<b><i>Professional Associations as Players in the Australian Work Health and Safety Research Ecosystem:</i></b>Briefing Paper for the Safe Work Australia Research Summit - September 2025

<p dir="ltr">The purpose of this Briefing Paper is to describe the role of WHS professional associations as players in the research ecosystem.</p><p dir="ltr">Although not regarded as research organisations, it is evident that WHS professional associations are important players in research, with diverse contributions. The Australian WHS Strategy (2023) alludes to working with the research community to expand the evidence base and identify emerging WHS challenges. This can feed into the setting of research priorities. In the future, the role of WHS professional associations in research, including horizon scanning and intervention evaluation, can be strengthened in a formal partnership arrangement e.g. a MOU, as part of the operationalisation of the Australian WHS Strategy.</p>