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New National Centre begins to publish

August 31, 2004

The Australian Centre for Agriculture and Law (AgLaw Centre) has published its first set of papers on topical legal issues affecting Australian agriculture.

In this collection of papers the AgLaw Centre, at the University of New England, analyses issues arising from rural industry regulation generally, and new regulations concerning biotechnology and the environment in particular.

The AgLaw Centre has distributed 500 copies of The AgLaw Papers 2004 to key representatives of government, finance, agribusiness, and the legal profession, and has received feedback confirming the potential of its unique consultancy role.

Established just 12 months ago, the AgLaw Centre is the first organization of its kind in Australia. It is a joint venture of UNE’s Faculty of Economics, Business and Law, Faculty of The Sciences, and School of Law, and brings together skills from across these disciplines to support the development of agribusiness in Australia.

The Acting Director of the AgLaw Centre, Bryan Pape, said the response to the first issue of The AgLaw Papers had encouraged the Centre to plan further publications in the series. “The papers are aimed at a wide readership,” he said, “including farm and agribusiness managers, researchers, and leaders of government departments and agricultural industries. They are written by members of a multidisciplinary team of experts in science, economics, law and agriculture.”

As an example of this multidisciplinary approach, Book 2 of The AgLaw Papers 2004 contains a paper titled “Genetically modified crops: science, agriculture and potential legal issues” by Andrew Clarke (a Senior Lecturer in UNE’s School of Law), Dr John Stanley (a lecturer in UNE’s School of Rural Science and Agriculture and the Australian Cooperative Research Centre for Cotton) and UNE’s Professor of Horticultural Science, Acram Taji. The paper gives advice to farmers considering GM cropping, and discusses potential points of legal action (including negligence claims). Other topics covered in these and forthcoming issues of The AgLaw Papers include the industrialisation of agriculture and market power, sustainable farming, and farmers’ property rights. “By breaking down the traditional walls between university departments, UNE’s AgLaw Centre is able to bring both breadth and depth of vision to its analysis of these nationally important questions,” Mr Pape said.

As well as its roles in consultancy and communication, the AgLaw Centre has a strong focus on education, with eight students enrolled in the first year of its unique double degree program Bachelor of Agriculture / Bachelor of Laws, and planning under way for a postgraduate program.

The AgLaw Papers 2004 are available from the Australian Centre for Agriculture and Law at UNE. Contact Bryan Pape on (02) 6773 2331 (e-mail: bpape2@une.edu.au).


Media contact: Bryan Pape, Acting Director, AgLaw Centre, UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 2331 or Jim Scanlan, Public Relations, UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 3049.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 04:48 PM

Classical problem for music industry

August 30, 2004

Strahle.jpgPressures such as performing round-the-clock have challenged Australian orchestras and do not augur well for a healthy classical music industry, an international expert on the subject will argue at a lecture on Thursday for the University of New England.
Dr Graham Strahle, (pictured) an executive member of the Music Council of Australia, said the added pressure of multi-performing, from presenting symphony concerts through to pop and outdoor concerts, has added to problems facing the industry.
“There is a lot of talk at the moment on whether Classic Music is dead,” Mr Strahle said.
“I have extensively researched this topic by talking directly to, for instance, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, members of the audience and conductors and they have raised some interesting concerns.”
Indeed, his research will support his lecture on Thursday (September 2) at Armidale Town Hall, Is Classical Music Dead?

The Australian classical music industry seems in a healthier shape than in the US, where, Dr Strahle said, many medium-sized orchestras have closed doors and in the UK, where orchestras have faced bankruptcy.
But the Australian Opera industry has not escaped change, with the closure a few years ago of the Victorian State Opera.
“A concern for Australia is the contraction of public money going into the Arts,” Dr Strahle said.
“As well as that, members of the Classical Music industry, from composers and conductors through to players, are very conscious of the need to perform more often, in other words, they have to constantly appeal to a broader audience just to keep [classical music] alive.”
He will argue during his lecture that Classical Music is at a crossroads and the most important part in keeping it healthy remain the practitioners.
Dr Strahle is the author of An Early Music Dictionary: Terms from British Sources 1500-1740 and his background is mainly as a musicologist.
As a performer, he plays the viola de gamba and, as a member of the musical group Broken Violets, has written a music theatre work on the diary of Samuel Pepys. This will be performed next year.
Dr Strahle’s lecture will start at 7.30pm and is free to the public.
For more information phone Lydia Roberts on (02) 6773 2779 or
Dr Strahle on (0407) 319 545.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at 10:59 AM

