•    Resources and energy
•    ICT and emerging technologies
•    Health
•    Sustainable development

These areas capture the multidisciplinary nature of the University’s research programs, which are accessible across all of its four academic faculties – Science and Engineering, Health Sciences, Humanities and Business.

RESOURCES AND ENERGY
Curtin’s pragmatic approach to international linkages demonstrates how China’s emergence as a science and engineering powerhouse naturally complements Australia’s leading role in energy resources production and related research. In particular, Curtin’s new partnerships with Chinese research institutions demonstrate confidence in the ability of the two nations to lead in the development of new, ‘green’ energy technologies.

During 2009, Curtin’s Vice-Chancellor Professor Jeanette Hacket visited China to establish formal research linkages in the area of energy research. The first of the agreements reached was with the Institute of Process Engineering within the prestigious Chinese Academy of Sciences. The two institutions will jointly undertake research in areas such as biomass and coal gasification, carbon capture and storage, and the development of fuel cells.

Another key achievement of Professor Hacket’s visit to China was the establishment of the Curtin–Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST) Joint Research Laboratory for Coal and Biomass Utilisation, which unites the Curtin Centre for Advanced Energy Science and Engineering (CCAESE) with the State Key Laboratory of Coal Combustion at HUST.

The Joint Research Laboratory is progressing projects that focus on harnessing new (biomass) energy sources, and developing technologies to reduce emissions from coal combustion. One of the biomass projects focuses on advanced biomass co-firing in conventional coal-fired power stations. The project is being funded under the Australia–China Special Fund for Science and Technology Cooperation, established by the Federal Government and China’s Ministry of Science and Technology.

These collaborations will greatly contribute to the development of advanced clean coal and biomass technologies in Australia and China.

CURTIN RESOURCES AND CHEMISTRY PRECINCT
Curtin’s leading role in resources and energy research is also clearly demonstrated by the new Curtin Resources and Chemistry Precinct at the University’s Bentley Campus. The $116 million development is funded by Curtin, BHP Billiton, ChemCentre (WA’s flagship chemical science facility) and both the Federal and Western Australian governments.

During 2009, Curtin research teams have been relocating to the precinct, and will soon be utilising its advanced laboratories. These include the Nanochemistry Research Institute, the WA Organic and Isotope Geochemistry Centre, the Curtin Water Quality Research Centre, and the WA Corrosion Research Group. ChemCentre has also relocated to the precinct, adding to the hub of expertise for collaborative research. Ultimately, more than 200 professional scientists, engineers and staff will occupy state-of-the-art facilities for chemistry and energy-related research.

Further endorsement of Curtin’s research capabilities in resources and energy-related fields was seen recently with the announcement of the Cooperative Research Centre for Deep Exploration Technologies. Curtin’s involvement in the CRC will be through its Centre for High Definition Geophysics, where research focuses on developing new seismic technologies to detect mineral resources.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Sustainable development is a strategic priority for Curtin, and renewable energy is one area in which the University continues to strengthen its research contribution.

Reflecting this, the Federal Government recently awarded Curtin $2.5 million to investigate the sustainable production of high quality second-generation transport biofuels from mallee biomass. The program will be conducted at the Curtin Centre for Advanced Energy Science and Engineering (CCAESE), which is one of 16 centres under the research umbrella of the Australian Sustainable Development Institute (ASDI) at Curtin.

Curtin was the only WA university to receive funding from the Government’s $15 million Second Generation Biofuels Research and Development Program, and it confirms the University’s role – and that of the CCAESE specifically – in the development of renewable energy sources that reduce CO2 emissions.

ICT AND EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES
Curtin has continued to build impressive capabilities in radio astronomy, and develop advanced projects for the highly coveted international Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project.

Through the Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy (CIRA), the University is positioning radio astronomy as a science and technology strength for WA. CIRA is jointly led by Premier’s Research Fellow Professor Steven Tingay (astrophysics and technical astronomy research) and Professor Peter Hall (engineering research and industry collaboration), who is the only Chair in Radio Astronomy Engineering in Australia.

