Public Relations and Corporate Communications Manager
John Kauter
(02) 6773 2779
Public Relations Specialist/Journalist
Jim Scanlan
(02) 6773 3049
Corporate Communications Officer
Leon Braun
(02) 6773 3771
Photographer
David Elkins
(02) 6773 3770
Events Coordinators
Kerry De Jong
(02) 6773 3955
and
Tracey James
(02) 6773 2768
Administrative Assistant
Kathleen Harper
(02) 6773 2736
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August 2004
June 2004UNE opens rural centres in high-tech launch
July 30, 2004
The latest video-conferencing technology will be used for the concurrent launch of the University of New England’s new Access Centres at Gunnedah and Quirindi on Wednesday, August 4.
The three-way video-conference will link the Centres with UNE in Armidale and feature Professor Peter Flood, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research), talking about the University’s Sustainable Grains Production course.
This is a new course, and the video-conference will allow external students Adrian Nelson at Quirindi and Nick Park at Gunnedah to discuss their studies with Professor Flood. They are among the inaugural intake of students taking the course.
The joint launches start at midday when Professor Ingrid Moses, Vice-Chancellor of UNE, will officially open both the Gunnedah and Quirindi Access Centres by video-conference. Professor Flood will be Master of Ceremonies at Quirindi.
Professor Moses will be joined at Gunnedah by Soil Science and Agronomy Associate Professors Robin Jessop and Brian Sindel . The conference, expected to be conducted before a joint audience of at least 80 people, is aimed at the local communities and will specifically address careers in agronomy.
At a separate event later in the day, UNE will open its Access Centre at Coonabarabran. There, Professor Moses will be joined by Professor Hugh Ford, Head of UNE’s School of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resources Management. Guests at the Coonabarabran opening will also take part in a video-conference with officials back at UNE in Armidale and will discuss work being carried out at Coonabarabran with the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS).
UNE will open four more Centres the following week: the Moree, Boggabilla, Inverell and Tenterfield Access Centres, opening on August 10 and 11. All the new Centres, including the Narrabri Access Centre opened in April, are on TAFE campuses. The new Access Centres, together with the UNE Tamworth Centre, will take advantage of recent developments that are making high-quality communications technology available to communities in north-western NSW.
"UNE takes very seriously its commitment to the people of the region," said the University's Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ingrid Moses. "We are establishing these Access Centres, with the help of a Commonwealth Government grant, to ensure that our country communities have a competitive advantage and are not left behind in the information age. Our collaboration with TAFE in this venture, built on the strengths of both institutions, will create more opportunities for people to undertake tertiary studies while staying in their home town and district."
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 12:04 PM
Super result for TAS challengers
July 29, 2004
The team from The Armidale School that triumphed at the Armidale Science and Engineering Challenge has received a $500 cheque to help it on its way tothe Super Challenge Series in Newcastle in August.
Dr Sarah Pearson from the Faculty of The Sciences at the University of New
England visited TAS last week to present the cheque on behalf of the Dean of
the Faculty, who was one of the sponsors of the Armidale Challenge in June.
Dr Pearson, a physics lecturer, was a member of the UNE team that worked
with local Rotary Club members in organising and conducting the Challenge at
UNE. She presented the cheque to the Principal of TAS, Mr Murray Guest.
The TAS team scored more points than the other teams (from schools in
Armidale, Uralla, Guyra, Walcha, Inverell and Tenerfield) taking part in the
day-long Armidale Challenge. It was one of 23 such events (coordinated by
the University of Newcastle) across the nation. The Super Challenge Series
will be held during National Science Week (August 14-22).
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 03:28 PM
Chancellor welcomes V-C's extension
July 28, 2004
At its meeting of 26 July 2004, the Council of the University of New England approved an extension to the term of office of the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ingrid Moses, until 31 July 2006.
Professor Ingrid Moses began as Vice-Chancellor in July 1997 and under her leadership the reputation and financial position of the University has significantly improved. The Chancellor, Mr John Cassidy, requested that the Vice-Chancellor seek an extension to her term in order to facilitate the University’s ability to meet with National Governance Protocols recently imposed on higher education providers by the Federal Government.
Mr Cassidy stated that Professor Ingrid Moses is highly regarded within the region, the nation and internationally, as an active advocate for the provision of accessible, high quality tertiary education. He mentioned that just a few of Professor Moses' initiatives include the Country Scholarships for undergraduate students at UNE, the development of Graduate Attributes, the WorkReady and Leadership programs for students, and support for strategic initiatives within the University in both teaching and research through her Strategic Development Fund.
The University is well placed to meet the challenges of, and opportunities available in, the higher education sector.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 12:45 PM
Duckweed in Venezuela: Professor Leng reports
July 27, 2004
The University of New England’s Emeritus Professor Ron Leng will return to the University this week to talk about his recent investigation of a serious weed problem in South America’s largest lake.
Ron Leng, who was Professor of Nutritional Biochemistry at UNE from 1973 to
1996, received the Order of Australia in 1993 for his outstanding work in animal nutrition. He has been involved in a consultancy for the Government of Venezuela on an infestation of duckweed in Lake Maracaibo.
