Poet and Indigenous history researcher wins acclaimed writer’s prize
Congratulations to Associate Professor Natalie Harkin for winning the Australian History Prize and the Indigenous Writer’s Prize in the 2026 NSW History Awards.
Associate Professor Harkin received the accolades for her book Apron-Sorrow / Sovereign-Tea, which draws on archival material and the lived experiences of South Australian women, and their relatives, to explore how First Nations women were used as domestic servants in SA during the 20th century.
A proud Narungga woman, Associate Professor Harkin is a Matthew Flinders Fellow who works for the University’s Indigenous Studies team, where she researches Aboriginal women’s labour histories in South Australia, with a focus on domestic service stories and decolonising the state’s colonial archive.
Flinders team celebrated for drought resilience initiative
Congratulations to Dr Naser Pourazad, Associate Professor Laura Lesar, Professor Paul Arbon AM and Gabriela Mantilla Palomo for winning the 2026 Resilient Australia Award for South Australia in the Business Resilience category.
The Flinders team won the award for their ‘Flying the KITE’ initiative, a First Nations-led project using cultural tourism to support drought resilience in the SA Riverland region.
They were presented with the award at a reception at Government House, hosted by the South Australian Governor, Her Excellency the Honourable Frances Adamson AC.
The Resilient Australia Awards recognise those building stronger, more resilient communities by helping people prepare for, handle, and recover from disasters.
$4.5 million in government grants to boost Flinders research
Four Flinders researchers have been awarded almost $4.5 million in government funding under the latest round of Australian Research Council (ARC) Future Fellowships.
Led by Professor Martin Breed, Dr John McCarthy, Dr Alice Clement and Dr Philip Norcott, the grants will support research projects ranging from improving soil quality, exploring South Australia’s sunken caves, strengthening our understanding of vertebrate evolution and investigating sustainable solutions to develop next-generation magnetic resonance devices.