An internationally-qualified academic who has held leadership positions in both the university and corporate sectors in Australia has been appointed to the position of Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Education) at The University of Western Australia.

Using plants to discover new drugs, digital technologies to transfer Indigenous knowledge, and molecules to build digital memory are just some of the projects at The University of Western Australia that attracted more than $4.5 million in raw funding from the Australian Research Council Future Fellowships scheme.

The head of the WA Chamber of Commerce and Industry's policy, government and external relations division will join The University of Western Australia next month as Chief Adviser, Corporate and Government Affairs.

The Australian Centre for Geomechanics at The University of Western Australia has appointed Dr Ken Mercer to a professorial position in environmental and mining geomechanics.