Florey Awards 2026: Celebrating excellence across the organisation

Light letters spelling out the word Florey

Key points

The annual Florey Awards recognises the valuable contributions of members of The Florey staff and student community.
We celebrate the winners of our Excellence Awards, Travel Awards, Levelling Up Awards, Graduate Research Symposium Awards and Neuropix competition winners
We are grateful to the remarkable support of our donors who made many of our awards possible.

The Florey Excellence Awards

The Florey Excellence Awards honour the value and achievements that are integral to the Institute.

Pathway to Impact: Someone who drives meaningful change, a commitment to improving the lives of people in Australia and around the world through their research.
Dynamic Collaborator: Someone who sets a high standard for building relationships and has a strong track record of successful collaboration.
Exceptional Talent: Someone who goes above and beyond in their role and shows dedication to the Institute and to their colleagues.
Lend a Hand: Someone who provides outstanding support for others and playing a vital role in making things work.
Belong award: Someone who has helped make The Florey an inclusive place for everyone.
Team of the Year: a group that has demonstrated great team spirit and has delivered great outcomes for The Florey.

Pathway to Impact Award 

Winner: Dr Christiane Stehmann, Australian National CJD Registry Co-Director

Dynamic Collaborator Award 

Winner: Mya Thandor, Public Health & Health Services Group

Exceptional Talent Award  

Winner: Jeremy Stanek, IT

Lend a Hand Award 

Winner: Steve Oliphant, Support Services

Belong Award 

Winner: Peter Fogarty, Animal Ethics Team

Team of the Year 

Winner: Translational Neurodegeneration Group

Levelling Up Awards

The Levelling Up initiative supports women researchers at The Florey. It provides tailored career development support, financial assistance, and mentorship to help overcome barriers to academic progression.

The winners were: Dr Lindsea Booth, Dr Sarah Gordon, Dr Leigh Walker and Dr Laura Vella

Levelling Up Award winner Dr Sarah Gordon

Graduate Research Symposium Awards

Florey Postgraduate Award – 3rd year talk

Runner up: Lena Kricsfalussy-Hrabár, Neural Networks Group
Winner: Joshua Saito, Presynaptic Physiology Group

Ayse Berke and Liana Colvill Postgraduate Award

Overall Symposium Winner: Kanae (Jen) Nagao, Movement Disorders Group

Bruno Marino Innovation Award Winner & 2026 Postgraduate Citizenship & Engagement Award Winner

Harry Dempsey

Florey Postgraduate Award – 2nd year talk Runner Up

Luc Marsden

Florey Postgraduate Award – 2nd year talk Winner

Owen Jones

Florey Postgraduate Award – 3rd year talk Runner Up
Lena Kricsfalussy-Hrabár

Florey Postgraduate Award – 3rd year talk Winner
Joshua Saito

Ayse Berke and Liana Colvill Postgraduate Award Overall Symposium Winner

Kanae (Jen) Nagao

Postgraduate Travel Awards

Caitilin’s Fund Postgraduate Travel Award

Winner: Christiana Mattei, Epilepsy Functional Genomics Group

Harold Mitchell Foundation Postgraduate Travel Fellowship

Winners: Andrew Quattrocchi (Stem Cells and Neuro Repair Group), Nadja Korajkic (Translational Research & Neuroimaging Stroke Group), Philip Pruckner (Imaging & Epilepsy Group)

Philanthropic Postgraduate Travel Award

Winners: Lauren Ursich (Hormones & Behaviour Group), Carmen Zheng (Epilepsy Cognition Group), Maya Bishop (Translational Cardiovascular and Renal Group)