uwa news - uwa staff : uwa staff€œthe children use their teddies to talk to the ‘teddy...

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In this issue P3 WATER SHAPES OUR HISTORY P7 A TREASURE REDISCOVERED P10 TEACHING AND LEARNING MONTH continued on page 2 Clint Bracknell with some of the students at the School of Indigenous Studies. Photo by Matt Galligan New Courses explore Aboriginal knowledge By Lindy Brophy Indigenous knowledge, history and heritage will take a starring role in arts, law, science and business studies from next year. Indigenous Knowledge History and Heritage is a new major to be offered in New Courses 2012, the first major from the School of Indigenous Studies. And, according to its co-coordinator, Assistant Professor Clint Bracknell, Indigenous knowledge is “set to explode.” “This course is about opening students up to new ways of looking at the world,” he said. “Universities are places of sharing knowledge and innovation and we want Indigenous voices to be heard in the university context, not just at UWA, but all over Australia. In this shared learning space students will explore new ways of interacting and collaborating with Indigenous people.” Even though the course sits within the Bachelor of Arts, A/Professor Bracknell said the Indigenous Knowledge, History and Heritage major was still available and highly applicable to students enrolled in other degrees. Indeed the School is particularly interested in students who might be combining arts with studies in other faculties. (Parts of the course will also be offered as broadening units.) “It’s a multi-disciplinary course with, for example, a collaborative unit with the Centre of Excellence in Natural Resource Management (based in Albany). This unit would appeal to science students. Similarly units that look at representation, intellectual property, appropriation, industry protocols and ethics would be relevant and of interest to law and business students.” UWA NEWS 30 MAY 2011 Volume 30 Number 7

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In this issue P3 water shapes our history P7 a treasure rediscovered P10 teaching and learning month

continued on page 2

Clint Bracknell with some of the students at the School of Indigenous Studies. Photo by Matt Galligan

New Courses explore Aboriginal knowledgeBy Lindy Brophy

Indigenous knowledge, history and heritage will take a starring role in arts, law, science and business studies from next year.

Indigenous Knowledge History and Heritage is a new major to be offered in New Courses 2012, the first major from the school of indigenous studies. and, according to its co-coordinator, assistant professor clint Bracknell, indigenous knowledge is “set to explode.”

“this course is about opening students up to new ways of looking at the world,” he said. “universities are places of sharing knowledge and innovation and we want indigenous voices to be heard in the university context, not just at uwa, but all over australia. in this shared learning space students will explore new ways of interacting and collaborating with indigenous people.”

even though the course sits within the Bachelor of arts, a/professor Bracknell said the Indigenous Knowledge, History and Heritage major was still available and highly applicable to students enrolled in other degrees. indeed the school is particularly interested in students who might be combining arts with studies in other faculties. (parts of the course will also be offered as broadening units.)

“it’s a multi-disciplinary course with, for example, a collaborative unit with the centre of excellence in natural resource management (based in albany). this unit would appeal to science students. similarly units that look at representation, intellectual property, appropriation, industry protocols and ethics would be relevant and of interest to law and business students.”

UWA NEWS30 May 2011 Volume 30 Number 7

New Courses explore Aboriginal knowledge from page 1

Medical student Toby Dawson checks out a teddy bear’s injuries

Weif Kok discusses a teddy bear’s X-ray

teddy bears to the rescueWhile visiting the doctor can sometimes be a frightening prospect for young children, it can be just as scary for young, inexperienced doctors who treat them.

when very young children cannot articulate where it hurts or how they feel, diagnosing and treating them can be difficult.

so uwa medical students, through the interhealth program of the wa medical students’ society (wamss), are working on helping both parties.

they are running a volunteer teddy Bear hospital, taking their program to kindergartens, pre-schools and year one primary school students.

the program helps to lessen children’s anxiety towards doctors; promotes a healthy lifestyle; and improves medical students’ communication with and understanding of young children.

a group of eight students visited the telethon speech and hearing centre in wembley recently and ‘cured’ the children’s teddies of ailments ranging from a broken leg to a sore tummy.

“the children use their teddies to talk to the ‘teddy doctors’ about sickness and pain and see how their teddies are treated with respect and kindness,” said Jess hillwood, from wamss.

healthy lifestyle tips such wearing a hat in the sun, eating fruit and vegetables and frequently washing hands are delivered through ‘waiting room’ activities, songs, games and individual visits to the teddy doctors.

with more than 200 students in wamss, the society hopes to extend the teddy Bear hospital program to rural centres and to more disadvantaged children.

he said that, traditionally, aboriginal studies had been located within other disciplines such as history or anthropology. “But that’s not how we are. we are locating aboriginal knowledge within our own space, and teaching in a way that reflects the dynamic and ongoing nature of our community and culture and as part of today’s society.”

a/professor Bracknell is primarily employed to prepare the eight units for the course but the work is being done collaboratively in the school with lecturer tracie pushman and a/professor Blaze Kwaymullina. “that’s how we are, that’s the way we work,” he said.

a former high school teacher in australia and Japan, a/professor Bracknell is also a musician. he plays bass, guitar, sings and writes songs for his rhythm and blues band, Boom! Bap! Pow!

“But i’ve always wanted to work in this area,” he said.

“it’s really exciting, preparing to help students to discover new ways of thinking.

“language is a passion of mine; not teaching it, but the philosophy of language and how it can uncover different ideas. the beauty of the noongar language is that it is born of this place, while english is new to the area. learning something about the noongar language will help to conceptualise this place in which we live.”

the language will be part of a unit tentatively called Looking South which will bring in a range of noongar voices. “to give an area like this respect, you have to realise that there are many different stories and perspectives involved.” we hope to engender some understanding of this complexity,” he said.

“we are looking forward to bringing in a diverse cohort of students who bring with them a range of perspectives, then offering them all another range of perspectives.”

2 | UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 the university of western australia

Water, as much as war or wealth, shapes our history.

phd candidate ruth morgan is about to make history herself, presenting her environmental history research on western australian water issues at the prestigious western history dissertation workshop in california next month.

the workshop, supported by southern california, california-davis, stanford and yale universities, is at the huntington library, one of the world’s great cultural, research and education centres. the private not-for-profit centre hosts leading humanities researchers from around the world. ruth is the first australian to be invited to this workshop.

one of her colleagues in the school of humanities, assistant professor ethan Blue, convened a recent workshop on Comparative Wests at uwa. Following that, one of the visitors from stanford persuaded his western history partners to offer a place at the workshop to an australian student – and ruth won the place.

she will present the first chapter of her thesis, which follows the water and climate histories of the settlement of wa from the first colony in King george sound in 1826 to Federation. it covers the huge learning process of the colonists as they adapted to the climate patterns and water availability in the southwest, as well as the impacts of gold and disease on the development of the swan river colony. it culminates with the construction of c y o’connor’s famous goldfields pipeline.

