Research Infrastructure Queensland Alliance (RIQA) Awards

RIQA Awards – Celebrating Excellence in Enabling Queensland’s Research Future

The RIQA Awards honour the the research infrastructure specialists whose expertise, innovation, and dedication power the state’s research ecosystem. These awards recognise the often‑unseen contributions of core facility staff who enable discovery, strengthen capability, and support researchers across Queensland and globally, and who exemplify leadership, creativity, collaboration, and excellence in delivering world‑class research infrastructure as individuals or as a part of a team. Nominations were welcomed from both individuals wishing to self-nominate, and those seeking to recognise the achievements of others.

The inaugural awards, with nominations open across the state, were presented to research infrastructure facility staff on 22 September 2026 at the CORES 2026 conference dinner hosted by QUT at UQ’s Customs House.

Dr Nicole Schieber, Centre for Microscopy & Microanalysis, UQ was presented the RIQA Award for Emerging Leaders and Leadership recognising individuals who demonstrate leadership in research infrastructure through influence, initiative, inclusiveness, and collaboration. This award celebrates leaders who contribute meaningfully to research infrastructure delivery and community development, particularly those leading without formal positional authority.

QIMR Berghofer's Scientific Services Spatial Team, received the RIQA award for Innovation in New Technologies or Capabilities celebrating those who have developed and/or successfully implemented innovative platforms, techniques, technologies or processes that significantly: enhancing the efficient delivery of research infrastructure, creating new career pathways and/or positively enhancing the impact of discovery and translational outcomes. Team included Tam Nguyen, Microscopy and Spatial Cell Biology Facility Manager, Ashwini Potadar, Histology Facility Manger, Hani Vu, Spatial Cell Biology Technician, Oliver Looker, Senior Microscopy Analyst, and Clay Winterford, Research Assistant]

QUT’s Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program (RRAP) iTranslation to Deployment Team won the RIQA Award for Pan-institutional Collaboration highlighting outstanding cross-disciplinary or cross institutional partnerships that exemplify RIQA’s mission of fostering Team-Queensland collaborations and co-operation in research infrastructure. Team included Garima Samvedi, Principal Research Engineer (Robotics & Autonomous Systems), QUT, Dr Andrew Lui, Senior Research Engineer (Robotics & Autonomous Systems), QUT, Riki Lamont, Lead Electronics & Embedded Systems Engineer, AIMS, Timothy Morris, Senior Research Engineer (Robotics & Autonomous Systems), QUT, Josh Esplin, Research Engineer (Robotics & Autonomous Systems), QUT, Alec Tutin, Senior Research Engineer (Robotics & Autonomous Systems), QUT, Dr Benjamin Moshirian, Project Engineer, AIMS, and Dr Jakub Jez, Lead - Technology Transformation, AIMS.

QIMR Berghofer’s Veterinary Services Training Team were awarded the RIQA Award for Training Excellence/Outstanding Training Delivery acknowledging excellence in the design and delivery of training programs that demonstrably build researcher capability, confidence and outcomes relating to the use of research infrastructure. Team included Agustin Mercau, Training and Competency Officer, Veterinary Services, Tina Miller, Veterinary Officer, Veterinary Services, Yvette Ellen, Manager Veterinary Services, Veterinary Services, and Zac Teale, Training and Competency Officer, Veterinary Services.

Further, a number of UQ staff were nominated for awards including Dr Nicholas Condon, Senior Principal Imaging Scientist, Institute for Molecular Bioscience; Professor Wojtek Tomaszewski, FQA Director, Social Science Research Infrastructure Network, Professorial Research Fellow, Institute for Social Science Research, and Dr Carina Walpole, Translational Model Facility Manager, University of Queensland Biological Resources (UQBR), TRI Facility for the Emerging Leaders and Leadership award. And for the Pan-Institutional Collaboration Award Dr Marita Prior, Operational Manager, Herston Imaging Research Facility (HIRF); and Dr Nicholas Condon, Senior Principal Imaging Scientist, UQ with Deborah Barkauskas, Head of Imaging Platform, Garvan Institute, Maria Nguyen, Microscopy Sales Specialist, Evident, and Sandrine Roy, Business Development Manager, Olympus Australia. Congratulations on this well-deserved recognition from your peers and research institutions.

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Research Infrastructure Queensland Alliance (RIQA)

Queensland is renowned for its strong collaborative culture, supported by diverse cutting-edge research infrastructure facilities. Accessible, state-of-the art scientific infrastructure and specialist expertise is a vital component of modern innovation ecosystems. The 'Team Queensland' approach across our universities, research institutes and the Queensland Government, supports multidisciplinary collaboration and strong industry partnerships to deliver leading research outcomes and accelerate the development and commercialisation of ideas.

Research Infrastructure Queensland Alliance (RIQA) is a coalition of all the major Queensland universities. The University of Queensland, Queensland University of Technology, University of the Sunshine Coast, Griffith University, University of Southern Queensland, Central Queensland University, James Cook University, Southern Cross University, as well as the Queensland Cyber Infrastructure Foundation, Translational Research Institute, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, CSIRO, Australian Institute of Marine Science and the Queensland Government's Department of Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation.

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