Join HSBC for an educational Webinar, hosted by HSBC’s Banking Experts.

Investing in Property and Refinancing  

10 August, 12:30pm

Register here >>

Discover more about HSBC’s Employee Banking Solutions.

When: Wednesday 7 December

Where: 23 Wally’s Walk, Theatre 1

Sessions: 11am– 12pm or 1.30pm – 2.30pm

You will learn:

• The difference between heart attack and sudden cardiac arrest (SCA)
• How to identify a person in SCA
• What an AED is and where they are located on campus
• How to use an AED
• Plus, hear the answers to frequently asked questions like: Can I get a shock from administering an AED? What could happen if I use an AED on a patient with a pacemaker? Can I injure a patient by using an AED? Will an AED activate if the person is not in cardiac arrest?

There is capacity for 120 people to attend each session. Book now to reserve your place.

To register simply email Health and Safety consultant Matthew
Stafford with your preferred time: matthew.stafford@mq.edu.au

Wear It Purple strives to foster supportive, safe, empowering and inclusive environments for rainbow youth.

The movement was established in 2010 in Sydney to show young LGBTQ+ people across the globe there is hope, that people do support and accept them, and that they have the right to be proud of who they are.

The theme in 2022 is ‘Still me, still human’. The point being that people tend to focus on labels, the news story, the target, or data and forget what we all truly are is HUMAN.

“This message strongly says to our queer youth that you don’t have to change or be perfect; you’re still your unique self, still a messy beautiful human like the rest of us. We see you and we are here for you” says Sophia Halpin, Co-Chair of the Ally Network.

Everyone is invited to take part in the 2km fully accessible Colour the Campus challenge. Walk, roll, skip or run your way around the interactive route, with games and prizes to be won.

Start gathering your team, organise your Purple or Rainbow outfit, find a gold coin or two for donations. The Colour the Campus challenge will start at 2pm, meet on the grass at 12-14 Wally’s Walk from 1.30pm. See map here.  The first 100 participants to check-in will receive an official Wear It Purple Day t- shirt.  Register here.

Purple Cupcakes will also be available in the Library. Esc, Crunch & Wally’s @ $4.50 each. Campus Services will donate proceeds from the Colour the Campus Challenge and cupcake sales to Wear It Purple to support rainbow youth at risk.

In addition to coming to campus on Friday 26 August, you can also download, a zoom background, here or  LinkedIn banner and email banner below.

Email Banner

LinkedIn Banner

Wear It Purple Day is an opportunity to come together on Friday 26 August as a community and support rainbow youth and create an inclusive campus where all people can safely work and study free of harassment or discrimination.

Now in its third year, Macquarie’s annual Gender Equity Week (7-12 March) coincides with International Women’s Day on 8 March. But far from being a week just for women, Gender Equity Week is an opportunity for all staff to come together and show their support for an open, diverse and supportive workplace – something we all play a role in creating.

What’s on

During Gender Equity Week, the gender balance of speakers is shifted to give a voice to women – challenging and raising awareness about gender stereotypes and biases.

And what an incredible group of speakers it will be – from Professor Catharine Lumby talking about social media as a tool for activism, to 10 Macquarie researchers whose work is shaping the world, to Professor John Croucher explaining why he decided to write his book on the ‘forgotten’ women of science, Women in Science: 100 Inspirational Lives.

Don’t miss the panel discussion on gender diversity and inclusion in sport, or your chance to hear from inspirational female leaders in Macquarie Business School’s Women Who Change the World event.

A stimulating selection of films and Macquarie TEDx talks will be screening after work throughout the week in the Campus Common, including during happy hour at Ubar.

A time for reflection

The week is also an opportunity to reflect on the University’s progress towards gender equity, says Vice-Chancellor Professor S Bruce Dowton in his invitation to staff.

“We can be immensely proud of our progress to date, as evidenced by the SAGE Athena Swan Bronze Award we received last year,” he says. “Awards like these recognise our strong organisational commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion, our innovative approach to ‘fixing the system’ and clear evidence of its impact.