In August, WA Premier Colin Barnett launched the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) in Perth – a $100 million joint venture funded by the WA Government, Curtin and The University of Western Australia, with CSIRO and iVEC as collaborating partners. ICRAR’s leadership team, drawn from both universities, includes Professors Tingay and Hall.

Complementing the ICRAR initiative, the new Pawsey Centre for High-Performance Computing and SKA Science was launched in September by the Federal Minister for Science and Innovation Kim Carr, at Perth’s Technology Park, adjacent to Curtin’s Bentley Campus.

The $80 million Pawsey Centre is funded under the Government’s Super Science program. At the launch, Senator Carr emphasised the Pawsey Centre’s focus on radio astronomy that will help demonstrate Australia’s readiness to host the SKA, and its close linking “with the leading-edge Australian SKA Pathfinder radio-telescope being built in WA as a precursor to the SKA project”.

At CIRA, Tingay and Hall are now coordinating several key pathfinder radio telescope projects; foremost among these is the Murchison Wide-field Array (MWA). Resulting from a major collaboration between Australia, the US and India, the MWA will survey the entire sky at a far greater speed than existing instruments, and reveal new information about the Universe and its radio phenomena.

The development of next-generation information and communication technologies remains an area of exciting opportunities for researchers.

For example, an inspirational collaboration between WA’s Main Roads authority and two Curtin research teams will realise a next-generation traffic management and control system. The project involves the Digital Ecosystems and Business Intelligence Institute (DEBII), the Planning and Transport Research Centre (PATREC) and Main Roads WA.

DEBII’s research expertise lies in determining how to process and utilise data, and how best to derive meaning and provide context to information. Technical innovations being designed and developed by the DEBII team for the project are considerable, and will exploit the capabilities of the next-generation internet, known as the ’Web of Things’.

The new devices will collect traffic data, via compact sensors implemented through programmable logic arrays, encapsulated and deployed as monitors. Each will have an IP address, providing it with a logical location aligned with a geographical location (supplied by GPS), and therefore have the flexibility to be either stationary or mobile monitors. Relevant data will then be transmitted wirelessly to monitors at Main Roads’ control centre. Benefits for road-users will be reduced congestion, a shortened travel time, a safer road environment, and less pollution as result of vehicles being on the road for less time. The Australian Research Council is supporting the research with a three-year Linkage Project grant.

HEALTH
Chronic conditions now dominate health-care spending in Australia. Accordingly, health research must look closely at preventative care and long-term health maintenance. To address the issue, Curtin has established an integrated health research institute – the Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute (CHIRI).

CHIRI’s programs respond astutely to the shifting health care patterns of ageing populations, and of societies that suffer from chronic illnesses such as diabetes, obesity, cancer and cardiovascular diseases.

Curtin is providing more than $60 million for new infrastructure, and research programs for evidence-based solutions to contemporary health challenges. CHIRI’s outstanding capabilities are drawn from respected research groups in the Faculty of Health Sciences. These include the Centre for Research into Ageing, Centre for Developmental Health, Centre for International Health and the National Drug Research Institute.

EXCELLENCE IN RESEARCH
These examples demonstrate Curtin’s commitment to providing outstanding opportunities for researchers seeking to engage in and advance both academically rigorous and internationally relevant research. This commitment attracts many high-calibre researchers to Curtin’s centres and institutes, and enhancing the University’s vibrant research culture that is characterised by dedicated research staff, their programs, and our partnerships.

•    Resources and energy
•    ICT and emerging technologies
•    Health
•    Sustainable development

These areas capture the multidisciplinary nature of Curtin’s research programs, which are accessible across all of the University’s four academic faculties – Science and Engineering, Health Sciences, Humanities and Business.

THE AUSTRALIAN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE

Curtin recently launched its new multi-million dollar Australian Sustainable Development Institute (ASDI). Sustainable development is becoming increasingly important to individuals, communities, business and industry, and policy-makers at all levels. Recognising this, Curtin has stepped up its commitment to sustainable development as a research priority.

Combining the resources and brainpower of 16 research centres, ASDI’s programs will target issues associated with climate change, resource scarcity and population growth. ASDI comprises a range of expertise necessary for high-impact and interdisciplinary research in environmental, social, economic and governance areas. ASDI’s research capabilities are more comprehensive than any other sustainability institute in Australia – and include the highly regarded Curtin University Sustainability Policy Institute that was established in 2008.

