4 April 2025 News Release 5 Photos 1 B-roll Video Plastic pollution littering Australian coastlines has dropped by more than a third over the last decade, according to research by CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency. Researchers surveyed inland, riverine, and coastal habitats across six metropolitan regions across Australia including Hobart in Tasmania, Newcastle in New South Wales, Perth in Western Australia, Port Augusta in South Australia, Sunshine Coast in Queensland, and Alice Springs in the Northern Territory. Dr Denise Hardesty, Senior Research Scientist from CSIRO and co-author, said with up to 53 million metric tonnes of plastic waste estimated to enter aquatic ecosystems by 2030, it was heartening to see a significant decrease in plastic pollution on Australian beaches and coasts. “Three-quarters of the rubbish we find on our beaches is plastic, and flexible plastics, such as food packaging, are the most harmful to wildlife,” Dr Hardesty said. “Along with a 39 per cent reduction in plastic waste in coastal areas, we also saw a 16 per cent increase in areas we surveyed with no plastic debris at all. “Decreases of plastic pollution in the coastal environment were observed in Newcastle, Perth, and the Sunshine Coast, with increases in Hobart and Port Augusta. “Although there are still areas for concern, it's exciting to see a significant decrease in plastic pollution as people around the country are becoming more aware of the harmful effects of plastic waste on people, communities and wildlife.” A total of 8383 debris items were recorded across 1907 surveys within a 100-kilometre radius of each city. Polystyrene (24 per cent) and cigarette butts (20 per cent) were the most found items, followed by food wrappers, bottle lids and caps. Plastic fragments were also commonly recorded. The most prevalent items in each region were: Alice Springs: beverage cans Hobart: beverage bottles Newcastle: cigarette butts Perth: cigarette butts Port Augusta: food wrappers/labels Sunshine Coast: cigarette butts Dr Steph Brodie, CSIRO Research Scientist and co-author, said the surveys help to identify debris hotspots, understand how land use influences debris in the environment, and how waste ends up on our coastlines. “We found that areas with intensive land use and socio-economically disadvantaged areas tended to have higher levels of debris,” Dr Brodie said. “Understanding the types and amount of plastic pollution in our environment provides critical data to develop strategies to stop it ending up there in the first place. “These results will help to inform waste management and can be used to evaluate and measure the effectiveness of plastic waste policies, practices and education campaigns to reduce debris in metropolitan regions.” The paper, "Drivers of environmental debris in metropolitan areas: a continental scale assessment," published in Marine Pollution Bulletin, compares data from surveys conducted a decade ago and builds on previous work that showed a 29 per cent reduction in plastic waste across all of Australia. It is part of CSIRO’s research to end plastic waste, with a goal of an 80 per cent reduction in plastic waste entering the environment by 2030. This research received funding from the Department of Climate Change, Environment, Energy and Water, with the comparable data from 2011-2014 funded by Shell Australia. Images The most prevalent items found in each city. Download image JPG 1MB Beverage bottles were Hobart, Tasmania's most prevalent washed-up item. © Natalie Kikken/CSIRO Download image JPG 5MB Six metropolitan regions across Australia were surveyed. © Natalie Kikken/CSIRO Download image JPG 3MB Plastic fragments along the Australian coastline. © Lauren Roman/CSIRO Download image JPG 6MB Newcastle, in NSW, was one of the areas surveyed. © Natalie Kikken/CSIRO Download image JPG 1MB B-roll video B-roll: Ending plastic waste Download video ZIP 153MB View transcript

By Jean-Philippe Ral , Chen Wang , Jacky Jiang 3 April 2025 3 min read Key points Big data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are revolutionising plant-based protein developments by enhancing sustainability and productivity. AI can help us get more protein yield from crops with less resources, and tailor products to consumer preferences. We’re working on AI technologies, such as our MAGDA++ platform, to advance food innovation for the future. From personalised nutrition to more sustainable supply chains, we're just beginning to unlock the potential of AI in farming and food production. And it couldn’t come at a more critical time. As the global population continues to rise, so does the demand for more protein-rich foods – putting pressure on producers and the planet. The ball is already rolling with AI supporting protein innovation. And now, by applying AI to ever-growing agriculture data sets, we can identify and develop more sustainable products. We can also more readily cater to changing consumer preferences. We're working to improve plant-protein crops, like soybean (pictured). Custom protein to suit your dietary needs Enter personalised nutrition. Future protein products can’t just taste great, they also need to be nutritious. AI could be used to create customised protein blends tailored to individual dietary needs and health goals, complementing people’s diets. This personalised nutrition would help people get the right balance of macro and micronutrients, supporting optimum health and wellbeing. Digital ag for bumper crops AI-powered digital agriculture is transforming protein crop cultivation. Precision agriculture techniques use AI to monitor soil health, predict weather patterns, and detect pests in real time. This continuous monitoring ensures that crops receive optimal care, leading to higher yields and better-quality produce. Optimising crops also leads to more sustainable farming practices. It’s about getting more value from less resources. For example, AI facilitates water and fertiliser efficiency by anticipating each crop’s precise needs. This targeted approach boosts productivity, while minimising waste. Getting the biggest bang for your buck Beyond cultivation, AI has the potential to revolutionise plant protein processing for developing into ingredients and consumer-ready products. Take high-protein chickpea flour as an example. We can use AI models to improve the efficiency of traditional protein extraction methods, while maximising the chickpea protein’s integrity and nutritional value. In product development, AI can analyse consumer preferences and market trends to create plant-based protein products that best match taste, texture, and nutritional expectations. By simulating how different protein combinations behave under various cooking and processing conditions, AI can predict structural and functional changes in the proteins. This enables product formulations