Chloë Spackman | Manager, Global Leadership Program

I’ve been at Macquarie for…
approximately seven years.

In a nutshell, my job is to…
Manage the Global Leadership Program and our component of the Global Leadership Entry Program.

I make sure our 3000 enrolled students are provided with workshops covering a range of pertinent international issues; give them access to inspiring and relevant keynote speakers, diplomats and business professionals; and connect them with opportunities to build their soft skills and capacity as responsible global citizens.

The question I hear most often in my work is…
“What is a colloquium?”, closely followed by “will [going on a Contiki trip / watching a foreign film / washing my dog] count for experiential credit points”?

The top three things on my to-do list today are…
1) Present to guests visiting from overseas partner institutions; 2) complete the UniForum survey; 3) write a keynote speaker briefing document.

If I could do any other job at Macquarie it would be…
Researcher in cognitive sciences or neuroscience – it’s fascinating and has so many implications for our everyday lives.  I have the neurolaw pioneering minds podcast with Professor Jeanette Kennett earmarked to listen to asap.

I’m really looking forward to….
Our inaugural Innovative Leaders Series event on April 13 with speaker Dr Jason Fox. It’s a new take on our existing speaker series and we’re working to find speakers who are genuinely pioneering leaders who can articulate their purpose and how they execute on that purpose.

The most amazing place I’ve ever visited is…
That’s a tough one, but I will go with the Yunnan Province of China. I cycled from the Tibetan border to Kunming city over 11 days and while it was the toughest physical challenge I’ve ever embarked on, it was a genuinely incredible adventure. 

In ten years from now, I hope to be…
Running my own certified B Corporation, sourcing and selling unique products from social enterprises and communities around the world, while writing about my travels and the positive examples of social change I encounter along the way.

The meeting was organised to discuss how countries in the G77 could use the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy (SEP), developed by the King of Thailand to successfully implement the UN’s new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In her presentation, Gayle outlined the SEP process, showing delegates how it applied to several of the SDGs. Her research into sustainable leadership is of great interest in Thailand, which is looking for practical, evidence-based guidelines for implementing the SEP.

“My associates and I have often been invited to address large audiences and conduct various research projects based on the SEP, including editing a forthcoming book of case studies by Thai experts about applying the SEP to business, health, education, community development, prisoner rehabilitation and agriculture,” said Gayle .

The G77 is equivalent to the United Nations’s G20 but for developing economies, giving them an enhanced negotiating capacity in the United Nations. The group currently includes 134 member countries, with Thailand being the chair in 2016.

“The meeting in Thailand is just one of many forums where experts and policy makers can work together to help achieve UN goals,” said Gayle . She has been invited to address the G77 again, at its meeting in June.

 Learn more about Gayle and her research.

To make a donation and help our youngest community members support this worthy cause, drop by Banksia Cottage (Building X6A) this Friday morning between 9.30am and 12.30pm. All funds raised will go towards UNICEF Australia.

More than 30 leading academics and researchers from around the world will converge on campus from Wednesday 9 December to take part in a conversation that will define and dictate our future – the Big History Anthropocene Conference.

International and Australian expert speakers will tackle the challenges of the ‘Anthropocene’, the current era where the earth systems are now dramatically altered by humans.

Speakers from a diverse range of disciplines will tackle climate change, biodiversity, sustainability, and the changing face of law and economics during the Anthropocene.

Staff are welcome to attend and will have the opportunity to engage with Macquarie experts and international academic leaders to explore significant global challenges and potential solutions.

“Are we close to a tipping point on the issue of climate change? The Big History Anthropocene conference will bring together scholars from many different disciplines to discuss some of the major global challenges of the next few decades – challenges that are also being tackled at the Paris conference on climate change. Do consider joining us,” says Big History founder Professor David Christian.

Register to attend and find out more about the Big History Anthropocene Conference.

“Since work on our new site began last year, considerable time and effort has been invested to create a world-class user experience,” says Professor David Wilkinson, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Corporate Engagement and Advancement). “Every element of our new site has been carefully considered and was designed based on extensive consultation with our key audiences.

