The Laurent Fellowship and Scholarship for Respiratory Health
Applications are now open for the Laurent Postgraduate Travel Scholarships and close Friday 1st May 2025.
The 2025 ERS Meeting abstract submission deadline is 20 February 2025.
Overview of the Laurent Fellowship and Scholarship for Respiratory Health Program
The Laurent Fellowships and Travel Scholarships for Respiratory Health were established as a tribute to Professor Geoff Laurent, a globally renowned researcher in respiratory health.
These initiatives aim to honour and continue Geoff Laurent’s lifelong dedication to meaningful research, knowledge exchange, and fostering academic partnerships – particularly with the universities he was most closely associated with The University of Western Australia (UWA) and University College London (UCL).
The program includes three opportunities:
- The Early to Mid-Career Laurent Fellowship in Respiratory Health
- The Senior Laurent Fellowship in Respiratory Health
- The Laurent Postgraduate Travel Scholarships
All awards will be offered annually, providing sufficient funding to cover travel expenses, living costs, accommodation, and laboratory consumables for the Early to Mid-Career Fellowship.
Early to Mid-Career Laurent Fellowship
This Fellowship represents an opportunity for an applicant to undertake respiratory health research in an internationally recognised centre of excellence which, in this scheme, involves laboratories in the highly ranked Department of Respiratory Medicine at UCL. The Fellowship will support travel costs, living expenses and accommodation as well as support for laboratory consumables. Funding will be available for a period of between one and three months.
This Fellowship is designed to provide early to mid-career scientists with the opportunity to experience research in an internationally recognised centre of excellence which, in this scheme, involves laboratories in the Department of Respiratory Medicine at University College London.
This Fellowship represents an opportunity for an applicant to undertake respiratory health research in an internationally recognised centre of excellence which, in this scheme, involves laboratories in the highly ranked Department of Respiratory Medicine at UCL. The Fellowship will support travel costs, living expenses and accommodation as well as support for laboratory consumables. Funding will be available for a period of between one and three months.
The successful Early to Mid-Career Fellow will take up the position in one of the Department of Respiratory Medicine’s Laboratories at UCL. Presently, there are three large centres likely to be offering hosting opportunities for a candidate and include:
- Centre for Inflammation and Tissue Repair
- Lungs for Living Research Centre
- Centre for Respiratory Biology
The primary contact for the Laurent Fellowship at UCL will be Professor Rachel Chambers, with whom the possibility of a laboratory placement should be discussed well before submitting an application.
Details of a suitable project and the laboratory host will be required for any application. To contact Professor Chambers, please email Nicole Halliday at nicole.halliday@ucl.ac.uk.
The Early to Mid-Career Laurent Fellowship in Respiratory Health is open to researchers with a doctoral degree awarded within eight years of an application being made and who are either:
- currently employed at UWA,
- adjunct staff in Centres associated with UWA-affiliated medical research institutes or
- have recently completed their doctoral degree in respiratory health research at UWA.
Senior Laurent Fellowship in Respiratory Health
The Senior Laurent Fellowship in Respiratory Health is designed to encourage the establishment of viable research collaborations between senior respiratory health scientists at UWA and its Centres within affiliated institutes and those at UCL. Funding will be available for a period of between two to four weeks to enable a successful applicant to travel from UWA to UCL or vice versa. Senior Researchers at either institution will be eligible to apply.
Laurent Postgraduate Travel Scholarships in Respiratory Health
The Laurent Postgraduate Travel Scholarships in Respiratory Health are awarded annually, alternating between the ICLAF Conference and the ERS Meeting.
The inaugural scholarships, launched in 2024, were created to support students and early career researchers (ECRs) attending the biennial International Colloquium on Lung and Airway Fibrosis (ICLAF) Conference. With its dedicated focus on lung fibrosis, ICLAF was a natural choice for the original scholarship. Professor Geoff Laurent played a foundational role in establishing this event in the early 1980s, and it remains a key forum for sharing advancements in pulmonary fibrosis research.
To broaden the impact of these scholarships, the Committee has introduced an additional opportunity, enabling students and ECRs to attend an international meeting in alternate years. The European Respiratory Society (ERS) Meeting has been selected for its alignment with Professor Laurent’s legacy. Throughout his career, Professor Laurent was deeply engaged with the ERS, receiving its prestigious Presidential Award for his contributions to fibrosis research. The ERS further honoured his impact by establishing the “Geoffrey Laurent Award” for the best oral presentation at its annual scientific meeting.
Applications are now open and close on 1st May 2025. The 2025 ERS Meeting abstract submission deadline is 20 February 2025.
The Laurent Fellowships for Respiratory Health are made possible by a group of dedicated friends and longstanding scientific colleagues of Geoff Laurent’s who wished to ensure that his legacy will not be forgotten. Further information on the history and purpose of the program can be found here.