Argentine PhD students visit Australia

Under the research internship program for PhD students run by the Australian Academy of Science, 24 doctoral students from Latin American countries were hosted by universities and research agencies across Australia between July and September this year. Four of them were Argentine.

The program aims to build relationships between Australian academia and Latin American academics in training, in order to foster and strengthen collaboration. It is endorsed by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and by the Ministries of Education of the participating countries (Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico), and funded by the Australian Department of Education and Training.

The four Argentine scientists

• Alejandro Berrotarán (Lawyer, National University of Córdoba), hosted by Dr Daniel Halliday at the University of Melbourne's Department of Philosophy, researched economic justice, focusing on inherited wealth from a liberal egalitarian perspective.
• Pablo Oitavén (Biotechnology graduate, National University of Rosario), hosted by Dr Gonzalo Estavillo at CSIRO Agriculture & Food (Canberra), characterised genetically modified plants grown under adverse conditions, to study the application of new technologies to the improvement of agronomically important crops.
• Facundo Romani (Biotechnology graduate, National University of the Littoral), hosted by Dr John Bowman at Monash University's School of Biological Sciences (Melbourne), used molecular biology techniques to study the role of stress-related genes throughout the evolution of land plants.
• Paula Torre Zaffaroni (Environmental Sciences graduate, University of Buenos Aires), hosted by Dr Juan Pablo Guerschman and Dr Luciana Porfirio at CSIRO Land & Water (Canberra), used remote sensing to describe vegetation in grazing lands in Argentina and Australia, with the aim of identifying degradation and its impact on the regional water balance.

The program began with an orientation session at the Academy's Shine Dome in Canberra, introducing participants to life and the state of science in Australia. The session included presentations by Karen Welsh (Department of Education and Training), Justin Withers (Australian Research Council), Noel Campbell (former Australian Ambassador to Argentina) and Dr Saul Cunningham (Australian National University). Visits followed to the National Museum of Australia, the Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve and the Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex, where the students learned about Australian history, the recognition of Indigenous knowledge in natural resource management, and Australia's significant contribution to space research.

During their internships the students took part in enriching activities, attending and presenting at seminars, conferences and congresses, where they met leading figures in their fields. There were also weekend trips to other Australian cities.

After eight weeks, the participants met again in Canberra on 19 September to share their experiences, challenges and lessons, and to discuss the program's contribution to building future relationships between scientists in Argentina and Australia. Nancy Pritchard (Australian Academy of Science), Barbara Klompenhouwer (Department of Education and Training), Jenny Graves (Australian geneticist) and Stephen Trengove-Jones (Department of Education and Training) also attended.

At the closing meeting, participants agreed on the importance of these exchange opportunities for bringing conversations together and broadening research perspectives. They also highlighted their shared commitment to keep building international research networks and strengthening professional ties between the two countries' scientific systems.