MAGAZINE FOR FRIENDS AND ALUMNI OF VICTORIA UNIVERSITY OF WELLINGTON
Serial OffendersMapping their movements
Mind your languageKeeping a watch on New Zealandisms
The ants come marchingMarauding Argentine ants
Ink talesPacific tattoos under the spotlight
AUTUMN 2003
Barbara Finlayson left us in 1996.
I never knew Barbara while she was alive.I know quite a bit more about her now of course.
She was passionate and knowledgeable aboutmany things in life, but her first love was music.
She played the viola and gained a musicdegree from Victoria University in the 1950s—she worked as a 'char-lady' to help financeher studies.
She travelled a lot—especially in Europewhere she went to many concerts. She lovedconcerts by all accounts and, closer to home,when the International Festival of the Artswas on, her friends would never see her.
If it wasn’t for Barbara Finlayson I’d have hadto work to pay for my studies. Instead, shegave me the opportunity to travel to Germanyand study violin under some awesomementors as the first recipient of the BarbaraFinlayson Scholarship in Music.
Barbara left Victoria a bequest because shewanted to help talented musicians further theircareers and recognised that it was oftendifficult for them to do so within New Zealand.She invested in my future and the futureof all those Scholarship winners that follow.I think that’s a pretty profound legacy—oneI’d like to copy someday.
Barbara loved her music. I hope she wouldbe proud of me.
Invading AntsThe ‘Genghis Khan’ of the ant world is tightening its hold onNew Zealand and Victoria researcher Dr Phil Lester is leadingthe charge to hold the ants at bay.
Phil, an entomologist in the School of Biological Sciences,is studying the spread and control of the Argentine Ant thatfirst appeared in New Zealand in 1990.
“Because all of the Argentine ants here are closely related geneticallythey don’t fight each other, but when attacked or seeking food,nests will act together as a giant army just like the hordes ofGenghis Khan.
“In a one-on-one fight between an Argentine ant nest and anative species, the natives will knock the pants off them. But theArgentine ants will group together and will win the battle throughsheer numbers.”
As “tramp” insects, the Argentine ants are closely associatedwith people, being transported to new homes with furnitureand pot plants.
Phil and postdoctoral fellow Stephen Hartley have mapped thespread of the ants and believe they may not be able to survive inthe wild any further south than Hawke’s Bay. They’re also lookingat biological control but the exact variant of its main SouthAmerican enemy—the phorid fly that lays its egg inside theant—has so far proved elusive.
“These ants have already caused damage to horticulture.They ‘farm’ other insects, such as aphids, for their honeydew,and defend them from predators. The result is the aphids alsoprofit and end up devastating trees. Orchardists can spray tokill them off but there is little organic growers can do.”
The jury is still out on the damage they could do to native plantsand animals, he says. Overseas they are known to attack and killbaby birds and lizards soon after they hatch.
Phil backs the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s strongresponse to recent biosecurity threats. “I’ve recently returned fromTokelau where several atolls have become infested with the yellowcrazy ant, so named because they run around madly if disturbed.That ant—which has been intercepted by MAF at New Zealandports and has so far not established here—is causing majorproblems in Tokelau.”
Stephen Hartley (left) and Phil Lester examineArgentine ant farms in their laboratory.
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 5096
Images to appear in the Adam Art Galleryexhibition on Samoan tattooing.
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 6026www.vuw.ac.nz/tatau
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Ink talesof the PacificTattoos have created a link over both time and the thousandsof kilometres of land and sea between Europe and the Pacific.
Researchers from around the world will congregate at Victoriafrom 21-23 August to discuss progress on a Getty Foundation-funded global project on Pacific tattooing, led by ProfessorNicholas Thomas of Goldsmiths College, University of London.The conference, Tatau/Tattoo: Embodied Art and Cultural Exchange1760-2000, will be hosted by Victoria’s Pacific Studies and ArtHistory programmes. The conference will also include a teamof Ma–ori scholars engaged in another major research project onta moko, under the direction of Professor Ngahuia Te Awekotukuof the University of Waikato.
In addition to scholarly presentations, the conference will featurean artists’ forum where representatives from dance, literature andvisual art will speak about the influence that tattooing has ontheir work.
Dancer/choreographer Neil Ieremia of Black Grace, writerSia Figiel, and visual artist Fatu Feu’u are among the featuredparticipants.
Coinciding with the conference, the University’s Adam Art GalleryTe Pa–taka Toi will open an exhibition on Samoan tattooing, featuringphotographs by Mark Adams and a film piece by Lisa Taouma.
“This research is an important study of the role of tattooingin cross-cultural exchange between Pacific peoples and others,and amongst Pacific peoples themselves,” says April Henderson,Lecturer in Pacific Studies and co-organiser of the conference.“Pacific tattoos can be deeply significant, but the meanings attachedto them can be quite flexible and open to the interpretations ofthose giving and receiving them. This conference will providea forum to explore some of those meanings.”
Eighteenth century voyages to the Pacific brought Europeansinto contact with tattooing. Many returned home with drawingsof the designs they saw and sometimes with tattoos themselves.Missionaries, who followed the explorers and traders, soughtto put an end to tattooing, and for this reason, the passing downof skills and designs was interrupted with dire consequencesfor the tradition.
Pacific tattooing is again attracting global attention, largely dueto the significant revivals of tattooing in Hawai’i, Aotearoa, andFrench Polynesia and the rich continuing tattoo traditions ofSamoa. Contemporary Ma–ori tattoo designs are beamed aroundthe world courtesy of pop stars like Robbie Williams and BenHarper who have them.
Victorious is published three times a year by Victoria University of Wellington,
Te Whare Wa– nanga o te U–
poko o te Ika a Ma–ui, PO Box 600, Wellington,
New Zealand. www.vuw.ac.nz
To notify a change of address: Tel: +64 4 463 5128, Fax: +64 4 463 5108.
E-mail: [email protected]
Editorial team: Juliet Montague, Antony Paltridge, Melanie MacDiarmid,
Jude Urlich. Photographs (unless otherwise credited): Image Services,
Victoria University of Wellington.
Cover photo: Criminologist Samantha Lundrigan is assisting the New ZealandPolice Criminal Profiling Squad in tracking down criminals with geographicprofiling. Photo and computer enhanced graphic: Bruce Foster Photography.
In April this year I was delighted to be Masterof Ceremonies at the Alumni Association’sUniversity Challenge Quiz. It was an excellentevening where, amidst munching of chocolatefish and sounding of the gong, could be hearda lot of laughter and conversation from the165 alumni, staff and friends who participated.Networking is an important part of the lifeof the University and connecting alumniand friends is a key focus for the AlumniAssociation. I do encourage you to participatein our activities, and to join the Associationor one of its Chapters.
Working with others is something we arevery proud of at Victoria. There have beensome new myths created in the past decadeor so, chief among them the view thatuniversities do not co-operate with othersin the sector. Our academic and general staffwork with their colleagues in other institutionson a regular basis. As an example, our strategicpartnership with the Wellington Collegeof Education has taken us further along thepath of jointly taught programmes andshared facilities. The Polytechnic PathwaysProgramme has been a successful means ofworking with pre-university providers, andour international partnerships continue todevelop well.
This year we have advanced our partnershipsfurther. A partnership has been formed withAcademic Colleges Group to teach VictoriaUniversity pre-University programmes tointernational students in Auckland, whowill staircase to undergraduate programmesin Wellington.
A new partnership with Massey Universityto establish a joint School of Music and nationalcentre of music excellence in the Capital isunder consultation.
We continue to look for new opportunitiesto maximise our strengths and to ensure thatquality educational outcomes are achieved.
Contents
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Stuart N McCutcheonVice-Chancellor
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12 GiftingDonations of funding, resourcesand time from those who supportthe University.
Learning @ VicWe showcase the quality oflearning and teaching at Victoria.
