Australian Capital Territory

Inspiration.

Recognition.

Prestige.

At RACI, celebrating our members' strides in advancing the chemical enterprise and fostering positive impacts in organisations, communities, and society is among our most crucial and fulfilling roles.

Embracing diversity stands as a fundamental value at RACI.

We actively encourage individuals from traditionally underrepresented and diverse backgrounds to either apply for or be nominated for all RACI awards.

The ACT Branch Awards recognise exceptional contributions to the ACT Chemistry community.

Nominations can be made for yourself or for a deserving colleague. For information on eligibility, guidelines, and important dates, please see the details below. Don’t wait—complete the online application or nomination form and submit your entries as soon as possible. Best of luck!

John A. Carver Award

Key Dates:

Applications open: 15 August
Submissions must be received by: 30 September
The Award will be presented at the RACI ACT Branch end-of-year function in Canberra in December. This could be postponed in exceptional circumstances, according to the availability of the recipient. The result will be communicated to all entrants and will be published in Chemistry in Australia.

The ACT Branch of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute has established an annual Award to recognise the student with the most outstanding PhD thesis in the ACT.

Honouring the interdisciplinary work of Prof. John Carver, former director of the ANU Research School of Chemistry, this Award celebrates chemical research in its broadest sense, including traditional chemistry disciplines as well as biochemistry, pharmacy, materials science, forensics, analytical science, chemical education, other areas of applied chemistry and more.

Candidates graduating from institutions across the ACT are encouraged to apply.

The ACT Branch administers the Award in conjunction with a selection panel comprised of academics drawn from multiple institutions in accordance with the following criteria:

i. Nominees must be financial members of the RACI

ii. Nominees must have their PhD approved, but not necessarily conferred, within the 12 months preceding the nomination closing date

iii. If the selection panel considers that none of the theses submitted reach an appropriate standard, no award will be made

The nomination submission should include:

i. A copy of the PhD thesis

ii. A citation describing the significance of the work (1 page maximum)

iii. Examiners’ reports

iv. Email and telephone contacts of up to three referees including the supervisor(s) of the thesis

Applications must be submitted in a single PDF document to raci-actcmt@raci.org.au (Subject: Carver Award). Click this section to start an email.

Receipt will be acknowledged by return email.

Submit Here

Lesli Findlay Award

Key Dates:

Applications open: 1 September
Submissions must be received by: 15 October
The Award will be presented at the RACI ACT Branch end-of-year function in Canberra in December. This could be postponed in exceptional circumstances, according to the availability of the recipient. The result will be communicated to all entrants and will be published in Chemistry in Australia.

The ACT Branch of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute has established an annual Award to honour a member of the RACI in the ACT who has made an outstanding contribution to chemistry in its broadest sense, including chemists working in the public service, industry and teaching, as well as those working in interdisciplinary areas such as biochemistry, materials science, forensics or other areas of applied chemistry.

This Award celebrates the achievements of Lesli Findlay, who has contributed to the ACT chemistry community by inspiring the next generation of chemists through her innovative and engaging teaching.

Nominations are encouraged from all members of the ACT chemistry community. Self-nomination is allowed.

The ACT Branch Committee administers the award and has established the following conditions:

i. Nominees must be financial members of the RACI

ii. Nominees must be currently employed in the ACT; out-of-state applications will not be considered

iii. Special consideration will be given to involvement within RACI and the ACT Branch

iv. The Committee may not make an award if it considers that none of the nominations are of sufficiently high standard

The nomination submission must include:

i. The qualifications and present position of the nominee

ii. A citation describing the contribution of the nominee to chemistry, the chemistry community, or the advancement of chemistry within the ACT (Half page recommended, 1 page maximum)

Examples of suitable achievements could include:

a) Applying chemistry knowledge to develop and promote scientifically informed policy.

b) Inspiring an interest in chemistry amongst students.

c) Providing exceptional mentorship and promoting diverse career opportunities to chemists.

d) Growing the chemical industry within the ACT by establishing small start-up companies.

iii. Email and telephone contacts of two people who know the nominee and are willing to be contacted for reference

iv. Signatures of both the nominee and nominator

Applications must be submitted in a single PDF document to raci-actcmt@raci.org.au (Subject: Lesli Findlay Award).

Receipt will be acknowledged by return email.

Submit Here

We encourage you to apply, nominate, and share this information with individuals whom you believe deserve recognition.

Please keep in mind that nominations should align with the principles outlined in the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), and our award adjudicators will assess a diverse array of output measurements.

For awards that establish career timeframes as criteria, we will utilize the ARC’s Research Opportunity and Performance Evidence parameters [ROPE] to evaluate any career interruptions encountered, including those stemming from Covid regulations.

Apply or Nominate Here

Nominations and applications for different awards are accepted at various times throughout the year.

For specific deadlines, please refer to the details of each award.

Discover More Awards

At a Divisional level, we recognise and commend the contributions and achievements of our members within each RACI Division.

Our National Awards recognise exceptional individuals that have reshaped the world of chemistry with their ground-breaking contributions, dedication, and innovation.

National Awards

Divisional Awards

See our Award FAQs

Contact the Awards Team