Guided by the Chair of ASDI Mr Keith Spence (formerly Woodside’s Executive Vice-President, Enterprise Capability) Curtin will be a major research provider in sustainable development, providing the best possible scientific and policy advice to government, industry and the wider community.

RESOURCES & ENERGY

Curtin’s leading role in resources and energy research is clearly demonstrated by its most important initiatives: the Resources and Chemistry Precinct.

The Resources and Chemistry Precinct is funded by Curtin, BHP Billiton, ChemCentre (WA’s flagship chemical science facility) and both the Federal and Western Australian governments. Advanced laboratories are being outfitted for research teams preparing to move into the $116 million development during 2009. These include the Nanochemistry Research Institute, the WA Organic and Isotope Geochemistry Centre, the Curtin Water Quality Research Centre, and the WA Corrosion Research Group. ChemCentre will relocate to the precinct this year, adding to the hub of expertise for collaborative research across these disciplines. Ultimately, more than 300 professional scientists, engineers and staff will occupy the Precinct’s state-of-the-art facilities for chemistry and energy-related research.

Curtin’s research capabilities in resources and energy-related fields are well utilised by industry. Expertise within the WA Corrosion Research Group, for example, is in demand by oil and gas companies that require solutions in the assessment and control of corrosion. For that reason, Woodside Petroleum and Chevron Australia have jointly funded a Chair in Corrosion Research at Curtin.

Curtin’s capability to establish partnerships with major international companies is further illustrated by the Rio Tinto Centre for Materials and Sensing in Mining, which is undertaking strategic research for optimising open-pit mining operations.

Excellent prospects for industry-supported projects are also found in minerals exploration and processing. The Centre for High Definition Geophysics, for example, is developing new seismic technologies to detect mineral resources. The mining industry also maintains high demand for innovations in hydrometallurgy that enable the viability of low-grade ores or untapped mineral deposits.

ICT & EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES

The International Year of Astronomy is an ideal time to commend Curtin’s Institute of Radio Astronomy for the pace of its progress and achievements on major international projects.

The December launch of the Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy (CIRA) was a highlight for the University. Combining physics and engineering in the field of astronomy, CIRA became the first cross-disciplinary research centre of its kind at an Australian university – and demonstrated Curtin’s determination to position radio astronomy as a science and technology strength for Western Australia.

CIRA is jointly led by WA Premier’s Research Fellow Professor Steven Tingay (astrophysics and technical astronomy research) and Professor Peter Hall (engineering research and industry collaboration), who is the only Chair in Radio Astronomy Engineering in Australia.

Tingay and Hall have been capacity-building Curtin’s expertise in radio astronomy since joining the University within the past two years. CIRA will soon have about 25 researchers focusing on the development of pathfinder technologies for the proposed international €1.5 billion Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project.

Australia’s case for hosting the SKA project has been strengthened by the Federal Government’s budget announcement that $80 million will be allocated to a new Australian National Centre for SKA Science to be established in Perth. This follows a recent $20 million investment by the WA Government into the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR). Hall and Tingay are Deputy Directors of ICRAR, which is an equal joint venture between Curtin and UWA that is focused on technical astronomy, science and engineering aspects of the SKA.

Tingay is also Project Manager for the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) project under development at the Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory. The MWA will be a completely new type of radio telescope. Rather than an array of dishes, the MWA will be a configuration of ‘tiles’ each consisting of 16 antennas. The project is a major international collaboration between a number of US, Indian and Australian research teams.

Curtin’s advances in radio astronomy demonstrate the University’s ability to identify progressive research areas, and embark on strategies for research forays into areas of opportunity.

The development of next-generation information and communication technologies remains an area of exciting opportunities for researchers. Curtin maintains excellent research programs in pattern recognition, spatial science, wireless telecommunications, e-business and digital ontologies.

The Institute for Multi-sensor Processing and Content Analysis, for example, undertakes cutting-edge research that continually attracts industry and government funding. In collaboration with Digital Technology International, new technologies that were developed in projects supported by the Australian Research Council are now being deployed in intelligent systems that improve industrial efficiency and enhance security in complex environments such as public transport.

