eResearch Newsletter April 2026

Dear Alex, here is the Australasian eResearch Newsletter.

Australasian eResearch Newsletter - April 2026

Message from AeRO:

We are very excited to pre-announce the creation of an Early Career Prize for workers in the eResearch and Digital Infrastructure sector, in order to recognise the outstanding contributions being made within our sector. Further details, and how to nominate (yourself or someone else) can be seen at https://www.aero.edu.au/, though nominations are not yet formally invited.

This year’s eResearch Conference, to be held at the MCG in Melbourne, from 26 to 30 October 2026, will have the overall theme “Celebrating Our Past, Shaping Our Future”, recognising that it has now been 20 years since the first eResearch Conference. The call for submissions is already open for those who would like to register early, and the call for submissions (Oral presentations, Birds-of-a-Feather sessions, Workshops, Lightning Talks and Posters) will be open soon. For further information and to join the Conference mailing list, please see: https://conference.eresearch.edu.au/.

Alex Reid, Newsletter Editor.

CONTENTS:
* ARDC-Sponsored Eureka Prize for Data Platforms: by 16-Apr.
* Pawsey PULSE Collaborations: closes on 17-Apr.
* ARDC National Skills Forum: Navigating AI and Research Training: 21-Apr.
* Navigating NHMRC/MRFF Open Science Policy Changes with ARDC: 28-Apr.
* ARDC Workshop: HASS Geospatial Capability: 29-Apr.
* Resbaz QLD – Final Call for Presenters: 30-Apr.
* Research Software Asia Australia Conference 2026: submissions by 1-May.
* CSIRO Applied AI and Federated Machine Learning Update: 1-May.
* The Data Movers Lab: Globus and FileSender Clinics: 8-May.
* Webinar - Globus: Moving Large Volumes of Research Data: 13-May.
* BioCommons Workshop on Sharing and Reproducibility: 27-May.
* WEBINAR: Using Containers in Nextflow: 17-Jun.
* Aligning Enterprise IT with National Research Infrastructure: 20-Jul.
* AI Helps Find Endangered Plains-Wanderer on Queensland Pastoral Land.
* New Project to Enhance Integrated Health Data for Australian Research.
* How Elizabeth Wenk’s AusTraits Is Transforming Ecological Research.
* AARNet SOC Closure and What to Consider Next.
* Clinical Research Insights from the Field.
* DETSI: Building an AI Pipeline for Wildlife Image Identification.

Announcing New ARDC-Sponsored Eureka Prize for Data Platforms: by 16-Apr

This year a new ARDC-sponsored award for data platforms is joining the Australian Museum Eureka Prizes, Australia’s leading science awards. The prize is open for entries until Thursday 16 April.

For more information, and to enter: https://ardc.edu.au/article/announcing-new-ardc-sponsored-eureka-prize-for-data-platforms/.

Pawsey PULSE Collaborations: closes on 17-Apr

Need to break through a performance bottleneck, scale up your research, or take your code to the next level?

Get hands-on support from Pawsey experts, paired with access to state-of-the-art HPC and GPU technology.

PULSE Collaborations (formerly Pawsey Uptake Projects) help Australian-based researchers maximise the impact of their work by teaming up with Pawsey experts.

Open to researchers based at Australian universities, government agencies and research institutions, teams will receive up to 0.20 FTE of dedicated Pawsey staff support over six months.

Applications close 17 April: https://pawsey.org.au/supercomputing/pawsey-uptake-project-expression-of-interest-call/.

ARDC National Skills Forum: Navigating AI and Research Training: 21-Apr

Join us as we navigate the rapidly evolving landscape of AI in research training. As generative AI becomes embedded in the academic journey, trainers face a critical new challenge: how should we be using AI to improve our training and research skills when working with digital infrastructure?

Date/place: 21 April, 12 noon AEST - online.

Topics and Speakers:

Evidence-Led Training Design - Dr Minh Huynh, Australian BioCommons
Choosing the Right Tools for the Task - Dr Brian Ballsun-Stanton, Macquarie Uni
Scaling Institutional Literacy - Dr Weisi Chen, UTS

More info and to register: https://ardc.edu.au/event/ardc-national-skills-forum-navigating-ai-and-research-training/.

Navigating NHMRC/MRFF Open Science Policy Changes with ARDC: 28-Apr

Join the ARDC for a 3-part series to explore the NHMRC/MRFF Open Science Policy and its impact on the future of research in Australia. The series is designed to help researchers understand the NHMRC and MRFF Open Science Policy and what it means for research practice in Australia.

Part 1: Introduction: 2:30 pm AEST, Tuesday 28 April: online.

Part 2: Clinical Trials: 12 noon AEST, Thursday 7 May: online.

Part 3: Persistent Identifiers and RAiD: 12:30 pm AEST, Wednesday 13 May: online.