Professor Leng, who now lives in Queensland, will present a public seminar titled “Slow Death of Lake Maracaibo: a Problem with Duckweed”, in UNE’s Wright Lecture Theatre this Thursday (29 July) at 10am.
The consultants’ report on the Lake Maracaibo problem investigates the sources of nutrients feeding the duckweed, outlines strategies for reducing the flow of these nutrients into the lake, and discusses the potential of the duckweed as an animal feed. Professor Leng reports that the single species of duckweed at Lake Maracaibo is an uncommon one, and growing so thickly in places that a man can walk on it.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 11:08 AM
Vice-Chancellor's key role at international conference
July 26, 2004
The Vice-Chancellor of the University of New England, Professor Ingrid
Moses, has been chosen as an “outstanding woman in the field of world higher
education” to address more than 100 female university presidents from China
and around the world in Beijing in September.
The President of Beijing Broadcasting University (BBU), Professor Liu Ji
Nan, will host the prestigious 2nd International Forum of Female Presidents
of Universities to mark the 50th anniversary of BBU. BBU has more than
28,000 students, preparing professionals for the mass media of radio and
television broadcasting, filmmaking, Internet communication, and paper
publications, and researching in these areas.
Professor Moses was chosen to speak at the Opening and the Celebration
Ceremonies in her capacity as the President of the International Association
of University Presidents, a body of 600 leaders from higher education
institutions from around the world.
In the lead-up to the September forum and celebrations, a film crew from
Beijing Broadcasting University (BBU) arrived in Armidale on Monday to film
Professor Moses.
The crew of four is producing a 12-part documentary on a dozen female
university presidents from around the world. This will be broadcast on China
Central Television (CCTV) in September, to complement the forum, and is
expected to be watched by more than 1 billion viewers. CCTV is China’s
largest television network and, through its English-speaking subsidiary,
reaches television audiences across the globe.
Professor Moses is believed to be the only Australian president the crew are
filming while in Australia.
Professor Moses said: “Of course I am delighted and feel honoured to have
been chosen for the documentary. We will make sure that the University of
New England features prominently and that we can display some of our
attractions for students, and our teaching and research strengths.”
For more information phone Professor Moses on 6773 2144 or Lydia Roberts on
6773 2779.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 11:20 AM
Ladies win Battle of the 'Loo
July 23, 2004
A wee problem involving a number of staff at UNE has finally been solved with the (unofficial) opening of the Annette Stevenson Personal Hygiene Facility today.
Amid cheers from a gathering of more than 20 staff, Infrastructure Manager Brian Munro launched UNE's latest watering hole.
"Lid lifters and seat sitters will be delighted with this new facility," Mr Munro told the gathered crowd at the new toilets at the bottom of the Black Rose building on campus.
Ms Stevenson, a Senior Counsellor who led the push to segregate the existing unisex toilets, explained how "the girls had been trying for years to educate our male colleagues, when using the unisex toilets, to put the seat down or shut the door".
Said Ms Stevenson: "The offer of a free issue of gum boots and ear muffs was politely declined.
"The girls decided to stand on their dig so they could sit on their seat in peace."
Finally, earlier this year, Mr Munro and his workers were called in to solve the problem, installing two new toilets for the women and leaving the other two to the men.
"This new watering hole has left us flushed with excitement," Ms Stevenson said after the ribbon was cut.
"Thumbs up to the plumbers, carpenters and cleaners for their efforts and thumbs down to the creatures who created the havoc in the first place -- men."
The ceremony concluded with coffee and chocolate cake baked by Counselling and Careers Manager Ms Rhonda Leece.
The new facility was soon put to good use.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 11:45 AM
Beach prompts study of Muslim modesty
July 22, 2004
A scholar from the University of New England has investigated apparent differences between Muslim men and women in their observance of Qur’anic injunctions on modesty.
Toni Tidswell said her inquiry had begun after a day spent on an Australian beach, where she had observed a party of Muslim beachgoers: the men dressed only in board shorts and the women fully clothed from head to ankle (including the veil, or hijab). Dressed in this way, both the men and the women were swimming in the surf.
Ms Tidswell, a postgraduate student in UNE’s School of Classics, History and Religion, discussed this anomaly at a national Religious Studies conference last weekend. “I was deeply moved by the commitment of the women, who accepted the restriction of movement (and perhaps of enjoyment) in the surf with so much material around their bodies,” she said.
In her lecture at the conference (the annual meeting of the Australian Association for the Study of Religions) she drew on several passages in the Qur’an to argue that the injunctions on modesty of dress and behaviour applied equally to women and men. Her investigation led her to suggest that the apparent anomaly in dress arose from a general but false belief that the sight of men’s bodies did not excite sexual desire in women.