At Curtin Business School, research in ICT and emerging technologies is also intensifying. In particular, the Digital Ecosystems and Business Intelligence Institute (DEEBI) is advancing novel technology infrastructure, including web services, new ontologies in data mining, text mining and cyber security. DEEBI’s work is in demand in areas as diverse as commerce, transport communications, logistics planning, mining, healthcare and education.

HEALTH

Chronic conditions now dominate health-care spending in Australia. Accordingly, health research must look closely at preventative care and long-term health maintenance. To address the issue, Curtin is building a bold, integrated and relevant health research institute – the Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute (CHIRI).

CHIRI’s programs respond astutely to the shifting health care patterns of ageing populations, and of societies that suffer from chronic illnesses such as diabetes, obesity, cancer and cardiovascular diseases.

Curtin is providing more than $60 million for new infrastructure, and research programs for evidence-based solutions to contemporary health challenges. CHIRI’s outstanding capabilities are drawn from respected research groups in the Faculty of Health Sciences. These include the Centre for Research into Ageing, Centre for Developmental Health, Centre for International Health and the National Drug Research Institute.

EXCELLENCE IN RESEARCH

These examples demonstrate Curtin’s commitment to providing outstanding opportunities for researchers seeking to engage in and advance both academically rigorous and internationally relevant research. This commitment attracts many high-calibre researchers to Curtin’s centres and institutes. The University’s vibrant research culture is continually enhanced by the quality of its researchers, programs and partnerships.

Curtin understands that high-impact research is multidisciplinary in nature, and it promotes collaborative projects that will contribute to the sustainable environmental, economic and cultural development of communities worldwide.

Professor Patrick Keyzer, Bond University

The number of ageing people in Australia is rising. As a proportion of the population, people aged over 65 years will double between 2002 and 2042 to an expected 25% of the population (6.2 million people).

At the same time, the ageing population of Australia, combined with the increasing workforce participation of women, means a large discrepancy is emerging between the number of people requiring care and the number of informal carers available to meet these needs.

And between 2001 and 2031, the number of aged persons likely to require care because of a severe or profound disability is projected by the National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling to rise by 160%, with the number of carers for this same period expected to increase by only 57%.

Irish research found that such extensive reliance on informal family care of people with intellectual disabilities continued even in the face of great strides made in the UK in the provision of alternative housing options and support services, bearing out the international experience of a preference for extensive reliance on family care (R. McConkey [2005]).

Service planning challenge

The concatenation of these statistics presents a signifi cant service planning challenge for Australian governments, legal practitioners and, most of all, carers.

Older parents or carers often need to develop legal plans for the future care of their child: contact with the guardianship system may be a catalyst for planning, or planning can follow the death of the parent or carer; if the parent or carer becomes too sick or weak to take care of the person with cognitive disability; or if the resolve of the parent or carer to care for the person fluctuates. The death of a partner may also precipitate difficulties.

Unfortunately, the social services system is often only turned to in the event of a crisis (or imminent crisis) affecting the ability of the parent or carer to provide care.

In the event of such a crisis, the person with a cognitive impairment may suff er the doubled emotional trauma of losing their carer and entering an inappropriate residential placement because of a lack of planning and/or a lack of available and appropriate service options.

Legal problems

To circumvent these crises, older parents and carers need to plan for the future as early as possible. A previous study, based on a survey of 185 service providers, parents and carers, disability discrimination and welfare legal centres, government organisations and advocacy groups, and supplemented by key informant interviews, found that nearly three quarters of carers of ageing people with impaired cognitive capacity had already encountered legal problems associated with planning for the future (Keyzer, P. et al. [1997]).

Planning is a multi-faceted task, covering issues already experienced, those expected to arise in the future, and the marshalling of necessary outside assistance. The capacity of parents or carers to plan for the future varies in accordance with individual circumstances, and the involvement of outsiders is often necessary and desirable to enhance its success.

Identifying gaps in services

The Queensland Impaired Competence Planning Pilot Project (QICPPP; www. qicppp.org) was set up in 2006 by Professor Patrick Keyzer of Bond University and Professor Terry Carney of the University of Sydney with a grant from the Queensland government and a generous contribution of pro bono legal resources from the Brisbane Office of one of Australia’s largest law firms.