“ethan’s workshop on Comparative Wests revealed how the concept of the ‘west’ sheds light on both american and australian histories,” ruth said. “these are histories of frontiers, borders, displacement, environmental change – it’s not just about cowboys and the wild west!”

after she completed her degrees in economics and arts at uwa, ruth realised her interest in history and approached

Water chronicles the past, constructs the future

associate professor andrea gaynor about doing an honours project in history. “i wanted it to be relevant and andrea sent me away to think of a topic. i came up with the idea of studying perth’s water history, not realising that she was an environmental historian, so it was a perfect fit,” she said.

this study took ruth into a chapter in perth’s environmental history. she looked at how western australians thought about water in the 1970s, the impact of water restrictions on their attitudes and behaviours, and the long-term effects of these policies.

“i wanted to expand on it for my phd, which is looking at how people in the south-west region understand climate variability and its relationship with water resources and availability.”

her research spans economics, culture, literature, gardens and politics.

“people ask how i deal with the science side of it,” she said. “But thankfully i don’t have to understand the scientific procedures. rather, i’m looking at how, why and when particular scientific research was done.”

she asks why we are facing the challenge of declining water supplies and how we are dealing with it. she does not pass judgment on the science or the decisions of the past, but looks at the how of now.

“the workshop is a wonderful opportunity for an intense couple of days with some of the best historians from some of the best universities in the us. it comes at a good time for me, as i hope to submit my thesis in august, so i will be able to see if my work is resonating with the right people and if i am on the right track.”

ruth’s research is supervised by associate professor gaynor and associate professor charlie Fox.

Water restrictions in the 1970s started shaping behaviour… and history. Inset: Ruth Morgan

the university of western australia UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 | 3

Alan Robson Vice-Chancellor

It may be a case of being in the right place at the right time, but every so often, a pioneering individual in society sees a need and endeavours to address it. Our University honours several of our own innovators in many of our significant facilities.

For example, only recently we dedicated a major walkway and various buildings to emeritus professor eric John underwood, emeritus professor sir noel stanley Bayliss, professor robert street and professor david curnow.

and, as you will read in this issue of uwa news, our memorial dr george hondros lecture commemorates a uwa colleague who, despite a relatively short life, made his mark on our university and on perth.

in a similar vein, it was a great honour for me to have been asked to deliver the inaugural ralph slatyer address in Brisbane earlier this month. thanks to this distinguished uwa graduate, australia continues to benefit from professor slatyer’s identification of a need and his work towards meeting it.

the year was 1990 and professor slatyer, australia’s first chief scientist, suggested to then prime minister, Bob hawke, the concept of a national network of cooperative research centres. professor slatyer and the prime minister were friends, having been students together at perth modern school before studying at this university.

in devising the crc program, professor slatyer was expanding the stimulating atmosphere he’d experienced in the laboratory as a young researcher. he saw at first hand that the coming together of minds with different abilities is what creates great science.

Encouraging the experimental and the avant garde

his vision was crucial in enabling top-flight science and collaboration in this nation – a calibre of science that had been unheard of previously.

since the inception of the crc program in 1990, 186 centres have been created. today, there are 42 centres throughout australia in four fields: agriculture, Forestry and Fishing; mining; manufacturing; and services.

the research carried out at these 42 centres ranges from seafood to plant biosecurity; from deep exploration to polymers; from aboriginal and torres strait islander health; to rail innovation. each crc has multiple participants around australia and many boast significant global collaboration.

at uwa, we host five crcs – in mining, bushfires, asthma and airways, greenhouse technologies and infrastructure and engineering asset management – and we play a vital partnership role in many others across australia.

the breadth of research and the enormous benefits that have emerged and will continue to emerge from the crc program nationally and internationally are directly attributable to professor ralph slatyer.

at our own university in every discipline, we often witness unexpected research consequences when people bounce ideas off each other. and we encourage an environment that fosters and recognises the experimental and the avant garde.

uwa chancellor an ethical leaderA new annual lecture series on ethics and leadership will be launched by UWA Chancellor Michael Chaney.

dr chaney will deliver the inaugural vincent Fairfax oration on 27 June: corporate Ethics: are they just in the eye of the beholder?

sir vincent Fairfax was a leading member of the australian business community who believed that ethical leadership should not be left to chance, but be developed.

the centre for ethical leadership in the melbourne Business school (university of melbourne) and uwa, through the institute of advanced studies, presents the lecture at the university club auditorium.

dr chaney, a graduate of uwa and the harvard Business school, is chairman of the national australia Bank, woodside petroleum and gresham partners holdings.

the oration is a free public lecture, beginning at 6pm. seats are limited, so reserve a place by emailing [email protected] by 20 June.

Conventional wisdomPerth and UWA will be touted as hosts for international conferences in agriculture and ocean research.

the winners of the annual perth convention Bureau’s professional development awards will be attending conferences in europe in June and putting in bids to host the meetings in wa next time they’re held.

associate professor dominique Blache from the school of animal Biology won $5,000 to go to the international conference of the global consortium of higher education and research for agriculture in France.

and assistant professor thomas wernberg was awarded the same amount to attend the international temperate reef society conference in the uK. dr wernberg is in the school of plant Biology where he teaches and researches in the oceans institute.

Bureau managing director christine allen said the program was responsible for generating business worth more than $80 million in wa.

4 | UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 the university of western australia

As a child growing up in rural China in the 1960s Cao Guangjing often didn’t have enough to eat although his mother was a wheat, corn and cotton farmer and his father a village schoolteacher.

decades later, the hungry boy has become a globally-acclaimed engineer, responsible for the success of the world’s biggest hydropower project with a workforce of more than 14,000 people.

dr cao is chairman of the china three gorges corporation with clean energy business interests in 25 countries, possible future collaborations with australian companies and another four big hydropower dams under way upstream on the yangtze river from where the three gorges dam is located.

at uwa recently to deliver the 26th dr george hondros memorial lecture, dr cao said the china of his childhood was a backward country.

“everyone knew the only way to escape poverty was to go to university,” he said. “as a boy i knew nothing about university or the professions, but one of my senior high school teachers recommended that i go to hohai university, a research university in nanjing, to study civil engineering.”

in 1997, aged 33, dr cao became the three gorges project manager, having

carried out analysis of the project’s feasibility, planning and design since 1985.

“the benefits of the project outweigh the harm,” he said. “the mighty yangtze river used to flood every 10 years, resulting in great loss of life and property. today, the project’s flood storage capacity protects the fertile Jianghan plain.

“the project also improves the navigability of the river, with a double-line, five-stage ship lock part of the design. with more ships using the waterway, petrol consumption has decreased, resulting in a reduction of exhaust emissions. and the total amount of annual hydropower generation is equal to burning 50 million tons of raw coal.

“the project has also included building 16 ultra-large bridges over the yangtze and its tributaries, as well as two airports, the construction of 133km of expressways, 2,000km of highways and 26 sewerage and 19 garbage treatment plants.”

dr cao said one of the biggest problems he encountered was the fact that during its setting process, concrete releases a lot of heat.

“Failure to efficiently control the temperature rise could result in cracks,

so we had to install large-capacity integrated control techniques and not a single crack appeared in four million cubic metres of concrete!”

while overseeing the project, dr cao completed a phd in management training and credits his understanding of management techniques to the success of the undertaking, in which every major milestone during the 17 years of construction was reached on or ahead of schedule.