On track for a bright future in rail

August 27, 2004

Madgewick lecture.jpgAn antiquated road tunnel bridge crossing the Liverpool Plains is one of the few missing bits of rail infrastructure holding up a proposed rail corridor linking Melbourne with Brisbane, former Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Tim Fischer (pictured) told an audience at the University of New England on Thursday (August 26).
Delivering the annual Sir Robert Madgwick lecture, Mr Fischer advocated a rail corridor for a double-stacked container line, to be built from Melbourne, through Parkes, Moree, Toowoomba, Ipswich and finally, Brisbane.
“But to do this, we need to eliminate the antiquated load tunnel and bridge across the Liverpool Plains,” Mr Fischer said.

“We won’t have the development of coalfields in Gunnedah unless we remove the ‘Ard-Glen’ choke, where trains hurtle across the Liverpool Plains.”
Mr Fischer was talking to his latest book, Transcontinental Train Odyssey: The Ghan, The Khyber, The Globe. He was comparing rail developments the world over with Australia and envisioned a bright future for rail in the 21st Century.
“As much as 80 per cent of freight goes by rail across the Nullabor,” Mr Fischer said, adding rail was the cheapest option to move freight because: “The steel wheel on the steel rail has a fraction the friction of rubber tyre on the road and that translates to being a fraction of the amount of fuel needed to move the vehicle.”
Rail was gaining new-found popularity the world over, he added.
“In the US, Log Angeles is swinging back to a new commuting line to Pasadena and soon a new train service will link St Pancreas Station in London to the Gard de Nord in Paris in just two hours and 20 minutes,” Mr Fischer said.
He called for an upgrade on rail’s branch line network in Australia.
After the lecture, Mr Fischer Dutch-auctioned a signed copy of his book -- which tells the story of the people and events that created the world’s great railways -- for $70, donating the proceeds to the people of Bhutan.
For more information phone Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at 12:37 PM

Spring Ball warm-up to begin

August 26, 2004

Jennifer Miller.jpgThe University of New England has organised a series of dance classes to help people make the most of this year’s UNE Spring Ball.
In six weekly lessons, dance teachers Gloria and John McLennon will guide
participants through the steps of old-time dances such as the waltz and the
Pride of Erin.
The classes, organised by Alumni Relations Officer Ms Jennifer Miller (pictured) begin on Friday 27 August (7-9 pm) and will be in the Junior Common Room at St Albert’s College. The total cost of the classes is $25.
UNE’s Spring Ball for 2004 will be an important part of a reunion weekend at
the beginning of October celebrating the 50th anniversary of the University’s autonomy. The ball will be in Lazenby Hall on Saturday 2 October, and will have a 1950s theme. (1950s formal dress is optional.)
Those at the ball will have the opportunity to bid for some intriguing “Golden Indulgence” packages.
All the money raised by the ball will contribute to providing scholarships to UNE for country students.
To sign up for the dance classes, or book for the Spring Ball (including table bookings for groups), contact UNE’s Development Office on 6773 3365.
For more information, go to this Web site: www.une.edu.au/50th
.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at 10:29 AM

Patients benefit from new free service

August 25, 2004

A free service, matching referred patients from New England GPs with clinical psychologists from the University of New England, has been given unanimous support by all parties involved.
It is the first time such a service – providing free access to specialised mental health care – has been offered and has already helped a total of 72 patients in the region, according to Ms Barbara Visser, Project Manager of the Better Outcomes in Mental Health Care Initiative.