that closely replicate the texture, taste, and nutritional profile of animal proteins, increasing choice for consumers. AI can help us target new, sustainable crops. Building resilient and sustainable food systems AI could soon be used to help us choose which crops to plant. AI-driven tools can identify high-yielding, protein-rich varieties that require fewer resources. Machine learning (ML) algorithms analyse vast datasets to predict how different crop varieties will perform in different conditions. For example, ML algorithms can analyse environmental and remote sensing data to create digital soil maps that predict organic carbon levels. This technology could optimise crop rotations and improve soil health, leading to more resilient and sustainable crop selection. In turn, this can help farmers adapt to climate change while reducing the environmental footprint of crops. Our AI-driven food innovation We’re at the forefront of integrating AI into food innovation. For example, our MAGDA++ platform leverages AI to predict the yield, taste and functional properties of different plant proteins. This predictive capability accelerates new ingredient and product development, reducing time-to-market while fostering innovation. These new digital agriculture and food processing technologies will position Australia as a leader in sustainable food production. And we’re working with industry to ensure that AI-driven solutions are practical, scalable, and aligned with market needs. Eye on the future AI’s potential for plant-based protein innovation is just beginning. In the future, AI-driven analytics are expected to enhance supply chain efficiency, reducing waste and ensuring the timely delivery of fresh products to market. Future research may also seek to improve the functionalities of plant-based proteins, such as better emulsification properties or heat stability, broadening their application into different products. For some, the thought of AI can be daunting, but in the plant world it is set to make an important impact. In the plant-based protein sector, AI is offering solutions that are good for the environment and good for farmers. As technology evolves, its integration into agriculture and food production will be crucial in addressing global challenges related to health, sustainability, and food security. Dig into more protein innovation Previous post01 Apr 2025 Australian fungi and bacteria taking aim at Fall Armyworm

2 April 2025 News Release 5 Photos New research from CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, has busted the myth that weight loss must be a linear downward trend to be successful. The study, recently published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research , analysed data from more than 6,500 CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet Online members over a year. It found that even those who experienced weight fluctuations or temporary plateaus – periods where little to no weight loss is recorded - were still able to achieve clinically significant weight loss over time. Two in three members lost at least five per cent of their starting body weight by 12 months, while one in three lost at least 10 per cent of their starting weight. The study identified the most common weight loss patterns, each including at least one three-month plateau: 15 per cent of members lost weight for six months, then maintained their weight for a further six months, resulting in an average 11kg weight loss after a year (12 per cent of their starting body weight) 11 per cent lost weight in the first three months, then maintained for nine months, losing 5 kg after a year (nearly six per cent of their starting body weight) Nine per cent lost weight for nine months, followed by three months of maintenance, resulting in an average 16 kg loss (17 per cent of their starting body weight). Lead researcher, Dr Gilly Hendrie, said the findings reframe the concept of failure when it comes to weight loss. “The study gives hope to anyone who has ever felt disheartened throughout their weight loss journey,” Dr Hendrie said. “The reality is weight loss isn’t linear. Periods of maintenance and small regains are normal - but with persistence, meaningful results can happen.” The study found that regular engagement with self-monitoring tools - like CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet’s meal plans, food diaries, and progress trackers - led to better outcomes. Highly engaged members saw more than 21 per cent weight loss over 12 months. Dr Hendrie said now is typically the time when many people hit a plateau and assume they’ve failed. “It’s common to start strong in January, only to feel stuck by April,” she said. “But a plateau isn’t failure - it’s a sign to reset. Setting new goals, tracking food, and refocusing can make all the difference.” Find out more about the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet. Infographic, b-roll of Dr Gilly Hendrie, images of case studies, and the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet website available. Images The study identified common weight loss patterns. Download image JPG 1MB The CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet is a scientific approach to weight loss. Download image PNG 3MB The study found that regular engagement with self-monitoring tools such as, meal plans, food diaries, and progress trackers led to better outcomes. Download image PNG 4MB The CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet helped Sarah Wolter lose 83kg, which was more than half her body weight, over two years. Download image JPG 1MB Today Sarah is active, energetic, and no longer avoids photos, or feels like the odd one out in a room. Download image JPG 1MB Background information Case study: Sarah Wolter's story For Sarah, understanding that setbacks were part of the process was key to her 83 kg weight loss on the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet. A serious neck injury left her fearful of exercise, and during the pandemic, limited movement and disrupted routines led to weight gain. But she refused to let temporary challenges define her. “Whether it’s stress, parties and events, or even holidays - there will always be times when the wheels fall off in a weight loss journey. The difference now is I know how to get back on track and overcome setbacks thanks to the skills I learnt on the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet. You can refocus and reset as many times as you need, just don’t give up.” Starting at 158 kg, Sarah lost more than half her body weight over two years. Today, she’s active, energetic, and no longer avoids photos, or feels like the odd one out in a room. “It’s not just about the numbers on the scale. It’s about how you feel, your relationship with food, and how you show up for yourself. Progress isn’t about being perfect, it’s about moving forward.”