“in some ways, being a manager is like being a member of a family,” said dr cao, whose proud parents are still alive. he has three siblings and a 20 year-old son who is majoring in electrical engineering. “you have to offer friendship and you also have to reward good work to ensure quality. it’s also important to keep people well informed about the project. and they need to know that if they do a great job they’ll gain respect from their boss and honour from their government.”

the dr george hondros lecture honours dr hondros (1920 – 1965) who for many years was a senior member of staff of the department of civil engineering, now the school of civil and resource engineering. his major legacy to this state was his input into the narrows Bridge project as a structural engineer.

Left: Dr Cao Guangjing delivers the Hondros lecture

Power from a university educationBy Sally-Ann Jones

the university of western australia UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 | 5

More than 80 Business School students have become this year’s beneficiaries of a successful fund-raising campaign, Tomorrow Starts Today.

the students were presented this month with 57 prizes and 25 scholarships, funded by the business sector and due, in part, to the campaign which raised $25 million to benefit the school, its students and its research. (some of the prizes were in existence before the campaign.)

Four students were awarded Bhp Billiton scholarships for new research into the resources industry. liang li won a phd scholarship, valued at up to $153,000, while virginia gogan, Zach cole and linda Faraone each won $20,000 for their honours projects.

liang has an undergraduate degree in information management and information systems from shandong university, china and a master’s degree in management science from shanghai Jiao tong university, china.

tomorrow starts with a scholarship

he is using his phd to investigate the drivers of, and impediments to, australian mining investment projects.

he is also developing, with his supervisor, professor Ken clements, a novel way of determining the value of these projects to the broader economy by examining changes in the relevant companies’ share prices when they undertake a significant investment in a resource project. “this research will offer new insights into the understanding of the economics of the australian mining industry,” professor clements said.

the Bhp Billiton scholarships allow students with excellent academic records to take on research projects in economic, business or management issues relevant to the mining sector. the company also awarded prizes for phd, masters, honours and undergraduate students.

undergraduates michael crossley and heather mcwilliam, both nearing completion of double degrees in engineering and commerce, won the 2011 mining leaders scholarships.

the $15,000 scholarships will enable the students to complete their studies without having to work to support themselves. they are funded by resource capital Funds and mining companies ausenco, trafigura and st Barbara, for academically-talented students who have demonstrated leadership and who have a passion to succeed in the mining industry.

michael and heather have both been involved in volunteer community work, mentoring and leadership, and have completed student placements and vacation work with mining companies.

professor trish todd, director of undergraduate programs in the Business school, said most of the scholarships and prizes were supported by companies which had employed uwa graduates and were keen to support ongoing recognition of students.

“most of our suite of scholarships have traditionally been for honours students, so they can reduce their hours of part-time work and concentrate on their studies. But recently, several companies have provided undergraduate scholarships for students in financial need.

“we are very keen to get more undergraduate scholarships as we realise now how many students need them,” she said. “elders scholarships provide funds for students from rural and regional areas, who have to pay huge rents to live in perth. that usually means they have to do a lot of part-time work, which affects their ability to achieve at their studies.”

tenielle costello from Busselton, rose paley from margaret river, emma cheeseman from pemberton and tristan ceccato from Bunbury all won elders scholarships.

commerce graduate liam Bertelli won the 2011 stan and Jean perron honours scholarship. his research is examining how major american companies balance their socially-responsible behaviour against their financial imperatives.

“it will be interesting to see if so-called ethical companies are financially disadvantaged for reducing their environmental and social impact, or if they enjoy more long-term benefits as customers and employees begin to look for companies that are socially and environmentally conscious,” said liam.

Virginia Gogan, Linda Faraone, Liang Li and Zach Cole all won BHP Billiton scholarships

6 | UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 the university of western australia

Pods of creative writing, fine arts, music and digital media are spread out across the campus.

But they are all coming together under the banner of a new online publication, Trove.

it is the re-incarnation of a printed publication from the 1990s and early 2000s, which foundered because of lack of funding.

now rachael hains-wesson, who is nearing completion of her phd in creative writing, has re-invented the publication, with the help of professor ted snell, director of uwa’s cultural precinct.

“the creative arts are located in several different buildings on the campus and those buildings create barriers,” rachael said. “But there are no barriers in the virtual world. ted and i both agreed that online was a perfect place to bring everybody together.”

the first printed publication of Trove, about 20 years ago, boasted an illustration by shaun tan on the cover. this latest treasure trove of student talent will encompass writing, music, sound, film, lyrics, visual art and performance.

launched earlier this month, Trove will be published on-line twice a year by its editorial team of six students, led and mentored by a steering committee of academics and phd candidates.

professor van ikin, associate professor stephen chinna, phd students carol ryles and rachael are nurturing the editorial committee whose members come from law and commerce schools, as well as the humanities.

a playwright and former performer, rachael teaches in the areas of online publication, theatre, performance and creative writing. “my students said they had nowhere to publish their work,” she said “Westerly is more for postgraduates and established writers and hard to get into anyway.

“i showed them an old copy of Trove and they really connected with other students’ work.”

rachael said the online publication was a way for creative artists to connect with each other. “a lot of people work on their own and it can be lonely. i love working with others, getting inspired by them. i’m working now with a woman in edinburgh whom i met at a conference. she is using film and performance to create something for Trove. technology is great for bringing together people who are geographically far apart.”

she said theatre was using more technology now to the point where it had almost become its own genre. “i know young people who won’t go to the theatre unless it is a multi-media production.”

more than 40 submissions have been received for the first issue of Trove. “most of them are creative writing, so i’ll be working hard to get more film and performance and visual arts included,” rachael said.

Trove was launched with the support of the vice-chancellor. you can find it on the uwa website at trove.arts.uwa.edu.au

new publication brings treasures togetherThe Trove team: Jen Perry, Carol Ryles, Rachael Hains-Wesson (standing), Lachlan Keeley, Kristie Michelle Chiew, Berakah Ho and Minh Ngo

The first issue of the original Trove in 1994 with cover illustration by Shaun Tan

the university of western australia UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 | 7

Who would have thought a life-long career in geology would include a bushranger and a wrongly-identified spy?

John glover’s illustrious career has brought him into contact with both. it was nearly 70 years ago that he enrolled at uwa to study geology and he is still here, doing research in that same discipline, at the age of 87.

the senior honorary research Fellow was honoured earlier this month when the school of earth and environment named its meeting room after him.

apart from two years in the raaF during wwii, three years doing his phd at the university of california Berkley, and a few years working with the Bureau of mineral resources and an oil company, dr glover has spent his entire adult life at uwa, in the discipline of geology.

he was first appointed as a lecturer in petrology in 1955. his time on the campus is matched by winthrop professor John melville-Jones in classics and ancient history, who joined uwa in 1957 and has not yet retired.

dr glover retired 20 years ago but was made an honorary research fellow and has been coming in every day to continue researching and writing on the history of geology, and mentoring postgraduate students.

This geological life rocked with characters

“my position has been recently renewed and i have another two-and-a-half years to go, which should see me out i should think!” he laughed.

professor matthew tonts, head of the school of earth and environment, said dr glover had made an outstanding contribution to the university and to science generally. “the naming of this room is an important recognition of his achievements,” he said.