“This is publicly-funded, targeted access for people who are suffering mental health problems, to specialised mental health care, through referrals from their local GPs,” Ms Visser said.
“The team of psychologists at UNE is treating patients with the ‘common colds’ of mental health problems: anxiety and depression; as well as other mental disorders.”
Begun last year, results of the initiative have just been processed and found:
1. Anxiety and depression were the most common problems for which patients were referred to the UNE clinical psychologists by their GPs.
2. More than double the number of women used the service compared with men, with most of the patients ranging in age between 25 and 64 years.
3. A combination of therapies was used to treat the patients, over a six to 12-limit number of sessions. These therapies included behavioural and cognitive, and relaxation strategies.
4. The 17 GPs who registered with the program, and who were specially trained to assess patients whose needs would best be met by a clinical psychologist, unanimously agreed that the service helped patients with their psychological needs.

Ms Visser said that the initiative, a collaboration between UNE’s School of Psychology and the New England Division of General Practice, has been funded for another year by the Federal Department of Health and Ageing. People suffering from stress, grief, depression, anxiety and those with suicidal thoughts had especially been helped.

For more information phone Ms Visser at UNE on 6773 2846, or Margaret Allen at the New England Division of General Practice on 6771 1146, or Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at 10:24 AM

Patients benefit from new free service

August 25, 2004

A free service, matching referred patients from New England GPs with clinical psychologists from the University of New England, has been given unanimous support by all parties involved.
It is the first time such a service – providing free access to specialised mental health care – has been offered and has already helped a total of 72 patients in the region, according to Ms Barbara Visser, Project Manager of the Better Outcomes in Mental Health Care Initiative.

“This is publicly-funded, targeted access for people who are suffering mental health problems, to specialised mental health care, through referrals from their local GPs,” Ms Visser said.
“The team of psychologists at UNE is treating patients with the ‘common colds’ of mental health problems: anxiety and depression; as well as other mental disorders.”
Begun last year, results of the initiative have just been processed and found:
1. Anxiety and depression were the most common problems for which patients were referred to the UNE clinical psychologists by their GPs.
2. More than double the number of women used the service compared with men, with most of the patients ranging in age between 25 and 64 years.
3. A combination of therapies was used to treat the patients, over a six to 12-limit number of sessions. These therapies included behavioural and cognitive, and relaxation strategies.
4. The 17 GPs who registered with the program, and who were specially trained to assess patients whose needs would best be met by a clinical psychologist, unanimously agreed that the service helped patients with their psychological needs.


Ms Visser said that the initiative, a collaboration between UNE’s School of Psychology and the New England Division of General Practice, has been funded for another year by the Federal Department of Health and Ageing. People suffering from stress, grief, depression, anxiety and those with suicidal thoughts had especially been helped.
For more information phone Ms Visser at UNE on 6773 2846, or Margaret Allen at the New England Division of General Practice on 6771 1146, or Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at 10:04 AM

Bird expert wins award for children’s book

August 18, 2004

Gisela-Kaplan.jpgA University of New England professor who is a world-renowned authority on the behaviour of birds has won a national publishing award for a book that opens the wonders of bird behaviour to children.
Professor Gisela Kaplan won the Primary Single category in the 2004 Australian
Awards for Excellence in Publishing with her book Famous Australian Birds (Allen & Unwin, 2003).
Famous Australian Birds makes accessible to primary-aged children many of the
latest research findings on the behaviour of familiar birds such as kookaburras, magpies, cockatoos, lyrebirds, tawny frogmouths and wedge-tailed eagles. The book is outstanding for what one reviewer described as the "warmth and sincerity" of its "narrative voice", which "speaks directly to the reader". Professor Kaplan is also an accomplished photographer, and her photographs, taken with a scientist's eye for detail and a bird-lover's affection for the subject, illustrate the book.
The annual Australian Awards for Excellence in Publishing recognise the year's most outstanding books for primary, secondary and tertiary students.
The presentation ceremony, earlier this month, was in Melbourne. "I was pleased about the award because it highlights the importance of helping children to engage with science and with their natural environment," Professor Kaplan said.
"Anything we can do to encourage children to seek knowledge about our Australian wildlife will ultimately help the environment. This is also a national identity issue: one can only be proud of what one knows."