She discussed the story, as related in the Qur’an, of Joseph and Zulaykha (the woman called “Potiphar’s wife” in the Bible), showing that this story includes a sympathetic analysis of a woman’s overwhelming sexual desire at the sight of male beauty. “In a way, Zulaykha (who attempts unsuccessfully to seduce Joseph) can be considered the more honest of the two characters,” she said. “Although she is misguided and sinful in giving way to her desire, nevertheless Joseph’s beauty has drawn her in and she is honest about her desire.”
Ms Tidswell concluded that the story provided the context for a deeper understanding of the Qur’anic injunctions on modesty of dress. While the men on the beach may well have been complying with the “letter” of those injunctions, they could have been unaware of their “spirit”, she said. “I wonder if those Muslim men understood that their bodies were beautiful not just to the women in their own family, but potentially to others on the beach? Or have the Muslim men embraced the Australian beach culture with gusto while still adhering to their literal interpretation of the Qur’anic passage on modesty?”
Toni Tidswell attended the Study of Religions conference, held this year at the University of Western Sydney, as the Charles Strong Trust Junior Lecturer for 2004. Her PhD research concerns the portrayal of women in the Qur’an and Hebrew scriptures.
Media contact: Toni Tidswell, School of Classics, History and Religion, UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 3532 or Jim Scanlan, Public Relations, UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 3049.
Posted by Jim Scanlan at 03:30 PM
Witches: myths obscure the reality
July 21, 2004
Portrayals of witches in popular books, films and television series such as Harry Potter, Charmed and Buffy have little to do with the living religion of Witchcraft.
A University of New England researcher who has analysed these popular
fictions points out that they continue traditional attitudes that label witches as “other”, and as at least potentially dangerous.
“These depictions demonstrate the continuing fascination of popular culture with witches and witchcraft, and the lurking suspicion and fear with which they are still regarded,” said Caroline James, a research student in UNE’s School of Classics, History and Religion.
Ms James presented a paper on the differences between the fiction and the reality of witches at the annual conference of the Australian Association for the Study of Religions last weekend. She told the conference, at the University of Western Sydney, that in fact witches “do not worship Satan, participate in obscene rites with demons, practice human sacrifice, ride broomsticks, or cause destruction, death, and disease in their communities”.
She said the primary purpose of “magic” as practised by contemporary witches was “the transformation of the self”. Real witches focused on deepening self-awareness and human relationships rather than on developing paranormal
powers.
Another fundamental difference was that real witches viewed “nature and the earth as sacred rather than flawed or corrupt, and themselves as part of the sacred earth”. The fictional witches, on the other hand, “do not revere the earth as sacred, and do not seek spiritual growth and transformation”.
Ms James explained that the witch of modern fantasy was partly a descendant of the witches vilified by the Church in medieval and early modern Europe as practitioners of magic that was “harmful, evil, or even demonic”. In her discussion of Willow, the heroine of the Buffy series, she said: “Her powers are supernatural, and although she fights on the side of good she practises ‘dark arts’ that corrupt her. She is both powerful and dangerous.”
Such figures of fantasy had the potential to create misunderstanding and prejudice in multi-faith, multicultural Western societies where Witchcraft was one of the fastest-growing religions, she said. “This is particularly so in the current political climate, when people are actually afraid of certain groups that are defined in terms of religion.”
“I’m aiming to correct misunderstandings about contemporary witches,” Ms James said. “The only way to combat fear is through knowledge. What witches really are and do could be just as fascinating to ordinary people as the paranormal powers and exploits of those fantasy figures.”
Media contact: Caroline James, School of Classics, History and Religion,
UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 3532 or Jim Scanlan, Public Relations, UNE, Armidale
(02) 6773 3049.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 11:28 AM
Celebrating a true sharing
July 20, 2004
Iconic photographs of Armidale, UNE and the New England area will be on sale at the launch of this year's annual Celebration of Sharing.
Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ingrid Moses will host the launch, to be held on Thursday at Booloominbah. Master of Ceremonies will be Associate Lecturer Peter McClenaghan.
The event starts at 4.30pm when a series of limited edition photographs, taken by resident photographer David Elkins, will be on display. One of the photographs will be raffled in a draw where the first prize is a return airfare to Sydney.
High-quality prints of these photographs will be on sale -- $65 framed, $49.95 unframed -- in a bid to raise funds for the Celebration of Sharing's local charities.
Begun four years ago, Celebration of Sharing has become an annual event, pulling together town and gown in a bid to raise money for local families in need. Charities to have benefitted in the past include St Vincent de Paul and the Salvation Army. This year's charity is yet to be announced.
Last year, a UNE-wide drive raised more than $2,500 for the nominated charity. The money was handed over at Christmas at the annual Turning-of-the-Lights festival in Armidale's pedestrian precinct.
Then, Marketing and Public Affairs organised a Halloween Trick or Treat day, in which the tidy sum of $700 was raised.
Departments and faculties campus-wide held their own charitable events, including a Melbourne Cup day and Morning Tea, to raise the rest of the funds.
The photographs to be sold in this year's bid to raise funds will be on display in the foyer of Marketing and Public Affairs for the public to view and order copies.