Politics and PolicyPolitics and policy decisions in thetertiary sector and how Victoria isresponding to them.
Alumni NewsWhat our graduates and membersof the University community havebeen up to since leaving Vic.
BooksThe latest in new releases fromVictoria University Press.
Research & InnovationA wealth and diversity of excitingresearch by staff and students.
Town & GownThe best of two worlds—Victoriameets the community for activities,performances and the sharingof expertise.
ISSN 1172-0387 © Victoria University, 2003
But it is also reassuring, knowing that Sam is undertaking a majorresearch project to fine-tune a powerful tool that helps identifyand catch those same offenders.
She is working through the New Zealand Police Criminal ProfilingSquad’s historical database of convicted sexual offenders to findout how far criminals travel to carry out their attacks. Thisinformation is integral to a technique called geographic profiling.
Unlike criminal profiling, which aims to understand the individualcommitting the crime, geographic profiling aims to find out wherethe individual lives by studying environmental and geographicfactors surrounding a crime. This data is fed into Dragnet,a complex computer database, which calculates where the criminalis likely to be based.
The version of Dragnet currently available to New Zealandinvestigators is one that is populated with data from the northernhemisphere. Sam’s project will see the data she gathers bring thedatabase into line with the New Zealand environment.
Although the project is not complete, Sam has already discoveredthat serial rapists in New Zealand tend to travel greater distancesto commit their crimes. Feeding this information back into Dragnetwill help with better pinpointing of criminals.
Sam immigrated to New Zealand three years ago to work at Victoriaand found that her skills, and the reputation of her PhD supervisorand profiling expert Professor David Canter, preceded her.
“I’d only been in New Zealand a few weeks when the New ZealandPolice contacted me saying they’d heard I was on my way. It wasthe beginning of an excellent working relationship that has resultedin some great collaborative research projects,” Sam says.
X marks the spotKnowing what criminologist Samantha Lundrigan knowsabout serial sexual offenders makes talking to her a vaguelyunnerving experience.
Research & InnovationVictoria’s academic staff are leaders in their fields ofresearch expertise. If you have a project that requires theskills and knowledge of our staff, contact Mike Doig atVicLink. E-mail: [email protected] Tel: +64 4 463 5072
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 5154
“We operate in environments that are knownto us—we shop in places we are familiar with,we meet friends in cafes that we know. We allhave these ‘mind maps’ that help us get around.By studying the environmental and geographicfactors around a crime, we hope to get to knowmore about the criminal and why they carriedout the crime where they did.”
She has been asked by Police on a number of occasions to providegeographic profiles for serious crimes, most recently to help locatea serial sexual offender in central Wellington.
The geographic profiling process involves Sam studying the crimescene and then imposing the chronology and pattern of the serialattacks on a map. She then looks for clues including things likethe proximity to significant geographical features such as parks,back streets, transport hubs and other things that may lead tounderstanding what she terms the serial offender’s ‘mind map’.
Sam says that New Zealand has the potential to be able to leadother countries in geographic profiling. “New Zealand is amanageable size in which to collect and process data and hasthe benefit of there being only one Police service.”
Victoria is the only university in New Zealand that offers a majorin Criminology and has experienced a significant increase inenrolments in recent years, as well as taking on a number of newinternational staff. Last year the University launched the Crimeand Justice Research Centre to focus cross-disciplinary researchand to collaborate with related organisations.
Samantha Lundrigan
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Research helps cancer patients breathe easier
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 6145
Helen Costello discusses her bookletand CD with cancer patientHarry Elmy.
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 5071
Genesis Oncology Trust
Cancer patients will be able to breatheeasier thanks to the research of nursinglecturer Helen Costello.
Helen, a lecturer in the Graduate Schoolof Nursing & Midwifery, says breathlessnessis a common and debilitating problemexperienced by people with advanced cancer,particularly those with lung cancer. She hasdeveloped a booklet and CD to help thosewith breathlessness.
“The physical and emotional effects of notbeing able to breathe properly can greatlyreduce a person’s quality of life. While drugsare commonly used to remedy this situation,through my research I’ve developed,with other health professionals, a non-drugapproach for managing cancer-relatedbreathlessness.”
Helen, who co-ordinates the GraduateSchool’s palliative care programme,says when a person with cancer-relatedbreathlessness becomes short of breathit can be a frightening experience.
“The body’s response to episodes of beingbreathless is not in itself life threateningbut the experience can feel like it is.
A sense of panic occurs when naturalbody mechanisms cause quicker shallowbreathing, resulting in increased anxietyas breathing gets faster and less effective.Therefore, it’s important to address boththe physical and psychosocial aspectsof the experience to help people managethis situation.”
With the support of Capital and CoastDistrict Health Board’s community nursingservice, the Wellington Cancer Centre,Wellington’s Mary Potter and Te Omangahospices, and external research grants,Helen was able to do the research thatforms part of her PhD. Funding from theGenesis Oncology Trust, the Cancer Society’sWellington Division and the WellingtonMedical Research Foundation, allowedher to produce a 28-page booklet as aguide for people living with cancer-relatedbreathlessness and a CD to supportrelaxation. The CD was developed withLinda Miller, an occupational therapistat Mary Potter.
One person using Helen’s booklet to assistwith his breathlessness is Harry Elmy,who has lung cancer.
“When I first started with the strategies,my illness was not too bad. Now I find mybreathing is worse and I use the techniquesquite frequently,” he says. “The booklet thatHelen has developed is very useful andI am sure many others will benefit fromusing it.”
The core material went largely forgotten until 1999 when StephenEagar of the School of Earth Sciences came across it at the NaturalHistory Museum in London. He let John know that there was alsomaterial in Sydney, and using the Australian National University’suranium dating technology, John was able to finally confirm thatthe Funafuti core supported Darwin's theory.
“The results show progressive increases in age downwards, thena dramatic increase in age by about 200,000 years at about 30mdepth in the core. This leap is explained by the changing sea levelsbetween ice ages and warmer periods, creating and eroding thecoral growing in the shallow waters above the subsiding volcanoes.
“Although Darwin had been shown to be correct from deepdrilling at places like Bikini Atoll, the present dating is pleasingevidence from the Funafuti core that Charles Darwin was right165 years ago and the vision of the Royal Society has been justified,”John says.
Dating DarwinAfter 165 years and three colourful expeditions, one ofCharles Darwin’s earliest theories has got the nod fromgeologist Associate Professor John Collen—Darwin was right!
In 1838, Darwin published his belief that atolls formed when coralreefs grew upwards in the shallow waters above subsidingundersea volcanoes. Twenty years later when his controversialwork, The Origin of the Species, was published, public fervourdemanded that all his earlier theories be re-examined.
“Later in life Darwin didn’t so much want to prove all his theoriesright as have them proven wrong or right,” John says. For thisreason in 1881 Darwin wrote in a now famous letter that he wished‘some doubly rich millionaire’ would drill a hole on a tropicalatoll to prove or disprove his ideas.
Between 1896-1898 three expeditions went out under the auspicesof the Royal Society and drilled a number of bore holes on FunafutiAtoll, Tuvalu. John says that although scientists lacked the technologyto conclusively prove Darwin’s theory, they found enough evidenceto suggest that Darwin’s theory was probably correct.
Research & Innovation
As Kiwi as number 8 wire
Boiling the Zip, the DPB, up the boohai, hot water cupboard,wintering over on the ice. Chances are if you use theseterms outside of New Zealand, you may be met with abewildered stare.
Graeme Kennedy
Switched on Solution
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 5634
Tomas Sandoval
Keeping track of these and thousands of other ‘New Zealandisms’has been a long-standing academic tradition at Victoria for morethan 60 years. That activity has been focused in the New ZealandDictionary Centre since its establishment in 1997 and financiallysupported through a partnership with Oxford University Press
(OUP). In March, OUP signed an Agreement with the Centre toextend the relationship and increase funding for at least anotherfive years.