For more info and to register: https://ardc.edu.au/event/navigating-nhmrc-mrff-open-science-policy-changes-with-ardc-clinical-trials/.

ARDC Community Data Lab Co-design Workshop: HASS Geospatial Capability: 29-Apr

Are you a HASS researcher working with geospatial data in your research, such as the location of people and events, important places or maps?

Join this workshop to help co-design a new Geospatial Capability as part of the ARDC Community Data Lab that simplifies the use of open source geospatial software for HASS researchers. Your input is essential: come along to contribute your use cases, discuss the solution, and help shape how this vital capability will be delivered.

Date/Place: 29 April, 12 noon AEST – online.

More info and to register: https://ardc.edu.au/event/ardc-cdl-co-design-workshop-hass-geospatial-capability/.

Resbaz QLD – Final Call for Presenters: 30-Apr

ResBaz QLD is returning to Brisbane for its 10th anniversary 23rd-25th June, bringing three days of hands on digital research training, workshops, talks, and community building at QUT’s Kelvin Grove campus.

Our program is almost finalised, but there’s still time to submit your workshop, give a talk or presentation. Load your EOI before April 3oth into the Get Involved page and send through your workshop pitch.

Go to: https://resbaz.github.io/resbaz2026qld/.

Research Software Asia Australia Conference 2026: submissions by 1-May

We invite submissions for RSAA26, held 25 August 2026. This year’s theme is “Research Software Without Borders: Building Equitable, Sustainable, and Connected Research Software Communities,” part of a Global South conference network. We welcome contributions from RSEs, researchers, infrastructure providers, librarians, data specialists, students, and community organisers. Share your work, connect across regions, and contribute to global conversations. Submit Lightning Talks, Demos/Showcases, Presentations, or alternative formats like workshops or panels.

Proposals are due 1 May 2026. Whether sharing tools, lessons, infrastructure, or community experiences, we look forward to your submission.

See: https://rseaa.org/call_for_presentations.

CSIRO Applied AI and Federated Machine Learning Update: 1-May

Join the next ML4AU Community of Practice session, featuring guest speakers from CSIRO. You will hear about current applied AI work underway at CSIRO, followed by an update from the ARDC’s Federated Machine Learning project. This is a great opportunity to hear from those working in these AI domains and learn what's happening in the community.

Date/Place: 1 May, 10 am AEST – online.

More info and to register: https://ardc.edu.au/event/machine-learning-community-of-practice-ml4au-meeting-may-2026/.

The Data Movers Lab: Globus and FileSender Clinics: 8-May

This is a monthly online drop-in session for anyone working with Globus and FileSender through AARNet.

These informal, community-driven sessions provide a relaxed space to explore research data movement challenges, exchange ideas, and learn from shared experiences. Staff from the AARNet Digital Research Team are available to share knowledge and help participants make the most of these data movement services.

All levels of expertise are welcome, and sessions may occasionally focus on specific themes based on community feedback.

Find out more or register at https://aarnet.zoom.us/meeting/register/JF_qcJuQRrizRJEx5DMLlQ.

Webinar - Globus: Moving Large Volumes of Research Data: 13-May

Traditional data transfer methods often struggle with massive datasets, leading to slow speeds and issues with data integrity. This Australian BioCommons webinar introduces Globus as a high-performance, secure way to transfer large volumes of data within Australia and internationally.

You’ll hear firsthand accounts of how life scientists use Globus for repository uploads and collaborations, and learn how AARNet supports institutional access.

Find out more or register at http://biocommons.org.au/events/globus-2026.

BioCommons Workshop on Sharing and Reproducibility: 27-May

Want to make your bioinformatics analyses reproducible and easier to share?
Join this Australian BioCommons workshop to learn how to run and customise nf-core workflows for your research. You will learn about the nf-core tools utility, step through the code structure of nf-core workflows, and explore the various ways to adjust workflow parameters, customise processes, and configure workflows for your computational environment.

This workshop is free but you must apply to join.

27 - 28 May 2026 (applications close 13 May).
More information and applications: https://www.biocommons.org.au/events/nf-core-2026, or LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7434471822970114048.

WEBINAR: Using Containers in Nextflow: 17-Jun

Struggling with software environments in your Nextflow workflows?

Join our upcoming webinar to learn how containers can simplify reproducibility and portability across laptops and HPC systems. Dr Sarah Beecroft will walk you through how to use container images from registries like BioContainers and Quay.io, run workflows with local or online images, and understand how Nextflow manages containers in practice. Perfect if you are looking to run workflows more reliably and efficiently.

Date/time: 2pm (AEST) on 17 June 2026.
Place: online.

This webinar is free but you must register to join.
Register here: https://unimelb.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_E9ohCTmFQoW5CafwK3YIhA#/registration.

