Griffith Institute for Drug Discovery’s (GRIDD) Director Professor Jennifer Martin is the second woman to receive the prestigious Wunderly Oration Medal in its 27 year history for her work promoting women in science.
Professor Martin was awarded the medal when she delivered the oration at the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand (TSANZ) Annual Scientific Meeting in Canberra this week.
Professor Martin was invited to speak at TSANZ on the value of gender equity in scientific research globally.
The Wunderly Oration honours the memory of Sir Harry Wyatt Wunderly, the first Commonwealth Director of Tuberculosis, and has been presented at TSANZ meetings since 1988.
“I’m absolutely thrilled to be the 2017 Wunderly Orator and to be recognised outside my own field for my achievements,” Professor Martin said.
Professor Jennifer Martin in the lab with her staff. Credit: Desley Pitcher
Notably, GRIDD (formerly the Eskitis Institute) has a female director and four of its six member leadership
Category: Griffith University Feed
Global law degree opens doors to career success
For industrial relations specialist David Lyons, completing a Graduate Certificate of Global Law at Griffith University has opened doors he’d only previously dreamt about.
With more than 20 years experience in industrial Relations, OHS and employment law, he says the degree perfectly complements this giving him the formal qualifications to boost career success.
“The highlight of my Grad Cert has been gaining entry as an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators based in London,’’ he said.
“I was already a student member thanks to studying at Griffith Uni, then being admitted as Associate Member due to the qualification, on top of 20 years of experience in arbitration.”
David began a law degree after more than 10 years in the Building Industry but left before graduating when he found employment with the union movement. So began his industrial relations career in construction, infrastructure and the resources industry.
Then after nearly 10 years as the principal
The stigmatisation of stress and mental health in the workplace
The idea of being able to deal with stress and mental health issues in the workplace is not a new concept to researchers and academics, but according to Dr Amanda Biggs of the Centre for Work, Organisation and Wellbeing, the stigma for the average worker is still very real.
“Admitting to feeling stressed at the lowest level up to admitting that you have experienced mental illness is highly stigmatised,” Dr Biggs said.
Dr Biggs says that the stigmatisation can especially be seen in occupations where workers believe that admitting that they are stressed or having mental health issues can lead to some change in their job or duties:
“If you’re responsible for groups of people, or if you have to have access to firearms as part of your job [in the case of police officers], sometimes admitting to stress can affect your actual role.”
The same can be said for workers in occupations where
GBS and Yunus Social Business begin pivotal relationship
Professor Muhammad Yunus will present his theory of Three Zeroes at the Griffith Lecture.
The head of Griffith Business School (GBS) has called the Griffith Lecture a once in a lifetime experience to absorb the teachings of one the world’s most insightful minds.
Pro Vice Chancellor (Business) Professor David Grant said the April 11 event featuring Professor Muhammad Yunus was the start of a pivotal relationship between Griffith University and the microcredit pioneer.
“There is no-one better placed than Professor Yunus to articulate the necessity for business leaders and their organisations to practise social responsibility and facilitate social entrepreneurship.
“He has been instrumental in ushering in a new approach to business, one which has had such a significant impact of some of the world’s most vulnerable,” he said.
“Sustainable business practices, responsible leadership, respect for others, and a global orientation. These are the very foundations on which Griffith Business School is built.
Pro Vice Chancellor (Business) Professor David Grant
“We
Violin virtuosos hit streets to kick start crowdfunding campaign
Queensland Conservatorium graduates Eddy Chen and Brett Yang have already reached their target just days after hitting the streets to kick start the world’s first crowd-funded classical music tour.
Known as TwoSet Violin, the pair has committed to busking around the clock and sleeping on the streets in an effort to reach their target of $50,000 within 30 days.
The goal was achieved in under a week and their total now stands at $56,000.
They are performing across Sydney, from the Pitt Street Mall to Circular Quay and Hyde Park.
“It’s pretty crazy – I just hope we can keep the momentum up,” Eddy said.
“We are both exhausted already – I think the hardest thing is the sleep deprivation!”
The pair has attracted crowds of fans – many of whom have brought their instruments to jam with the duo.
“We’ve had people playing jazz and tango music with us, one guy even brought his harmonica,” Eddy said.
