Award
David and Valerie Solomon Award (2019 - )
Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering
- From
- 2019
- Functions
- Award and Innovation
- Website
- https://www.atse.org.au/what-we-do/atse-awards/david-valerie-solomon-award/
Summary
The David and Valerie Solomon Award is presented annually by the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, with the first being presented in 2019. It is a mid-career award for a science or technology graduate working in academia or industry who "demonstrates substantial ability to foster research-industry collaboration and knowledge-transfer for the benefit to Australia". The Award was established with a donation from David Solomon and his wife Valerie. David is a foundation Fellow of the Academy and a world-renowned polymer scientist, being the principal inventor of Australia's polymer bank notes.
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Details
Winners (Quotes from website):
2019 Winner - Matthew Hill. CSIRO and Monash University's Matthew Hill received the Solomon Award for developing 'magic crystals' with dozens of applications from cleaning gases and liquids to mining and drug production.
2020 Winner - Dr Gang (Kevin) Li : has earned three patent applications and a $1 million Global Innovation Linkage Grant, and he's worked with industry partners to establish a new company to commercialise this research, in collaboration with industry partners.
2021 Winner - Dr Luke Djukic : is an outstanding aerospace engineer who is improving the safety and efficiency of transporting dangerous goods such as highly corrosive chemicals internationally.
2022 Winner - Laura Downie : is recognised internationally for her leadership in evidence-based vision care, particularly in the area of dry eye disease for which she has engaged with leading international bodies, including the World Health Organisation (WHO).
2023 Winner - Dr Marzi Barghamadi : is a Research Scientist at CSIRO Manufacturing leading the Battery Materials and Design team. She works across a variety of different energy storage devices and tackles some of the biggest challenges in battery research by improving the cycle life and safety of lithium batteries.
2024 winner - Dr Sara Couperthwaite : is an industrial chemist at Queensland University of Technology. Her research aims to transform the sustainability of mineral processing and secure critical minerals to power the renewable energy transition.
2025 winner - Noushin Nasiri: has developed groundbreaking nanosensing innovations such as SunWatch, which measures how much UV is absorbed by the skin, and the NanoElectronic Nose, a sensor that can detect disease in someone's breath.
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Created: 17 October 2024, Last modified: 3 February 2026