Professor Kaplan lectures in Biological Sciences and Education at UNE and,
in her spare time, runs a bird rehabilitation centre at her home near
Armidale. Many of the stories in the book are taken from her experience of
rearing orphans and rehabilitating injured birds. While she is a prolific
author of scientific books and articles, Famous Australian Birds is her
first book written specifically for children. "Children are keen observers,"
she said. "The first thing they (see) is a bird's behaviour, and they want to
know what it means. When I have explained to children how they could
interpret a bird's behaviour they have become very excited, wanting to know
more and more. That's why I wrote the book.”

More detailed accounts of the bird behaviour discussed in Famous Australian
Birds can be found in Birds: Their Habits and Skills, written by Professor
Kaplan and her UNE colleague Professor Lesley Rogers, and published in 2001.
Professor Kaplan's ground-breaking book on the Australian magpie is to be
published soon.
For more information phone Jim Scanlan on 6773 3049.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at 03:48 PM

Tim Fischer delivers memorial lecture

August 17, 2004

tim fisher.jpgFormer Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Tim Fischer, will deliver this year’s annual Sir Robert Madgwick lecture at the University of New England on Thursday, August 26.
The lecture is open to the public. The title of Mr Fischer’s lecture is Asia and Australia: Tango in Trade, Tourism and Transport. Specifically, Mr Fischer will be talking about one of the chapters of his new book, Transcontinental Train Odyssey: The Ghan, The Khyber, The Globe.
The book tells the story of the people and events that created the world’s great railways.

Born in southern NSW in 1946 and educated at Xavier College, Melbourne, Mr Fischer won the Federal seat of Farrer in 1984 and was elected leader of the National Party in 1990. He was appointed Minister for Trade and Deputy Prime Minister in 1996 and retired from politics in 1999.
The annual Sir Robert Madgwick Lecture is held in honour of UNE’s first Vice-Chancellor, who was a strong advocate of the role of UNE in promoting education for the whole community. The inaugural lecture was delivered by Sir Hermann Black and other academics to have been asked to deliver the lecture include Emeritus Professor Manning Clark, Dr Barbara Thiering and Mr Richard Butler.
This year’s lecture, by Mr Fischer, is being held at UNE’s Arts Lecture Theatre A1. The lecture is free and starts at 5.30pm.
For more information phone Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779
or Jenny Post on 6773 2223.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at 10:59 AM

Booting up for charity

August 16, 2004

An aptly-named team of hikers, “Arewethereyet” will attempt to walk 100km of rugged bushland in 25 hours to help raise funds for Oxfam Community Aid Abroad.
Mr Anthony Rologas, an IT change manager at the University of New England, will lead a team of four in the annual Oxfam Trailwalker event through Ku-ring-gai National Park, north of Sydney, from August 27 to 29.
He is looking for sponsors to help raise money for the charity and has so far been pledged about $1,300. But his aim is for sponsorship to bring this amount to $5000.