Professor Graeme Kennedy, Director of the New ZealandDictionary Centre, says that among other things, this continuedsupport will allow completion of the New Zealand Oxford Dictionary.This major work, due for completion in 2004, will include up to12,000 entries of New Zealand words and phrases, as well asencyclopaedic information. Every Oxford dictionary produced atthe Centre goes out carrying Victoria’s logo as well as that of OUP.
Notable lexicographers to come out of Victoria include Dr HarryOrsman, Dr Robert Burchfield, who became editor in chief of thegreat Oxford English Dictionary, and Drs Grahame Johnston andBill Ramson, who made their mark editing dictionaries ofAustralian English. They all developed under the tutelage ofProfessor Ian Gordon, Chair of English Language and Literatureat Victoria from 1937 to 1974.
The tradition of dictionary scholarship is alive and well at theCentre with two Research Fellows currently completing doctoralprojects. Staff keep track of new words and new meanings enteringNew Zealand English, and work with sophisticated databasesdeveloped at Victoria. The work of the Centre also contributesdirectly to the Oxford English Dictionary.
Tomas Sandoval’s research has providedan illuminating revelation to locals andvisitors to the Peruvian city of Cusco.
When commissioned to light the city’shistoric main plaza, he was unable to findguidelines on how best to light large urbanspaces. Tomas, a Master of Architecturegraduate and a trained electrical engineerwith a number of high profile lightingprojects on his CV, developed an equationin response. He provided an integratedlighting solution to transform the plazainto a dynamic and safe space.
His work, which won an award at the recentAustralian and New Zealand ArchitecturalScience Association conference, providescity planners and lighting practitioners witha formula that dictates the light neededto light buildings and their surroundings.
Tomas’ work differs from what we see inmany urban areas. In place of traditionalstreet lighting and lamp posts, his lighting
design depends on light reflecting offbuildings and onto the spaces around them.This integrated approach, he says, is morecost effective and aesthetically pleasingthan lighting the buildings and the streetsindependently, and it offers a saferenvironment.
Only months after the integratedplaza lighting was installed in Cusco,Tomas returned and was amazed at thetransformation. “Previously, the plaza hadbeen deserted after 9pm. When I went backit was still full of people at 12 and 1 in themorning. The bars and restaurants aroundthe plaza were full—I think they owe mea drink!”
Since presenting at the conference lastyear, Tomas has received many queriesfrom lighting professionals, looking to fillthe gap in knowledge on how to light largeurban spaces.
If many of New Zealand’s public spaceswere built again today, the lighting designwould be very different, Tomas says.“Electrical engineers, civic planners andarchitects are all a lot more aware of theneed for integrated lighting.”
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John Pratt is keepingan eye on lengthysentences.
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 6746
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 472 1000
Life at 85 plusVictoria’s New Zealand Institute for Research on Ageing haschallenged stereotypes surrounding New Zealand’s oldest citizens.
Director Dr Judith Davey, who co-authored with Deputy DirectorDr Susan Gee, Life at 85: A Statistical Review, says it’s vital to lookat the 85 plus group separately from those between 65 and 84whose lifestyles and needs are different.
“It was often believed that the ‘older old’ are in ill-health, findit difficult to manage and are socially isolated. But actually manyrate their health positively and remain active. While many havechronic health issues, they are receiving medical attention toensure their conditions are controlled or monitored.
“They generally do not smoke or drink much alcohol andmost are supported well in housing they usually own. But theydo have the highest average health costs of any age group andthis includes the cost of residential care. A higher proportionalso have various disabilities.”
By 2051 an estimated 290,000 people will be over 85, a 600 percentincrease on the numbers living today. They are the fastest growingpart of New Zealand’s ageing population and will account fora quarter of all people over 65 by that time.
“Government policy is to promote positive ageing, whichthey describe as living independently and being involved inthe community. We would like to follow up this research withface-to-face interviews with people over 85 so their voices canbe heard and we can find out what makes it easier or harderto remain independent.”
Judith says the research has been welcomed by groups suchas Age Concern, Greypower, general practitioners and districthealth boards. The Hon Lianne Dalziel, Senior Citizens Ministerat the time of the publication’s launch, described the researchin her foreword as, “a valuable resource that will haveenduring relevance.”
Crime and PunishmentCriminologist Dr John Pratt wasn’t surprised when judgesstarted handing down hefty jail sentences to murderersand violent criminals. It was yet another sign New Zealandwas caught up in a maelstrom about crime and punishmenthe has watched sweep the western world.
John, a Reader in Criminology, has researched changing patternsof punishment and observed the call for harsher penalties inBritain, New Zealand, the United States and Canada.
Following recent law changes, the minimum non-parole periodfor the most violent murders in New Zealand has been increasedfrom 10 to at least 17 years. William Bell, convicted of murderingthree people at the Mt Wellington-Panmure RSA, was recentlysentenced to a minimum 33 years in prison—a New Zealand record.
John says demands for harsher penalties, and the rise of groupslike the Sensible Sentencing Trust, have their roots in the social,cultural and economic changes of the last 30 years.
“Western societies were buffeted by social upheaval as the welfarestate begun to unravel and governments told people to takeresponsibility for their own lives. An insecure public, alarmedat rising crime rates, grew dissatisfied with bureaucrats who wereseen as out of touch and inefficient, and has demanded a greatersay in penal affairs as shown by the 1999 referendum.”
This was a marked change from modern trends up to the 1970sduring which punishment was effectively divorced from publicinput and hidden from view. John, who last year publishedPunishment and Civilisation, says this largely anonymousform of punishment came to be seen as one of the featuresof the ‘civilised’ world.
John sees a bleak and expensive future. In 2001–2002, New Zealandspent $230 million in imprisoning convicted prisoners andthe amount keeps rising. About 150 out of every 100,000New Zealanders are in jail and it is extremely difficult to reintegratepeople who have been jailed for so long. This then adds to problemsof security within the prisons with a population that may havelittle to lose from further conflict.
In the US, the situation has become so extreme that, with ‘threestrikes’ laws, people are being jailed for life for minor crimes.To control such a burgeoning prison population—709 out of every100,000 people are in prison, often in the most appalling conditions—’Supermax’ prisons have appeared where prisoners are kept insmall cells for 23 hours a day with little guard or inmate contact.
If you are interested in sharing your views or supportingVictoria on issues of tertiary education politics and policy,contact us. E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 5301
Politics and policy
Tertiary ChangesThe establishment of the Tertiary Education Commission Te Amorangi Ma–taurangaMatua (TEC) has been an important milestone in developing New Zealand’s knowledgesociety and economy.
Andrew West
According to TEC Chair Dr Andrew West,it signals a fresh commitment to equippingNew Zealanders with the skills, imaginationand learning opportunities to confidentlytake their place in the world.
TEC was established under the provisions ofthe Education (Tertiary Reform) Amendment Act2002. This Act provides the TEC with amandate and steering instruments toimplement the Tertiary Education Strategy2002/07 and subsequent tertiary educationstrategies.
TEC has two fundamental roles: to build thecapability of the tertiary education system;and to steer that system to better achievenational goals.
TEC has a key role to play in theimplementation of the Tertiary EducationStrategy and the associated Statement ofTertiary Education Priorities. Its roleincludes:
• negotiating charters with tertiary education organisations;
• negotiating and approving profiles, or partsof profiles, of tertiary education providers,for the purpose of funding;
• allocating funds to organisations; and• building the capability of organisations.
Work is underway to develop a system to:
• specify the Charters and Profiles process and requirements; and
• evaluate and monitor Chartersand Profiles.
Regular updates will be sent directly totertiary education organisations and postedon the TEC website (www.tec.govt.nz) asdecisions about the Charters and Profilesprocess and requirements are made.
A shift in the way all the players in the tertiaryeducation sector interact is needed to ensurethe success of the tertiary education reforms.In the next 18 months TEC’s focus will beon building and strengthening existingrelationships with the tertiary sector anddeveloping a framework for change thatis robust and reliable.
