The Royal Society of NSW is delighted to learn of the recognition of one of its Fellows, Professor Hans Pols FRSN FAHA FASSA of the University of Sydney, as oee of the new Fellows of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia, elected in November 2022. 

Professor Hans Pols is Professor at the School of History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Sydney and a fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia, the Australian Academy of the Humanities, and the Royal Society of New South Wales. He is interested in the history of colonial medicine and the transformation of medical research and medical practices underwent during the process of decolonization. His research has focused on the Dutch East Indies and Indonesia, and on psychiatry and mental health. His book Nurturing Indonesia: Medicine and Decolonisation in the Dutch East Indies was published by Cambridge University Press in 2018 (the Indonesian translation appeared as Merawat Bangsa: Sejarah Pergerakan para Dokter Indonesia Zaman Kolonial (Jakarta: KOMPAS, 2018)).

Professor Pols is currently leading a research project, funded by the Australia Research Council, on the history of community mental health in Australia. The project team consists of a psychologist, a psychiatrist, two historians, four consumers of mental health care, and several students, and has developed methodologies of co-production to gain comprehensive insights into the development of mental health care practices in Australia. 

Further information about his career and achievements can by found in the laudation on the ASSA website.

The Royal Society of NSW extends it warmest congratulations to Professor Pols this recognition by the Social Sciences Academy of his achievements.