The Project provided services to families who had previously experienced problems accessing services, or who had not been referred to suitably qualifi ed and sensitive experts. Survey research conducted by Keyzer and Carney found that service clients were satisfied with the services provided and pointed to service provision gaps which will form the basis of further recommendations to government, and will guide further research.

The Project produced two refereed reports: Planning for the Future, which provides a general survey of the issues that face parents and carers (and their advocates and lawyers) planning for the future of people with impaired competence; and Private Trusts and Succession Planning for the Severely Disabled and Cognitively Impaired, which explains why Australian social security laws previously made it virtually impossible to use private trusts as a way of structuring succession plans(1).

In addition to providing a direct benefit to the families involved, the Project provided an opportunity to engage in valuable qualitative research to gauge the social realities of planning and to chart pathways to improved service delivery. Th e QICPPP has led to new partnerships with service providers and law fi rms in Queensland and a project to enhance referral networks in Queensland is now well advanced.

(1)      The Senate Community Affairs Committee released a report in late 2008 that recommended reforms to special disability trust arrangements: see Senate Standing Committee on Community Affairs, Building Trust: Supporting families through disability trusts (October 2008).

Republished from Australian Innovation 2009 – the print publication

If Australia is truly to become a ‘clever country’, it must first address inequity in access to education across all socioeconomic sectors of the community, writes 2008 Fulbright Scholar Professor Brenda Cherednichenko.

Brenda Cherednichenko, Dean, Faculty of Education & Arts, Edith Cowan University

The Australian spirit of generosity is clearly alive and well. As a nation, we are known for our willingness to respond en masse in supporting those less fortunate than ourselves – a phenomenon illustrated recently by the nation’s reaction to those facing unexpected hardship and trauma following the Victorian bushfire disaster.

In times like these, qualities like empathy and benevolence are widely valued and celebrated. Despite this, on a daily basis many Australians live alongside people who are clearly financially, educationally and socially disadvantaged. Although community support mechanisms do exist to enact change and improvement in the lives of these citizens, few Australians are aware of them. Arguably the single most applauded act to empower Aboriginal Australians – Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s apology to the Stolen Generations – has still not yet instigated any significant shift in engaging Aboriginal peoples in mainstream Australian society.

It seems it is easier to respond quickly to a large-scale single event than to commit daily to enacting gradual changes in our own immediate environments. The inequities in everyday life can be invisible. However, this cannot justify ignoring the private failure of our communities to help those in need in favour of congratulating popular public expressions of support.

Equity past and present

Without doubt, government, industry, school and university leaders are aware of the need for a better educated Australia. In 2005, then Executive Director of the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER), Barry McGaw, announced that OECD results indicate Australian schools are of a high quality, appearing near the top of global comparative rankings. Yet Australia performs poorly on equity indicators – a fact associated with social background rather than economic disadvantage. This indicates that familial education is just as significant as the impact of economic, employment and social capital factors on the educational achievements of young people.

The recently released Bradley Review of Australian higher education called for the Government to implement initiatives that ensure universities are inclusive and address equity issues effectively. Despite these and other efforts, there has been little or no change in the engagement of lower socio-economic community members in post-compulsory education in the past two decades in Australia. In the case of Aboriginal Australians, one of the fastestgrowing population groups in some states, real participation has actually declined. Some of this can be attributed to the increase in highly-paid work opportunities arising from the resources boom. But by all accounts, these opportunities have now passed, leaving a greater problem in their wake.

A collaborative approach

ECU Students and Staff collaboratively planning access initiatives

A number of challenges must be overcome if Australia is truly to be celebrated as a nation that cares enough to enact real change.

Without argument, education is a single determinant in improving life choices and therefore life chances. Those who complete secondary education earn far more on average across their working life than those who do not. Secondary school completion rates rose in the 1960s, but have been steady since at about two-thirds of the population, with even fewer completing post-compulsory education. These figures are low when compared to those of other developed nations.