“One of the biggest challenges for universitiesand the entire tertiary sector will beconsidering the tertiary sector as a wholeinstead of as a system of individual parts,”says Andrew.
“Our vision of the tertiary education sector isone which links directly and explicitly witheconomic and social goals. We would like tosee universities develop strategic partnershipswith organisations such as other TertiaryEducation Institutions or industry. This willoffer opportunities to access strategic funds.”
TEC is committed to helping the Governmentachieve its vision of a knowledge society.
“One of the biggest challenges for universities and the entiretertiary sector will be considering the tertiary sector as a wholeinstead of as a system of individual parts”
Charter Consultation
The University is required to develop a newCharter, which must be submitted by 30September 2003 in order for the Universityto remain eligible for Government fundingin 2004. As this will require the input of ouralumni and friends, we have established aCharter Consultation web page at
A history ofcollaborationBy Professor Stuart McCutcheonVice-Chancellor
Pre dating any Government-driven pushesfor tertiary institutions to collaborate,Victoria has been out there building bridges.
For example, in the 1990s Victoria workedwith Waiariki Polytechnic and NelsonPolytechnic for the teaching of Social Work,and the Graduate School of Nursing &Midwifery has longstanding partnershipsfor nurse training with polytechs andhospitals. More recently we havestrengthened our ties with the WellingtonCollege of Education, our School ofGovernment is part of the Australiaand New Zealand School of Government,and with Massey University we havedeveloped a proposal to create a jointSchool of Music. Many of our staff also haveresearch collaborations with colleaguesin other institutions.
Current reforms to the tertiary sector aresimply a refinement of what universitieshave been doing as a matter of course.With this formalisation come increasedcompliance costs. For example, there is nota corner of the University that has not beentouched by the demands of providing TECwith information for the PBRF. This drawsstaff away from their core roles of teachingand, paradoxically, research.
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E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 5822
The PBRF: Challengesand Opportunities
Professor Pat Walsh
www.vuw.ac.nz/home/about_victoria/charter.html Subject to the release of theGovernment's requirements, we aim to havea draft available on the site no later than 30June 2003. We invite you to check the websiteat this time to view the proposed revisionand to make a submission.
The reforms fail to acknowledge thatthe fundamental problem New Zealanduniversities face is a continuing relativedecrease in funding. At US$6,000 perstudent, New Zealand universities havean average income per student well belowthat available to universities in the UnitedKingdom (US$9,700), the United States(US$19,800) and Australia (US$11,500).This low level of funding impacts rightacross the University, from our abilityto offer globally competitive salaries,through to the purchase of qualityresearch equipment and library resources.
A key issue is the extent to which we shouldcentrally manage the balance of programmesstudents will take. I place considerable faithin the ability of the diverse group of peoplewho study at Victoria to make decisions ontheir education and the form it takes. We dothem a disservice to think that any onecentral organisation can know their needsbetter than they do.
It is encouraging to me that universitygraduates end up in a wide range ofroles that they may not necessarily havecompleted a dedicated qualification for.It means that universities are deliveringto their traditional reason for being, andthat is progressive academic thought freeof predetermined ends. In short, we are—and must remain—educators, not trainingestablishments.
By Professor Pat WalshPro Vice-Chancellor (Research)
Four letters—PBRF, short for Performance-Based Research Fund—have weighedheavily on the minds of people in the tertiarysector this year.
The PBRF, being implemented by the TertiaryEducation Commission, is a key plank inthe Government’s tertiary sector reformsand aims to reward research. It’s thecommitment of academics to research thatmakes universities special and it’s good tosee that recognised.
Currently, under the Equivalent FulltimeStudent funding system, universitiesreceive a ‘top-up’ that recognises researchand postgraduate degree completions.From 2004 to 2007, this will be progressivelywhittled away and replaced by PBRF money.By 2007 this will be worth $134 millionand includes a welcome $60 million ofnew funding the Government has promisedto contribute.
The money will be allocated to universitiesbased on an assessment of researchperformance between 1997 and 2002, andthe number of thesis degrees completed andexternal research income earned during 2002.
The PBRF poses opportunities, challengesand costs for Victoria. The costs stemfrom the enormous administrative workrequired to implement it, none of whichis being reimbursed.
The opportunities lie in Victoria gainingmore systematic knowledge of its researchand, armed with that information, the abilityto take a more strategic approach to itsdevelopment. Gaining a high overall rankingwill have a positive impact on staff moraleand make Victoria an even more attractiveplace in which to work and study, retaining
and attracting the best staff and graduatestudents and improving our revenue.
But the challenges lie on the other sideof the coin. A poor ranking will affect moraleand make Victoria a less attractiveplace in which to work and study. As anincreasing proportion of our funding willbe determined by the 2003 PBRF exercise—jobs could be at risk if Victoria fares badly.
Victoria is determined to do well inthis process as it is vital to our researchincome and for recognition of our areasof research excellence. But we’re also keenlyaware that our focus on the PBRF mustbe balanced with a continuing commitmentto quality teaching.
The PBRF poses opportunities, challenges and costs for Victoria.The costs stem from the enormous administrative work requiredto implement it, none of which is being reimbursed.
Learning @ VicIf you are interested in finding out about the dynamiccourses and qualifications offered by Victoria for yourselfor to share with others, contact our Course Advice team.E-mail: [email protected] Tel: 0800 VIC UNI
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 6020
Matene Love
Voyage of science successEvangelene Daniela, Clinical Psychologist in training, believes Pacific people have a naturalaffinity for science and wants to see an increase in the number of students in the area.
Evangelene Daniela in thePsychology wha–nau room.
“Our ancestors navigated by the stars asthey made their way around the Pacific.They understood their environment andrelied on this knowledge of the natural worldto produce food, to travel and to prosper.
“I think that Pacific people of todayinherently possess that same enquiringmind that leads to an affinity with science.There are so many exciting opportunities—it’s real cutting edge stuff, pushing theboundaries of knowledge.”
And there is no need to look further fora model Pacific science graduate thanEvangelene. Now into her sixth yearof study and with another four ahead,Evangelene already has a BA in Religion anda BSc in Psychology with first class honoursfrom Victoria. Thanks to winning a coveted$94,000 Health Research Council scholarship,she is now on track to complete a PhD in
Psychology. She’ll follow her PhD with afurther year of study to become a registeredClinical Psychologist.
She is working in the laboratory ofpsychologist Professor Susan Schenk,one of the few laboratories in the worldto be studying the illegal party drugecstasy. Her research focuses on theinterplay of behavioural and biologicaltriggers that cause ecstasy users to keepusing. Evangelene hopes her research willeventually be used to produce a set ofguidelines for people who have kickedtheir chemical dependencies in orderto avoid relapse.
As a Clinical Psychologist, Evangelenewants to work with Pacific adolescentswith substance dependency problems.Aware of only two Pacific ClinicalPsychologists practising in New Zealand,
and only one other in training, Evangeleneis committed to increasing those numbersto boost the support provided specificallyfor Pacific people.
Evangelene is already involved in creatingbright futures for younger Pacific students.She is an active member of Te Ro– pu– A
–whina
Pu– taiao, the mentoring scheme for Pacificand Ma–ori students of Architecture, Designand Science at Victoria.
Until recently, the Certificate in Ma–ori Business has been offeredonly at Victoria’s Wellington campus but last year it was offeredfor the first time in a local community. A model has been developedthat sees Victoria University partner with polytechnics or otherquality learning institutes around the country to deliver theCertificate.
Students are taught the basics of a business qualification bytheir local education institute and then take part in intensive blockcourses held by Victoria University academics over a series of sixweekends in their community. The three Victoria-taught coursesfocus on Ma–ori Authorities, Ma–ori Small Business and Managementof Ma–ori Resources.
