Monash Engineering celebrates ARC Laureate Fellow Professor Jeffrey Walker
Monash Engineering recently hosted a celebratory event in honour of Professor Jeffrey Walker, who was awarded a $3.4 million Australian Research Council (ARC) Laureate Fellowship for his ground-breaking work in natural disaster risk prediction and monitoring. The award, which reflects the Australian Government’s commitment to excellence in research, supports world-class researchers to conduct transformative studies in Australia.
Around 18 million Australians were living in an area impacted by at least one natural disaster in 2022 and $3.1 billion was paid in disaster recovery funding in 2018-19 and 2021-22. This amount is forecasted to double over the next 3 years. Professor Walker’s research aims to address a critical gap in natural disaster prediction and real-time monitoring, offering vital insights that will help communities better prepare for, respond to, and recover from natural disasters.
Professor Walker and his research team will investigate the use of High Altitude Platforms (HAPs) to provide high resolution input data needed by fire, flood and landslide risk prediction models, and real-time monitoring of fire front and flood inundation dynamics, vital for emergency services preparedness and rescue.
“I am honoured and humbled for the recognition of Monash University and my team of collaborators for our contributions to earth observation research, a critical capability for Australia,” said Professor Walker. At the ceremony, Jeff outlined how he intends to deliver this ground-breaking research project over the next five years, reflecting on the importance of this work in the context of climate change and its growing impact on natural disasters.
The ceremony, attended by government and industry representatives, University colleagues and Professor Walker’s family, also featured speeches from Monash University Vice-Chancellor Professor Sharon Pickering and Professor Mike Ryan, interim Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research). Both lauded Professor Walker’s leadership and dedication to advancing the field of natural disaster risk prediction and monitoring.
Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sharon Pickering offered her congratulations, on behalf of the Monash community recognising the significance of Professor Walker’s achievement. "Professor Walker’s research will transform the crucial data we rely on to model and manage natural disaster events as a consequence of climate change," she said.
She also highlighted the broader impact of his research, noting, “This research will help save lives, improve community resilience, promote social stability and wellbeing, protect natural resources, and reduce economic losses.”
The Faculty of Engineering’s Dean, Professor Yiannis Ventikos, emphasised that Professor Walker’s work will strengthen global engineering research and innovation, while developing the next generation of engineering leaders in this essential cross-disciplinary field.
Professor Walker’s ARC Laureate Fellowship is a testament to his years of dedication and leadership in research. With this award, his research will continue to push the boundaries of disaster risk prediction, offering vital insights that will help communities better prepare for, respond to, and recover from natural disasters.
Learn more about Professor Jeffrey Walker’s ground-breaking research.
