Research Grant Recipients 2025
Research funding recipients awarded in 2025, commencing projects in 2026
The Heart Foundation continues to support impactful cardiovascular research across Australia, generating new knowledge, building research capacity, and driving innovation to improve heart health.
This year’s funded projects span diverse areas including precision medicine, stroke recovery, biomedical engineering, digital health, and community-led prevention. Many have the potential to inform future clinical practice and public health approaches, while also fostering new collaborations and advancing novel technologies.
With the support of our generous donors, we are proud to invest in research that contributes to meaningful progress in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of heart disease.
For any enquiries, please contact the Research Program team at [email protected].
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Recognising our 2025 grant recipients and the reviewers who made it possible
The Heart Foundation Research Advisory Committee would like to extend our heartfelt congratulations to all recipients of funding in the Heart Foundation’s 2025 funding round. Your projects represent outstanding contributions to advancing cardiovascular research, and we’re excited to see the outcomes of your work.
We also wish to sincerely thank all our reviewers for your tremendous effort throughout this process. Your time, expertise, and thoughtful consideration, especially amidst busy schedules and competing priorities, have been invaluable. Your commitment ensures the ongoing integrity and impact of our grants program. Without your contributions, we would not be able to run our program and continue supporting the best research and brightest researchers.
Thank you for helping make this funding round a success.
Future Leader Fellowship – Level 1
The Future Leader Fellowship program aims to support the best and brightest in cardiovascular research. It supports aspiring leaders who are developing independence and their own research portfolio, through to established leaders of cardiovascular research groups with extensive research programs.
| Grant ID | Researcher | Administering Institute | State | Research Category | Project Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 110333-2025_FLF | Niamh Chapman | University of Sydney | NSW | Clinical, Public health, Health services | Improving hypertension management in primary care |
| 109973-2025_FLF | Alexandra Jones | University of New South Wales | NSW | Public health | Strengthening the use of law to reduce diet-related diseases in Australia |
| 109807-2025_FLF | Rebecca Kozor | University of Sydney | NSW | Clinical | Genetic cardiomyopathies – improving diagnosis, mechanistic insights, and evaluating new therapies |
| 110369-2025_FLF | Nitesh Nerlekar | Monash University | VIC | Clinical, Public health | Leveraging mammograms for the early identification of cardiovascular risk: a 2-for-1 benefit using established screening programs |
| 109309-2025_FLF | Holly Voges | Murdoch Children's Research Institute | VIC | Biomedical | Improving Rheumatic Heart Disease treatment with a novel stem cell model of heart valve tissue |
Future Leader Fellowship – Level 2
| Grant ID | Researcher | Administering Institute | State | Research Category | Project Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 109825-2025_FLF | Caleb Ferguson | University of Wollongong | NSW | Clinical | COORDINATE-CVD - a program to enhance care transitions for older adults with complex cardiovascular multimorbidity |
| 109570-2025_FLF | Marita Hefler | Flinders University | SA | Public health | Improving heart health by reducing commercial tobacco availability: a First Nations community-led and co-designed approach |
| 109451-2025_FLF | Nicole Nathan | The University of Newcastle | NSW | Public health, Health services | Advancing the science of sustainment for cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention: identifying determinants, mechanisms, and strategies to enhance the long-term implementation of CVD prevention programs |
| 109484-2025_FLF | Sonia Shah | The University of Queensland | QLD | Biomedical | Leveraging genomics for equitable cardiovascular disease prevention and treatment |
Last updated16 October 2025