At the end of last year the first group to complete the Certificatedid so at the Eastern Institute of Technology in Taradale, andgraduated with a Victoria qualification at the University’s Mayceremonies.
Matene says the success of the community initiative has alreadyattracted interest from several other iwi, including Nga–tiTuwharetoa and Nga–ti Porou, which will see partnerships withlocal institutions develop in the near future.
Ma–ori Business can also be taken as a major in the Bachelorof Commerce &Administration.
Ma–ori hungry for business skills
“Ma–ori are big players in the economy and their interestsare growing daily. To look after and administer their resources,Ma–ori need to know how the Ma–ori business world operates,”says Matene Love, Senior Lecturer in the Victoria ManagementSchool and co-ordinator of the Certificate in Ma–ori Business.
Who’s new?
David BibbyProfessor David Bibby brings a wealth of scienceknowledge to his role as Pro Vice-Chancellorand Dean of Science and Dean of Architecture& Design.
With PhD and DSc degrees from Britain’sLoughborough University, David has a distinguished record inresearch and many years’ experience in the management of science,most recently at Industrial Research Ltd (IRL), where he wasgeneral manager of science policy.
Victoria and IRL have a long history of collaboration and arepartners in the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materialsand Nanotechnology.
David took up his new role in April, replacing ProfessorPeter Englert, who was appointed as Chancellor of the Universityof Hawai’i at Manoa.
Gordon HoldenProfessor Gordon Holden started in Februaryas the new Head of the School of Architecture.He comes to Victoria from QueenslandUniversity of Technology, Australia, wherehe had been Head of the School of Architecture,Interior & Industrial Design since 1993.
Gordon has been associated with the Schoolof Architecture since 1991 when he chaired itsprofessional accreditation process. He was a strong voice inencouraging the School to move to its current Vivian Streetsite to foster closer ties with the architecture community.
Gordon believes that graduates from the School will continue tomake important contributions to New Zealand and increasinglymore of them will practice in other countries.
Bob KlepperProfessor Bob Klepper’s appointment as the JadeProfessor of Electronic Commerce in the Schoolof Information Management is a sign of ongoinggrowth for e-commerce at Victoria.
Bob’s research interests centre on theacquisition and implementation of newtechnology in organisations and the role thattrust and reputation play in fostering business-to-consumer electronic commerce.
Bob, who has a PhD in economics from the University of Chicagoand was previously Professor of Computer Management andInformation Systems at Southern Illinois University, took uphis new position in January. He replaces inaugural Jade Professorof Electronic Commerce, Brian Corbett.
9
Sarawak government officials discuss contract poultryfarming with Dr Warwick Murray (centre, back) andDr Dimbab Ngidang (centre front).
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 5645
Sarawak relationship grows
Earth Sciences students are learning first-hand of aninnovative project to help the indigenous people ofthe Malaysian state of Sarawak to become commercialfarmers through the work of two Victoria researchers.
Associate Professor Philip Morrison and Dr Warwick Murrayfrom the School of Earth Sciences, along with Dr Dimbab Ngidangof the Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) are investigatinga scheme that attempts to transform subsistence rice farmers intocommercial farmers of crops such as chickens, fish and coffee.
Philip says many agricultural industries, such as chicken farming,are dominated by large businesses making it difficult for indigenoussmall holders to break into the market.
“What the Sarawak State Government has done is establisha protected market allowing indigenous farmers to sell poultryto the schools and police department. The farmers are giventraining and a small number of day-old chicks to start with.If they do well, they are allowed to grow their business.”
About 60 farmers are involved so far and Philip says it’s too earlyto judge its success in commercial terms. Dimbab, who visitedVictoria to give guest lectures in May, Philip and Warwick, arewriting a paper on the scheme that will provide a valuable casestudy for graduates in their Development Studies programmeand undergraduate human geography students.
The research also furthers the growing relationship betweenthe School and UNIMAS involving regular graduate studentexchange programmes and several joint research projects althoughan institutional relationship was not formalised until 1997.With support from the Asia 2000 Fund, and more recently theChair of Malay Studies Professor Yaacob Harun, eight geographyhonours students have been able to do field visits and completeresearch projects.
Philip says all the students have found the experience highlyrewarding. “A common comment is that after having studieddevelopment in Asia in the lecture theatre, that it was fantasticto witness some of theideas and conceptsoperating in apractical setting.”
Alumni NewsIf you are interested in joining the Alumni Association of Victoria Universityor the Wellington College of Education. Email: [email protected]: +64 4 463 5128, www.vuw.ac.nz/alumni or www.wce.ac.nz/alumni
From the Alumni Association
By Philip McCabePresident, Alumni Association
Being a member of Victoria’s alumni community can meanmuch more than framing your qualification, paying offyour student loan and receiving Victorious. There are plentyof opportunities to continue your participation in the lifeof the University.
Participation was the name of the game when 26 teams competedin the Alumni Association’s inaugural University Challenge Quiz.The quiz is open to Victoria’s alumni and staff and will bea permanent feature on the Association’s calendar of events.The handsome first prize cup went to a team from the Law Schoolwith alumni team, The Brainy Bunch, coming in second and Brown’sSuperstars, The Fluffy Bunnies and Salient “A” Team sharing thirdplace. Specially branded University Challenge wine was alsoawarded and all contestants and supporters (some sportingcolourful accoutrements) received brain food in the form ofchocolate fish. It is not too soon to start forming a team andgetting into training for 2004!
Kiwi Connections, the volunteer friendship programme forinternational students run by Victoria International and the AlumniAssociation, got off to a tasty start recently at its fish and chip2003 Icebreaker event. The international students and their hostsenjoyed meeting each other, sharing a meal and competing forchocolate fish while getting to know each other.
The Kiwi Connections programme links international studentswith Victoria alumni, staff or final year student volunteers.Unlike other hosting programmes, Kiwi Connections doesnot involve the students living with their hosts. Instead, KiwiConnections encourages hosts to involve their international studentin everyday New Zealand activities. The Association is alwaysrecruiting hosts so if you want to be involved please contact us.This is a simple and practical way of promoting New Zealandto the international students, requiring very little beyond thefriendliness and hospitality for which New Zealanders are wellknown. It is also great fun, so do get involved.
Participation by becoming a subscription member of the AlumniAssociation means you’ll receive additional information onactivities, guest lectures, other goings on at Victoria, and invitationsto be involved with them.
The Weapons of Maths Instruction competing forthe inaugural University Challenge Quiz cup.
Victoria EventsAlumni and friends of the University are warmly invitedto these events.
Opera Victoria Orpheus in the UnderworldVictoria School of Music presents this opera in three centres.Written by Jacques Offenbach; Music Director, Kenneth Young;Director, Bernd Benthaak.
Friday 1 & Saturday 2 August, 7.30pmVenue: Opera House, WellingtonTickets: available from Ticketek phone +64 4 384 3840
Tuesday 19 August, 7.30pmVenue: War Memorial Theatre, GisborneTickets: available from Stephen’s Photoplus, 119 Gladstone Rd,or phone +64 6 868 8288
Alumni who attend this performance are also invitedto supper with the Vice-Chancellor.
Thursday 21 August, 7.30pmVenue: Hawke’s Bay Opera House, HastingsTickets: available from Ticketek outlets phone +64 6 873 5526 orphonecharge +64 6 876 3173
Tickets are priced from $21.50, and includes PAF levy. Bookingfees may apply. For more information contact the School of Musicphone +64 4 463 5369 or email: [email protected]
Alumni Breakfast at WeirFormer residents are invited to celebrate the 70th anniversaryof Weir House with a Champagne Breakfast at Weir. To ensureyou are sent a detailed invitation to the breakfast, please contactus at [email protected] or fax +64 4 463 5208. Make sure youinclude your name (and maiden name if appropriate), currentaddress and the message ‘I’m a Weir House alumnus’. As we maynot have current addresses for many of your colleagues, pleasefeel free to pass on this information.
