Reflections on Professor Tim Fletcher’s Industry Laureate Fellowship Success
outside opinion; prof chris saint | may 2023
Outside Opinion is honoured to have supported Professor Tim Fletcher with his successful Industry Laureate Fellowship, announced last week. Our Senior Associate Professor Chris Saint, who provided the direct support for this application, writes:
Prof Chris Saint
“It was a pleasure working with Tim to finalise his submission for the inaugural Industry Laureate scheme. This was something of a new experience for all of us, as this is a new ARC scheme under the Linkage programme. With only half the space allowed for the project description compared to other ARC schemes the imperative was even more critical to spell out the significance of the proposed work and the ability of the applicant to get the job done. We found that some detail on the personnel and the structure of the project could be included under the budget section thus saving space in the main project description. Tim is someone who has a very high standard of achievement working with the water industry and when considering key determinants such as “engagement and impact” Tim has this is in spades. The ability to tell this sort of story will be important for success at any level of the Laureate scheme – it just needs to be appropriate and competitive for the particular stage of the applicant’s career. Assessors were fulsome in their praise for the project and the applicant, describing it as a “compelling and ambitious project” with real potential to make a “step-change in the Australian and international research landscape” and Tim himself as an “exceptional investigator with demonstrated ability to deliver a successful research legacy from ground-breaking research”. Strongly supportive comments around mentoring and capacity building were also noted and that the project was timely and should deliver lasting economic, commercial and environmental benefits.”
Image: Australian Research Council
Tim has fed back to OO that Chris’s support was vital, because in addition to knowing the water industry very well, he provided critical advice on how to structure the application to suit a variety of external audiences. It was a ready reminder that an assessment panel can be diverse, and it’s never safe to assume expert knowledge among the panel.
Many thanks to Tim and Chris for working so well as a team and we’re thrilled to see this worthy project funded.
Prof Christopher P. Saint has nearly 40 years postgraduate research experience in environmental science, specifically soil and water science focusing on microbiological and chemistry issues. In recent years the focus has been on alternative water supplies and issues such as waste management and pollution control. Over his career, he has attracted more than $20 million in research funding from categories 1-4 as well as significant international funding.