By Fran Molloy 1 April 2025 6 min read Key points Our Sustainable Mining Technologies Research program focuses on mine safety, environmental performance, automation and digital connectivity. The program develops safer and more sustainable mining solutions. Meet three early career researchers who work in this field, in the areas of data-informed decisions, underground fibre optic sensing, and mobile mission control centres. Our Sustainable Mining Technologies Research Program brings together around 100 staff and affiliates. The program focuses on mine safety, environmental performance, automation and digital connectivity. The program develops more sustainable and safe solutions for mining operations, using tools like advanced geospatial monitoring and autonomous systems. Three early career researchers in the program are pushing boundaries in different ways. One visualises mining processes, another develops fibre optic sensing for underground safety. The third creates mobile mission control centres for remote operations. All three are helping shape the future of sustainable mining. Romana Dew: Mapping mining's environmental future What’s involved in your current role at CSIRO? As a Senior Spatial Scientist, I translate geoscience for software engineers, with my work informing visualisations, data, and decision-making for current and future mine operations. Romana Dew, a Senior Spatial Scientist, at the International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC). I recently moved into the Mining Geoscience team where I am excited to work with other geoscientists who speak the same geoscientific language and share my passion for rocks. Our team develops technologies for mining, manufacturing, space and other industries to improve safety, efficiency and productivity. Our projects inform new uses for mining by-products and test-driving technologies on Earth before they launch into space. I am passionate about science communication. Recently, I was able to share this passion through the STEM in Schools Partnerships and student engagement at the IMARC and i-SAIRAS conferences. How did your previous experience prepare you for this role? As a child growing up in regional South Australia, I loved reading atlases, creating art and collecting rocks and gemstones. I completed a Double Degree in Science (Geology, Geophysics and Applied Geoscience) and Arts (Geographical and Environmental Studies) at the University of Adelaide . Geology and geography complement each other as the science and words about Earth. My PhD research on tectonic evolution and palaeogeography of Thailand also gave crucial insights about the history of Australia’s landscapes and resources. Understanding landscape evolution is essential to making data-informed decisions on where and how to mine more effectively and sustainably. Additionally, my experience in academia, mining, and environmental consulting provides me with valuable insights into these respective stakeholder perspectives and pain points. In my current role I can apply these insights to inform innovation and research directions. I recognise the complexities of the mining environment, its stakeholders, and timelines, and will take these factors into account when developing data-informed products. What excites you most about the future of this field? Rapid advancement in spatial technologies open incredible possibilities – we can now process and analyse multidisciplinary data at unprecedented scale and speeds. At the same time, machine learning and AI can lead to more efficient, safer, and environmentally sustainable mining operations. These tools, combined with increasingly sophisticated visualisation techniques, are transforming our approach to frontier environments, such as remote locations on Earth or in space. Karan Naidu: mission control for modern mining Tell us about your role at CSIRO – and about the Mobile Mission Operation Centre. My role entails supervising the development of the Mobile Mission Operations Centre (MMOC) project, a facility CSIRO is building in conjunction with the iLAuNCH consortium. The purpose of this facility is to act as a mobile command-and-control centre for carrying out and facilitating rocket launches, terrestrial operations, commercial operations and various other activities in both civil and remote regions of Australia. This first-of-its kind facility in Australia aims to accelerate sovereign space capabilities and infrastructure. It combines our remote mining operations expertise with a focus on space resources. In my role, I move rapidly between working on software, systems and mechanical development to facilitating stakeholder meetings. I also supervise student vacation-ships on various projects throughout their summer experience. One minute I will be surveying 3D imagery on a rocket launch site, then an hour later, meeting international delegates, local startups and established organisations How did your education and experience lead you to this role? Growing up, I’ve always been fascinated with space and engineering and was passionately driven towards combing the two worlds together. I completed a Bachelor of Engineering in Mechatronics with honours at the University of Canterbury . In addition, I completed a course in Spacecraft Systems Engineering at the University of Auckland . I worked for several start-up companies that specialise in robotics, manufacturing and automation. I then had the opportunity to work in the satellites team for an Australian aerospace company, Gilmour Space Technologies . There I developed flight software, ground testing infrastructure for commissioning micro-satellites for earth observation purposes. I gained valuable insight and experience on software and systems engineering, coupled with a holistic experience of various engineering disciplines. Finally, I joined CSIRO as a Software Systems Engineer for Space and Robotics. How does space technology connect with mining operations? There is considerable overlap between the challenges of remote mining operations and space missions. The concept of zero-entry mining is removing a person from a risk intensive mining environment and placing them in a remote location, with the capability to carry out the same job in safer conditions. The big challenge is to emulate the user experience from the real world to this remote environment. Solving this problem on Earth will have a direct technology transfer to space applications. Karan with Australian astronaut Katherine Bennell-Pegg from the Australian Space Agency What are the main challenges in adapting mining technologies for space applications? A major challenge posed is adapting technologies to operate within a more constrained and unforgiving environment with minimal user input. Another challenge is needing to reduce the technologies to their bare metal equivalent yet still make them capable of carrying out the same operations. To achieve these goals, a considerable amount of foresight is required. Xulu Lin: listening to the Earth Tell us about your role in making mining safer. I’m a geophysicist using advanced sensing technologies to detect and analyse tiny movements in the earth underground, called seismic events. In underground mines, this is crucial for safety and operational efficiency. I’m working on developing distributed fibre optic sensing (DFOS) for microseismic monitoring and integrating AI into seismology, the study of earthquakes and ground vibrations. DFOS is a technology that turns ordinary fibre optic cables into