“It is the first time I have entered an event such as this,” Mr Rologas said. “I see this as a real challenge and a good way to raise money for charity.”
Oxfam Trailwalker is held annually in Sydney, Melbourne, Hong Kong and the UK. It is an endurance event in which teams of four attempt to complete a 100km walking trail within 48 hours. The event started in 1981 as a military training exercise in Hong Kong for the Queen’s Gurkha Signals Regiment and has raised over AUD$40 million worldwide.
All money raised from the event goes to Australia’s leading aid agency, Oxfam Community Aid Abroad.
Oxfam works for social justice and the alleviation of poverty through funding development projects in over thirty countries around the world, including Indigenous Australia.
Mr Rologas and his teammates Roger Batch, David Purser and Selina Stoute, have been preparing themselves for the mammoth trek with endurance walks across the country. They recently traversed 35km across snowy mountains in Canberra.
“It was great fun, exhilarating and good practice,” Mr Rologas said.
When they attempt the main event, each of the team will carry a hydration pack, wear thermal clothes and be equipped with head torches so they can walk through the night.
There are check points along the way with food, first aid and massages.
“Many people taking part in the walk will stop and sleep for several hours, but my team will try to walk through the night, only stopping for half-hour breaks and trying to complete the walk within 25 hours,” Mr Rologas said.
Anyone interested in supporting the team can donate online at www.oxfam.org.au/trailwalker (follow the link to ‘Donate’, team #233 ‘Arewethereyet’). Mr Rologas is also offering sponsorship packages for local businesses who may wish to be associated with the team and event.
Those businesses taking out sponsorship will be given a team photograph and certificate of appreciation for their support.
More details, phone Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779
or Anthony Rologas on 6773 3606.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at 11:04 AM

Teaching civic pride in classrooms

August 13, 2004

Bringing an awareness of parliament and government to schoolchildren is just one of the aims of a series of workshops to be conducted at the University of New England next week.
A delegation of specialists from the Parliamentary Education Office (PEO) is scheduled to visit local schools and teach a range of topics on civic responsibilities to pupils, teachers and undergraduate teachers alike.
“The workshops will focus on practical ways to teach government, expose teachers to new resources in this area and outline ways country schools can access services the PEO has to offer,” said Ms Kim Porter, a lecturer in UNE’s School of Education.

Ms Porter helped organise the visit with PEO specialists Helen Paterson and Ann Nelson.
About 150 undergraduates studying to become teachers are expected to take part in the workshops, which will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday, August 17 and 18.
In these workshops, Ms Paterson and Ms Nelson will show potential teachers new ways of teaching parliament and government in the classroom.
They will introduce a practical kit for schoolchildren and organise parliamentary role-playing activities, as well as a series of debates.
On Tuesday (August 17) the PEO specialists will also visit Rocky River Public School to talk with schoolchildren about civic duty and governance.
They will also conduct workshops for teachers there as well as for other schools in the education cluster.
Said Ms Porter: “The aim is to work with schoolchildren who are unlikely to visit Canberra to experience the PEO program.”
For more information phone Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779 or
Kim Porter on 6773 2573.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at 12:00 PM

Italian honours, festival to celebrate UNE Languages

August 11, 2004

Knight hood.jpg
The University of New England has celebrated its long tradition of modern-language teaching with the presentation of honours from the Republic of Italy to two of its academics, and an international film festival.

During the celebration last Friday, Dr Franko Leoni, Convener of Italian at UNE, became a Cavaliere (“Knight in the Order of the Italian Star of Solidarity”) when the Consul General of Italy, Dr Antonio Verde, presented him with the medal of that Order. Brennan Wales, another Senior Lecturer in Italian at UNE, received the title of Grand’Ufficiale (“Grand Officer in the Order of the Italian Star of Solidarity”). Dr Verde presented the medal to Mr Wales’s son Geoffrey, as Mr Wales is on study leave in Italy.

“I’m very proud to accept the award,” Dr Leoni said. “Our work at UNE will provide for a wider acknowledgement of the importance of the Italian presence in Australia.” He said UNE had begun teaching Italian in 1974, and had become one of Australia’s principal providers of tertiary-level Italian. Furthermore, it was still Australia’s leading provider of Italian by distance education. He acknowledged the Italian Government’s funding of one of UNE’s four full-time lecturers in Italian.


The Italian President awards such honours to Italians living abroad (and also to foreigners) who have given outstanding service to Italy and the Italian people, or who have effectively promoted Italian culture abroad for a long time. Dr Leoni revealed that his father, Attilio Leoni, had been made a Cavaliere in 1969 for his long and outstanding service to Italian Military Intelligence.