But there was a time when dr glover was not so readily recognised on the campus.

at the dedication of the room, one of his former students, uwa chancellor dr michael chaney, recalled an incident when a political activist was addressing a crowd of students and dr glover walked by.

“i was wearing a suit,” dr glover said. “it must have been in the late 1960s or early 70s and we all wore suits in those days when we were lecturing. i was just walking by and suddenly they all started shouting ‘government spy!’ i was approaching a group of geology students who knew very well who i was, but they joined in, shouting ‘go back to canberra!’”

while he was amused at being mistaken for a spy, dr glover was delighted at another case of mistaken identity, or rather

Chancellor and former geology student Dr Michael Chaney unveils the portrait of John Glover for his former teacher

8 | UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 the university of western australia

hidden identity that happened in the geological world in perth more than 100 years ago.

“about 1896, the geological survey of wa employed a bushranger from Queensland, known as captain starlight.

“he had been sentenced to hang in Queensland, but had his sentence commuted to life imprisonment and somehow managed to get out of gaol after a while and made his way to wa. he wrote to the premier, sir John Forrest, passing himself off as a man from a good family who had fallen on hard times and asked sir John to find him a job.

“sir John did – as an administrator at the geological survey, where he was actually a very efficient clerk. he had been wounded during a shoot-out in Queensland and walked with a limp but told everybody his gait was a result of war wounds sustained in the Balkans.”

captain starlight is one of the characters dr glover included in his most recent book (written with former e de c clark museum curator Jenny Bevan), The Forgotten Explorers: Pioneer Geologists of Western Australia 1826 – 1926, published last year.

some of dr glover’s most fascinating work has been a mix of petrology, archaeology and anthropology, discovering information about aboriginal people from thousands of years ago. (petrology is a branch of geology that is concerned with rocks rather than earth.)

“i became interested in the petrology of aboriginal artefacts. sylvia hallam and i worked on this together. if you look at the petrology of artefacts you can form a fair idea of where they come from. if they come from a and are found at B, you can work out the travel habit of the people who used them.”

dr hallam is another honorary research fellow in the school, who is also in her 80s.

“we found some strange flint chips up and down the coastal plain between geraldton and Bunbury, but we couldn’t find the parent rock. they increased closer to the coast so it seemed the rock must have come from west of the coastline.

“i talked to oil company people who were drilling off-shore and sure enough, they found some of the rock we were looking for. during the last ice age, about 19,000 years ago, the coast was west of rottnest, and the aboriginal people would move from there through to the darling scarp on an annual migration, leaving traces behind them.”

now his colleagues have asked dr glover to write the history of geology at uwa.

“the geology department here lasted around 90 years,” he said. “it was one of the first departments to be established when uwa was founded.”

while the discipline is still going strong, geology is no longer a department or school in its own right. dr glover said the fact that it was a contained history, that had an end date, would make it a little easier to write. “i think it would take me about a

year to research. i already have a bit of it written, up until 1926, thanks to my latest book.”

dr glover has been very much a part of that history and is probably the only person on campus who remembers when the big rock on the lawn outside the geology building arrived.

it came from a quarry outside armadale, where geology professor rex prider used to take his students on field trips. “the rock is an agmatite, a complex patchwork of various granitic and other rocks which were combined, deep in the earth’s crust. components of the rock range from three billion to 550 million years in age,” dr glover said.

an errant student played a prank in the late 1950s and covered the rock with whitewash, making it useless as a subject for demonstration. the culprit was identified and cleaned the rock but professor prider was always anxious that it might happen again, so, in 1963, he had the rock brought to the crawley campus where he could keep an eye on it from his office window.

“the rock was dropped on the causeway, on its way to uwa, splitting it in two,” dr glover recalled. “thus two large rocks were delivered to the department. one was banished to the back of the building where it remains, the other was mounted out the front.”

dr glover was involved in the foundation of the edward de courcy clark museum of earth science and one of the jobs of the curator became the cleaning of the rock, as it was discoloured by the iron from the sprinklers.

now it is up to dr glover to keep an eye on the rock. From his office he can also keep an eye on the new John glover meeting room, which is just across the corridor.

John Glover and his co-author and former curator of the E de C Clark Museum, Jenny Bevan, have great affection for the Rock

the university of western australia UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 | 9

Creativity and communication reveals the big picture

Staff in the office of Human Resources have given themselves and their work a good laundering.

a clothes airer sits in their reception area, but rather than socks and jumpers, it is adorned with all sorts of hand-made symbols.

cut-out dolls, words, photographs, cartoons and drawings tell the story of how the staff members see themselves: their positions, their jobs, their personalities.

the display came out of a leadership retreat for directors and associate directors in Finance and resources (F&r).

each unit within F&r was asked to prepare an ‘expo-style’ display to showcase their work. participants were encouraged to use their creativity, within the theme of innovation and collaboration.

Jenny robertson, a/director of human resources, said her section chose to involve all the hr staff.

“the spin-off has been fantastic,” she said. “it was great to see the staff stepping away from their busy busy work and doing something creative. it ensured that they were all involved with the retreat and its aims and outcomes.

“normally, everybody is so involved with their individual work that they might just stop to wonder where the directors were for a couple of days. But this time, lots of them were asking us how the retreat went, what we learnt, how it would affect them,” ms robertson said.

“one of the initiatives to come out of the retreat was better communication across the F&r group. communication across the whole group is something we are working on mastering. if you get communication right, a lot of other issues take care of themselves.”

she said communicating with the hr staff by involving them in the retreat preparation had already paid off.

about 30 staff from Financial services, human resources, Facilities management, perth international arts Festival, uwa extension, uwa publishing, the university club, venues management, risk management and currie hall took two days out of their busy schedules to share ideas and determine how to be more innovative and collaborative in their work.

was it helpful? “definitely,” said ms robertson. “people constantly tell you how busy they are – and they are – but it means you don’t step back and look at the bigger picture.

“this project got the hr staff doing that and we realised that we all need to learn how to do things better.”

she said she was delighted at the level of enthusiasm and creativity from the staff.

it’s assessment timeTeaching and Learning Month starts today, with a focus on a hot topic, assessment.

the theme, Assessment and Feedback in the New Courses, creates a common thread between the events over the next 10 days which should stimulate spirited debate.

on tuesday 31 may, students from the uwa debating union will face-off against a staff team in a debate on the oak lawn from 1pm. the teams will be arguing That Assessment is a Waste of Time.

the teaching and learning hypothetical has become a highlight of the calendar.