David adds the site is fully optimised for mobile devices and provides a consistent experience for our audiences regardless of the technology they use to access it.

For staff well versed with our old site, the changes are significant.

“When you first enter you’ll immediately notice several key differences. Aside from the reduction of more than 10,000 pages, the new design is dramatically streamlined, removing unnecessary barriers for our audience to find the information they’re looking for,” says David.

The site makes use of dramatic and engaging imagery to visually tell our story, and its navigation has been vastly improved, with an enhanced focus on the user experience. The site’s search functionality has also been upgraded to further improve our audience’s ability to find what they’re looking for.

How to access the Library, student, and staff sites

For those who regularly access the staff and student facing websites, access can be found by clicking on the ‘hamburger’ icon on the top right hand side of the navigation bar.

Staff who use the public website on a daily basis as part of their job, are advised to familiarise themselves with the new locations of their content, and pages they regularly access.

Bookmarks
For staff who use bookmarks, it is recommended you delete them from your browser, find the page again, and re-bookmark the page as some pages may have moved resulting from the new navigational structure.

Explore the new site for your chance to win
To celebrate this milestone, all members of the Macquarie community have the opportunity to take part in an online treasure hunt for the chance to win one of 10 $100 Lonely Planet vouchers.

Find ‘The Macquarie Story’ to begin your journey…

The iGEM competition involves students engineering genetic material and transferring it into the bacterial species E.coli, imparting it with new biological functions.

Since 2013 the Macquarie University iGEM teams have been working toward endowing E.coli with the genes required to produce chlorophyll, the pigment in plants that allows them to harness the energy from sunlight. The 2015 team have gone on further and engineered E.coli to express photosystem II, the photosynthetic protein complex uses the captured energy to split water.

The team’s chief advisor, Dr Louise Brown, said that this year’s team showed fantastic ability on the global stage, and with real application addressing a major global issue.

“The global population faces a looming energy crisis with fossil fuels supplies dwindling. Alternative energy sources must be discovered and developed for future energy security.

“The goal of Macquarie University’s 2015 iGEM team – the Solar Synthesisers – is to utilise the solar-harnessing powers of chlorophyll and photosystem II in order to produce an environmentally friendly and renewable source of chemical energy, namely hydrogen gas.”

In total, 31 undergraduate students from the Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences took part, and spent several months developing their project before the competition on 24 – 28 September.

“We were able to complete the genes within the chlorophyll biosynthesis pathway, and construct 14 out of the 17 photosystem-II genes into ‘biobricks’. We also modelled sections of the chlorophyll biosynthesis pathway so we could best understand how much hydrogen gas could be obtained from our engineered bacteria. The whole team is so proud of that achievement,” said team member Lauren Wunder.

“The whole experience, including the months in the lead up to the Jamboree, was a great opportunity for us to develop our skills and knowledge of synthetic biology, and then test them against 259 teams from around the world.”

The Macquarie team received three category nominations for their project, which included ‘Best Energy Project’, ‘Best Model’ and ‘Best New Basic Part’.

Distinguished Professor Ian Paulsen said he was pleased to see the ongoing success of Macquarie’s students in an area that our own scientific expertise excels in.

“Macquarie has a great interest and expertise in synthetic biology. It’s great to see the enthusiasm and creativity in our next generation of synthetic biologists.”

Visit the team’s wiki for more details about the project.

Follow the team on:
YouTube
Facebook
And Twitter: @MQ_AUST_iGEM

The course, comprising six modules and led by Big History founder Professor David Christian, will be accessible on demand to people from all over the world.

It takes learners through the history of everything, starting with the creation of the universe during the Big Bang, up to the present time, and shows how the universe has increased in complexity through eight thresholds that combine a set of ingredients with just-right ‘Goldilocks conditions’.

Professor Christian will also be connecting with our alumni by presenting Big History’s unique approach to telling the story of our universe at the upcoming Global Alumni Impact Series at RSA House in London on Tuesday 13 October.

He will provide guests with a wide-angled look at the complexity of life and humanity, set against our slim share of the cosmic timeline, allowing them to explore 13.8 billion years and think about history, and their place in it, as never before.

