July 25, 2023

IPRI celebrates collaboration in science

Local innovators and UOW alumni meet for convention at Innovation Campus

On Friday and Saturday (21-22 July), the Intelligent Polymer Research Institute (IPRI) at the University of Wollongong (UOW) hosted the highly anticipated 2023 Celebration of Collaboration Convention. The event showcased the most innovative solutions in materials science while celebrating diverse and lasting collaborations between IPRI and its alumni and partners.

The 2023 Celebration of Collaboration Convention at IPRI brought together a stellar line-up of experts, showcasing cutting-edge research and innovative insights across various disciplines, highlighting discoveries in materials science and advanced fabrication and the use of new knowledge to tackle big challenges in energy and health. 

Distinguished Professor Gordon Wallace, the founder of IPRI, said the event embodied the essence of IPRI – a community united by a passion for materials science and a shared commitment to solving real-world challenges through translational research. 

“We all know that science is collaborative. If we want to ensure that new knowledge accrued in fundamental research is used to benefit the modern world, we must develop a connected pipeline to do so. For now, that pipeline consists of individuals passing knowledge and skills to each other through a human chain. One missing link means no success. 

“Yet, if we’re involved in research, we must understand our role in pushing things along the translational pipeline. It is part of our job, and you can’t do that part if you are not connected,” Professor Wallace said.

^{Distinguished Professor Gordon Wallace said that we need a connected pipeline to push innovation forward.}

Renowned as a global leader in electromaterials research, IPRI has consistently pushed the boundaries of materials science, translating its knowledge into practical, game-changing devices with significant impacts in diagnostics, energy, health, and soft robotics. The Institute’s ground-breaking discoveries – from its work with graphene in the energy sector to 3D-bioprinted stents and corneas – have garnered it international recognition.

But according to Professor Wallace, one of the key strengths of IPRI is its dedication to fostering collaboration and nurturing talent.

“Since 1990, we’ve had more than 100 PhD graduates of IPRI. More than half of them have pursued careers in industry, working in technology-driven companies such as the long-established BlueScope Steel or helping to progress new ventures such as Sicona (new battery technologies) or Hysata (green energy solutions). Others have gone on to become successful in academia and research, as well as to work as MDs, teachers, journal editors, policymakers, and entrepreneurs. I am very proud of all our graduates, as they contribute hugely to their communities,” Professor Wallace said.

Among the IPRI alumni participating in the convention, many continue working as collaborating partners, making outstanding contributions to science and academia in Australia and abroad. 

Dr Dennis Antiohos is an innovative materials scientist with expertise in smart composite materials, electrochemical engineering and technology commercialisation. Currently working at a hydrogen technology company Hysata, he holds PhD in materials science from IPRI. As he reminisced on his years at IPRI, he said that supporting innovation by connecting people and technology is what he appreciated most about IPRI. 

“In R&D and technology, there’s always a process in place. We start with drafting goals and finding problems, then we conduct a diagnosis of the problems, design a solution and then start its implementation. This constant feedback loop is much easier to implement when people work together and are in sync,” Dr Antiohos said. 

Another IPRI alumni is Dr Willo Boniface, a mindset coach and leader who studied PhD in Nanotechnology at IPRI before moving to entrepreneurship. 

“The Institute opened up the world to me. As a PhD candidate, I travelled to Europe, Asia, and of course, around Australia, collaborating with world-leading scientists, some of whom I now consider dear friends. Because that is how it works in academia. Your colleagues and collaborators become highly respected friends as you grapple with the depths of your discipline, sometimes defeated and exhausted, but always bonding over important work, trying to make a difference and learning to figure things out,” Dr Boniface said.

Now, as a mindset coach, she works with academic female leaders, ex-academics who have transitioned to industry, as well as CEOs, artists, and even stay-at-home mums, using the same principles she learned at UOW. 

“That deep confidence in my ability to ‘figure it out’ has served me well over the years. Now, as I run my own coaching business, I get to build the confidence of female leaders and help them make the same realisations – that they are limitless,” Dr Boniface said.