Anyone who would like to come to Thursday's launch, or who would like to buy a photograph, should phone Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 04:10 PM
New national centre opens at UNE
July 19, 2004
Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson will officially open the new National Centre of Science, Information and Communication Technology, and Mathematics Education for Rural and Regional Australia (SIMERR) at the University of New England on Thursday, July 22.
Over the past year, staff at the UNE have been working closely with The Nationals in refining a proposal for the centre and securing the appropriate funding.
In late June, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Regional Services John Anderson announced the proposal had gained funding of $4.95 million for the establishment of the centre through the Australian Government’s Regional Partnerships program.
Research work is already underway.
SIMERR is based in the Education building of UNE with Professor John Pegg taking up the position of the centre’s Director. Regional hubs will then be developed in each State and Territory.
Professor Pegg said the main aim of the centre is to improve the quality of regional and rural students’ learning.
“This can be done by encouraging and supporting the professional development of teachers in primary, secondary and tertiary education.”
“There are a myriad of problems which face rural and regional teachers that city teachers don’t have to worry about. Identifying these problems and developing solutions to address them is the main focus of this National centre.”
“The idea of the research to be undertaken by the centre is to thrash out where and what are the problems in teaching maths and science in rural schools. These are complicated issues – are teachers getting enough support, are they staying in communities long enough, are parents recognising that maths and science subjects are important in their children’s education?”
“Hopefully, by looking at these issues, we can develop some strategies which will ultimately result in improving the way our children are taught maths, science, and ICT subjects,” Professor Pegg said.
Professor Victor Minichiello, Dean of the Faculty of Education, Health and Professional Studies, indicated that this was an exciting initiative because it reflected the confidence of the government in supporting rural communities to find solutions to solve some of the challenges they experience.
The Nationals have supported this proposal from its conception, with Senator Sandy Macdonald and Nationals New England Candidate Trevor Khan setting up meetings between Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson and UNE staff.
Minister Anderson said The Nationals are committed to the improvement in education for rural and regional students.
“As leader of The Nationals, I have long been concerned about the fact that primary and secondary students in country schools are falling behind in maths and science. It is a concern that was expressed clearly at The Nationals Federal Conference in October 2003.”
“The National Centre will make a real contribution to improving the education and future security of regional and rural school children and communities.”
It is expected that results of the centre’s initial research will be seen in mid-2005.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 03:38 PM
“To Russia With Love” celebrates Chekhov centenary
July 16, 2004
Armidale will turn its mind to all things Russian during July and August with a special celebration to mark the centenary of the great playwright Anton Chekhov.
The "To Russia With Love" festival of events will run from July 22 to August 22 and include a "Vodka and Verse" evening, a special screening of "Dr Zhivago", a season of "The Good Doctor" at the Armidale Playhouse, and a series of acting workshops conducted by Sue Fell from the University of New England.
It is the brainchild of Hungarian-born director Barbara Albury and the committee of keen Russophiles from the Armidale Playhouse.
“Chekhov’s centenary is being celebrated all around the world this year and we thought Armidale should join in,” Ms Albury says.
“He was Russia’s greatest playwright, and his influence remains strong in the theatre along with his collaboration with Stanislavsky, whose acting theory created its own revolution.”
The centrepiece of the festival will be the production of "The Good Doctor" at the Armidale Playhouse, opening on August 4 for a three-week run. The play is Neil Simon’s adaptation of several Chekhov short stories, each reflecting amusing insights into human weakness and vulnerability.
In conjunction with the play, UNE lecturer, actor and director Sue Fell will hold three Saturday afternoon acting workshops, on August 7,14 and 21, at Smith House. Participants will be introduced to the famous Stanislavsky technique through three of Chekhov’s most famous plays.
Posted by Jim Scanlan at 03:21 PM
National push to unite chaplains
July 15, 2004
The University of New England has helped spark a movement to form a national association of university chaplains in Papua New Guinea.
UNE sponsored the attendance of the Rev. Advent Melkisede, a University of Goroka chaplain, at an international conference of university chaplains in Australia earlier this month. (UNE and the University of Goroka are partners in an agreement on cooperation and exchange.) The conference, at Griffith University in Brisbane, inspired Mr Melkisede to begin the process of forming a national association in PNG.
The Rev. Judy Redman, UNE’s Uniting Church chaplain, represented UNE at the conference. She said Mr Melkisede, who coordinates chaplaincy at the University of Goroka, “was very pleased to be there, and was excited at seeing the benefits of getting a group of chaplains together and sharing ideas”.
Ms Redman, who was on the organising committee for the conference in Brisbane, has been appointed one of two Australian chaplains who will liaise with the PNG chaplains during the initial stages of the project. She said Mr Melkisede was planning to convene the first national conference of PNG university chaplains around the end of this year.
The 3rd International Campus Ministry Conference ran throughout the first week of July at Griffith University. Titled Dreaming Landscapes: Spiritualities and Justice in Learning Communities, it involved delegates from 19 overseas countries as well as from around Australia. The total number of participants was about 240.