Imagine there’s no assessment – it’s easy if you try! should be a lot of fun. it will be in the sunken garden (or in the gentilli lecture theatre if it rains) from noon on thursday 2 June. the hypothetical will be moderated by uwa’s new sub-dean community, dr richard pengelley, and feature former labor premier and psychology lecturer dr carmen lawrence and guild president tom antoniazzi.

the Business school Quiz night is sure to be another success on thursday 9 June from 4.30 to 7.30pm.

this year’s distinguished visiting teacher, professor Keithia wilson, is the

australian learning and teaching council national Fellow for the First year experience, an issue that is at the top of the agenda for uwa.

professor wilson will present the keynote address at the research colloquium on wednesday 8 June and will run a workshop the following day on managing the assessment life cycle: principles and practices in the first year.

teaching and learning month is run by the centre for the advancement of teaching and learning. For all the events and speakers, go to www.catl.uwa.edu.au/teachingmonth

HR staff representations hung out to dry

10 | UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 the university of western australia

Stunning paintings from the desert people of Australia fill the Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery for the next two months.

and against this dramatic background, another form of art will be created.

indigenous performer richard walley will team up with the austrian classical string musicians, the mandelbrot duo, to compose, rehearse then perform in the gallery new works for didgeridoo, violin and cello.

the work of the world-class performers is designed to bridge traditional western european composition and ancient indigenous music. it will be a unique opportunity to see artists at work as they create new music.

the collaboration has been com-missioned for the uwa winterarts festival, to co-incide with naidoc week. the musicians will be working in the gallery from 11am to 1pm on 5, 6, 7 and 8 July and performing their composition on sunday 10 July at 7pm.

in the meantime, the stars of the gallery will be 100 paintings from 95 indigenous artists, forming the exhibition Desert Country, from the art gallery of south australia.

John Barrett-lennard, curatorial director at lwag, says the paintings in Desert Country are incredibly rich, visually and culturally, and with so much to say, and he encourages visitors to the gallery to both look and listen.

“the aboriginal art movement that originated in the central desert more than 30 years ago has trans formed australians’ understanding of aboriginal art and culture and i am very pleased that we are able to present these great works in perth,” he said.

the gallery is the first venue in a national tour. it is the first exhibition to chart the evolution of australia’s most influential art movement, revealing the extraordinary development of the australian desert painting movement and the flourishing cross-cultural relationships between aboriginal artists working in the desert regions of south australia, western australia and the northern territory.

through its dynamic paintings, Desert Country showcases the enormous diversity of desert art. among the highlights are powerful works by pitjantjatjara artists, mapping the devastated lands that they were forced to vacate during the atomic bomb and rocket testing of the 1950s.

art from the desert country

art gallery of south australia director nick mitzevich says, “without a doubt, desert painting is australia’s single most significant contribution to the art world and it deserves to be celebrated. we are extremely pleased to be able to share this collection with the rest of australia.”

nici cumpston, the curator of the exhibition, hopes that beyond its artistic goals, the exhibition will also be a step forward to improved race relations with the wider australian community.

“Desert Country allows us into an ancient existence and to witness history through the contem porary art of the oldest living culture in the world,” she said. “taking the time to learn the stories behind the paintings is one of the ways that enables

us all to understand this culture and to enhance our respect for it.”

as well as the music-making week, the gallery is hosting other public events during the exhibition.

dr John stanton from the Berndt museum of anthropology will talk about a collection of crayon drawings by aboriginal artists in the northern territory that were collected by the great uwa anthropologist ronald m Berndt in the 1940s.

Before the dots, before Papunya is at the gallery at 2pm on wednesday 6 July. this is a uwa extension event and you will need to book for it.

Desert Country continues until July 31.

Tjitji Wirriryba (c.1930) by Simon Hogan from the Pitjantjatjara people, WA

Walu Tjukurrpa (1943) by Tommy Mitchell from the Ngaanyatjarra people, WA

the university of western australia UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 | 11

Some of Jennie Officer’s winning designs

When architect Jennie Officer talks about sustainable buildings, her ideas go beyond ecologically-sound building materials and processes.

“i try to design buildings that are flexible, so they can accommodate different uses through their lives. there is now a new generation of multi-purpose spaces so that buildings can live on in different roles.”

ms officer has been named wa’s emerging architect by the australian institute of architects. she is a graduate and a staff member at uwa, teaching design and digital design in the school of architecture, landscape and visual arts.

she also runs a private practice, officer woods, with another uwa graduate, trent woods. together their vision is “imagining a future through public buildings”.

“our work is predominantly residential but we have done some public buildings and hope to work more in the public arena,” ms officer said. “our practice represents our ongoing research and we are constantly trying to be innovative and inventive without re-inventing the wheel. we would like to help more people with our skills than we can reach through residential work.”

the emerging architect award is for practitioners who have graduated within the past 10 years and who can demonstrate excellence in practice, research and education, and leadership.

“my architectural life straddles those three areas,” she said.

“my interest and involvement in education is threefold: it is a privilege to be immersed in the creative environment of an architecture school, to be thinking about a broad range and scale of work at all times and to be re-educated; it fosters a strongly symbiotic relationship with the work i do in practice; and it allows me an opportunity to redress and reassess any deficiencies i perceive in my own education.”

she said architects had a huge responsibility to their clients and taxpayers (in the case of public buildings). “there must be some real value for money in our designs.

“we are less interested in working on homes where money is not an issue and more keen on designing hard-working buildings within a budget.

a Fresh Start for addicts and their familiesThe University will host a one-day seminar to help families understand the latest recovery-oriented approaches to drug addiction.

the recovery seminar presented by the subiaco-based Fresh Start recovery program will be held at the university club on 8 July.

uwa specialists as well as other australian and international addiction medicine experts will be featured.

the seminar is aimed at members of the public, such as parents, who have concerns about their children’s drug use.

“parents who are worried about drugs and their addiction will learn a great deal from this seminar and the public are encouraged to register for the event,” said Jeff claughton, ceo of Fresh start.

dr george o’neil, director of medicine and research at Fresh Start, and a uwa graduate, pioneered the use of naltrexone implants. he will be one of the key speakers.

people interested in attending should contact laura at Fresh Start on 9381 1333. Further information is available at www.freshstart.org.au/seminar

other speakers include uwa’s professor gary hulse (research and education in alcohol and drugs), pastor graham maybury (Nightline presenter on radio 6pr), professor neil mcKeganey (centre for drug misuse research, university of glasgow), professor Jon currie (addiction medicine, st vincent’s hospital, melbourne), professor david clark (Wired in to Recovery) and dr colin Brewer (the stapleford centre, london).

EMERGING ARCHITECT PRIZE 2010 ENTRANT: JENNIE OFFICER

PORTFOLIO OF WORKS

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210 5 10

ZADCO TELESCOPE

GINGIN OBSERVATORY

PROPOSED EXTENSION

PROJECT: CLIENT: SCOPE:

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Gingin Magnetic Observatory ExtensionGDC FoundationUpgrade and extension to observatory, incorporating auditorium, cafe, retail and offices; designed as an anamorphic projection from the Leaning Tower of Gingin300m2Design Development

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Gold Street Residence, South FremantleG + P FrenchHouse on small ex-industrial lot, pushed to zero lot boundary on three sides to maximise internal volumes, solar penetration and address the scale of the warehouse context.175m2Documentation

PROJECT: CLIENT: SCOPE:

SCALE: STATUS:

Stubbs Terrace Additions and Alterations, DaglishA + N LeeAdditions and alterations to upgrade an inter-war bungalow into a large family house, with optimised solar access to living areas, good separation of family activities and preservation of the character of the original bungalow130m2Under Construction