thousands of highly sensitive sensors. We can detect incredibly subtle ground movements, by monitoring vibrations, strain and changes in temperature along the entire length of the cable. This gives us unprecedented insight into what’s happening underground in real-time, which is vital for early warning systems and monitoring mine stability. DFOS also reduces the costs compared to traditional instruments. Xulu Lin collecting data with the distributed fibre optic sensing interrogator in the lab, and working out in the field. How does your educational background relate to your current role? I came into geophysics as a physics major at the Australian National University and studied computational seismology in my honours year. This is an uncommon path in geophysics and gave me useful experience that helps in my research of physical principles and development of software for geophysics specialists. How do you see AI transforming this field? The dense sensing points along fibre optic cables used in DFOS technology leads to substantial amounts of seismic data to process in real time. Integrating machine learning, a subset of AI, into our processing workflow will make it feasible to process this data. Machine learning helps us provide the mines with useful information on microseismic monitoring for faster, better-informed decision-making safety and operations. What’s next for you in your research and career? I’d like to gain more hands-on experience in other areas of geophysics apart from seismology. I am currently also involved in a radar monitoring project to learn more about this sensing technology. Meanwhile, I would like to advance further research in DFOS for microseismic monitoring, working with my colleagues to address some unsolved questions. Mine safety is serious business Coming up next01 Apr 2025 Australian fungi and bacteria taking aim at Fall Armyworm Previous post31 March 2025 Meet Suzy Jackson: a safe place for science

By Gerard Gommeaux-Ward 31 March 2025 8 min read Key points For 27 years Suzy has been working on some astronomical space tech across Australia. Suzy is Site Leader at the New Norcia ground station in Western Australia, looking after the European Space Agency (ESA)'s 35m antenna. As a trans woman, Suzy believes science has always been a positive place where your brain is more important than how you look. “It had this real sort of setup like Wallace and Gromit, you know?” Suzy Jackson said. She's sharing a moment when NASA wanted to land the Curiosity Rover on Mars. Suzy stands in front of Murriyang, our Parkes radio telescope, in 1998. “First of all, we've got the aerobrakes and parachutes and thrusters, and then we have the sky crane to lower us and we thought there's no way that's going to work. Mars eats rovers.” As Suzy described the challenge of communicating with a 401 MHz beacon – radiating no more power than a mobile phone – from the surface of Mars using a makeshift receiver at Parkes Observatory, one thing is unmistakable. She loves this work. Having been part of some astronomical projects like building the 36 antennas that make up our ASKAP radio telescope on Wajarri Yamaji Country, Suzy has lived a life of doing really cool things. These days, Suzy's a Site Leader at New Norcia ground station. She helps look after the European Space Agency (ESA)'s 35m antenna, tracking a huge array of spacecraft in deep space. Over her tenure with us, she’s not shared to anyone that she is trans. Until now. On the path to becoming a scientist Suzy recalls a time when she was six years old, being taken to the psychologist by her mother. The doctor watched her play, and she thought nothing of it. Then the doctor and mother talked separately for a while, and her mother’s attitude shifted. “She was steaming in the car on the way home. She was so angry,” Suzy said. “He would have said, ‘if you don't push them away, they're going to grow up and they're going to be gay’. You know, no concept of growing up being trans, of course, just because that didn’t even enter anyone's consciousness.” Tragically, the psychologist’s advice for curbing Suzy’s femininity amounted to ignoring her until she conformed to the ‘right’ way of behaving. What made it even harder was that, until then, her mum had been her ally. From that point on, Suzy was just ignored. Unless it was time for a haircut – then it was WWIII. As a teenager, Suzy felt hopeless. She took to sitting in the back of class with her hoodie up. “Puberty was really tough. I think I broke a bunch of teachers’ hearts because I was one of those students that had heaps of possibility.” One of the few safe spaces she had was the school’s library. “You could go to the library at lunchtime, and you could read stuff and they wouldn't kick you out. And there was always a teacher or a librarian around. It was a safe place.” “So I read. I did stuff. I turned into a complete nerd.” A degree of precision Finishing high school, Suzy’s parents had university as an expectation. She enrolled in engineering mostly just to keep them happy. Suzy didn't find university inspiring, and she left after one semester. She then took a job at the Department of Defence for a traineeship as a technician. That was a cruisy role, but she found a mentor – an ex-submariner – that inspired her once he quit. “We went down the pub to have lunch and he poached me to work at this obscure little place south of Canberra called Orroral Geodetic Observatory where they were, I kid you not, shooting lasers at satellites,” Suzy said. This work was much different. Exciting, new and just cool. “It was just this bunch of eight crusty old surveyors and this thumping big laser, and thumping big optical telescope that was just doing the most amazingly cool science,” Suzy said. “And that wrecked me completely. Ruined me. After that I couldn't get a real job,” Suzy said. Suzy sits in the Narrabri ATCA Receiver Lab in 1998. We’re all just shooting stars One of Suzy’s jobs consisted of spending time laser ranging late at night – making calibrations and routine checks to zone the laser in on spacecraft. Suzy started talking to others via Internet Relay Chat (IRC) around 1993, one of the pioneer online tools of real-time chatrooms pre-world wide web. It was in there that she discovered great connections to others that helped her gather the "guts up to come out". And it was among those eight crusty surveyors that Suzy felt comfortable enough to come out as trans at 22. “These surveyors were just the most amazingly protective, amazingly wonderful guys you've ever seen in your whole life,” Suzy said. “And this was during the Dark Ages. They just banded around and they were like ‘Nobody harms Suzy ever.'” A wonderful memory Suzy shared was with a guy everyone called Grumpy Cooper. “I'm coming out to him and I said, ‘Oh, you know, I'm trans, blah, blah, blah’ and he says, ‘Oh, what's your name?'” Suzy said. I said, ‘Oh, it's Suzy,’ and he goes, ‘Well, I tell you what – Suzy's a damn sight better than Tall Streak of Misery. Let's go with that.’” In the early 90s when Suzy was readying to transition, none of the resources available today were around. No websites dedicated to sharing important information. No proper representation in pop culture. “The trans role models we had were tragic stories, and we were a staple on TV shows, like the tragically murdered trans woman on crime shows,” Suzy said. When Suzy came out to her parents, their reaction was akin to the world ending. “[They said to me] You're never going to be