Date: Saturday 23 August 2003Venue: Weir House
10th Anniversary of Graduate Schoolof Nursing & MidwiferyThis year commemorates the 10th anniversary of the appointmentof the School’s inaugural Professor. To celebrate, alumni are invitedto a seminar and black tie dinner coinciding with the December2003 Graduation. An alumni network is being formed to assistgraduates to keep in touch with the School and each other. Formalinvitations will be sent soon. To ensure you are on our invitationlist please contact Kate Duke, email: [email protected] orphone +64 4 463 6156.
Date: Thursday 11 December
Life After VicThanks to the graduates and membersof the University community who havesent in their news. For more alumniupdates visitwww.vuw.ac.nz/alumni/lifeaftervic
Wendy DawnThompsonBMus(Hons) 1999
Following in thefootsteps of giants,Wendy won the 2003Kathleen FerrierCompetition, a prizeregarded as one of the most prestigiousavailable to young British andCommonwealth singers. The prize, wonlast year by Jonathan Lemalu and in the pastby Dame Malvina Major, represents enoughincome for Wendy to continue her studyfor another year. Lindy Tennent-Brown,who graduated with an Honours degreein Music in 1997, accompanied Wendy inthe competition.
Wendy is currently studying for aPostgraduate Diploma in Opera withthe Royal College of Music in Londonand is now preparing to perform in finalsof three more competitions: the YoungConcert Artists Trust Competition; theRoyal Overseas League Final; and theRichard Tauber Prize. Wendy will spendthe summer working with the BritishYouth Opera singing the role of Hermiain their production of Britten’s A MidsummerNight’s Dream.
Meanwhile the Royal College’s third termis about to start and Wendy is straight intorehearsals for The Magic Flute, which alsostars Ana James who graduated fromVictoria with a BMus in 2000.
SukiSiriwardenaMBA 1992, PhD 1988
Suki Siriwardena’senergy and drivehave seen her landin a position where thoseskills will inspire others.She’s the manager of TechnologyNew Zealand, a business unit withinthe Foundation for Research Science& Technology, charged with assistingNew Zealand companies to create wealth bydeveloping new export products and enablingcompanies to develop higher levels oftechnical capability. Suki is responsible for 15staff and an investment budget of $50 million.
After completing her PhD thesis inchemistry, under the supervision of ProfessorNeil Curtis, Suki gained hands-on experiencewith the DSIR. Keen to broaden herhorizons she then completed an MBA.Management and business experience withthe New Zealand Trade Development Boardand in the private sector quickly followed,leaving Suki with a wealth of knowledge.On top of this demanding career Sukiis married and has two young sons.She is also one of the ‘Advisory Angels’at the WestSmart Business Incubator atEnterprise Waitakere.
TuilomaNeroni SladeLLB 1969
Tuiloma Neroni Sladewas sworn in as a Judgeof the newly formedInternational CriminalCourt (ICC) in March thisyear. Seated at The Hague, ICC judges willpreside over serious crime cases of concernto the international community, includinggenocide, war and crimes against humanity.
Mr Slade’s election to this internationalposition, the highest ever held by a Samoan,is the latest achievement in his remarkablecareer. Since 1993 Mr Slade has servedas the Ambassador of the Independent Stateof Samoa to the United Nations in New York,and concurrently as Ambassador to theUnited States, and High Commissionerto Canada.
Mr Slade’s career began in the MagistratesCourt and a private law firm in Wellingtonin the 1960s, and includes experience asParliamentary Counsel and Attorney-General of Samoa, and Assistant Directorin the Legal Division of the CommonwealthSecretariat in London.
John DuncanBSc 1976
Industry accoladesand positive customerfeedback have flowedfor John Duncan’s Nelson- based Foundersmicrobrewery. In 2002,Founders was votedChampion Small Brewery at the AustralianInternational Beer Awards. Acknowledgedas an industry innovator, John creates beerthat don’t fit within the usual categories.He and his team address the challenge ofbeing a small company in a large competitivemarket by focusing on their unique beer, andconsistent quality and service.
John says that his science degree inmicrobiology has given him a very practicalunderstanding of how yeasts work andproblem solving and research skills.These skills not only help him achieveconsistency but are also vital in the processof designing new beer styles. His sons,Sholto and Matt, recently graduated withBAs in environmental science and historyrespectively from Victoria. He is trainingthem to become sixth generation brewers.
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Alumni Support for Research ScholarshipsAs a graduate, you have the opportunity to apply for a VictoriaUniversity of Wellington Alumni Association Visa. With this cardyou’ll be contributing valuable funds to Victoria’s postgraduatestudent research and, ultimately, the next generation of knowledge.Westpac donates 1 percent per annum of the monthly interestbearing balance on your Visa card (or $10 per annum, whicheveris greater), to the Alumni Association’s Scholarship fund — at noextra cost to you. Over the years, Alumni Association Scholarships
have supported a wide range of research projects, including:a history essay on Wellington’s red light district; Vivian Street;science research on seismology and rock mechanics; and a marketingstudy on how the body image of fashion models influences theattitudes and purchasing behaviour of young children.
The card lets you enjoy low interest rates and hotpoints, andthe card looks unique too! If you would like an application form,please call 0800 557 600 or visit your local Westpac branch.
GiftingIf you are interested in supporting the students and staffof Victoria with a donation of funds, resources or time,we’d like to hear from you. For financial contributionscontact the Victoria University of Wellington FoundationExecutive Director, Tricia Walbridge.E-mail: [email protected] Tel: +64 4 463 5109
Scholarship winner Kathryn Jones at work in the laboratory.
Tim Browne, Ben Wilson, Michael Caseycollect their Scholarships
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 5109
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 6497
Scholarship providesa helping handA man’s childhood memories of Wellington haveproven a windfall for Honours student Kathryn Jones.
Kathryn is the first recipient of the Averil Brent Scholarship inScience administered by the Victoria University of WellingtonFoundation.
The Scholarship, along with the Ralph Preston-Thomas Scholarship,was set up through donations and bequests totalling $100,000from Peter and Ruth Preston-Thomas, of Winnipeg, Canada, inhonour of their children. Peter grew up in Wellington and retaineda strong affection for the city.
Kathryn, who is studying for an Honours degree in cell andmolecular bioscience, was delighted at the news she was to receivethe $1,200 scholarship. She hopes to do a PhD once she hascompleted her Honours degree.
“I’m really thrilled. It will help with buying books and just helpwith paying the rent. It’s a fulltime course and so I don’t havemuch time to work. The scholarship will keep me afloat.”
Kathryn is investigating how opiate-based drugs, such asmorphine, bind with cells in the brain to reduce pain.
Scholarships are vital for students, she says. “I think some studentsdon't apply for them, thinking that they’ll never get one but theycan really help your study. If you can have some financial reliefit allows you to concentrate on your work.”
Foundation Executive Director Tricia Walbridge said Peter grewup in Wellington and moved to Canada in his youth. “He setup a scholarship in Winnipeg in honour of his daughter and hewanted to do something similar at the university in his old hometown for which he had many fond memories.”
Tricia says bequests are a key way alumni can support Victoria.“A bequest through a gift in a will is a wonderfully positive andenduring way for people to give significant support to an areathat is important to them.”
Tricia says to assist people wanting to leave a legacy in theirwill, the Foundation had appointed Victoria alumna, RosalieChamberlain, as its Bequest Manager.
primarily for their academic achievementbut also for their longer-term goals andcommunity input. They are all active in theTe Ro–pu– A– whina Pa–taiao mentoring schemeavailable to Ma–ori and Pacific students ofScience, Architecture and Design at Victoria.
Michael Casey (Nga–ti Kahungunu) isstudying for a Bachelor of InformationTechnology. He is involved in the A– whina
scheme as a mentor to first year Ma–oristudents as a way of encouraging thoseinterested in a similar career path.