The multi-faith conference included a keynote address from Dr Chandra Muzaffar, President of the International Movement for a Just World, Malaysia. He spoke about the need for university chaplains to be aware of the roots of injustice on a global scale when counselling individual students suffering its repercussions.
Another keynote speaker, Dr David Tacey from La Trobe University, Melbourne, explored the implications for university chaplains of the increasingly secular nature of society in developed countries.
Ms Redman said British and Australian delegates had found they were encountering similar concerns about increasing levels of student debt associated with changing government strategies for funding higher education.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 10:11 AM
Meeting tackles falling science student numbers
July 14, 2004
Science education, at a time when a greater proportion of students than ever
before are opting out of science subjects, was the focus of an international
conference at the University of New England.
Fred Watson, Astronomer-in-Charge of the Anglo-Australian Observatory, who
gave the introductory address, said it was “fantastic” to be attending an
international meeting, in rural NSW, on such an important subject.
(The Australasian Science Education Research Association, ASERA, was holding its annual conference in a regional centre for only the second time in its
35-year history.)
During the conference, on July 8, 9 and 10, there were 75 presentations of research results on a wide range of subjects, all ultimately addressing the question: How can educators inspire students to continue with their study of
science? “The most important thing is to make them want to do science again
next year,” said one of the delegates, Dick Gunstone, who is Professor of
Science Education at Monash University.
The convener of the conference, Dr Debra Panizzon from UNE’s School of
Education, said one of the main topics of discussion had been the issue of
assessment. “It’s a hot topic world-wide,” she said. Professor Gunstone
explained that current methods of assessment, based on “outcomes”, were
causing problems because “the most important outcomes cannot be easily
measured”.
About 100 researchers and educators from the United States, South Africa,
Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Thailand and New Zealand, as well as from around
Australia, attended the conference. Dr Panizzon said the meeting had “put
Armidale on the map” as a centre of science education practice, as well as
reinforcing UNE’s position in science education research.
Emeritus Professor Peter Fensham, Australia’s first Professor of Science
Education and the initiator of ASERA, was among the delegates. During the
conference, the current Managing Director of ASERA, Professor David Treagust
of Curtin University, launched Professor Fensham’s new book: Defining an
Identity: The Evolution of Science Education as a Field of Research, which
reports and analyses interviews with 75 prominent science education
researchers in 15 countries.
Media contact: Dr Debra Panizzon, School of Education, UNE, Armidale (02)
6773 5061 or Jim Scanlan, Public Relations, UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 3049.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 11:40 AM
Indigenous counsellors’ conference a national first
July 13, 2004
Dr Pat O’Shane, returning to the University of New England to give the opening address at a national conference of Indigenous counsellors, psychologists, social workers and healers, emphasised the importance of healing at the community level.
Dr O’Shane, a Magistrate of the Local Court of NSW, was returning to UNE for
the first time since completing a nine-year term as Chancellor of the University at the end of last year. She spoke about the necessity for healing in the wake of the colonial experience, an experience that was “at the foundation of many contemporary problems of Indigenous communities”.
“The illnesses within these communities are perfectly normal responses to
perfectly abnormal circumstances,” she said.
She warned her audience about the danger of “pathologising” Aboriginal
people: of linking them, as a matter of course, with “problems”. “Rather
than focusing on the individual (which is a Eurocentric approach), we should
be treating individuals as members of a community,” she said. A related
danger was the use of bureaucratic jargon in relation to the dispossession
of Aboriginal people. “We have a serious responsibility to be true to the
victims of dispossession and to ourselves, using language we can all
understand,” Dr O’Shane said.
The First National Conference for Indigenous Counsellors, Psychologists and
Healers, on July 9, 10 and 11, drew to Armidale many of Australia’s most
committed Indigenous practitioners, including people with affiliations to a
wide range of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander language groups.
UNE delivers Australia’s first university course in Aboriginal counselling
(the Diploma in Aboriginal Family and Community Counselling, introduced last
year), and the conference at UNE is the first to undertake a practical
exploration of counselling techniques in the context of Aboriginal culture
and tradition. One of the organisers of the conference, Ann Moir-Bussy (a
lecturer in Counselling in UNE’s School of Health), said the enthusiasm of
her Diploma students had been an essential factor in bringing the conference
about. She said that, among many other outcomes, the conference had begun to
move towards forming a national organisation by developing standards and
frameworks for Indigenous counsellors (many of whom work in isolation, in
remote parts of the country).
During the conference, Professor Judy Atkinson, from Southern Cross
University, reported on the role of traditional arts such as storytelling
and the drawing of “story maps” in helping individuals and communities to
recover from traumas such as those associated with the “Stolen Generations”
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 12:04 PM
Women on top making a difference
July 12, 2004
The push to put more women on regional boards has challenged traditional ways members interact, according to a pilot study by two academics from the University of New England.
The findings have helped secure more than $160,000 funding for one of the academics, Associate Professor Alison Sheridan, to conduct a state-wide project on the topic.
“Group dynamics on boards are important and the concerted push to get more women on these boards has certainly made a difference and produced some challenges,” Dr Sheridan said.