“I encourage all staff to attend Gender Equity Week, and take some time to review our progress in the Gender Equity Strategy. By working together to address the underlying causes of gender inequality, we are building a stronger, fairer and more inclusive workplace that benefits everyone.”

Visit the Gender Equity Week website to view and register for events. Early registration is recommended, as previous years’ events have sold out.

And if you can’t wait until 7 March to get your hit of amazing women, you can join Macquarie’s Dr Tayyaba Zafar, Dr Lizzy Lowe and Dr Heather Handley for a free evening event at Chatswood Library on Wednesday 4 March: Wild Women and stories from the scientific frontier

A delicious breakfast was served up by members of the Executive team, with Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Sakkie Pretorius in a particularly happy mood after the previous day’s announcement of $9.6 million in new Discovery Project and Discovery Indigenous Scheme funding Macquarie research projects.

Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) Professor Kevin Jameson and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Sakkie Pretorius team up to dish out breakfast.

Taking the chance to commend Macquarie staff for their hard work in 2019, the Vice-Chancellor Professor S Bruce Dowton acknowledged that changes affecting the sector had made it a challenging year.

“We may have some headwinds blowing against us, but the wind behind our backs is the sense of community that makes Macquarie University special – it is what makes us strong,” he said. “I see achievements abounding all around us – milestones that we can look out and see during these times – and it fills me with great pride and gratitude to you all.”

Urging everyone to be particularly careful during the unprecedented bushfire season, the Vice-Chancellor wished everyone a safe and restful holiday break.

“This is a time for rest, relaxation and connecting with family and friends, and I hope you are all able to come back reinvigorated for a new year.”

We asked Macquarie staff at the breakfast to share their personal highlight of 2019.

Kim Chi Hoang – Finance Assistant, Finance
Daisy Chin – Finance Officer, Finance
Richard Maher – Finance Officer, Finance

“Discovering the chips at Burger Freight in the Campus Common – among the best chips I have ever experienced, and the servings are always filled beyond the container’s capacity (one must improve their balancing skills before they enjoy their savoury delight!)” –– Richard

Anne-Marie Dobner – Individual Giving Specialist, Advancement
Phillip Raponi – Manager, Office of Learning and Teaching
Anne Peedom – Planned Giving Manager, Advancement
Josh Fry – Senior Alumni Coordinator, Macquarie Business School

“Working with the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Learning and Teaching) on finalising Macquarie’s new learning and teaching strategic framework 2020-2024 which will set us up learning and teaching success for the next four years.” — Phillip

Phil Hunt – Electrical Projects Manager, Property
Josefino Testor – Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Mechanic, Property
Neil Clissold – Leading Hand (Electrical), Property

MQ Health staff (L-R): Christopher Schmidt, Jacklyn Orlando, ‘Tosin’ Oluwatosin Akinya-Ojo, Marcella Grech, Ruth Cho, Marisol Nieves, Abby Fyfe, Hannah Reid-Anderson, Mihaela Gronski and Wayne Wheatley.

Graciel Cacnio – Project Officer – Orientation and Transition, Student Life
Michael Garganera – Educational Media Producer, Learning Innovation Hub
Michael Catabay – Educational Media Producer, Learning Innovation Hub

“Supporting the professional growth of over 180 volunteers in the Macquarie Mentors program was my highlight. It’s always a pleasure to see students achieve their goals and become more confident in themselves.” — Graciel

Tony Wai ­– Library Services Coordinator, Library
Prameeta Lingam­ – Library Services Officer
Laura Stroud ­–Library Services Officer
Kathryn Hill ­– Collections and Discovery Services Librarian

“A book chapter I co-authored on the topic of Lean Methodology in Library practices was published in ‘Global Lean for higher education’. We have a copy in the library (obviously!). Most importantly, I took 22 weeks off work being my newborn daughter’s primary carer and transitioned back to full time work smoothly.” — Tony

Josh Aldridge – Scientific Officer (Bio-Research Park), Department of Biological Sciences
Jacqui Delahunt – Administrator (Research Centre), Department of Biological Sciences
Maryam Yazdani – Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Biological Sciences

As a research-intensive university achieving increasing international recognition for research excellence, Macquarie has been successful in attracting the most eminent scholars from around the world to participate in the scheme, with physicist Sir Peter Knight and primatologist Dame Jane Goodall among past Visiting Fellows.