0 1 2 5

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Silver Creek Road Residence, GuildertonTurner and GrayRobust, low maintenance holiday house utilising prefabricated building components, sited to take advantage of views and non-orthogonal block200m2Under Construction

summer

winter

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0 1 2 5 m

EMERGING ARCHITECT PRIZE 2010 ENTRANT: JENNIE OFFICER

PORTFOLIO OF WORKS

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Farmhouse, Stephens Road, BindoonG + P Foulkes-TaylorLinear plan on contour to allow for steel framed rural building construction technology, a variety of activities in and around the site and to mediate wind, sun, arrival and views350m2Schematic Design

PROJECT: CLIENT: SCOPE:

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Three Houses: Daly StreetBT TrustBattleaxe housing development behind two existing heritage houses designed around a stand of mature trees

2x180m2 Residences & 1x70m2 Single Bed Residence Tender

10 2 5

Section

PROJECT: CLIENT: SCOPE:

SCALE: STATUS:

Pember Road East Residence, DenmarkCarson and HortonCompact stepping plan to accomodate an aggregation of interlocking volumes on a steep and heavily treed site whilst maximising views and solar aspect. 230m2Under Construction

1 7

6

54

3

2

8 9

10

11

entry

tank

drying bbq

1 garage 6.2 x 5.8m2 store 3.2 x 1.5m3 bathroom 2.8 x 2.0m4 laundry 3.2 x 1.5m5 bedroom 3 3.8 x 3.1m6 bedroom 4 3.8 x 3.0m

7 kitchen 8 dining 10.2 x6.2m 9 living10 bedroom 1 4.2x3.9m 11 ensuite 2.5x2.0m

0 1 2 5 m

Ground Floor Plan Unit CStandard Configuration

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Four Houses: Stevens Street, FremantleBarnacle & BurkeSustainable housing development with flexible planning to facilitate varied and multigenerational occupation 4x160m2 ResidencesUnder Construction

Best architects emerge from UWA“we like the challenge and it’s great for the clients to come on a journey with you. many of them might not have expected that from a contract with an architect.”

ms officer said she hoped the award would help to boost the profile of emerging architects in wa.

“they are often overlooked on the basis of experience, but are highly capable of more complex work,” she said.

EMERGING ARCHITECT PRIZE 2010 ENTRANT: JENNIE OFFICER

PORTFOLIO OF WORKS

N

210 5 10

ZADCO TELESCOPE

GINGIN OBSERVATORY

PROPOSED EXTENSION

PROJECT: CLIENT: SCOPE:

SCALE: STATUS:

Gingin Magnetic Observatory ExtensionGDC FoundationUpgrade and extension to observatory, incorporating auditorium, cafe, retail and offices; designed as an anamorphic projection from the Leaning Tower of Gingin300m2Design Development

sum

mer

winter

winter

0 1 2 5 m

0 1 2 5 m

PROJECT: CLIENT: SCOPE:

SCALE: STATUS:

Gold Street Residence, South FremantleG + P FrenchHouse on small ex-industrial lot, pushed to zero lot boundary on three sides to maximise internal volumes, solar penetration and address the scale of the warehouse context.175m2Documentation

PROJECT: CLIENT: SCOPE:

SCALE: STATUS:

Stubbs Terrace Additions and Alterations, DaglishA + N LeeAdditions and alterations to upgrade an inter-war bungalow into a large family house, with optimised solar access to living areas, good separation of family activities and preservation of the character of the original bungalow130m2Under Construction

0 1 2 5

PROJECT: CLIENT: SCOPE:

SCALE: STATUS:

Silver Creek Road Residence, GuildertonTurner and GrayRobust, low maintenance holiday house utilising prefabricated building components, sited to take advantage of views and non-orthogonal block200m2Under Construction

summer

winter

summer

winter

0 1 2 5 m

12 | UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 the university of western australia

Dreamfit keeps imran fitA young man with cerebral palsy is now using his own dream gym, thanks to UWA engineering students and the Dreamfit Foundation.

imran ariff was one of three people with disabilities who were the focus of a dreamfit design competition, Dreamcatcher, last year. nine teams of students created innovative ways of helping the three people: imran wanted to work out at the gym independently; 12-year-old sladjana mijailovic was keen to paint and access her paints and equipment without any help; and Karen anderson wanted a seated wave ski that she could use without having to depend on others to launch it for her.

team gymran won the competition and the modified gym equipment they designed and built is now installed at the ymca morley recreation centre. it is sponsored by wood group integrity management (wgim) and is available for all people with disabilities.

each student team was sponsored and mentored by professional engineers.

wood group engaged with students James moody, lawrence weir, simon harris and James harding, guiding them and exposing them to invaluable industry experience

imran is delighted with his new dream gym.

“having the equipment available for use by the whole community is a positive step towards developing a better understanding of those with special needs wanting to become active and significant members of their community,” he said.

the Dreamcatcher competition is running again this year.

eye specialist hopes to unlock immune mysteryA local researcher has beaten an international field to secure the prestigious Brian King Post-Doctoral Fellowship for 2011.

matthew wikstrom works at the lions eye institute and secured the Fellowship with a proposal to study immune responses in the eye.

dr wikstrom said the eye was unique because even a mild adverse immune response could harm vision.

“my work will provide us with a better understanding of how the immune system monitors the eye and protects it from infection,” he said.

dr wikstrom said one of his major research projects would focus on auto-immune uveitis – a relatively common cause of blindness in adults.

“at present, mystery surrounds how the immune system is activated in this disease,” he said.

“if we can learn more about this process, then we can target the cause of the disease more effectively.”

lions eye institute managing director, professor david mackey, said dr wikstrom was only the fourth recipient of the Brian King Fellowship.

“this prestigious Fellowship attracts high-quality applicants from all over the world who are reviewed and ranked by two international assessors, so matthew is a testament to the quality of researchers to be found here in western australia,” he said.

the Brian King post-doctorial Fellowship is jointly funded by the lions eye institute and the lions save-sight Foundation.

grants breathe life into lung researchPneumonia, whooping cough and other respiratory diseases are still rife in Australia, despite a common perception that they belong to the last century.

infectious lung diseases have a big impact on australians, with respiratory infections being a major cause of morbidity and mortality among elderly people and indigenous populations.

the lung institute of wa (liwa) is offering two $50,000 research grants for investigations into lung diseases.

the liwa glenn Brown memorial grant and the liwa westcare grant were launched by pro vice-chancellor (research), professor alistair robertson.

director of liwa, professor phil thompson, said both grants were made possible through the support of the community.

the glenn Brown fund is for research into cystic fibrosis and bronchiectasis. it is the result of fund-raising by two mothers of children with cystic fibrosis. people with this genetic condition often experience bronchiectasis as a result of damaged airways.

the westcare grant is from the not-for-profit organisation that was originally created to support the needs of individuals with lung disease, particularly tuberculosis. they then extended their care to people with both physical and intellectual disabilties.

the funding is for western australian-based researchers to work in the area of infectious lung disease. westcare recognised that many respiratory conditions could be disabling, and wanted to further research into the causes and treatments. Imran Ariff’s dream became a reality

the university of western australia UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 | 13