Ben Wilson (Nga–ti Tahu) is also studyingfor a Bachelor of Information Technology,majoring in Internet Computing whileTim Browne (Te Ati Awa) is enrolled ina Bachelor of Science majoring in bothComputer Science and Geology.
The Unisys scholarships are administeredby the Victoria University of WellingtonFoundation.
Unisys supportsComputer Science
Victoria students are benefiting froma generous scholarship established byUnisys for Ma–ori and Pasifika students.
The $5,000 scholarships were establishedby Unisys this year to support Ma–ori andPasifika students enrolled in their secondyear of a Computer Science degree at Victoria.
Lisa Morgan, University Alliance Managerand HR Advisor at Unisys, says thescholarships were established to address therelatively low number of Ma–ori and Pasifikastudents training in computer science.
The successful students, Tim Browne,Michael Casey and Ben Wilson, were selected
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John
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At the opening of the new Centre were,from left, Sir Roy and Lady McKenzie,Dr Jan Pryor and Sir Michael Hardie Boys.
VUP books are available from allgood bookstores or by contactingE-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 6580
Victoria University Press
New Family Centre off to a flying start
The generous support of Wellington businessman Sir Roy McKenzie has given a majorboost to research at Victoria’s new McKenzie Centre for the Study of Families.
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 6962
Sir Roy, a former chairman of the JRMcKenzie Trust, provided a grant of $240,000to the Centre, which was launched by theMinister of Social Services and Employment,the Hon Steve Maharey, in February.
Sir Roy, a former Victoria student, saysthe University was a natural choice.
“There are many important issues facingNew Zealand families but before we leapheadlong into trying to deal with them,we need good quality research to pushfor Government action. Victoria offeredthe key staff and skills in Centre DirectorJan Pryor and her associates, the supportof Vice-Chancellor Stuart McCutcheon,and the location in the Capital so close tothe heart of Government and the Courts,particularly the Family Court.”
Centre Director Dr Jan Pryor says the granthas enabled the Centre to more quicklyembark on a range of research projects.
“Our families are becoming far more diversebut despite a lot of anecdotal talk there hasn’tbeen much local evidence to back up therhetoric. We’re now underway with severalmajor research projects due in no small partto Sir Roy and Lady McKenzie's support.”
The Centre's research includes studies intothe levels of commitment of married andunmarried couples, the experiences ofchildren living in stepfamilies and conflictin families.
Jan says Sir Roy’s backing is complementedby the support of the Family Court andformer Governor-General Sir Michael HardieBoys, who chairs the advisory board.
The Centre aims to undertake research forboth government and non-governmentalorganisations, including the Ministry ofSocial Development and the Commissionfor Families.
DaylightElizabeth Knox
Set on the beautiful Mediterranean coast,Daylight takes us into a world the touristnever sees, a world of caves and passages,and secrets. A novel of hidden lives,vampires, myths and martyrs, Daylightcombines Elizabeth Knox’s greatest gifts—her wildly imaginative storytelling andher clear eye for atmosphere and place.She is a graduate of Victoria’s MA inCreative Writing.
SummerJenny Bornholdt
This new collection of poems from oneof New Zealand’s best-loved poets iswarm, witty, engaging and accomplished.Two summers feature in these poems, onespent in Menton as the Katherine MansfieldFellow and an earlier summer “that wouldn’tgo” when her father died. Jenny is a graduateof Bill Manhire’s original composition course.
Underthe Gun:The Small ArmsChallenge in theSouth Pacific
David Capie
In the past 15 years, events aroundthe South Pacific have highlighted problemswith small arms and light weapons.This book examines the legal frameworkfor the regulation of firearms in Pacific states,the legal trade in small arms in the regionand the cross-border illicit trade in smallarms and ammunition along with otherissues. David Capie studied law andpolitics at Victoria and is currently basedat the Centre for International Relationsat the University of British Columbia,Vancouver, Canada.
Town & GownIf you would like to be involved in the varied and excitingevents available to members of the University communitycontact the Events Office. E-mail: [email protected]: + 64 4 463 5810
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 5229www.vuw.ac.nz/adamartgal/ed/artcollectiontour
Professor Ralph Pettman (left) and Iranian AmbassadorMohammad Ali Kormi Nouri in the Hunter Council Chamber.
Kate Griffin (centre, back) takes a tour throughthe Adam Art Gallery
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 472 1000
Diplomatic DistinctionVictoria’s status as New Zealand’s Capital City University hasbeen highlighted by hosting a series of public seminars givenby members of Wellington’s diplomatic corps.
The series, Diplomatic Conclusions, runs throughout the yearand has so far highlighted the views of Ambassadors and HighCommissioners from France, Russia, Chile, Iran, India, Braziland Germany with presentations by the Ambassadors of Mexico,the United States, Canada and China still to come.
Series organiser Professor Ralph Pettman, in the School of History,Philosophy, Political Science & International Relations, says theseries allows diplomats to visit the Kelburn campus and talkon any topic involving world affairs that they are interested in.
“As the Capital, Wellington is the home of more than 35 Embassiesand High Commissions and this series allows us to tap into thatresource and provides a great opportunity for staff, studentsand the general public to hear an Ambassador speak.
“The talks so far in the Hunter Council Chamber have been verywell attended and have also attracted considerable media interest.Many of the talks have been highly topical with the IranianAmbassador Mohammad Ali Kormi Nouri speaking on the IraqiWar just days before Baghdad fell to American forces.”
Art online to youIt’s the art tour you take when you’re not in an art gallery.
Developed for senior secondary school students, the Adam ArtGallery’s new Online Art Tour features nine major works fromthe University's impressive collection of New Zealand art.
The online tour, selected to replicate the ‘highlights tour’that visitors to the campus can take, includes works byColin McCahon, Gretchen Albrecht, Ralph Hotere,Robyn Kahukiwa and Philip Clairmont.
“The purpose of the Online Art Tour is to provide students—particularly those from rural and regional schools beyondWellington—with access to works from the VUW ArtCollection, which is an important cultural and educationalresource,” says Kate Griffin, Exhibitions and PublicProgrammes Officer at the Gallery.
Each work is accompanied by introductory information aboutthe artist and their work. Students are invited to respondto the works and to answer questions relating to context,technique, subject matter, materials and process. The worksrelate to the Modern New Zealand Art component of BursaryArt History, NCEA Levels 2 and 3 and The Visual Arts inthe New Zealand curriculum.
“We hope the site will encourage students to examine andinterpret artworks by important New Zealand artists, andhelp them especially to develop their knowledge of ModernNew Zealand art,” Kate says.
As well as offering images and informative texts, the Online ArtTour supports further research by providing a comprehensivebibliography of NZ art books and catalogues. All worksfeatured in the Online Art Tour can be viewed around campus.Those interested in viewing the Collection can contact theAdam Art Gallery for information about tours.
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Professors MacDiarmid, Heeger and Shirakawaare joined by pupils from Kelburn Normal School.Four Laureates
and a conferenceThe significance of having a casual chinwag with threeNobel Laureates didn’t seem to faze pupils from KelburnNormal School.
Both parties joined the Hon Pete Hodgson, Victoria staff andothers in February to celebrate the achievements of the ‘thirdman of DNA’—Professor Maurice Wilkins. Along with FrancisCrick and James Watson, he was awarded the 1962 Nobel Prizein Physiology or Medicine for his role in the discovery of thestructure of DNA. The first six years of his life were spent at30 Kelburn Parade, now the site of the Murphy Building andalthough he has lived overseas since the 1920s, he still refersto himself as a New Zealander. To celebrate the 50-yearanniversary of the discovery, the Nobel Laureates unveiled aplaque on the site and the Kelburn pupils released 50 balloons.
The Laureates, Professors Alan MacDiarmid, Alan Heegerand Hideki Shirakawa, were in Wellington to take partin AMN1—an international conference organised by theUniversity's MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materialsand Nanotechnology. The week-long conference broughttogether the Laureates, who jointly won the 2000 Nobel Prizein Chemistry for their discovery of conducting polymers, andmany other leaders in the field of advanced materials science.
