Distinguished Professor Xuemei Bai from The Australian National University (ANU) has been named a 2025 Highly Cited Researcher – placing her among the top 1 in 1,000 researchers globally. The recognition reflects the global impact of her research on the future of cities and how it is shaping thinking across disciplines and around the world.

At ANU, systems thinking is not a slogan – it’s a mindset that guides research, builds partnerships, and delivers outcomes. Bai’s work shows how this approach can help cities respond to complex challenges.

Her research starts with a simple idea: cities are not just places where people live; they can drive change.

“My ARC [Australian Research Council] Laureate Fellowship project is called ‘Cities as Transformative Agents for a Climate Safe Future’,” says Bai.

“I am working to emphasise how cities can accelerate their transformation, influence others to join the journey, and build networks to enhance resilience toward more sustainable and climate safe futures.”

The fellowship brings this vision to life through four interconnected strands: understanding urban trajectories, accelerating net-zero and resilient urban development pathways, scaling proactive influence between cities, and exploring how cities can build resilience through networks.

“Cities are interconnected, no single city can be ready for every shock on its own,” explains Bai.

“By building partnerships and acting together, they can strengthen resilience across the whole system.”

This work advances the idea of networked resilience, exploring how cities interact and support each other during crises such as floods, heatwaves or pandemics, and what mechanisms and institutions help them collaborate more effectively.

“I focus on the bright spots,” says Bai. “You try to amplify the good things and encourage cities to take one step further.”

That optimism is backed by real-world examples – from Japanese cities increasing international collaboration to Australian jurisdictions moving rapidly on renewables and electrification.

As an Earth Commissioner, Bai has led efforts to connect global science with local action.

“What I am trying to do is downscale the planetary and Earth system level boundary and connect that to cities and businesses.

“I really believe in the agency of sub-national actors – cities in particular – and try to have their plans and actions align with overall planetary boundaries. If every city can do that, collectively we can make sure humanity is staying inside a safe and just boundary.”

Based in the Fenner School of Environment and Society, Bai continues to show how systems thinking can change both research and practice. Her work demonstrates how rigorous, interdisciplinary science can move beyond academia to inform decision-making and deliver impact.

This mindset – connecting dots across spatial and temporal scales, across silos, and from global science to local action – has made Bai one of the most influential scholars of her generation. It also reflects the broader mission of the ANU College of Systems and Society to create national capacity and drive positive transformation across the technological, societal and natural systems in which we live.

Bai’s global recognition highlights not only her individual excellence, but also the collaborative environment at ANU that is turning big-picture science into real-world impact.