RMIT showcases success in driving research impact

RMIT showcases success in driving research impact

The first edition of Enabling Impact – an annual report showcasing the diverse strategic research and research impact achievements enabled by the university’s Enabling Impact Platforms – has just been unveiled.

RMIT’s eight Enabling Impact Platforms, or EIPs, bring together researchers from across the university to engage with schools, colleges and external stakeholders in addressing complex problems in high-priority research areas.

This report highlights how RMIT’s unique interdisciplinary research platforms continue to support RMIT researchers to drive significant impact through collaboration and partnerships, underscoring the university’s commitment to addressing global issues through impactful research.

In 2024 alone, the EIPs created a variety of opportunities for engagement and collaboration across institutional and disciplinary boundaries, supporting 43 researcher-led networks, activating funding for 30 translation-focussed projects, and hosting over 70 events to drive collaboration.

Distinguished Professor Calum Drummond.Distinguished Professor Calum Drummond.

“Our Enabling Impact Platforms are agile structures that foster interdisciplinary collaboration, bringing together teams from various fields to tackle society’s complex challenges,” said Distinguished Professor Calum Drummond, Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research and Innovation.

“These platforms are pivotal in our ambition to achieve impactful outcomes and embody RMIT’s Knowledge with Action strategy and Decadal Aspirations for enabling research and innovation for impact.”

The Eat Move Heal Network developed integrative care models for Long-COVID. The Eat Move Heal Network developed integrative care models for Long-COVID.

Professor Swee Mak, Associate Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research and Innovation Capability, expressed enthusiasm for the progress.

“I am excited to see the EIPs continue to enhance RMIT researchers' capacity to forge impactful partnerships and accelerate research translation. This report is both a celebration of our achievements and an invitation to explore new collaborative opportunities,” he said.

Highlighting specific initiatives, the Eat Move Heal Network developed integrative care models for Long-COVID, while the Taylor Swift Fanposium bridged fan culture and academic discourse, exploring gender and fandom dynamics.

The University's commitment to sustainability was also evident in events focusing on reducing plastic waste through innovative practices.

The Taylor Swift Fanposium bridged fan culture and academic discourse.The Taylor Swift Fanposium bridged fan culture and academic discourse.

These efforts illustrate the EIPs' role in fostering interdisciplinary engagement, enabling a multitude of diverse, conventional and unconventional impact pathways, and contributing to a range of desired futures.

The approximately 1,500 researchers and professional staff affiliated to the EIPs are a testament to RMIT’s  decade-long effort to create an interconnected, interdisciplinary, research and innovation ecosystem.

Download the report (PDF, 11.5MB)

Story: Georgie Patterson and Duncan Scott

26 August 2025

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26 August 2025

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Acknowledgement of Country

RMIT University acknowledges the people of the Woi wurrung and Boon wurrung language groups of the eastern Kulin Nation on whose unceded lands we conduct the business of the University. RMIT University respectfully acknowledges their Ancestors and Elders, past and present. RMIT also acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and their Ancestors of the lands and waters across Australia where we conduct our business - Artwork 'Sentient' by Hollie Johnson, Gunaikurnai and Monero Ngarigo.

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