Professor Kiaran Kirk is Dean of the Australian National University’s College of Science. His primary research interest is in the biology of the malaria parasite with a particular focus on the mechanism of action of, and mechanisms of resistance to, antimalarial drugs. His work has had significant translational impact, with the biochemical assays that he and his colleagues have developed now being used to assess the mechanism of action of drugs entering the antimalarial drug-development pipeline, to ensure that that there is not overinvestment in compounds sharing the same molecular target.