Two current Queensland University of Technology staff members, two alumni and one current student have been awarded Fulbright Scholarships to research, study or train in the United States.
The prestigious Fulbright program promotes educational and cultural exchange between Australia and the United States by awarding scholarships to students, researchers, professionals and academics.
QUT School of Justice, Faculty of Law, Associate Professor Kelly Richards will travel to America in November to further her research on survivors of sexual violence and Circles of Support and Accountability (CoSA). Her project will look specifically at the role that survivors of sexual violence already play and could play in CoSA. She will study at California State University and the University of Vermont.
QUT Business School Associate Professor Robert Perrons was awarded a Fulbright Future Scholarship. Professor Perrons specialises in innovation and new technologies within the energy and resource sector.
He will work on developing an integrative framework to make supply networks for technology minerals smart, thereby helping provide these for green energy technologies.
He will study at the Department of Geography at the University of Delaware.
QUT Doctor of Philosophy student Joseph West was awarded a Fulbright Future Scholarship (postdoctoral). He will complete his Doctor of Philosophy in 2020 at QUT researching machine learning and the speed of learning for an artificial player learning any board game without human intervention.
For his Fulbright scholarship, Mr West will be working with the Centre for Neurotechnology at the University of Washington, researching how machine learning can provide automated adaptive control of Deep Brain Stimulation for neurological conditions.
QUT alumni and lawyer Sasha Purcell has been awarded a Fulbright Indigenous Scholarship (post-doctoral studies). Ms Purcell is a lawyer and delegate for the United National Association of Australia – Queensland Division.
She is passionate about advocating for the rights of marginalised and isolated communities and has practiced law in the area of foreign affairs, police prosecutions and child protection litigation. She currently works as a clinical researcher in social and criminal justice affairs and holds dual qualifications in Law and International Relations.
She will undertake a Master of Laws specialising in international law, human rights and environmental law. Her intention is then to complete her PhD focusing on research relating to climate change and patterns of gendered violence.
Dr Malindu (Mal) Fernando has been awarded a Fulbright Future Post-Doctoral Scholarship. Dr Fernando is a former postdoctoral research fellow and alumni of the School of Clinical Sciences at QUT. He is currently at the Queensland Research Centre for Peripheral Vascular Disease at James Cook University and is a podiatrist undergoing medical training.
For his scholarship, Dr Fernando will collaborate with leading researchers at the Baylor College of Medicine and Keck School of Medicine on the development of an evidence-based, multidisciplinary secondary prevention program for Australians at risk of developing diabetic foot complications.
Media contact:
Madeline Healy, QUT Media, 07 3138 3083, m5.healy@qut.edu.au
After hours: Rose Trapnell, 0407 585 901, media@qut.edu.au