Distinguished Professor Lidia Morawska stands as a preeminent authority in the field of atmospheric science and air quality research, renowned for her decades of transformative contributions to understanding airborne particulate matter and its health impacts. She currently holds the position of Distinguished Professor and Australian Laureate Fellow at Queensland University of Technology's School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, where she established the Environmental Aerosol Laboratory in 1991 and has served as Director of the International Laboratory for Air Quality and Health since its designation as a WHO Collaborating Centre in 2002. Born in Tarnów, Poland in 1952, Professor Morawska built her research foundation through positions at McMaster University as an International Atomic Energy Agency postdoctoral fellow and at the University of Toronto before joining QUT, where she was promoted to Professor in 2003. Her leadership extends to directing the ARC Training Centre for Advanced Building Systems Against Airborne Infection Transmission, known as THRIVE, positioning her at the forefront of interdisciplinary research addressing critical environmental health challenges.
Professor Morawska's groundbreaking research has fundamentally reshaped global understanding of air quality standards and the health implications of airborne particles, with her scholarly work accumulating over 281,000 citations according to Google Scholar. She has served as a long-standing collaborator and advisor to the World Health Organization, contributing to all WHO air quality-related guidelines since 1990 and co-chairing the pivotal Guideline Development Group from 2006 to 2021, which established international standards adopted by nations worldwide. Her specific research projects, including the Effects of Nano and Ultrafine Particles from Traffic Emissions on Children's Health and Assessment of Children's Exposure to Air Pollution in Fiji, demonstrate her commitment to translating scientific findings into practical public health interventions across diverse global contexts. Her expertise spans the entire spectrum of aerosol science, from fundamental particle physics to environmental epidemiology, with her work consistently recognized as 'outstanding results of substantial value for other researchers' across more than thirty years of dedicated scholarship.
Beyond her individual research achievements, Professor Morawska has established herself as a central figure in the global air quality research community, leveraging her position as a member of the Australian Academy of Science and Royal Society of Biology to shape international scientific discourse. Her leadership in the THRIVE center reflects her ongoing commitment to addressing emerging challenges in airborne infection transmission, particularly relevant in the post-pandemic era, while maintaining her influential role as an advisor to the World Health Organization on air quality standards. Recognized with prestigious honors including the 2011 Clean Air Medal from CASANZ for 'sustained and dedicated contribution to the understanding of fine particles in the air' and the 2020 QUT Vice-Chancellor's Award for Leadership Excellence, her contributions continue to set the global agenda for air quality research. As she continues her work at the International Laboratory for Air Quality and Health, Professor Morawska remains dedicated to advancing the scientific understanding of air pollution and its health impacts, ensuring her research continues to inform policy and improve public health outcomes worldwide.