As well as Dr Verde, the Consuls General of Switzerland (Mr Albert Mehr) and Germany (Dr Gunter Gruber), the Acting Consul General of Indonesia (Ms Sofia Sudharma), the chief representative of Alliance Francaise in Australia (Mr Bertrand Calmy), the Head of the Italian Institute of Culture (Dr Gerlando Butti) and other distinguished international guests attended Friday’s celebration. It was one of many events this year to mark the University’s golden jubilee.

In launching the film festival, the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ingrid Moses, pointed out that UNE had taught languages from the time of its inception as a College of the University of Sydney. Since then the University, celebrating 50 years of autonomy this year, had flourished, she said. Associate Professor Herman Beyersdorf, Head of UNE’s School of Languages, Cultures and Linguistics, concluded the proceedings by saying: “Languages will continue to be a vibrant part of this University for the next 50 years.”

The international film festival at the Belgrave Cinema over the weekend was organised by the School of Languages, Cultures and Linguistics as its contribution to the golden jubilee celebrations. The films represented all the languages taught in the School: French, German, Italian, Indonesian, Chinese and Japanese. There was also a film featuring the speech and culture of a group of Indigenous Australians. One of the organisers of the film festival, Dr Linda Hess-Liechti, said it had been a great success. “Many people who came to the films said they hoped the festival would become an annual event,” Dr Hess-Liechti said. “We are investigating this as a real possibility.”

Media contact: Dr Franko Leoni (02 6773 3133) or Dr Linda Hess-Liechti (02 6773 3068), School of Languages, Cultures and Linguistics, UNE, or Jim Scanalan, Public Relations, UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 3049. For photographs, contact Jim Scanlan on (02) 6773 3049.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 11:34 AM

UNE professor invited to symposium in South Africa

August 10, 2004

Majella Franzmann.jpg
A professor from the University of New England is to be the only Australian representative at a symposium in South Africa titled “The New Testament Interpreted”.

Professor Majella Franzmann, who has studied in Germany as a Humboldt Fellow, is attending the symposium at the invitation of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. The Foundation, based in Germany, is supporting the symposium at the University of Stellenbosch, near Cape Town.

During the symposium she will present a paper that highlights the way in which Jesus and the New Testament were revered by adherents of Manichaeism, a religion founded in Persia in the 3rd century AD.

Professor Franzmann, Convener of Studies in Religion at UNE, is an international authority on the portrayal of Jesus in the “heresies” that rivalled the mainstream Christian Church throughout the first five or six centuries of its existence. Research she conducted while holding her Humboldt Fellowship at the University of Tubingen in 1992-93 resulted in her first book, Jesus in the Nag Hammadi Writings (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1996). The von Humboldt Foundation has continued its support of her research, including a further two-month fellowship in Bonn in 1995. Her latest book is Jesus in the Manichaean Writings (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 2003).

Her symposium paper will discuss a letter, written in the Coptic language within a 4th-century Manichaean community in Egypt, which quotes with obvious reverence a well-known passage from St Matthew’s Gospel (chapter 6, verses 19-20). “It really goes to show how the Manichaeans (a community considered by the Christians to be absolutely heretical) revered the Christian scriptures,” Professor Franzmann said. “Scriptures were a kind of ‘commodity’ that a number of groups could use in common at the same time as they were vilifying each other.”

She argues that, as the letter was written from one Manichaean to another, the writer was not quoting Christian scripture with a view to enticing a Christian into the Manichaean community.

The symposium, on August 12-14, will include sessions on New Testament research in South Africa, and the interpretation of the New Testament in the African context. While in South Africa, Professor Franzmann will present a guest lecture at the University of South Africa in Pretoria.

Media contact: Jim Scanlan, Public Relations, UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 3049.
A photograph of Professor Majella Franzmann is available at:
http://smithserver.une.edu.au/photography/media/FRANZ.jpg

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 03:57 PM

Five-star record of excellence for UNE

August 09, 2004

The University of New England has achieved top rating (five stars) for "educational experience" in The Good Universities Guide for the sixth consecutive year.

UNE is the only university in Australia to have maintained this rating throughout the period 2000-2005.