employed, you're going to have a horrendous, horrible life. They thought this because that's what they've been told by everybody,” Suzy said. Suzy’s parents struggled to process her coming out and transition as an adult, burdened by long-term guilt. This ultimately led her to cut contact with them. They have since passed away. Even retroreflectors need a clean. Suzy stands on an ASKAP dish in 2016. One of us, one of us It wasn’t until a university colleague encouraged her to apply for a summer placement with CSIRO that Suzy joined us – and never looked back. She mentioned the inclusive environment she felt here, even when there was a lack of legal protections at the time for 1998. The kindness and discreet support from Human Resources meant that Suzy could just get on with the work. Suzy was unintentionally stealthy at work about being trans. Being ‘stealthy’ means transitioning and living as a different gender without disclosing one’s gender history. She never expected people wouldn’t know, but since everyone accepted her as she was, it became increasingly difficult to come out again. Looking at the progress “It’s incredible how far we've come as a society in the last 30 years,” Suzy said. “Science has always been such a positive place. Not just at CSIRO. When I was a teenager and in my 20s, it was like, ‘science is just science’ and they don't give a damn about how you look. They care what's in your brain.” Suzy started running the New Norcia site five and a half years ago, which was scary at first. “They've been a really great bunch of guys. I always end up in these little places with good people,” Suzy said. “I think the whole time I've been at CSIRO I've been completely affirmed, not necessarily as trans, but as me.” “The environment has always been ‘Hey, you're you, we love you, we love what you do here. Build us more toys,'” Suzy laughed. Suzy reminisced on her work dangling atop Murriyang, our Parkes radio telescope, and building receivers for the Australia Telescope Compact Array near Narrabri on Gomeroi Country. “Occasionally I'll be on a meeting with somebody from Parkes and they'll say, ‘Oh, yeah, we're talking about the Suzy Box" and I'm like, ‘Hang on, which one's that?'” Suzy laughed. The team supporting ESA’s New Norcia ground station in 2019. Stepping out and stepping up When explaining why she chose to speak up now, Suzy emphasised that being public and visible has never felt more important. The rapid changes happening globally have strengthened her resolve to share her story. “I'm a team leader, with eight guys who work for me,” Suzy said. “I've got so much responsibility in the organisation. I've got this 27-year history here and being able now to stand up on Trans Day of Visibility and say, ‘actually you know how you've got this idea of what a trans person is in your head? Well, that's me, because you've been working alongside me for a quarter of a century, and I am a typical trans woman.'” “And guess what? There's probably a half a dozen other trans women and men around this organisation who are just quietly working away doing what they're doing, who don't want to be bothered. Whether they disclose this part of themselves is totally up to them. But I always find it incredibly beautiful.” Future focused When asked what she’s excited about lately, the international SKA project came up. “Everything we're doing is just so cool,” Suzy said. “The collaboration across multiple countries to make it all work is brilliant. I love working with the European Space Agency (ESA). They are very much in the same vein as we are, and they're celebrating their people and saying, ‘Hey, this is who we are’, and they're a great mob.” Suzy said in the last six years, seeing our involvement in Mardi Gras each year has been amazing. “All of a sudden [CSIRO] is out and we're flying the colours,” she said. “People are sharing their pronouns on their emails. People are publicly standing up and saying, ‘hey, we accept you.’” Suzy’s weekend involved spending Saturday morning making tie-dye shirts with teenagers as part of TransFolk of WA – a peer support service for transgender people and their families in Western Australia. “This really amazing advocacy and support organisation had a meetup at a youth centre, and they had all these teenagers showing up making tie-dye tops and just having just an awesome community. The atmosphere of pure ‘you are loved, you are accepted, you are perfect just the way you are'…how good is that?” she said. Previous post31 Mar 2025 Powering the future: our rising stars in critical minerals processing

By Esther Etkin 28 March 2025 3 min read Key points Alt. Leather's 100 per cent bio-based leather alternative helps industries reduce their environmental footprint while meeting the growing demand for high-performance, circular materials. The start-up leveraged CSIRO Kick-Start to access the specialised equipment necessary to test and refine their material production processes. Through our RISE Accelerator program, Alt. Leather learned how to navigate international supply chains and manufacturing landscapes, positioning them for global expansion. As the material left the curing oven, the Alt. Leather team knew it had worked – what they held in their hands looked and felt just like leather. That moment marked a breakthrough for the Melbourne-based start-up, which has developed a revolutionary, 100 per cent bio-based alternative to traditional leather. Made from agricultural waste and natural fibres, it offers a durable, animal-free solution with zero plastics. Designed for industries like fashion, footwear, upholstery and automotive, the start-up is focussed on using resources more efficiently. It promises a high-performance yet sustainable and circular solution that reduces the environmental impact of conventional leather production. It was the result of Tina Funder, Alt. Leather's founder, identifying a gap in the market for alternatives to animal and synthetic leathers. Tina saw an opportunity to tap into Australia's abundance of regenerative plants and leading research facilities to transform the leather industry. Through CSIRO's Kick-Start and RISE Accelerator programs, Alt. Leather has been able to refine their material production processes and accelerate their commercialisation journey, both in Australia and internationally. Alt. Leather's innovative green technology makes natural fibres mimic the 3D network structure of animal leathers. © Alt. Leather Kick-Starting large-scale production Turning an idea into a scalable product takes more than just innovation – it requires the right equipment, expertise and support. That's where we stepped in. Lacking access to the specialised equipment needed to refine their material production processes, Alt. Leather contacted us to see if we had what they needed. Once confirmed, they applied to CSIRO Kick-Start, which promptly connected them with our Food Innovation Centre team in Werribee in Melbourne's West. The team began by testing their material on small-scale extruders, machines that shape and form material by forcing it through a mould. Once the material performed well, they moved to a larger extruder, which allowed them to test the feasibility of scaling up production. Tina explained that these trials were crucial in determining the best processing methods. "The structured approach of Kick-Start allowed us to test our material in a real-world setting and confirm that it could be scaled up," Tina said. This gave Alt. Leather the confidence they were looking