This month, Dr Sheridan will start the three-year project, Regional Boards: Understanding the Impact of Gender Diversity on Board Performance, for which she was granted the research funds.
“The aim of the project is to look at the impact of regional boards and the presence of women and how they affect the outcomes,” Dr Sheridan said.
“Research has never been done on regional boards before so this will be the first time.”
There are about 13 such boards across NSW and a similar number in Western Australia, which will also be covered in Dr Sheridan’s project.
Other researchers involved in the work, apart from Dr Sheridan, include Professor Leonie Still from the University of WA and Dr Fiona McKenzie.
The Australian Research Council (ARC) contributed $87,000 towards the project while other bodies to contribute include the NSW Departments of State and Regional Development, for Women and for Local Government and Regional Development. These bodies contributed the remained of the funds for the project.
Said Dr Sheridan: “We hope the project will result in improving policy-making of regional development, to acknowledge the presence of women on such boards and report the findings to industry partners.”
For more information, or for a photo of Dr Sheridan, phone Lydia Roberts
on (02) 6773 2779.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 10:41 AM
More nursing places for UNE
July 09, 2004
The Federal Government has agreed to fund an extra 25 places in undergraduate nursing and an additional 10 places in aged care nursing at the University of New England.
"At a time when some universities are questioning their support for undergraduate nursing, UNE’s strong commitment to nursing education is demonstrated by the successful bid to gain the additional nursing places and by partially relocating its Bachelor of Nursing Studies (BNS) program to Tamworth” Professor Victor Minichiello, Dean of the Faculty of Education, Health and Professional Studies, said today (July 9).
Ms Trish Thornberry, Co-ordinator of the BNS program, said the partial relocation meant Enrolled Nurses who continue to work while studying for their Registered Nursing education could now attend some of the residential schools for the program in Tamworth.
“UNE is being innovative and responsive to the particular needs of nurses working in rural communities,” Ms Thornberry said.
“This is a program that meets the needs of Enrolled Nurses from rural areas who are unable to attend university on a full-time basis to complete their nursing degree.
Mr Noel O’Brien, Chairman of the New England Area Health Service, supports the partial relocation initiative because it extends the relationship between UNE and the entire New England region and it is an innovative way to address rural education using new technology.
Professor Ingrid Moses, Vice-Chancellor of UNE, will launch the partial relocation of the BNS program to Tamworth at the UNE Tamworth Centre on July 14.
Mr O’Brien will be a guest speaker.
The UNE Tamworth Centre has new lecture rooms, computer laboratories and tutorial rooms to accommodate the partial relocation.
For more information phone Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779, Victor Minichiello on 6773 3862 or Trish Thornberry on 67 667258.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 02:43 PM
European students get down-to-earth at UNE
July 08, 2004
European exchange students are impressed by the practical focus of rural and environmental studies at the University of New England.
Kasper Rossing, a Master’s-degree student from Denmark, who has just completed a six-month exchange program at UNE, said his experience of fieldwork here had been invaluable.
“At home there is more of a gap between the university and the real world,” Kasper said. “I had all the theory, but at UNE I was able to put it into practice in the field.” He said he had also been impressed by the working relationship between UNE people (both staff and students) and landholders. “Students here are actually taught how to get farmers involved,” he observed.
Kasper is one of the first three European Master’s-degree students to study at UNE for six months under a new exchange program funded by the Australian Government and the European Union. They arrived at UNE at the beginning of this year to undertake a range of studies in agriculture, ecology, and wildlife management. These are some of the fields in which UNE has an international reputation, and through which UNE contributes to the exchange program involving four Australian and four European universities. Theprogram is called “Learning through Exchange: Agriculture, Food Systems and
Environment” (LEAFSE).
Kasper and another of the students, Hanne Gundersen, are from Denmark’s Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University. Hanne, who has a particular interest in organic agriculture, said her experience at UNE had made her realise that the “rules” for organic agriculture she had learnt in Europe did not necessarily apply in the very different Australian conditions. “This has broadened my perspective,” she said.
The third student, Louise de Raad, is from the University of Wageningen in The Netherlands. She has been living at UNE’s Newholme Research Station. There, at the foot of Mount Duval, she has been investigating the distribution of four native mammals: koalas, common brushtailed possums, ringtailed possums, and greater gliders. Her data are based on the analysis of animal droppings she collected under 1,250 trees in a well-defined area.
On her return to Europe she will use the data to produce complex distribution maps that will help wildlife managers understand the impact of environmental factors on populations of these animals.
The facilitators of the LEAFSE program at UNE are Professor Acram Taji, Dr Heiko Daniel and Dr Paul Kristiansen. Professor Taji said this first group of European students to visit UNE under the program had contributed to both academic and social life on campus. “Through the units they undertook they were able to exchange views with their fellow students and also the lecturers, making the classroom experience so much richer,” she said. “We now look forward to 2005, when a new cohort of students will spend the first semester at UNE under the LEAFSE program.”
Media contact: Professor Acram Taji, School of Rural Science and
Agriculture, UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 2869 or Jim Scanlan, Public Relations,
UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 3049.