Next week Macquarie welcomes highly acclaimed Swedish-American historian Professor Fredrik Logevall to the Distinguished Visiting Fellow scheme. Professor Logevall is a Professor of International Affairs and History at Harvard University and won a Pulitzer Prize for History in 2013 for his book Embers of War: The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America’s Vietnam.

Staff will have the chance to hear from Professor Lovegall at a public lecture on campus on Wednesday 14 August, where he will be discussing the past, present, and future of American foreign policy.

America’s Role in the World

5.30-7pm
Wednesday 14 August
Level 3 Conference Rooms
18 Wally’s Walk
Register now

Dr Brian Cuddy, Lecturer in the Department of Security Studies and Criminology, says Professor Logevall’s visit is great opportunity for staff to engage with one of the world’s leading historians.

“Historians are pretty good at uncovering the myths and assumptions that drive debates over politics and policy, and at encouraging a more reflective conversation, and Fred is no exception,” Brian says. “He has a great ability to bring his audience with him, so the public lecture is well worth attending.”

As a Distinguished Visiting Fellow, Professor Logevall will be contributing to a variety of teaching, research and mentoring activities, including leading a workshop for HDR students and participating in a conference examining the significance and legacies of the Vietnam War in the Asia Pacific region.

How far in advance do preparations begin?
The preparations begin just over 12 months in advance of the event. Usually we would have infrastructure from past TEDx events however, we have had to start from scratch as the previous organisers left MQ a while ago. We have worked hard to ensure the next event is set from the ground up – we have documentation and minutes of all meetings and strategy. We will have clear hand-over procedures and a foundation for the next team to take over. This will help in ensuring the sustainability of the platform.

What is involved in securing the event at MQ?
Running an event at the cross-section of two big brands – MQ and TED – requires approval from a lot of different people. The other Director, Zeyad, and I began by pitching to MQ portfolios for sponsorship and funding. The response was immensely positive, and everyone collectively agreed that TEDx needed to happen at Macquarie. Once we had Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Sakkie Pretorius; Executive Director, Student Engagement and Registrar, Gail White; and the Student Representative Council behind us we were good to go.

The second phase involved getting a licence from TED to run our event. This is particularly difficult for a large event like ours. Luckily, we had support from our colleague Sheila Pham, who has run TEDx events around the world. After a few months of collaboration with TED in New York, we were granted a licence! And this meant we were all stations go go go!

How do you curate the speaker line up?
The best thing about TEDx is that it’s not a conference. It doesn’t matter how experienced or how old you are, what your profession is, or what discipline you come from. Once you strip a person from all these things you are left only with an idea and their capacity to tell a rich story. And that has been our approach to curation: focusing on the idea. As the lead curator, I have spent so much time attending events and meetings in different parts of the University, asking for recommendations for speakers, spending weekends at events. In one week, I was speaking to a high school student, former president of the Human Rights Commission Gillian Triggs, a well-known poet, and some members of Julia Gillard’s team!

Most of our speakers have been recommended by several people inside and outside of MQ. Once we had a huge pool of potential speakers, we spent many months from October last year to June this year narrowing down our powerful line-up. Though it was not easy, we are so happy with our line-up with even more to be announced. Every speaker is unique. No two topics are similar.

Being an “Idea Curator” has been one of the most transformative experiences I have ever had. I can now say with honesty that I have an open mind to ideas – because this process has forced that out of me.

What is your favourite part of the process?
My absolute favourite part of the process has been meeting, and learning from so many incredible people across Macquarie who I otherwise would never have met. It started with putting together a team, which now has around 20 people in it and will expand to around 80 by September. It’s been great to provide an opportunity for members of Macquarie who value community involvement, idea sharing, and leadership experience for those of us early in our careers. TEDx MQ brings together PhD candidates, PACE students, undergraduate students, staff and professional portfolios into one team dedicated to giving our community a chance to connect with the power of ideas. To me that is incredible!

