The recipients of this year’s Australia-India Council (AIC) grants have been announced, including research identifying drought-resilient chickpeas, and how climate change impacts mango cultivars.
Flinders University has collaborated with Murdoch University and the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, to identify high-performing chickpea variants with low water and nitrogen requirements for increased drought tolerance and reduced fertiliser use. The AIC has granted this project $176,000.
The Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment at Western Sydney University is investigating mango cultivars and their pollinators, to inform industry recommendations to both India and Australia to respond to the impacts of climate change. The AIC has granted this project $66,000.
The announcement comes as we celebrate 75 years of India’s independence, as well as thirty years of the AIC. Over that time, the AIC has helped advance Australia’s foreign policy and trade interests – strengthening the people to people and institutional bonds between Australia and India.
The grants program is key to fostering understanding and encouraging collaboration between our two countries.
The full list of successful grant recipients is available on the AIC website.