“Having the three Laureates and other top internationalscientists attend the AMN1 conference was a real honourand great for the popular profile of materials science inNew Zealand,” says Professor Paul Callaghan, Director ofthe MacDiarmid Institute. The conference and its associatedevents are part of the public programme that the MacDiarmidInstitute, as a Government funded Centre of Research Excellence,has established to promote materials science.
Jacquie BaxterJacquie Baxter received an honorary Doctorof Literature for raising the visibility of Ma–oriwomen in New Zealand literature. Affiliatedto the Taranaki and Whakatohea iwi, shewas one of the first Ma–ori women to receivea degree, graduating from Victoria with aBA (1949) and later an MA. Short stories andarticles she wrote for various magazines inthe 1950s and 60s were published as TheHouse of the Talking Cat in 1981. She haspublished two collections of poetry, theaward-winning Dedications (1996), andPostscripts (2000). She has also enormouslyassisted those studying the work of poetJames K. Baxter, to whom she was married.
Glenn SchaefferGlenn Schaeffer was awarded an honoraryDoctor of Literature for his work in raisingthe profile of New Zealand writers. TheAmerican philanthropist provided basefunding to establish the only overseas armof the International Institute of ModernLetters (IIML) at Victoria. He also establishedthe largest literary prize in Australasia, thebiennial $NZ60,000 Prize in Modern Letters,which is open to all emerging NZ writers.As well as his support for IIML in the UnitedStates, he has resourced and extended theCity of Asylum programme founded by theInternational Parliament of Writers in Paris.
Gillian WhiteheadGillian Karawe Whitehead receivedan honorary Doctor of Music for hercontribution to music. The Victoriaalumna graduated with an Honours degreein Music in 1964 followed by an MMusfrom the University of Sydney in 1966.She now divides her time as a freelancecomposer between Sydney and Dunedin.Her compositions have won several awardsand in 2000 she became an inauguralArtist Laureate of the NZ Arts Foundation.Of Nga– i te Rangi and Tuhoe descent,she is also President of the NZ Composers’Association and was made a Member ofthe New Zealand Order of Merit in 1999.
Honours awardedThe University recognised three lifetimes of achievement when it awarded honorary doctoratesto Jacquie Baxter, Glenn Schaeffer and Gillian Whitehead at the May graduation ceremonies.
Town & Gown
At the launch were (from left), Associate Professor JennyHarper, Rohan Gunaratna and Jim Veitch.
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 5394
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Understanding terrorism
When Religious Studies programme director Dr Jim Veitchbecame interested in Islam many years ago, he didn’t expecthis knowledge would be called on to untangle the complexweb of religion and terrorism.
Jim’s insight and extensive international network have proved avaluable resource to Government officials by providing an expertunderstanding of the Islamic world order and threats to peace.
The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet recentlyworked in partnership with Jim and the University to help traina core of senior Government officials involved in security functions.
The honours level course on terrorism and counter terrorismwas delivered by Rohan Gunaratna, Associate Professor in Defenceand Strategic Studies at Singapore’s Nanyang University, anda highly regarded world expert in the field. His recent book InsideAl Qaeda has been hailed as the most authoritative analysis of thisterrorist movement to date. Enrolled in the course werestaff from organisations including the New Zealand Police,New Zealand Immigration, Customs, the Ministry of Defence,and the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.
The course offered students an in-depth understandingof terrorist organisations and the threats they pose. It drewparticularly on examples of groups active in Southern Asia.
Jim will be working with Dr Gunaratna in the developmentof the core group and the University will hold the honourscourse and similar courses in the future.
Invading AntsThe ‘Genghis Khan’ of the ant world is tightening its hold onNew Zealand and Victoria researcher Dr Phil Lester is leadingthe charge to hold the ants at bay.
Phil, an entomologist in the School of Biological Sciences,is studying the spread and control of the Argentine Ant thatfirst appeared in New Zealand in 1990.
“Because all of the Argentine ants here are closely related geneticallythey don’t fight each other, but when attacked or seeking food,nests will act together as a giant army just like the hordes ofGenghis Khan.
“In a one-on-one fight between an Argentine ant nest and anative species, the natives will knock the pants off them. But theArgentine ants will group together and will win the battle throughsheer numbers.”
As “tramp” insects, the Argentine ants are closely associatedwith people, being transported to new homes with furnitureand pot plants.
Phil and postdoctoral fellow Stephen Hartley have mapped thespread of the ants and believe they may not be able to survive inthe wild any further south than Hawke’s Bay. They’re also lookingat biological control but the exact variant of its main SouthAmerican enemy—the phorid fly that lays its egg inside theant—has so far proved elusive.
“These ants have already caused damage to horticulture.They ‘farm’ other insects, such as aphids, for their honeydew,and defend them from predators. The result is the aphids alsoprofit and end up devastating trees. Orchardists can spray tokill them off but there is little organic growers can do.”
The jury is still out on the damage they could do to native plantsand animals, he says. Overseas they are known to attack and killbaby birds and lizards soon after they hatch.
Phil backs the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s strongresponse to recent biosecurity threats. “I’ve recently returned fromTokelau where several atolls have become infested with the yellowcrazy ant, so named because they run around madly if disturbed.That ant—which has been intercepted by MAF at New Zealandports and has so far not established here—is causing majorproblems in Tokelau.”
Stephen Hartley (left) and Phil Lester examineArgentine ant farms in their laboratory.
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 5096
Images to appear in the Adam Art Galleryexhibition on Samoan tattooing.
E-mail: [email protected]: +64 4 463 6026www.vuw.ac.nz/tatau
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Ink talesof the PacificTattoos have created a link over both time and the thousandsof kilometres of land and sea between Europe and the Pacific.
Researchers from around the world will congregate at Victoriafrom 21-23 August to discuss progress on a Getty Foundation-funded global project on Pacific tattooing, led by ProfessorNicholas Thomas of Goldsmiths College, University of London.The conference, Tatau/Tattoo: Embodied Art and Cultural Exchange1760-2000, will be hosted by Victoria’s Pacific Studies and ArtHistory programmes. The conference will also include a teamof Ma–ori scholars engaged in another major research project onta moko, under the direction of Professor Ngahuia Te Awekotukuof the University of Waikato.
In addition to scholarly presentations, the conference will featurean artists’ forum where representatives from dance, literature andvisual art will speak about the influence that tattooing has ontheir work.
Dancer/choreographer Neil Ieremia of Black Grace, writerSia Figiel, and visual artist Fatu Feu’u are among the featuredparticipants.
Coinciding with the conference, the University’s Adam Art GalleryTe Pa–taka Toi will open an exhibition on Samoan tattooing, featuringphotographs by Mark Adams and a film piece by Lisa Taouma.
“This research is an important study of the role of tattooingin cross-cultural exchange between Pacific peoples and others,and amongst Pacific peoples themselves,” says April Henderson,Lecturer in Pacific Studies and co-organiser of the conference.“Pacific tattoos can be deeply significant, but the meanings attachedto them can be quite flexible and open to the interpretations ofthose giving and receiving them. This conference will providea forum to explore some of those meanings.”
Eighteenth century voyages to the Pacific brought Europeansinto contact with tattooing. Many returned home with drawingsof the designs they saw and sometimes with tattoos themselves.Missionaries, who followed the explorers and traders, soughtto put an end to tattooing, and for this reason, the passing downof skills and designs was interrupted with dire consequencesfor the tradition.
Pacific tattooing is again attracting global attention, largely dueto the significant revivals of tattooing in Hawai’i, Aotearoa, andFrench Polynesia and the rich continuing tattoo traditions ofSamoa. Contemporary Ma–ori tattoo designs are beamed aroundthe world courtesy of pop stars like Robbie Williams and BenHarper who have them.