For staff who have always wanted to know more about Big History, signing up to the MOOC is the perfect opportunity. You can also connect with the Big History Institute by becoming a member and subscribing to their updates.

In 2009, Professor John Croucher from the Macquarie Graduate School of Management (MGSM) was the driving force behind the development of DWU’s MBA program, for which he received an honorary PhD from DWU for ‘services to mankind’.

“The story of Macquarie and its relationship with DWU is indeed a great one, and an excellent example of community outreach to a developing country and our nearest neighbour,” says Professor Croucher.

During her visit, Professor Nembou said she had dreamed of starting an MBA program at DWU, and is grateful to both Professor Croucher and her Vice-Chancellor and President, Father Jan Czuba, for helping that dream become a reality.

“I was aware that Macquarie offered a high-quality MBA program, and it was recommended that I contact Professor Croucher and, as the saying goes, ‘the rest is history’.

“The aim of the program was two-fold. We wanted to have a world-class MBA program, and also have PNG lecturers from within DWU co-teach units so that they could eventually take over. Although the majority of units are taught by international lecturers, this has proved positive because the feedback from students is that they want world-class lecturers with international perspectives.

“These international academics who so generously give of their time and expertise on a pro bono basis explain the success of our MBA program. The Divine Word University is deeply grateful to them.”

Macquarie PhD candidate and MGSM MBA alumna, Ms Justine Wang, recently returned from teaching (pro bono) in the MBA program in Port Moresby, and has been invited back to teach again in 2016.

“I am very grateful for the opportunity to teach in the MBA program at Divine Word University as part of MGSM’s community outreach. I was fortunate to be there at the time of the 40th annual celebrations of PNG’s independence, and the President and Vice-Chancellor of DWU, Father Jan Czuba, made me feel most welcome,” says Justine.

“I very much enjoyed meeting with the students, and hearing about their local issues and concerns, along with developing a deeper understanding of their culture and perspectives on life.”

The 2014 Nature Index represents Australia’s 10 leading institutions in research activity through a variety of different subjects, and Macquarie is the only non-Go8 university rated in the top 10.

This follows our recognition within the Asia-Pacific Index, which placed us eighth when compared with other Australian universities.

It was also noted by Nature that Macquarie’s research contributions to the publication involved extensive collaboration with scientists from other institutions and countries, demonstrating our commitment to being a world-recognised research collaborator of choice, as outlined in the Strategic Research Framework.

Professor Sakkie Pretorius Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) says “this recent analysis not only targets Macquarie as a destination for research training and scientific career opportunities; it also rates Australia very highly when compared to our Asia Pacific neighbours in terms of remuneration from academic employment and funding nationally per researcher.”

Supported by families, educators and industry leaders, 46 teams competed in the six day tournament, which comprised of two events: the FIRST® Lego League Asia Pacific Invitational for students aged 9 – 16, and FIRST® Tech Challenge Asia Pacific, for students aged 14 – 18.

Each of the teams worked with mentors and coaches to design and build a robot, program it with industry standard software, and complete tasks using a standard set of rules. They were also tasked with a research project to complete - solve a real world problem related to individual learning styles and abilities. Several teams received honours that rewarded gracious professionalism, team work, design excellence, strategic design and competitive play.

At the opening of the event, Professor Jim Lee Deputy Vice-Chancellor (International) told guests FIRST Australia is an inspirational organisation which develops tomorrow’s leaders in a supportive framework that fosters and promotes innovation and integrity through cooperative competition.

“I am delighted that Macquarie, as a university of service and engagement, is the lead sponsor fully supporting this event, and we look forward to working more closely with FIRST to promote its programs across Australia and around the world.”

Teams were also invited to showcase their own culture and artistic heritage through a ‘Friendship Night’.

‘FIRST is not all about robots,” said FIRST Australia Director Luan Heimlich. “It is an amazing place that brings incredible young talents together to shine in their own ways. We are so proud of hosting such event in the past three years, and look forward to welcoming more teams and countries in the years to come.’