“It’s been great to meet our
That’s a wrap! Griffith at World Science Festival Brisbane
Thousands of people poured through this year’s stellar World Science Festival event – many of them enjoying Griffith University’s own inspiring and engaging programs.
From the sounds of 84 pianos at the Queensland Conservatorium to tackling important environmental issues in main stage events and providing hands-on fun for budding scientists of the future, Griffith had all aspects of science covered during the five-day extravaganza.
The South Bank Parklands again turned into a science playground with dozens of free immersive events for families to enjoy, and none other than Griffith’s Science on the Go! team back with an ever bigger set up this year for guests to explore.
Children were able to hold bubbles, shoot air bazookas, try out augmented reality goggles, peer into microscopes and more, showing that an education or career in science can be fun.
Organisers said the event, which Griffith was an academic partner of, exceeded all expectations with thousands of people turning up
Griffith student secures investment for startup
Griffith PhD student Jess Blomfield (pictured) has rolled her research expertise into a start-up that has received seed investment funding after winning a pitching contest at startup accelerator Blue Chilli.
Jess was joined by hundreds of University students at Myriad, a technology and innovation festival at Brisbane Powerhouse in March. Jess’s startup CoworkAlly is a digital co-working platform designed to help the growing number of freelance workers.
“Freelancing is not just outsourcing or working from home, but service orientated micro contractors offering flexibility to larger organisations and value to small businesses,’’ Jess said.
Research by the American Freelancers Union and Emergent Research found around 40% of America’s workforce will be freelancers in 10 years. While its flexibility can be attractive, loneliness and unstructured work patterns can make freelancing difficult in the longer term.
The solution she developed was a “trusted network” of peers that a person felt supported by and accountable to.
“This is freelancers, working
Expanded Trimester 2 study options give students more choice
In 2017 Griffith University has implemented a range of new initiatives to give students greater choice and flexibility in their studies.
The academic calendar year has moved from two semesters to three 12-week trimesters. Trimester 2 will start on July 3 and prospective students can receive an offer as early as April 3 giving them the security of knowing they have a place at Griffith well in advance.
Students also have an expanded choice of study options with a wide range of degrees in high-demand fields now available to start in Trimester 2.
“Our new trimester calendar will allow students in many degrees greater flexibility to balance work and study by spreading their workload across the year, or in some cases, to accelerate and complete their degree sooner,’’ said Griffith University Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic) Professor Debra Henly.
Undertaking courses in Trimester 3 is optional, and not all programs will offer courses in this
Workplace mental wellbeing: lessons from criminal justice workers
When you think of job stresses of police officers, it’s easy to imagine the extremes, but that is not the full story.
In her work studying criminal justice workplaces and occupational stress research, Dr Amanda Biggs says the stresses that a lot of police and correctional officers face are similar to other occupations.
“People like police officers, correctional officers, people who have high-stress jobs, there’s always parts of their jobs that are very stressful and very unique, and it’s important to take those things into account,” said Dr Biggs.
“The things that really matter to them feeling valued by their organisation, and things that are common to many organisations is something I think every organisation struggles to deal with.”
Amanda says organisations and employees must ensure you feel like you are valued as an individual and not just your contributions.
“A work-life balance is imperative as is the ability to recover from work and detach
Aquatic Centre officially opens
Former Olympic and Commonwealth Champion Libby Trickett OAM and Griffith University Vice Chancellor Professor Ian O’Connor enjoy some time out at the opening of the Gold Coast Aquatic Centre.
Queensland Treasurer, the Honourable Curtis Pitt MP officially Griffith University’s Gold Coast Aquatic Centre today (April 5).
Former Olympic and Commonwealth champion Libby Trickett OAM and Commonwealth Games gold-medal winning athlete Emma McKeon OAM were two of the special guests at the event, which marked one year from the start of competition at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Griffith University Vice Chancellor and President Professor Ian O’Connor said the $16 million centre was the perfect venue for competition, training and recreation.
“This magnificent facility complements our ever-expanding Gold Coast campus and is a welcome addition to the first-class sporting amenities already available on campus,” he said.
Students from Griffith’s partner schools took part in a four-by-50 metre relay at the opening.
The solar-heated Olympic-sized pool, with FINA-approved starting blocks