The most pressing issue we now face is how we should behave in this context. Initiatives to promote social inclusion, the redress of inequity, can be added to the work already being done via compensatory, remedial or catch-up educational programs, or it can be embraced as a new foundation for the way the community works. That is, rather than relying on those who already have the resources and opportunities to lead initiatives to ‘close the gap’, we should embrace an approach that is inclusive, respectful and collaborative.

Partnerships for progress

Learn, Dream, Achieve! is a modest but ambitious project that seeks to learn from and promote educational innovation with the goal of a more inclusive Australia. It investigates how communities, industries and educational providers are working in collaborative partnerships for educational achievement in both Australia and the United States.

With the significant support of a Fulbright Commission Senior Scholar award (see box), the project compares practices and outcomes of community engagement for educational equity at Edith Cowan University (ECU), Victoria University (VU) and the University of Texas, El Paso (UTEP).

All three universities serve disadvantaged communities, but within quite distinctive social contexts. Each is unique in terms of its student population, community expectations and aspirations, educational profile and the relationships it fosters with local schools and other education providers. Yet, each university has deliberately decided to make equity of educational outcomes a priority. The Learn, Dream, Achieve! project sets out to discover how achievement is identified, how individuals and organisations are changing and ultimately how communities are developed as a result of the active relationship between universities and their communities.

Time to make a move

This work is providing new insights into innovations that build capability to enhance capacity. Enhancing the aspirations, access, participation and success of individuals in turn strengthens their communities. Universities must move beyond benevolence towards inclusive engagement with people, industry and professions. This project will inform a vision for Edith Cowan University as a university for all, where learning starts with the learner, and the process and practices are in place to enable differentiated delivery so that all have the opportunity for success.

Brenda Cherednichenko is the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Education and Arts and the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Equity and Indigenous) at Edith Cowan University, WA. A 2008 Fulbright Senior Scholar, her particular research interests lie in educational reform, equity and student responsive learning.

Aspiration to Access – Quality Entry to Teacher Education

Over the past five years, Edith Cowan University’s School of Education has moved to develop close partnerships with local primary and secondary schools from low socio-economic communities. One outcome of this relationship is the opportunity for year 12 students and their teachers to work closely with ECU to develop portfoliobased applications for teacher education programs. As a result, eager applicants can be offered a place at ECU in October of year 12, pending the successful completion of their secondary studies.

The program has been operating for just two years. In 2007, 20 partner secondary schools participated and 48 of the 62 applicants were enrolled for 2008. In 2009, 91 school-leavers from an expanded group of 30 partnership schools are entering their first year of teacher education.

These applicants come with more than a year 12 score. They have already demonstrated to their school teachers and ECU’s teacher education selection panel that they have an understanding of and a commitment to young people and their learning, and also have the capacity to develop as quality teachers.

Fulbright sparks

The prestigious Fulbright program, created by U.S. Senator J. William Fulbright and the US Government in 1946, is the largest educational scholarship of its kind. Aimed at promoting mutual understanding through educational exchange, it operates between the US and 150 countries. In Australia, the scholarships are funded by the Australian and US Governments and corporate partners, and administered by the Australian-American Fulbright Commission in Canberra.

Professor Cherednichenko’s project, LEARN, Dream, Achieve!, is an international Australia-US partnership investigating the educational access initiatives of the University of Texas at El Paso. The Fulbright-supported program will research and study UTEP’s successful practice and provide a basis for Australian reform and joint research. It will be used to inform equity practices at Edith Cowan University.

Access to Success – The Humanities and Community Capacity Building

Edith Dirksey Cowan, in whose honour Edith Cowan University is named, was a remarkable woman: teacher, law reformer and first Australian female Member of Parliament at the age of 60. Committed to educational equity, she was also an avid campaigner for women’s and children’s rights.

Edith Cowan University’s mission continues to reflect these ideals today. For example, the School of Communication and Arts has successfully initiated and sponsored a community learning project in partnership with Mission Australia and Woodside. Participants are individuals who have been identified by Mission Australia as having missed out on access to formal education.

Through the program, they apply for the University certificate and study four higher education Arts subjects in their community setting. After just one year, retention and completion rates are at 60% and two students from the 2008 intake have been accepted to undertake further degree studies at ECU in 2009.

republished from Australian Innovation 2009 – the print publication