UWA NEWS classified

RESEARCH GRANTSGrants awarded between 18/04/2011 and 16/05/2011AUSTRALIAN CURRICULUM ASSESSMENT AND REPORTING AUTHORITYAssociate Professor Stephen Humphry, Winthrop Professor David Andrich, graduate school of education, australian curriculum assessment and reporting authority, wa curriculum council: ‘controlling empirical Factors to measure educational achievement in invariant units’—$150,000 (2011-13)

AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY EX ARC LIEFProfessor Deborah Mitchell, Dr Toby Burrows, Professor David Denemark, Winthrop Professor John Cordery, Winthrop Professor Sharon Parker, the australian national university, information services, school of social and cultural studies, uwa Business school: ‘establishment of the australian data archive: an integrated research facility for the social sciences and humanities’—(2011)

CURRICULUM COUNCIL OF WESTERN AUSTRALIAAssociate Professor Stephen Humphry, Winthrop Professor David Andrich, graduate school of education, australian curriculum assessment and reporting authority, wa curriculum council: ‘controlling empirical Factors to measure educational achievement in invariant units’—$120,000 (2011-13)

MEAT AND LIVESTOCK AUSTRALIA RESEARCH PROGRAMProfessor Shane Maloney, Biomedical, Biomolecular and chemical sciences (school of): ‘monitoring and evaluation of hotstuff model’—$76,000 (2011-13)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDWinthrop Professor Billie Giles-Corti, population health (school of)—$64,774 (2011)

NEUROSURGICAL RESEARCH FOUNDATIONWinthrop Professor Michael

Stacey, Dr Delia Hendrie, Jillian Swaine, surgery (school of), curtin university of technology: ‘a randomized controlled trial of an individualized self-management program to prevent pressure ulcers Following spinal cord injury’— $241,710 (2011-12)

ROCHE PRODUCTS PTY LTDProfessor Anna Nowak, Dr Kerrie McDonald, Julie Marsh, Dr Helen Wheeler, medicine and pharmacology (school of), university of new south wales, royal north shore hospital: ‘agog patterns of care study’—$24,924 (2011)

RURAL INDUSTRIES RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATIONWinthrop Professor Stephen Powles, plant Biology (school of): ‘evaluate Fitness costs in herbicide resistant annual ryegrass’ —$115,982 (2011)Dr Roberto Busi, plant Biology (school of): ‘sustainability of wheat-selective pre-emergent herbicides in a changing climate’—$132,876 (2011-12)Associate Professor Qin Yu, Dr Shao Fang Wang, Winthrop Professor Stephen Powles, plant Biology (school of), chemistry centre wa: ‘diagnostic tools for detection of non target site herbicide resistance’—$112,186 (2011-12)

SA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCESAssistant Professor Matthew Hipsey, earth and environment (school of): ‘lower lakes water quality modelling project’—$100,390 (2011)

STATE HEALTH RESEARCH ADVISORY COUNCIL (SHRAC)Professor Elizabeth Geelhoed, Dr Jamie Rankin, Assistant Professor Frank Sanfilippo, population health (school of): ‘to investigate the potential cost-savings with use of transcatheter aortic valve implantation in treatment of high risk patients with severe aortic stenosis’—$115,000 (2011-12)

THE CHURCHES COMMISSION ON EDUCATIONAssociate Professor Maria Harries, social and cultural studies (school

1. Unicredit will provide up to $1,000 cash back for all new property secured loan applications, greater than $150,000, made before 30/06/2011. Offer subject to change and not valid with other offers. 2 Minimum loan redraw $1000. *Comparison rate is for a loan of $150,000 for a term of 25 years. WARNING: This comparison rate is true only for the examples given and may not include all fees & charges. Different terms, fees or other loan amounts might result in a different comparison rate. Fees, charges, conditions & normal lending criteria apply. Please refer to our Fees Schedule, available from any Unicredit branch. The University Credit Society Ltd. AFSL/ACL 244168.

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of): ‘evaluation of chaplaincy services (wa)’—$200,000 (2010-13)

UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOL EX MEDICAL RESEARCH COUNCILDr Julia Inglis, Winthrop Professor David Joyce, medicine and pharmacology (school of): ‘small molecule antagonists at the trka receptor for the treatment of pain’—$70,000 (2011-13)

UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND EX ARC LIEFProfessor John Zhu, Associate Professor Eric May, Dr Hao Wing, university of Queensland, mechanical and chemical engineering (school of), university of southern Queensland: ‘a novel high pressure system for multiple gas absorption’—(2011)

UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY EX ARC CENTRE OF EXCELLENCEProfessor Lister Staveley-Smith, physics (school of): ‘centre for all sky astrophysics – caastro’ —$2,819,272 (2011-16)

WA DEPARTMENT OF HOUSINGAssistant Professor Daniela Ciancio, Winthrop Professor Andries Fourie, Dr Charles Augarde, Stephen Dobson, civil and resource engineering (school of), university of durham, wa department of housing, ramtec pty ltd, scott smalley partnership: ‘use of rammed earth in aboriginal communities of australia’—$150,000 (2011-13)

WATER CORPORATION WAWinthrop Professor Lynette Abbott, Dr Robert Humphries, earth and environment (school of): ‘the impact of lime-amended Bioclay (laBc) in soil Biological processes (uwa phd project)’ —$45,000 (2011-13)

PRomoTioN bRiEfS Provided by Elizabeth Hutchinson, Executive Officer, Academic Promotions Committee, Human ResourcesAssociate Professor Michael GillanManagement and Organisations, UWA Business Schoolassociate professor gillan’s research examines the relationships between globalisation, labour organisations,

politics and workplace restructuring. in particular he has developed three specific areas of research: labour movements in india, global production networks and australian workplace industrial relations.he was awarded a uwa Business school excellence in teaching award in 2010.a/professor gillan is postgraduate coordinator for the master of human resources and employment relations program.Research Associate Professor Kay CoxRoyal Perth Hospital Unit, School of Medicine and Pharmacology

associate professor cox’s area of research is in investigating the role of exercise and other lifestyle factors in the prevention of cardiovascular disease and other conditions of ageing such as cognitive impairment and dementia.her ultimate objective is to find ways to implement these findings in the community setting. she has presented her work at 22 international and 38 local and national conferences and collaborated with international groups on projects such as the delphi collaboration in 2009. a/professor cox has 14 awards from national and west australian community organisations, and holds the title of adjunct associate professor at edith cowan university.

NEw STAff20 April to 18 May 2011Anna-Lena Arnold, study coordinator, population healthCindy Bailey, research officer, school of surgeryElizabeth Caddy, mental health nurse, student servicesSylvia Cheung, library officer, libraryLilian Chong, administrative assistant, student servicesEmma Coombes, administrative assistant, medicine, dentistry and health sciencesBryn Davies, diving and Boating safety officer, vice-chancelleryHelen Dejong, research associate, school of surgery

14 | UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 the university of western australia

UWA NEWS classified

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paris accommodationA 17th century convent in Paris is available for UWA staff accommodation through the French Department of the School of Humanities.

les récollets has 81 small flats and studio apartments for visiting researchers. the convent was converted into an international scientific and cultural accommodation centre by the French government in 1999 and european studies has recently entered into a not-for-profit agreement with the centre.

tristan Kewe, a joint phd candidate at uwa and la sorbonne nouvelle in paris, is the contact for arranging accommodation. les récollets is available for periods from a week to two years. the serviced apartments are very reasonably priced and tristan says the agreement is able to bypass “the French habit of asking for mountains of paperwork.”

he would like to hear from any staff member who is interested in staying there.

