Aligning with its commitment to enhance international collaboration and foster global impact, the University of Newcastle welcomes two visiting American Fulbright Scholars who will contribute to research in water sustainability and eating behaviour.
Water resources engineer, Dr Kelsey McDonough, and electrical engineer, Professor Edward Sazonov, received the Fulbright Postdoctoral Scholarship and the Fulbright Distinguished Chair award respectively, both funded by the University of Newcastle.
Hosted by Professor Clare Collins from the University's Priority Research Centre for Physical Activity and Nutrition, Professor Sazonov will apply his bioengineering skills to collaborative research projects on human nutrition and healthy eating behaviour.
Visiting from the University of Alabama, Professor Sazonov develops wearable devices to study health-related behaviours and deliver personalized behavioural interventions. His research group developed sensors for monitoring of food intake, cigarette smoking, and physical activity.
Recipient of the Postdoctoral Scholarship and a graduate from Kansas State University, Dr McDonough is working with researchers at the University of Newcastle's Centre for Water Security and Environmental Sustainability, and the Centre for Water, Climate and Land to evaluate impacts of water availability in Australia.
With projected changes in climate, future access to environmental water in Australia will become increasingly difficult. Dr McDonough will evaluate the impact of reduced water availability on ecosystem services provided by the Macquarie Marshes.
Hosted by Associate Professor Patricia Saco, Dr McDonough will be based at Callaghan campus until early June.
The University is now in its fourth year of sponsorship of the two American-Fulbright scholarships as part of the Fulbright program, which is the flagship foreign exchange scholarship program of the Unites States. It offers an invaluable opportunity to build international connections and exchange research ideas to create better outcomes.
The 2020 American-Fulbright scholars will attend the Fulbright Gala Presentation Dinner on February 27 at Parliament House, along with the University of Newcastle's Professor Lisa Toohey who was awarded the Fulbright Professional Scholarship in Australian-American Alliance Studies.
