Japan, United States, and New Zealand) and provided the first detailed estimate of the global travel impact on greenhouse gas emissions.

She worked closely with federal and local administers, including Statistics Norway, Indonesia Ministry of Finance, Taiwan Ministry of the Interior Construction Agency, Taiwan Forestry Bureau, and the US National Park Service. Her research projects include cases with national tourism carbon emission inventory, tourism employment vulnerability, tourism marketing programs, and national park management.

Dr Sun has published in top academic journals including Nature Climate Change, Tourism Management, Journal of Travel Research and Journal of Sustainable Tourism. Before joining UQ from Taiwan in 2018, She had 9 consecutive research projects with the Taiwan Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) (equivalence to Australia Research Council), and 4 governmental grants. Dr Sun is currently the lead CI of the ARC Discovery Project that will set up the global tourism carbon emissions database and identify enablers for tourism decarbonization.

Dr Kaige Sun is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at ARC Centre of Excellence for Green Electrochemical Transformation of Carbon Dioxide (GETCO2) and UQ Dow Centre for Sustainable Engineering Innovation at The University of Queensland. He received his PhD degree in Chemical Engineering from The University of Queensland, where his research focused on electrochemical ion separation and selectivity. His current main research interests centre on green electrochemical techniques for energy and environmental applications, such as electrochemical CO2 capture and conversion, electrochemical deionization, and the development of advanced biomass-derived electroactive materials. To date, he has published over 27 peer-reviewed publications in Nature indexed/top-tier journals, including Advanced Functional Materials, Advanced Energy Materials, Advanced Materials, Environmental Science & Technology, Chemical Reviews, etc.

Topics related to current research interests:

1. Energy-efficient electrochemical CO2 capture and direct air capture

2. Tailoring microenvironment for electrocatalytic CO2 reduction to valuable chemicals

3. Electrochemical ion separation and recovery

4. High-value utilization of biomass to electroactive materials

Tianze is a Research Fellow and an emerging leader in the field of youth substance use, with expertise in youth vaping, emerging nicotine products and the influence of digital platforms on healtth. She currently leads 2 major research programs focused on monitoring emerging nicotine trends and developing vaping prevention approaches for young people at the National Centre for Youth Substance Use Research (NCYSUR), School of Psychology, The University of Queensland. Her research combines digital surveillance, social media data analysis, epidemiological methods, co-design with young people, and novel technologies to support faster and more effective public health responses. She is ranked among the top 1% of e-cigarette researchers worldwide and have authored over 50 peer-reviewed publications (15 first/senior, 18 second author), with 90% in Q1 journals (e.g., JAMA Pediatrics, Addiction). Her work has informed reports, recommendations, and policy discussions by the WHO, UNESCO, Australian governments, and parliamentary inquiries. Her expertise has led to invitations from Queensland schools to deliver vaping prevention presentations to over 8,000 students, partnerships with community organisations for co-designing vaping prevention materials and live interviews on ABC radio and international shows like the Mike Hosking Breakfast Show.

She works with an exceptionally talented team of researchers from various disciplines and is always keen to work with motivated students and collaborators who share her passions.

Associate Professor Peter Sutton's research interests are in Engineering Education, Embedded Computing Systems and Reconfigurable Computing

Associate Professor Peter Sutton has worked, studied and taught in the area of computer systems since completing his undergraduate studies in 1990. His particular research interests are in Engineering Education, Embedded System Design Software, Electronic Design Automation, and Reconfigurable Computing Systems.

Matt Sutton is a statistician and Bayesian computation researcher specialising in advanced Monte Carlo methods for complex and high-dimensional models. Currently a lecturer in mathematics and statistics at the University of Queensland, he develops new approaches to scalable Bayesian inference through piecewise deterministic Markov processes (PDMPs) and related non-reversible algorithms.

He holds an ARC DECRA fellowship on Scalable Bayesian inference for secure and reliable decision making and is a Chief Investigator on the ARC Discovery Project Fixing the holes in Bayesian model comparison. His research focuses on enhancing the efficiency and reliability of simulation-based inference by leveraging continuous-time dynamics, gradient-driven sampling, and robust model comparison methods for modern Bayesian computation.

I am a computational biologist specialising in the integration of multi-omics data to study rheumatoid arthritis (RA). My research combines clinical data, serum proteomics, single-cell transcriptomics, and spatial transcriptomics to understand disease progression, patient trajectories, and flare events.

I am particularly interested in the immune landscape of synovial tissue and how spatial organisation of immune and stromal cells contributes to inflammation and remission. Through advanced statistical modelling and machine learning, including clustering and trajectory inference, I aim to identify predictors of flare and uncover mechanisms that drive differences in patient outcomes.

Alongside my work in RA, I also investigate the link between systemic inflammation and cardiovascular disease, applying spatial, single-cell transcriptomics, proteomics and bioinformatics approaches to explore how chronic inflammation contributes to cardiac dysfunction.

The overarching goal of my research is to improve early prediction of disease trajectories, support personalised management strategies, and contribute to the development of targeted therapies for patients with RA.

Dr Kamila Svobodova is a Senior Research Fellow at the Sustainable Minerals Institute. Her work focuses on the social and ecological dimensions of mining, mine closure and regional transitions, combining expertise in social science, spatial planning and landscape ecology. Her research explores how mining and energy transitions reshape landscapes, communities and governance systems. Using systems thinking, spatial analysis and participatory approaches, she works to support more inclusive and sustainable land-use decision-making in mining-affected regions.

Key areas of expertise include:

• Mine closure and post-mining transitions
• Spatial planning and regional development
• Participatory mapping, GIS and spatial modelling
• Community participation and stakeholder engagement
• Cultural ecosystem services and place attachment
• Resource governance and spatial justice

Kamila has more than 20 years of international experience across academia, consultancy and private sector in Europe and Australia. She has contributed to major interdisciplinary research initiatives, including the EU-funded CESMINE project and applied projects within the Sustainable Minerals Institute focused on social aspects of mine closure and complex ore bodies.

Her work integrates qualitative and quantitative methods to inform policy and practice for government, industry and communities navigating environmental and demographic change in resource regions. Kamila also contributes to international scholarship through editorial roles with journals including Ambio and Landscape and Urban Planning.

Dr Sarah Sweet's research interests are in astrophysics, in the field of galaxy evolution. She received her PhD from the University of Queensland in 2014. Dr Sweet then worked at the Australian National University and at Swinburne University of Technology, before returning to UQ as a Lecturer in Astrophysics in 2020. She was awarded an Australian Research Council DECRA Fellowship in 2022 and became a Senior Lecturer in 2023.