In the newly-published Guide for 2005, only six of Australia's 39 universities get five stars for "educational experience". The rating is based on information from the national Course Experience Questionnaire, which comprises feedback from graduates on teaching quality, their acquisition of generic skills, and their overall satisfaction with the course.

The Guide supplements the feedback on teaching quality by noting that "UNE rates consistently well in awards for university teaching". (For example, two lecturers from UNE were among eight from universities around the State to win NSW Quality Teaching Awards in 2003.)

The Guide also shows that UNE's teaching excellence has been maintained at the same time as the University has increased its research activity, moving up to a four-star rating in the category of "research intensivity" (alongside universities such as Sydney, Monash and Newcastle). This reflects, among other things, a steady increase in external research funding to UNE over the past several years. At the beginning of this year UNE appointed a Pro Vice-Chancellor dedicated to Research, and recently decided that he would hold the position on a full-time basis from October 1.

UNE's four-star rating for "Graduate Starting Salary" in the Guide puts it among the top 15 universities in Australia in this category.

The Guide comments favourably on UNE's provision for double degrees, mentioning in particular the unique new double degree of Bachelor of Agriculture / Bachelor of Laws. It also mentions UNE's "attractive scholarships, including some reserved for students from country schools".

UNE "has a number of special entry routes including a long-established schools/colleges recommendation scheme", the Guide says. This is reflected in the ratings by UNE's five stars for "Entry Flexibility".

Media contact: Jim Scanlan, Public Relations, UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 3049.

Posted by lcreedy at 01:12 PM

UNE aims for CRC at Moree

August 09, 2004

Narrabri access centrejpg.jpgA joint bid involving the University of New England to open a Precision Agriculture Cooperative Research Centre at Moree will be discussed tomorrow at the official launch of UNE’s Moree and Boggabilla Access Centres.
Professor Ingrid Moses, Vice-Chancellor of UNE, will officially launch the Moree and Boggabilla Access Centres during a three-way, high tech videoconference link between Moree, Boggabilla and Armidale.
It is at this Dr Paul Frazier, a senior lecturer at UNE, will discuss his efforts to combine with universities Charles Sturt and South Australia, along with 10 industry partners, to open the CRC in Moree.

“The CRC has a total value of about $85 million over five years and we should know by December this year whether our bid is successful,” said Dr Frazier, who said the consortia faced competition from 33 other groups calling for CRC funding.
The opening of the Access Centres at Moree and Boggabilla will be followed the next day by the launch of similar centres at Inverell and Tenterfield.
Three-way videoconferences, using latest Broadband technology, will be a main feature at each launch.
An Aboriginal dance company is expected to perform at Boggabilla, a feat that will be beamed live to audiences in Moree and Armidale. Audiences gathered at all three centres will then enter into a joint videoconference discussion.
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," Professor Moses said.
"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."

For more information phone Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779
or Frances Kelly on (0417) 678 144

Posted by Lydia Roberts at 12:15 PM

Leading agricultural woman address annual rural dinner

August 06, 2004

NSW Rural Woman of the Year Ms Rebecca Arnott will be guest speaker at the annual Rural Focus Dinner at the University of New England’s Robb College on September 7.
Ms Arnott, a Robb College and UNE alumnus will be talking about Branded beef: the Australian Agricultural Company’s 1824 Brand, its Growth and Development in the Domestic and International Market.
“The beef industry is consistently delivering really good steak and our exports are starting to grow,” Ms Arnott said.