A photograph of (from left) Hanne Gundersen, Louise de Raad and Kasper
Rossing, taken at UNE at the end of their six-month exchange visit, is at:
http://smithserver.une.edu.au/photography/media/hanne,jpg
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 11:25 AM
Famous five return for "untamed" talks
July 07, 2004
Five University of New England PhD graduates who now hold influential positions in wildlife conservation returned to UNE last week to inspire current postgraduate students in the School of Environmental Sciences andNatural Resources Management.
In a three-day postgraduate conference titled “Untamed”, the students discussed their research projects and the visitors gave them the benefit of their experience in finding employment and “making a difference” to the environment.
The five graduates were: Dr Mike Maher (Wetlands and Rivers Conservation Officer, NSW Department of Environment and Conservation), Dr Ray Nias
(Conservation Director, World Wildlife Fund Australia), Dr Gordon Guymer (Director, Queensland Herbarium), Dr Helen Fairweather (Water Use Efficiency
Advisory Unit, Department of Agriculture, Dubbo), and Dr Mansour Edraki
(Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation, University of Queensland).
They advised the students (among other things) to develop an understanding of “the big picture” in conservation issues, and develop global skills, while pursuing their individual, specialised studies.
Dr Maher, who completed his PhD in Ecosystem Management at UNE in 1990, was
already a UNE graduate (Bachelor of Natural Resources). He said UNE’s Bachelor of Natural Resources degree program was “still the best preparation I’ve come across for employment in natural resource management”. Other fields of PhD study pursued by the visitors included Botany and Zoology.
The “Untamed” conference was organised by PhD student Sarah Mika. The Head
of the School of Environmental Sciences and Natural resources Management,
Professor Hugh Ford, said the conference had enabled the students to broaden
their perspective both on conservation issues and on the world of work they
would soon be entering.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 10:11 AM
Week's celebration of Indigenous achievement
July 06, 2004
Speakers at the University of New England’s celebration of NAIDOC Week yesterday emphasised the 2004 NAIDOC theme of “Self-determination: our community, our future, our responsibility”.
Lorina Barker, an Associate Lecturer in the School of Classics, History and Religion, and Brendan Blacklock, a second-year Natural Resources student, both spoke about the important role of UNE’s Oorala Aboriginal Centre in facilitating self-determination for Indigenous people in education.
Ms Barker mentioned two Oorala Centre programs that have helped Indigenous
people realise their potential as university students. These are the TRACKS tertiary preparation program, and the Internal Selection Program (ISP) for assessing and selecting Indigenous applicants for enrolment in undergraduate
programs at UNE.
Professor Michael Macklin, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, spoke about the reconciliation process (including apologies for past wrongs against Indigenous people) as an important part of the way forward for the Australian community. Paraphrasing part of a speech by Pope John Paul II during his visit to Alice Springs in 1987, he said: “Our community’s future is our responsibility, and the future starts today.”
Councillor Margaret Walford of Armidale Dumaresq Council, on behalf of the Indigenous community, welcomed everyone to the ceremony, which ended with the raising of the Aboriginal flag.
The award-winning country singer Todd Williams, from Dubbo, accompanied by
Armidale’s Anthony Green, entertained visitors at the morning tea (in Booloominbah) that followed the ceremony.
Diane Golden, Director of the Oorala Centre, said: “Participating in NAIDOC
Week is a very important event for staff at the Oorala Aboriginal Centre because it enables us to celebrate and share our Indigenous cultural heritage with students, the local Indigenous community, and University staff and colleagues.”
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 09:51 AM
International expert probes behind an Indian legend
July 05, 2004
![nehru191x23[1].jpg](http://www.une.edu.au/news/archives/nehru191x23[1].jpg)
A leading interpreter of Gandhi and Professor at Oxford University will deliver a lecture on Gandhi disciple Jawaharlal Nehru at the University of New England today, July 5.
Indian-born and Cambridge-educated Professor Judith Brown will show how, although Nehru remains an iconic Indian figure, he was essentially an outsider in his country’s political world.
“Nehru was moulded in a unique way by his exposure to the cosmopolitan world of the British Empire and his involvement in a range of imperial networks,” Professor Brown said.
“This gave him crucial strengths and weaknesses as he rose to high public position in India, and this, in turn, influenced Indian political life."
Jawaharlal Nehru was India’s first Prime Minister after independence from Britain in 1947, when India and Pakistan became two independent nations. The son of a wealthy Brahman lawyer, Nehru was educated at Harrow School in England and later, Cambridge University, before returning to India in 1912. He was Prime Minister of the country until 1964, the year he died.
Professor Brown’s lecture, Jawaharlal Nehru and the British Empire: the Making of an “Outsider” in Indian politics will probe behind the public façade of the man. The lecture is open to the public.
Professor Brown is Beit Professor of Commonwealth History at Oxford University. She has taught at Manchester and Cambridge Universities and her main publications have been on Indian politics in the 20th century.
She has written two biographical studies of Gandhi and Nehru.
