Students at the competition. — VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Tú

SYDNEY — The Việt Nam – Australia Innovation Network (NIC AU), in coordination with the Vietnamese Students’ Association in Australia (SVAU), organised the AURORA 2025 Scientific Research Competition to connect young Vietnamese intellectuals overseas with the country’s science, technology and innovation ecosystem.

The event was designed as a strategic bridge rather than a purely academic contest, enabling research conducted in Australia to address Việt Nam’s practical development needs.

Trần Phi Vũ, Chairman of NIC AU and a lecturer at the University of New South Wales, said the initiative prioritised studies capable of delivering tangible impacts and being translated into concrete solutions.

After more than five months, the competition concluded with its final round on Thursday (local time), selecting five outstanding projects from entries by Vietnamese students and doctoral candidates in Australia.

The projects focused on high-priority areas, including microplastic treatment in the Mekong River basin, improving crop drought resilience, advanced biomedical technologies for cancer treatment, wildfire risk management, and wastewater treatment using agricultural by-products to promote a circular economy.

Developed in Australia’s advanced academic environment but oriented towards Việt Nam’s conditions and data, the projects demonstrated strong potential for transfer and application. Many observers noted that AURORA served as a mechanism for identifying, screening and connecting research with socio-economic demand, rather than a conventional academic competition.

Many businesses expressed strong interest in the outcomes, particularly their commercialisation potential, and signalled readiness to collaborate on pilot projects, helping narrow the gap between enterprises and the scientific community.

At the awards ceremony, first prize went to a project on soft silicon carbide electrodes for cancer monitoring and treatment. Second and third prizes were awarded for studies on enhancing crop drought tolerance and microplastic treatment in the Mekong River basin, respectively, while two consolation prizes recognised research on wildfire modelling and wastewater treatment.

The organisers said the award-winning projects would continue to be linked with ministries, localities, enterprises, incubation programmes and innovation funds in Việt Nam.

AURORA is expected to become an effective link in the national innovation ecosystem, mobilising the intellectual resources of young Vietnamese overseas for sustainable development. — VNA/VNS