for. They were on the right path, paving the way for further growth and commercial viability. On the RISE in India Eager to expand their solution worldwide and tap into global innovation ecosystems, Alt. Leather applied to CSIRO's India Australia RISE Accelerator program to be a part of its Circular Economy cohort . Through the program, Alt. Leather gained direct access to manufacturing systems in India, where they successfully produced handbags and footwear with manufacturers in Noida and Chennai. Tina praised RISE for providing them with valuable firsthand experience in high-volume production environments. "The real-world production runs in India provided valuable insights into the operational challenges of mass manufacturing. It allowed us to fine-tune our approach at an industrial scale and further improve the efficiency of our processes," Tina said. One-on-one support from dedicated program facilitators and industry experts across India and Australia also proved to be a game-changer for the company. "We've learned how to navigate international supply chains and manufacturing landscapes, positioning us well for global expansion," Tina said. Founder of Alt. Leather, Tina Funder, sharing program wins and insights with fellow RISE Accelerator participants following nine months in the program. From prototype to global partnerships With ongoing facilitation and support from our manufacturing team at Clayton, Alt. Leather is conducting regular formulation testing to ensure continuous improvements in their material's composition and performance. The company is also exploring partnerships with both Australian and international brands eager to incorporate their sustainable leather alternative into products. Tina credits the Kick-Start and RISE Accelerator teams as being instrumental in helping them to reach this stage, ensuring a smooth transition to larger-scale manufacturing. "Our collaboration with CSIRO has been overwhelmingly positive, characterised by strong support, expert guidance, and an environment of shared innovation," Tina said. Her team benefitted from how the programs go beyond research, driving innovation through expert facilitators who connect startups and SMEs to the right expertise, equipment, and market access. For Alt. Leather, this support has been pivotal in unlocking the commercial readiness of their sustainable, circular solution – an essential alternative as businesses face increasing pressure to reduce their environmental impact. Through our RISE Accelerator, Alt. Leather successfully produced handbags and footwear in India, refining their processes in a high-volume setting. © Alt. Leather Ready to take your business to the next level? Explore our tailored programs for start-ups and SMEs Coming up next28 Mar 2025 When a 1-in-100 year flood washed through the Coorong, it made the vital microbiome of this lagoon healthier Previous post27 March 2025 Five trends shaping the future of digital health in 2025

By Christopher Kenneally , Justin Brookes , Matt Gibbs , Sophie Leterme 28 March 2025 5 min read You might know South Australia’s iconic Coorong from the famous Australian children’s book, Storm Boy, set around this coastal lagoon. This internationally important wetland is sacred to the Ngarrindjeri people and a haven for migratory birds. The lagoon is the final stop for the Murray River’s waters before they reach the sea. Tens of thousands of migratory waterbirds visit annually. Pelicans, plovers, terns and ibises nest, while orange-bellied parrots visit and Murray Cod swim. But there are other important inhabitants – trillions of microscopic organisms. You might not give much thought to the sedimentary microbes of a lagoon. But these tiny microbes in the mud are vital to river ecosystems, quietly cycling nutrients and supporting the food web. Healthy microbes make for a healthy Coorong – and this unassuming lagoon is a key indicator for the health of the entire Murray-Darling Basin. For decades, the Coorong has been in poor health. Low water flows have concentrated salt and an excess of nutrients. But in 2022, torrential rains on the east coast turned into a once-in-a-century flood, which swept down the Murray into the Coorong. In our new research , we took the pulse of the Coorong’s microbiome after this huge flood and found the surging fresh water corrected microbial imbalances. The numbers of methane producing microbes fell while beneficial nutrient-eating bacteria grew. Populations of plants, animals and invertebrates boomed. We can’t just wait for irregular floods – we have to find ways to ensure enough water is left in the river to cleanse the Coorong naturally. Under a scanning electron micrograph, the mixed community of microbes in water is visible. This image shows a seawater sample. © Sophie Leterme/Flinders University, CC BY Rivers have microbiomes, just like us Our gut microbes can change after a heavy meal or in response to dietary changes . In humans, a sudden shift in diet can encourage either helpful or harmful microbes. In the same way, aquatic microbes respond to changes in salinity and freshwater flows. Depending on what changes are happening, some species boom and others bust. As water gets saltier in brackish lagoons, communities of microbes have to adapt or die. High salinity often favours microbes with anaerobic metabolisms, meaning they don’t need oxygen. But these tiny lifeforms often produce the highly potent greenhouse gas methane. The microbes in wetlands are a large natural source of the gas. While we know pulses of freshwater are vital for river health, they don’t happen often enough. The waters of the Murray-Darling Basin support most of Australia’s irrigated farming. Negotiations over how to ensure adequate environmental flows have been fraught – and long-running. Water buybacks have improved matters somewhat, but researchers have found the river basin’s ecosystems are not in good condition. Wetlands such as the Coorong are a natural source of methane. The saltier the water gets, the more environmentally harmful microbes flourish – potentially producing more methane. © Vincent_Nguyen The Coorong is out of balance A century ago, regular pulses of fresh water from the Murray flushed nutrients and sediment out of the Coorong, helping maintain habitat for fish, waterbirds and the plants and invertebrates they eat. While other catchments discharge into the Coorong, the Murray is by far the major water source. Over the next decades, growth in water use for farming meant less water in the river. In the 1930s, barrages were built near the river’s mouth to control nearby lake levels and prevent high salinity moving upstream in the face of reduced river flows. Major droughts have added further stress. Under these low-flow conditions, salt and nutrients get more and more concentrated , reaching extreme levels due to South Australia’s high rate of evaporation . In response, microbial communities can trigger harmful algae blooms or create low-oxygen “dead zones”, suffocating river life . The big flush of 2022 In 2022, torrential rain fell in many parts of eastern Australia. Rainfall on the inland side of the Great Dividing Range filled rivers in the Murray-Darling Basin. That year became the largest flood since 1956 . We set about recording the changes. As the salinity fell in ultra-salty areas, local microbial communities in the sediment were reshuffled. The numbers of methane-producing microbes fell sharply. This means the floods would have temporarily reduced the Coorong’s