Aligning Enterprise IT with National Research Infrastructure: 20-Jul

This three-hour expert-led session, facilitated by the Australasian eResearch Organisations (AeRO), and delivered as part of CAUDIT+Questnet Conference in Brisbane on 20-22 July (program to be released on 14-May) focuses on the intersection of institutional IT and national research capabilities. Tailored specifically for IT professionals supporting research domains (including Business Analysts, Solution Architects, Enterprise Architects, and IT Directors) the session provides a strategic and operational overview of the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS) and an opportunity for technical and management staff to gain expert-led insights, understand emerging architectural patterns in this Domain, and refine service delivery models for research projects.

More information: https://www.strongertogether.edu.au/program/aligning-enterprise-it-with-national-research-infrastructure/.

AI Helps Find Endangered Plains-Wanderer on Queensland Pastoral Land

Researchers have confirmed the presence of the critically endangered Plains-wanderer on a western Queensland cattle station for the first time. The audio identification was made possible by ARDC-supported Open Ecoacoustics, a platform used by ecologists to process large volumes of audio data from bioacoustic recorders and detect bird calls using an AI-driven algorithm.

More info: https://ardc.edu.au/case-study/ai-helps-find-endangered-plains-wanderer-on-queensland-pastoral-land/.

New Project to Enhance Integrated Health Data for Australian Research

The Australian Bureau of Statistics and the ARDC are partnering to enhance integrated health and socioeconomic data within the Person Level Integrated Data Asset (PLIDA) for research.

Understanding why people experience different health outcomes requires researchers to bring together health, social and economic data. While Australia has invested heavily in national data collections, connecting these datasets for research has remained challenging.

This project focuses on ensuring Australia’s national data assets deliver their full research and policy value.

More info at: https://ardc.edu.au/article/new-project-to-enhance-integrated-health-data-for-australian-research/.

Inside AusTraits: How Dr Elizabeth Wenk’s Software Is Transforming Ecological Research

ARDC spoke with Dr Elizabeth Wenk (Lizzy), winner of the 2025 ARDC-sponsored New Developers of Open Source Software in Ecology. Lizzy is one of the core maintainers of APCalign R package, which carefully curates the more than 47,000 unique original names from the AusTraits plant-trait database.

See more at: https://ardc.edu.au/article/inside-austraits-how-dr-elizabeth-wenks-software-is-transforming-ecological-research/.

AARNet SOC Closure and What to Consider Next

AARNet will be discontinuing its SOC service in October, which means many institutions will need to rethink how they handle security monitoring and response. If you’re already using Microsoft 365 A5 and Defender, it’s worth looking at options that work directly within that environment rather than adding more tools on top.

Macquarie Cloud Services provides a CAUDIT Cloud Managed SOC designed to run on the Microsoft security stack commonly used across higher education, with 24/7 monitoring from Australian-based analysts. There are currently no migration fees, and billing is deferred until November 2026.

More information: https://www.macquariecloudservices.com/cauditcloud/managed-soc/.

Clinical Research Insights from the Field

This article on clinical research is a must-read for building ethical, resilient research systems. It explores how clinical research is moving beyond traditional SaaS platforms toward secure, high-integrity infrastructure. We highlight the importance of data sovereignty, compliance with Australian regulations – such as the NHMRC and Australian Privacy Principles – and designing systems that can adapt to changing protocols and AI advancements.

Key challenges include unversioned consent forms that create “legal debt,” sovereignty risks with foreign SaaS providers, data duplication issues, and an over-reliance on outsourced security.

Read the full article for more insights, at https://intersect.org.au/clinical-research-insights-from-the-field-engineering-secure-high-integrity-infrastructure-solutions/.

DETSI Private Sector Pathways: Building an AI Pipeline for Wildlife Image Identification.

QCIF has partnered with the Queensland Herbarium and Biodiversity Science (QHBS) at the Queensland Department of Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation (DETSI) through the Private Sector Pathways (PSP) program to deliver a fully operational AI workflow for wildlife camera trap image processing.

Read more: https://www.qcif.edu.au/news/detsi-private-sector-pathways%3A-building-an-ai-pipeline-for-wildlife-image-identification.

Read about the project: https://www.qcif.edu.au/news/detsi-private-sector-pathways%3A-building-an-ai-pipeline-for-wildlife-image-identification.

Contributions

This newsletter is based on contributions from members of the eResearch community, and draws on news articles and newsletters published across the sector. The Newsletter is published around the 16th of each month. Please send all contributions (max. 100 words + link + image) or pointers to any other relevant articles or newsletters to editor@aero.edu.au.
Newsletter archives are available at http://aero.edu.au/newsletters/.
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Thanks, Alex Reid, AeRO Newsletter Editor.

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