If you want to see an ex-footballer that led a global movement to save a refugee in Thailand, or Sydney’s best pastry chef; or see what happens to our brains when we listen to music, or how artificial intelligence will change your visit to the doctor then come to TEDx Macquarie University.

The day has been filled with topics that will suit staff from across the University, both Professional and Academic and the ‘Fast Ideas’ component of the day will give the audience a chance to share their idea on the TEDx stage.

Check out the photo gallery from the last TEDx event held at Macquarie University

Journalist and Author Catherine Fox is the keynote speaker at next month’s Macquarie University Gender Equity Week Lecture on Monday 4 March. Her book Stop Fixing Women looks at why traditional approaches to improving gender equity in the workplace have been largely ineffective.

We sat down with Catherine and Jo Hatton – Manager of Workplace Diversity and Inclusion at Macquarie ­– to learn more about why many organisations like Macquarie are re-focusing their efforts on fixing the system, not the women within it.

Catherine, what motivated you to write Stop Fixing Women?

Catherine: Many organisations I was speaking to about gender inequality were saying “we really want to change this, but we can’t afford it” or “we’ve tried so many things and none of them worked”. Companies were wasting so much money and time on programs that just weren’t getting results and gender fatigue was setting in.

Other companies were treating gender equity a bit like a sheep dip ­– 15 minutes of unconscious bias training for managers, tick. CEOs of large companies would proudly tell me “Oh yes, we’re doing this and this and this” but then couldn’t tell me the actual outcomes.

This waste was incredibly frustrating for me to see. I hate waste of talent and time almost as much as I hate unfairness!  And of course, we’re talking about absolute economic fundamentals here. Allowing women to participate fully in the workforce and generate adequate retirement savings ­­– there’s larger economic impacts at stake.

So, I wanted to go away and take stock of the situation and see if there was anyone who was getting results by doing things a different way.

What do you think is impeding progress when it comes to the gender gap?

Catherine: A lot of organisational approaches have looked at supply, not demand. The thinking has been “we don’t have enough women”, or “women lack confidence and ambition”. We’ve then been using a cookie cutter approach to try to turn women into this idea of a ‘perfect’ employee, which is usually based on a stereotypical man.

This focus on fixing women’s ‘deficiencies’, rather than the underlying structural issues that throw up barriers for women, can actually have the opposite effect. It reinforces the stereotypes that cause the problem in the first place. For example, by running ‘Women in Leadership’ workshops, you’re reminding your workforce that women need to be taught a particular set of different skills, which often reinforces existing bias.

When, of course, everyone – both women AND men – can benefit from leadership training. So why not just ‘Leadership Workshops’?

So, what was working in the organisations you spoke to?

Catherine: There are several approaches that were having an effect, which I talk about in the book. Mostly it was CEOs who really understood there was bias woven through rules and practices and intervened to change them. They were improving recruitment or contracting criteria so that a mixture of men and women were on shortlists and interviewing panels, for example. Or using anonymous recruiting – removing candidates’ names in initial vetting processes. Or running gender pay gap audits.

Jo, our School of Engineering had great success with these kinds of recruitment strategies, as we reported in This Week last year. Are you seeing a shift in recruitment practices at Macquarie? How is the University tackling unconscious bias more broadly?

Jo: Our Workplace Gender Equity Strategy focuses on attracting, recruiting and retaining more academic women as a priority. Overall, we’re seeing more inclusive job advertisements and better targeting to reach a more diverse applicant pool. Inclusive recruitment tools and tips have been built into new training for hiring managers, and we’ve been piloting new initiatives to mitigate bias in our recruitment process, including anonymised recruitment.

Organisations spend vast amounts of money on unconscious bias training, which research shows doesn’t work. At Macquarie, our approach is to ‘fix the system’ – which means trying to identify the barriers inherent in our policies and systems where inequality/unfairness can creep in, and developing plans to address that potential for bias.

It can sometimes be difficult for organisations to engage all their employees with gender equity when some people view it as just a ‘women’s issue’. Why is important for men to be actively involved in improving gender equity?