greenhouse footprint. Christopher Keneally sampling for microbes in the Coorong in 2022. © Tyler Dornan, CC BY When we talk about harmful bacteria, we’re referring to microbes that emit greenhouse gases such as methane, drive the accumulation of toxic sulfide (such as Desulfobacteraceae), or cause algae blooms (Cyanobacteria) that can sicken people, fish and wildlife. During the flood, beneficial microbes from groups such as Halanaerobiaceae and Beggiatoaceae grew rapidly, consuming nutrients such as nitrogen, which is extremely high in the Coorong. This is very useful to prevent algae blooms. Beggiatoaceae bacteria also remove toxic sulfide compounds. The floods also let plants and invertebrates bounce back , flushed out salt and supported a healthier food web. On balance, we found the 2022 flood was positive for the Coorong. It’s as if the Coorong switched packets of chips for carrot sticks – the flood pulse reduced harmful bacteria and encouraged beneficial ones. While the variety of microbes shrank in some areas, those remaining performed key functions helping keep the ecosystem in balance. From 2022 to 2023, consistent high flows let native fish and aquatic plants bounce back , in turn improving feeding grounds for birds and allowing black swans to thrive. A group of black swans cruise the Coorong’s waters. © Darcy Whittaker, CC BY Floods aren’t enough When enough water is allowed to flow down the Murray to the Coorong, ecosystems get healthier. But the Coorong has been in poor health for decades. It can’t just rely on rare flood events. Next year, policymakers will review the Murray-Darling Basin Plan, which sets the rules for sharing water in Australia’s largest and most economically important river system. Balancing our needs with those of other species is tricky. But if we neglect the environment, we risk more degradation and biodiversity loss in the Coorong. As the climate changes and rising water demands squeeze the basin, decision-makers must keep the water flowing for wildlife. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article . Previous post28 Mar 2025 Curing fashion’s reliance on leather with an eco-friendly plant-based alternative

By Ian Dewar 27 March 2025 4 min read Key points A new fish fossil, Ferruaspis brocksi, gives us a glimpse into aquatic life 15 million years ago. The fossil is super detailed and shows what the fish last ate and a parasitic mussel on its skin. We can even tell what colour the fish was from outlines of pigment containing cellular structures. A well-preserved fossil fish shows just how similar an ancient fish is to modern day equivalents. The McGraths Flat fossil site in Central West NSW is different as the fossils aren’t layered with sand or silt. The site is made up of an iron-rich mineral called goethite. It preserved fine details of fossils. The site is also rare because it's associated with volcanic activity. Eruptions produced basalt, the source of the iron that later preserved the fossils at McGraths Flat. True colours shining through Dr Michael Frese, senior author on the study, is a virologist working with our rabbit biocontrol research group and with the University of Canberra . He’s also interested in using the latest imaging techniques to investigate the soft tissues of fossils. “It’s not necessarily the best-looking fish, there may be more spectacular species, but what is special here is we have the preservation of melanosomes in the skin,” Michael says. Melanophores, the pigment containing cells in the skin of fish, can contain thousands of melanosomes. Melanosomes are small packages of melanin – the pigment that gives colour to eyes, hair and skin. In the fossils these melanosomes have been preserved as moulds. Each one is roughly the size of a bacterial cell. “We know that every hole would have been filled with pigment, so we can tell where the pigment was and we can reconstruct the colour pattern,” Michael says. The melanosomes show us this fish was counter-shaded. So, it would have been brown or black on top, pale underneath, with two racing stripes on the side. It’s a form of camouflage that we still see today. This makes the fish hard to see for predators, either looking from above into a dark body of water or looking from below up to the light. Melanophores in yellow in the skin of F. brocksi. Scale bar 250 μm. © Michael Frese CSIRO An ancient river and ecosystem evolution Dr Matt McCurry from the Australian Museum was the lead author of this research paper . “The discovery of the 15 million-year-old freshwater fish fossil offers us an unprecedented opportunity to understand Australia’s ancient ecosystems and the evolution of its fish species, specifically the Osmeriformes group during the Miocene epoch,” Matt says. Dr Cameron Slatyer, a co-author of the study, is manager of National Biodiversity Data Initiatives at the Atlas of Living Australia . “This fish was living in an ancestral version of the Murray Darling system that was feeding out into a bay that was probably sitting somewhere around where Mildura is today,” Cam says. “McGraths Flat was an oxbow lake, or billabong, and every so often the iron content reached a concentration where it just killed everything in the water at that point.” A mussel with hustle hitches a ride The fossil includes a parasite that had latched onto the skin of the fish to feed and to hitch a ride. “Normally, a mussel like this will have trouble travelling even 100 metres upstream,” Michael says. “But with a fish for transportation it can move around. At some stage, it will let go and fall wherever the fish is at that moment.” However, the conditions in the ancient billabong at this site wouldn’t have been suitable for the mussels to live all year round, so they wouldn’t have reached maturity there. We think that the fish must have picked up this parasite in a river, moved into the McGraths Flat billabong and died before the mussel could release itself from the host. 15-million-year-old fossilised freshwater fish. Stomach contents of fish show that that it fed predominantly on phantom midge. © Salty Dingo 2020 Home and at bay This fish is an ancestor of today’s southern graylings from Australia and New Zealand. Most of the modern species migrate from the ocean to rivers. So, they spawn in saltwater estuaries at the coast and then the young fish migrate upstream to live. However, the fossil site had fish of different sizes, which suggests this ancient species wasn’t migratory. “So, we can say that really early in this group's evolution, F. brocksi was already fully or almost fully freshwater, which is fascinating from an evolutionary perspective,” Cam says. It’s different from a lot of fish in Australia and New Zealand which originated in saltwater and then adapted to freshwater. A fish with a full belly Many of the fossil fish have their stomach contents preserved. These show that phantom midges were a key food. “These fish did not die of hunger, that's for sure,” Michael says. The modern versions of this fish species live in rivers and streams. But when those streams flood, the fish can get into billabongs, eat whatever they can find, and retreat back to the river. “The fossil record of what they were eating shows that they're behaving exactly the same way 15 million years later,” Cam says. Scene from the ancient billabong at McGraths Flat. A school of Ferruaspis brocksi is feeding on larvae of the phantom midge Chaoborus abundans while being chased by Obdurodon, an extinct toothed platypus. © Alex Boersma Freeze frame fossil fast forward Sometimes with fossil ancestors, there’s a lot of guesswork and biomechanical analysis of bones to explain how the species has evolved. But in this case , the ancient fish was clearly similar to species we see today. “I just found it utterly fascinating that you could have this thing from so many million years ago behaving very similarly to modern species today,” Cam says. Cam used species observation data from the Atlas of Living Australia to map where the modern-day descendants are found. “Evolution is a lottery driven by change, and if an organism, in the various games of chance that happen, hits a niche that lasts through history then it does well,” he says. This species has hit the jackpot with a niche in a river system that has existed in pretty much the same form for millions of years. Find more fun fossils from McGraths flat here Coming up next27 Mar 2025 Five trends shaping the future of digital health in 2025 Previous post27 March 2025 Tracking the Universe: 60 years of exploring the Solar System and beyond with CDSCC

