Director's Welcome, August 2025

Dear all

I hope your year is continuing to go well. I have been reviewing everything that has happened since our last newsletter and I don’t know how I am going to fit it all in!

However, I am going to start with one of the most important things we do, which is to supervise HDR (Higher Degree by Research) candidates through their PhD and MPhil projects and on to their leadership roles in the resource ecosystem. We had a graduation ceremony in July and there were ten SMI graduates – the largest number I have experienced in my time at the SMI.  We had a great event afterward celebrating their achievements, and reminded graduates that they are now part of the SMI forever, and should consider themselves at home whenever they come back in future. It is also exciting to report that we have 23 new HDR researchers starting studies in 2025, which again is a very large number of commencements for us.  Being part of the process transformation of HDR researchers into deep experts in their area of study is one of the most gratifying aspects of what we do.

Staying on the HDR theme, the SMI HDR Committee hosted a successful 2-day conference in July. The conference included participants from all SMI Centres as well as from schools in the Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and IT and the Faculty of Science.  It was a real showcase of the breadth and strength of our postgraduate researchers and their projects in the resources area.  Congratulations are due to the organising team led by Loreto Codoceo.

We have had some success with ARC funding in recent days.  

First of all, I would like to congratulate Professor Longbin Huang for his success in a new ARC Linkage grant in collaboration with QAL. His project will advance the development of technosol—an engineered soil derived from red mud, a byproduct of alumina refining—to support sustainable ecosystem rehabilitation in mining regions.  

Second, the SMI will take a key role in a new Industrial Transformation Training Centre for Advancing Archaeology in the Resources Sector.  The Centre will be led by Flinders University, and Professor Deanna Kemp (Director of the SMI’s Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining) will be Deputy Director and Industry Engagement Lead.  Professor Bronwyn Fredericks, UQ’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Indigenous Engagement) will also be a chief investigator in the Centre, that aims to “transform cultural heritage management in the resources sector by advancing the integration of archaeological expertise with mining activities”. There will be more information in the coming weeks.

Finally, Professor Neil McIntyre will be a chief investigator in the Climate-Resilient Water National Training Centre, a new ITTC run by UQ’s Australian Centre for Water and Environmental Biotechnology.

The SMI achieved another important milestone recently, with the creation of the Centre for Environmental Responsibility in Mining (CERM).  The new centre has been formed as a result of the merger of the Centre For Mined Land Rehabilitation (CMLR) and the Centre for Water in the Mining Industry (CWiMI).  CERM will bring together the combined strengths of CMLR and CWiMI, and will communicate more effectively to stakeholders that the SMI’s activities span the entire range of current environmental challenges in the resources industry.  Professor Longbin Huang has taken on the role of Acting CERM Director while the recruitment process continues for a new director and the new Centre website will be up and running in the next few weeks.

UQ recently hosted a two day visit from the board of the Resource Technology and Critical Minerals Trailblazer.  The visit reviewed the progress of the UQ node of the Trailblazer against the three pillars of the program: University Transformation; Industry-collaborative Technology Readiness projects; and Commercialisation.  UQ is making great progress against all of its milestones and KPIs in the program, and the partnership with Curtin and JCU is bearing fruit in terms of shared vision and lessons.

There are many other things I could mention, but there is also a whole newsletter ahead with even more exciting SMI news.  I hope you enjoy it, and as always, we welcome your thoughts and feedback.