Catherine:  CEOs who are on the front foot on gender equity often tell me they have battled with backlash and resistance. Some men, and some women too, are often quite reluctant to change. Nobody gives up power easily. But we can change and have done it before. Remember, a lot of people were reluctant about Occupational Health and Safety rules when they first came in, but look at the results. The benefits have been undeniable.

Ultimately, dismantling attitudes and systems that are based on gender stereotypes can only happen when the people who hold the power have these conversations and take action. And in many organisations, these people are still overwhelmingly men.

Jo: As Catherine mentioned, traditional gender stereotypes don’t benefit anyone – there are so many men and women who are disadvantaged by this narrow and exclusionary model, so it will support everyone if we collectively shape a more diverse and inclusive workplace at Macquarie.

We all have a part to play in creating this more inclusive workplace and our Executive Group all have a gender equity KPI, so they’ll be leading change in their faculties or portfolios, and reporting on progress each year.

There are also a growing number of faculty and department-level Diversity and Inclusion committees that we hope to formally recognise and support over the next 12 months. I encourage everyone at Macquarie to seek out one of these committees and get involved – and if there isn’t one in your area, maybe you could start one!

We invite everyone – whatever their gender identity – to come along to our Gender Equity Week events to learn, to get involved, and to hear more about how we are ‘fixing the system’ at Macquarie.

Register for Catherine Fox’s lecture, and other Gender Equity Week events, on the Gender Equity Week website.

Since the launch of our Workplace Gender Equity Strategy in 2017, the University’s focus on ‘fixing the system’ ­is having a real impact, and there are many success stories to share (you might remember our story Engineering emerges from the man cave last September).

Gender Equity Week is a chance for us all to reflect and celebrate progress against our gender equity goals, and continue (or start!) important conversations about how we can all make improvements to the way we work, so that we’re creating a more equitable culture at Macquarie – for everyone.

Check out the event highlights below and jump onto the Gender Equity Week event site to register for any events you’d like to attend.

Lectures and showcases

Gender Equity Week Lecture – Catherine Fox, author of Stop Fixing Women 

Monday 4 March, 1 – 2pm
Journalist and author Catherine Fox is one of Australia’s leading commentators on women and the workforce. Her book Stop Fixing Women explores how workplaces can improve gender equity by changing their systems, rather than the behaviour of women within them.

The Neuropsychology of Sex and Gender – Associate Professor Markus Hausmann (Durham University, UK)

Tuesday 5 March, 10.30am – 12pm
Are there innate differences in the cognitive abilities of men and women that might explain why women remain a minority in STEMM disciplines? A fascinating lecture exploring the facts and fictions of gender difference.

MQ Women Shaping the Future 

Wednesday 6 March, 1:30 – 3pm
Back by popular demand, this fast-paced event features ten exceptional female academics whose work is shaping the world in truly amazing ways. A highlight of last year’s Gender Equity Week, this inspiring and entertaining event is not to be missed.

Join the conversation

Macquarie University female sport scholars and leaders changing the landscape: An in-depth discussion on balance, performance and parity.

Thursday, 7 March, 10:30 – 11:30am
Join our specialist panel of Macquarie sport scholars, ambassadors, alumni and leaders who double as Olympians, professional athletes and international umpires as they explore the challenges and successes of #BalanceForBetter [this year’s International Women’s Day theme].

The Big Friday of Social Entrepreneurship: Women Who Change the World 

Friday, 8 March, 9am-12:30pm
Female social activists and entrepreneurs take the stage to discuss their journey towards becoming change makers, shed light on the power of women to make macro-level impact and share the inspiring story of their organisation.

>> Visit The Big Friday website to find out more and register for this session.

Help ‘fix the system’

The 4^th Macquarie University Gender Equity Summit 

Monday 4 March, 2.30 – 4.30pm
Bring your colleagues and join your fellow Macquarie staff as we come together to review our gender equity progress to date, share ideas and help shape the University’s next steps towards equity and inclusion for all.

Register for Gender Equity Week events.