“The industry is making every little link in a chain of events work well, right from the genetics, feed lotting, farm management, transport and grading.”
As a result of this, demand for Australian beef now exceeded supply, Ms Arnott said.
The Australian Agricultural Company is the nation’s oldest agricultural company, with 23 cattle stations in Queensland and the Northern Territory covering about 1 per cent of Australia’s land mass. Apart from domestic customers, it is responsible for 460,000 beef cattle and exports to Asia, the US and the Middle East.
Ms Arnott was named this year’s winner of the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC) NSW Rural Woman of the Year award.
A total of 60 women were n the running for the award and as winner, Ms Arnott won a $15,000 bursary to improve leadership, management and business skills.
After graduating from UNE, Ms Arnott went on to work overseas, for the Animal Breeders Company in Zimbabwe and most recently, as a Beef Cattle Officer for NSW Agriculture in Wagga Wagga.
Robb College Master Mr Michael Maas said it is a great pleasure for us to have Rebecca back at Robb College as our guest speaker. We are very proud of our Robb College Alumni and our current student members will certainly be inspired by Rebecca’s achievements as will our guests and the public.
The public are welcome to attend the lecture but must book through the college office on 02 6773 1700.
For more information, phone Michael Maas on 6773 1701 or
Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at 11:20 AM

Planning the future of New England's heritage

August 04, 2004

A full-day workshop sponsored by the University of New England has established new links between organizations concerned with preserving and promoting New England’s natural and cultural heritage.

UNE’s Heritage Futures Research Centre (HFRC) convened the workshop late last month. It attracted representatives of 11 organizations, as well as members of HFRC itself. Professor Iain Davidson, HFRC’s Director, opened and chaired the workshop, which was held at Smith House.

The convener of the workshop, Dr Andrew Piper, said one important outcome was that the participants had identified issues that could be addressed in future workshops and training sessions. “The day was highly successful, with good links forged between participating groups,” Dr Piper said.

HFRC was founded in 2001 as a cross-disciplinary research centre within UNE. It aims to consolidate the University’s range of expertise and research relating to the heritage of the New England region, and to revitalise links between local community organizations, local government, and interested individuals.

“HFRC sponsored the workshop as part of its commitment to consult community heritage organizations and to promote our distinctive regional heritage,” Dr Piper said. “The workshop allowed HFRC to gain a direct insight into the means by which it could work with such organizations.”

He explained that the workshop had specifically targeted those concerned with the heritage of Armidale and the surrounding districts of Guyra, Uralla and Walcha, and had included a presentation by local government heritage adviser Graham Wilson titled “The History of Heritage in Armidale”.

“The presentations and discussions illustrated a breadth of interests in aspects of heritage, and a wide range of creative approaches to making heritage a lively and forward-looking aspect of modern life in Armidale and its neighbouring districts,” Dr Piper said.


Media contact: Dr Andrew Piper, Heritage Futures Research Centre, UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 2764 or Jim Scanlan, Public Relations, UNE, Armidale (02) 6773 3049.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 01:42 PM

ABC presenter meets UNE academics for his Science show

August 02, 2004

RobinWilliams.jpgA scientific study on peoples' longevity, international research on childrens' language and literacy, and patterns of rarity in Australian flora are just some of the topics expected to be presented to ABC presenter Robyn Williams tomorrow.
Mr Williams, presenter of the ABC's regular Science Show on Radio National, is flying in from Sydney to pre-record interviews with at least nine UNE scientists.
He will be recording his interviews with the academics on campus and will use this information as a base for future shows.

It is the first time in three years Mr Williams has visited UNE and he says he is keen to meet with academics here and find out latest research.
His first interview is expected to be with Professor Ken Watson who, along with his collaborator Professor Makoto Suzuki, is collecting blood samples from centenarians in Okinawa, Japan (where there are proportionally more people aged 100 years than anywhere else in the world). Their analysis of these samples is part of a broader study of the biology of the ageing process and the role that "stress proteins" play in "successful, stressful ageing".
Professor Brian Byrne, from UNE's School of Psychology, is also scheduled to be interviewed by Mr Williams on his research into the genetic and environmental factors affecting language and literacy in children.
James Turnell, with the Australian Poultry Cooperative Research Centre (based at UNE), hopes to present Mr Williams with his Masters research which shows how broiler litter has the same amount of energy as wood (and about half the energy of coal) and represents a renewable energy source.
Mr Williams will fly into Armidale early morning and begin his studio recordings at about 10am. He is expected back in Sydney the following day.
The interviews will be broadcast on the ABC's Science show in the next couple of months.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at 01:11 PM