For more information, email [email protected] or [email protected]

REduNdANT EquiPmENT

ITEM PRICE AGE CONDITION SECTION CONTACT

philips 190s lcd monitors $40 3+ 2 Business [email protected]

philips 190B $40 3+ 2 Business [email protected]

philips 170B $30 3+ 2 Business [email protected]

diamond digital monitor $30 3+ 2 Business [email protected]

samsung synchmaster 740s $30 3+ 2 Business [email protected]

samsung synchmaster 940B $40 3+ 2 Business [email protected]

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samsung synchmaster 943B $40 3+ 2 Business [email protected]

condition refers to the general condition of item (1 = as new, 2 = good, 3 = serviceable, 4 = unserviceable). age refers to the nearest year.

Sophie Fielder, project manager, Facilities management – planning and designDr Kaniz Gausia, associate professor, primary, aboriginal and rural health careSandra Hamersley, administrative assistant (reception), school of earth and environmentYvette Harrap, administrative assistant, engineering, computing and mathematicsAnna Hopcroft, technician (animal house), animal care servicesNirajah Jegath, support analyst, Financial servicesTundi Jeges, administrative officer, uwa Business schoolMatthew Jones, diving and Boating safety officer, vice-chancelleryLecia Khor, research assistant professor, centre of microscopy, characterisation and analysisDr Nadine Kloth, research assistant professor, psychologyMarie Lamb, administrative officer, medicine and pharmacologyDr Jonathan Morling, associate professor, primary, aboriginal and rural health careOlivia Mubungo, dental clinic assistant, oral health centre of waIain Myers-Smith, technician (animal house), animal care servicesKaren Ogden, technician (animal house), animal care servicesStacy Osenbaugh, human resource assistant, human resourcesDr Anne Passmore, research professor, school of surgeryRamkrishna Paul, computing officer, Biomedical, Biomolecular and chemical sciencesLaura Radovan, communications officer, architecture, landscape and visual artsKatie Shaw, project co-ordinator, primary, aboriginal and rural health careIan Thacker, marketing manager, school of sport science, exercise and healthJennifer Tomczak, administrative officer, centre for advancement of teaching and learning

Clint Walker, director, Facilities managementVeronica Walshe, research officer, primary, aboriginal and rural health care

ClASSifiEdSFOR SALEPEUGEOT: 308 touring hdi 2.0 diesel auto, 2009, 20,500 km. roof bars, luggage rack, seven seats, Blue, vgc. $31,500 or nearest offer. call Krish ext 7314, or email [email protected] SUITE: very solid 2 plus 3½ seater with folder bed. excellent condition. $400 or nearest offer. call 9381 8428 or 6488 3291.

ACCOMMODATIONRENTAL SOUGHT: academic family (uwa and curtin) with 3 daughters seeking 4 b/room rental in the shenton college area from July 2011. 12 months rental preferable. unfurnished. clean, well appointed, attractive. For more information, email: [email protected]

TO LETQUINDALUP: a charming, recently renovated, fully self-contained redbrick cottage only 400m from beautiful geographe Bay and 2km from dunsborough township. located at the end of a private road, this cottage offers privacy and security, a lovely natural vista out over toby inlet reserve, and is a great cottage for all seasons. please go to www.quindalup.net.au for further information.FRENCH PYRENEES: holiday rental property. characteristic rental property in the small French village of rodes, at the foothills of the French pyrenees. 40 minutes from perpignan and 2.5 hours from Barcelona. sleeps 7. Fully fitted throughout. contact nicky davison on 0413 034 722 or [email protected]. also see website www.voletsbleus.co.uk/FRANCE: south west. holiday accommodation. self-contained apartment in one of the most beautiful medieval villages of the perigord noir, Belves. train and all amenities. For more details see website www.belves.info or contact susana melo de howard on 9246 5042 or email: [email protected] 0416 171 217 or 9389 9817.

the university of western australia UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 | 15

Twenty years on – reflections on a journeyIt is hard to believe that I have just completed my twentieth year as a staff member at UWA.

when i arrived here, Fay gale was vice-chancellor, university house was mostly an ‘old boys’ club’, we still had red and green staff parking permits (red for academics and green for general staff) and you needed a degree in computer science to send an email. how much has changed!

perhaps it has passed quickly because in the 20 years i have had seven very different jobs across various parts of the university. my first role was as personal assistant to the vice-chancellor. that was a challenging but fascinating place to begin. probably the most useful legacy of my time there was that from day one i saw that ‘the centre’ was not the enemy. when i made the leap into Faculty land, it was very useful to have a view from both sides of the bridge, so to speak.

after the birth of my first child (he’s 18 now!) i moved to a part-time position in the vice-chancellery, mainly writing speeches and working on papers for the vc. i am pretty sure that i was the very first professional staff member to benefit from paid maternity leave – seems unthinkable now that it wasn’t always in place.

From there i moved to student services, to co-ordinate the women in science and engineering program. years on and the participation of women in non-traditional areas is still low, despite a range of equity initiatives. work continues. the wise program spawned the uni mentor scheme, which was my next project. unimentor grows from strength to strength, assisting new students with their transition into uni.

then the leap into Faculty land. Firstly as marketing manager in the Faculty of arts, humanities and social sciences and then as student adviser in that Faculty. the latter was the most satisfying (but also, frustrating) job i have had in all my time here. the opportunity to make a real difference to people’s lives and to watch students overcome serious challenges of all kinds, has been a real privilege.

there is something very special about an arts student. arts students think critically, they challenge the status quo and they do so with the confidence that comes from learning how to successfully argue a point of view. and how fortunate that these are also the skills that are so valuable in the twenty-first century workplace!

which brings me to my current role, senior careers adviser in student services. in this job i have the opportunity to tell all our students just how much their critical thinking skills are valued. and with the launch of New Courses 2012, it will become even more crucial for our bachelor degree graduates to be able to articulate their employability skills.

one of the most rewarding roles i have had at uwa is not attached to any of those roles. For more than 10 years, i have

been involved in the leadership development for women planning group. this work has been a highlight for me. watching the ldw participants share their journeys and their learning at the annual peer group presentations has been a joy and a revelation. if you have never been along to one of these events, then perhaps you have never witnessed the truly transformative power that the ldw program has had on both individual women and on the broader culture at uwa.

on the other hand, there have inevitably been low points too. losing dear friends and colleagues, notably Joan eveline, Fay gale and trish crawford, has been very difficult. But their passing has also provided our community with the opportunity to reflect on all that these amazing women have taught us. i have always tried to honour their legacy by carrying on the fight for equity and diversity. i believe that this is a principle that the university strives to uphold always, though in a competitive environment, it can fall by the wayside.

so, 20 years on, i am still here, still making a difference and still learning. no wonder i stay.

Barbara GoldflamSenior Careers Advisor

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16 | UWA NEWS 30 may 2011 the university of western australia

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