Professor Brown also serves on the Scholars' Council of the Library of Congress, Washington DC.
For more information, or to interview Professor Brown, phone
Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 10:32 AM
World experts meet to illuminate mind and language
July 02, 2004
At a conference convened by the University of New England, 60 experts from
17 countries will present the latest research findings on how the human mind
determines the structure and function of language.
Themes will include the evolution of thought and language, language development in children, and universal properties of languages. Individual papers will support theories such as the evolution of language from planned behaviour, and the shaping of language by the function of the nervous system as a whole.
UNE’s Language and Cognition Cluster, which is organising the conference,
includes several international authorities in their fields. Among these, Professor Brian Byrne will present his latest findings on the interaction of genes and environment in reading ability, and Professor Cliff Goddard will talk about basic meanings, common to all languages, when people talk about their feelings.
The International Language & Cognition Conference 2004 will be at the Pacific Bay Resort, Coffs Harbour, on September 10, 11 and 12. Those taking part will include linguists, philosophers, psychologists, palaeoanthropologists, neuroscientists, computer scientists, and others.
UNE’s Language and Cognition Cluster was established several years ago to promote the exchange of ideas and research results between these disciplines, and to take full advantage of the internationally-recognised expertise available at the Armidale campus.
Influential overseas speakers at the conference will include Mark Steedman, Professor of Cognitive Science at the University of Edinburgh in the UK, and Stephen Crain, Professor of Linguistics at the University of Maryland in the US. There will be other speakers from the UK and the US, as well as from Germany, Sweden, Italy, Spain, Russia, Bulgaria,Estonia, Belgium, Taiwan, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan, India and New Zealand, and from around Australia.
Dr Andrea Schalley, Chair of the UNE organising committee, said: “Through
this international, interdisciplinary meeting we aim to foster the development of new ideas and collaborative research projects in Language and Cognition, one of the most exciting fields of 21st century science.”
For more information on the conference, see the Web site at:
www.ilcc.une.edu.au
or phone Andrea Schalley
on (02) 6773 3655.
Media contact: Dr Andrea Schalley, School of Languages, Cultures and
Linguistics, UNE, Armidale, NSW (02) 6773 3655 or Jim Scanlan, Public
Relations, UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 3049.
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 03:32 PM
Learning a traditional Chinese art at a distance
July 01, 2004
The University of New England is pioneering the use of modern communications
technology in teaching a traditional Chinese art.
Students in UNE’s School of Languages, Cultures and Linguistics are the
first in Australia to learn Chinese calligraphy through distance education.
A public exhibition of their work, now on show in the School, demonstrates
the success of the innovative teaching methods employed. Visitors to the
exhibition see Chinese characters written with a traditional writing brush
(both individual characters and extended texts) presented in ways that
reflect the creativity of each student.
There are characters on rocks and pebbles as well as texts on a variety of decorative paper surfaces.
UNE’s Chinese calligraphy unit was offered this year for the first time. It
attracted 23 students, some of them studying on-campus, and some by distance
education. Dr Cuncun Wu, the talented calligrapher who coordinates the unit,
uses the Internet to keep in touch with the distance-education students,
requiring them to mail her examples of their work about once a fortnight. Dr
Wu and her colleague Isabel Tasker, who lecture in Chinese in the School,
have created an instructional DVD that enables the distance-education
students to study the techniques involved in great detail.
Several examples of calligraphy by Dr Wu are included in the exhibition. “In
traditional Chinese culture, calligraphy has always been regarded as the
highest art form,” she said. “For thousands of years it played a central
role in Chinese education. It is a key to many aspects of Chinese art,
philosophy, history, and popular culture. The study of calligraphy can,
therefore, provide some deep insights into all of these.”
Dr Wu said that the students, each in their own way, had made calligraphy
practice a part of their lives. “Doing calligraphy can be like a
meditation,” she said. “Calligraphers tend to live to a healthy old age.”
She pointed out that anyone with an interest in Chinese culture, whether or
not they knew any Chinese, could enrol in the unit. “Calligraphy combines
art and written language,” she said. “As well as opening a window on to the
world of East Asian culture, practising calligraphy inspires some of the
students to go on to study the language itself.” (Mandarin is also offered
by distance education at UNE.)
The exhibition, titled “Flying Brush, Dancing Ink”, will continue in Room
102 of UNE’s Arts Building till 4 pm on Friday 2 July. For information on
the calligraphy unit itself, contact Dr Wu on (02) 6773 3580 or Helen
Creagan on (02) 6773 3503.
Media contact: Dr Cuncun Wu, (02) 6773 3580; Isabel Tasker (UNE’s Convener
of Chinese), (02) 6773 3504; Jim Scanlan (UNE Public Relations), (02) 6773
3049.
A photograph of Dr Cuncun Wu with the Dean of UNE’s Faculty of Arts,
Professor Michael Macklin, taken at the opening of the calligraphy
exhibition, is at:
http://smithserver.une.edu.au/photography/media/calligraphy.jpg
Posted by Lydia Roberts at 03:48 PM