Institute for Molecular Bioscience

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

The United Nation's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is a shared blueprint of how we create a world where all people can enjoy peace and prosperity. The blueprint is underpinned by 17 Sustainable Development Goals that call for a global partnership to overcome our biggest challenges.

Researchers at the Institute for Molecular Bioscience are contributing towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals in a number of ways, working to improve the lives of those in our local and global communities. We are particularly focused on:

A green square with 3 Global Health and Wellbeing written on it and a graphic of a heartbeat with a heart at the end SDG #3 - Good health and wellbeing

Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.

IMB researchers are developing better ways to predict, prevent and treat some of the leading causes of death in the world, such as heart disease and stroke, and diseases that disproportionately affect developing and middle-income countries, such as antimicrobial resistance, and First Nations populations, such as rheumatic heart disease.

From diseases that affect us at the very start of life, such as birth defects, to diseases that plague our final years, such as dementia, our scientists are searching for solutions. We have clusters of expertise in chronic diseases, infectious diseases, genetics and genomics, and drug development, allowing for intra- and interdisciplinary approaches that see problems from new angles. We are tackling:

  • Heart disease
  • Stroke
  • Chronic pain
  • Endometriosis
  • Cancer
  • Neurological disorders
  • Inflammatory diseases
  • Ageing and neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and dementia
  • Birth defects and rare disorders
  • Chronic respiratory diseases
  • Neuropsychiatric disorders
  • Diabetes
  • Chronic liver disease
  • Kidney disease
  • Urinary treat infections (UTIs)
  • Group A Streptococci (Strep A)
  • Malaria
  • Neonatal meningitis
  • Sepsis

Pink square with the number 10 and 'Reduced inequalities' written on it, with some triangles and rectangles SDG #10 - Reduced inequalities

Reduce inequalities within and among countries

Addressing the health inequity that exists in minority populations in Australia, and among some of our vulnerable neighbours in the Asia-Pacific region, is a major area of focus for our researchers. We are building networks and collaborations across the globe to tackle issues that are exacerbated by poverty and lack of access to healthcare, medicines and health education.

We are taking a multi-pronged approach to tackling antimicrobial resistance through education and awareness about the dangers of inappropriate antibiotic use, and world-leading research to identify new antimicrobial treatments, including harnessing the talents of citizen scientists around Australia, and crowdsourcing new antimicrobials from laboratories around the world.

We are working to increase the diversity of samples available from under-represented populations to build more accurate prediction, prevention and treatment strategies for minority populations. We are world leaders in tackling diseases that have a devastating effect on women, such as endometriosis, and First Nations Populations, such as rheumatic heart disease. 

We strive to make treatments more affordable, and accessible to regional and remote communities across the globe. This work includes developing medicines that can be grown in plants, which would be more affordable, effective and easily distributed; and a treatment for stroke that could be administered by first responders, rather than needing patients to be transported to a hospital with high-level imaging equipment. 

We are developing networks that will allow us to improve health in developing nations through a multi-pronged approach to overcome barriers to vaccine protection, including improved education and access to life-saving preventatives. 

An orange square with "11 Sustainable Cities and Communities" written in white and a graphic of buildings SDG #11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities

Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

Projections show the world's crop production will need to double by 2050 to support our increasing global population. Achieving this in a sustainable way requires insecticides that don't contain harmful chemicals. An IMB researcher brought the world's first peptide-based insecticide to market, and we continue to work with industry to develop bee-friendly insecticides from molecules isolated from Australian plants and animals. 

IMB researchers are also harnessing the ability of algae to use solar energy to make products such as biofuel, food and medicine. Integrating microalgae systems into buildings and roads could provide thermal control, power, abate street noise and manufacture bio-products while absorbing carbon dioxide and pollutants from the air - all while being visually striking.