By Morgan Gilbert , Naomi Stekelenburg 27 March 2025 4 min read Key points AI-driven research is improving vaccine effectiveness by identifying the best targets in pathogen genomes. Wastewater analysis detects emerging viruses early, enabling faster public health responses. Disease treatment and prevention, care for older Australians and providing equitable healthcare to regional and remote Australia were hot topics at the Colloquium. This week our Australian e-Health Research Centre (AEHRC) held its 21st Annual Research Colloquium, revealing the latest trends in digital health. Over 300 people attended the event in person or online. Don’t worry if you missed out – we’ve got a roundup of highlights here for you. From AI-driven vaccine research to wastewater pathogen detection, their work is revolutionising public health. Here’s how science is helping us stay ahead of the next outbreak. 1. Innovative technologies for preventing the next pandemic As the COVID-19 pandemic proved, detecting, monitoring and preventing the spread of pathogens is essential for protecting people’s health. At this year’s AEHRC Colloquium our researchers revealed digital solutions for every stage of pathogen control. There’s a saying in healthcare that prevention is better than a cure. That’s why our scientists are investigating how to protect people at both individual and societal levels. Aminath Shausan is a member of the team who developed the HOTspots antimicrobial resistant pathogen surveillance and response platform. Her latest research focusses on forecasting and mapping antimicrobial resistant infections in remote and regional areas of Australia. Director of Health and Biosecurity, Brett Sutton, presents a perspective on the role of digital technology in population health. Laurence Wilson’s team is using artificial intelligence (AI) to investigate why some people’s immune systems respond better to COVID-19 and flu vaccinations than others by using data to reveal what pathways are triggered by vaccines, and which pathways are required for the success of a vaccine. But viruses and other pathogens like bacteria are cunning – they are good at finding their way around preventative measures. Laurence’s work helps to identify where in the pathogen genome the vaccine should target, providing vaccines that better target the pathogen. As part of AEHRC’s work with the Herston Infectious Diseases Institute , we featured a showcase of six projects. In one of them, Jatinder Sidhu, Senior Research Scientist with our Environment Research Unit, discussed his team’s work on detecting viral pathogens in wastewater. By analysing viral DNA in wastewater, the researchers can identify emerging viruses early and monitor their spread. Researchers from AEHRC are also working on an infection control platform that analyses data in real time and simulates outcomes, enabling earlier and more effective public health responses. 2. Artificial intelligence and machine learning Research Scientist Maria Antico presents her work on wearable ultrasound. AI technology is everywhere now – in our phones, banking and increasing in our healthcare. AEHRC scientists are using innovative AI and machine learning (ML) technologies to revolutionise health care, with a focus on developing tools that are safe, ethical and trusted by users. Pierrick Bourgeat wowed the Colloquium audience with his team’s use of AI to improve the analysis of positron emission tomography (PET) images. These will help in diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease earlier, which will be crucial for early treatment to slow the progression of the disease. Maria Antico presented her work, conducted in collaboration with the Queensland University of Technology (QUT), to develop wearable ultrasound technology. The researchers are creating an ultrasound device that can be used remotely and with no specialised training. The platform uses AI to interpret the images and provide results. This sounds cool and futuristic, but it gets better – last year Maria travelled to Germany to the European Astronaut Centre to discuss how the technology could be used by astronauts during space travel. 3. Improving interoperability to enhance patient care Liesel Higgins presents work on the Aged Care Data Landscape Report Healthcare relies on good data for optimised decision making. But data is only useful if it is effectively collected, stored and shared, that is, if data and systems are interoperable. At the Colloquium AEHRC’s Liesel Higgins presented findings from our recent report Australia’s aged care data landscape: Gaps, opportunities and challenges. The report identified several gaps in interoperability in the aged care sector and made recommendations for addressing the gaps. Research scientist John Grimes discussed his team’s work to integrate software that calculates a person’s risk of cardiovascular disease into GP systems, making prevention of one of the biggest killers of Australians easier. 4. Effective care for all Australians Australia is a diverse country, with different regions and groups of people who have different needs. Everyone deserves to have access to effective healthcare. Researchers from AEHRC’s Indigenous Health Team collaborated with researchers from the Child and Adolescent Health Service in Western Australia to create Kara-Care, a digital yarning tool to enhance Aboriginal health service delivery in the Pilbara region. When implemented and used, the tool can help decrease patient burden and optimise the availability of health data for clinicians at the point of care. 5. Implementing solutions and creating impact The future of digital health is bright with researchers across Australia, including at AEHRC, coming up with new technology to help us live our healthiest and happiest lives. But how can we make sure that the technology works as it is designed to and has an impact in the real world? AEHRC’s implementation scientists focus on translating innovation research into reality. They demonstrated this at the AEHRC Colloquium. Yan Chia and Jason Dowling also discussed linking innovation and impact, by offering their expertise software as a medical device and AEHRC’s certification in ISO 13485 on the importance ensuring all tools and software meet strict quality requirements and are market ready. Learn more about AEHRC's research Previous post27 Mar 2025 A fish frozen in time: ancient fossil reveals colour, last meal, and a parasitic hitchhiker