Four researchers have been recognised at the 2026 NSW Young Tall Poppy Awards for their research and contributions to science and healthcare.

Given annually by the Australian Institute of Policy and Science (AIPS), the awards recognise early career researchers who have made outstanding achievements in their fields. 

Young Tall Poppy winners receive opportunities to further share their research through media, networking, training, public engagement and education.

A new approach to ecosystem health – Dr Kenya Fernandes

Over 40 percent of invertebrate pollinator species are threatened with extinction globally. At the same time, antimicrobial resistance is making human infections increasingly difficult to treat. These may seem like separate problems, but the answers to both could be hiding in the same place: inside a bee nest.

Dr Kenya Fernandes from the School of Life and Environmental Sciences studies how bees, the bacteria and fungi living inside their nests, and their environment interact to keep each other thriving. Her research is revealing how these natural partnerships protect bees and shape the chemistry of the hive – uncovering new ways to protect pollinators, ecosystems, and human health.

Treating heart disease from the start – Dr Derek Tran

Eight babies are born with congenital heart disease in Australia every day. Advances in medical care mean most now survive into adulthood, but many experience lifelong fatigue, breathlessness, reduced exercise capacity, and cardiovascular complications.

Congenital heart disease is associated with poorer health outcomes, including a greater risk of hospitalisation. Yet people with congenital heart disease have historically been advised to restrict physical activity. Dr Derek Tran from the Faculty of Medicine and Health, and the Charles Perkins Centre, aims to address this by understanding why exercise capacity among this cohort is reduced and determining how exercise can help people with congenital heart disease live longer, healthier, and more active lives.

A Heart Foundation Fellow, Dr Tran’s work has contributed to national exercise recommendations and international clinical guidelines, helping shift clinical practice away from unnecessary exercise restriction towards safe, evidence-based exercise prescription.His is broader goal is to make exercise a standard part of congenital heart disease care and improve exercise capacity, cardiovascular health, and quality of life. 

Aiming for the stars – Dr Laura Driessen

Dr Laura Driessen is a radio astronomer at the Sydney Institute for Astronomy who investigates whether stars have the right conditions for life. 

Using radio telescopes in Australia, like the Australian SKA Pathfinder (ASKAP) telescope and Australian Telescope Compact Array, Dr Driessen identifies and studies magnetic stars. She has already doubled the known number of radio stars and is now investigating what makes a star a radio star. She has published a radio star catalogue, making radio observations of stars accessible to the wider astronomy community.

Dr Driessen is a passionate science communicator, communicating not just her research, but astronomy and Australian scientific research in general. She makes regular media appearances and also communicates science to rural and remote communities, including through the DeadlyScience STEM legends program. 

Seed banks to safeguard Country and culture – Dr Cassandra Sedran-Price

Dr Sedran-Price was a finalist in this year’s Industry & First Nations Awards. She also received the Australian Academy of Science's 2026 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Scientist Award for community-led seed banking and climate resilience research.  
 
A Senior Researcher in the School of Health Sciences and the University Centre for Rural Health, Dr Sedran-Price’s research positions seed banking as a frontline response to climate change by creating new opportunities in bush foods, education and environmental healing. 

Working with Bundjalung Tribal Society at Namabunda Farm in Alstonville, Northern New South Wales, Dr Sedran-Price is integrating Indigenous knowledge with contemporary science to safeguard biodiversity and strengthen community wellbeing through developing an on-Country seed bank.

Hero image caption (from left): Dr Laura Driesssen, Dr Kenya Fernandes, Dr Cassandra Sedran-Price, Dr Derek Tran.