Image: AFR 2023

We are thrilled to announce that our ANU Vice-Chancellor, Professor Brian Schmidt, the only Nobel Laureate to head an Australian university, has been awarded the 2023 AFR Education Lifetime Achievement Award for his singular contribution to research and higher education.

Dr Gemma King’s project ‘Sign on Screen: Language, Culture and Power in Sign Language Cinema’ is the recipient of Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) funding from the Australian Research Council (ARC). 

The project aims to discover how contemporary screens represent deafness and how sign language cinema filters Deaf and non-ableist perspectives. For this project, Dr King has partnered with Deaf Connect, which is an Australian Deaf organisation, and the National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA) where a Sign Language Film Festival will be held in 2025. 

“The project looks at the evolution of representation of sign languages in film and television. We are currently in this revolution where more Deaf-led filmmaking is happening than ever before. We are starting to see different ways of thinking about deafness and the portrayal of sign language as an asset,” Dr King said. 

“However, I am aware of the limits of my own perspective as a hearing person and that I will never fully understand what it’s like to be Deaf.” 

The aim of the project includes establishing Australia as a hub for research and collaboration on sign language in film and television, enhancing Deaf representation and building Deaf capacity in line with Deaf Connect's research policy ‘Nothing about Deaf people without Deaf people’, and generating the world’s first transnational corpus of sign language films and series for academic and public use. 

A new program funded by the National Foundation for Australia-China Relations (NFACR) and delivered by the Australian Studies Institute at The Australian National University (ANU) will build closer people-to-people ties between Australia and China. 

The prestigious three-day intensive study tour in November 2023 will bring to the capital selected Chinese students already studying in Australian universities, giving them unique access to the great institutions of state including the High Court of Australia, Federal Parliament, the Museum of Australian Democracy, the National Museum, and the National Press Club. 

Called the Stephen FitzGerald Scholars Program in honour of Australia's first ambassador to Beijing (then known as Peking) this initiative has been funded through a grant of $350,000 from NFACR. 

Academic convenor, Professor Mark Kenny, said it was a "visionary idea" and represented a vote of confidence in the vast and long-running relationship between the peoples of the two nations. 

Friday 25 August, 7-9pm  

We invite you to join us for our Annual Wear it Purple Day movie screening, hosted by our ANU LGBTQIA+ Alumni Network in partnership with the ANU Film Group. 

Lighting up our big screen at Kambri on Friday 25 August is the film Spoiler Alert. Based on the true-life story and memoir of TV journalist Michael Ausiello and his relationship with Kit Cowan, this film will bring you into a world of romance and emotion. 

Intertwined with the lived reality of relationships, an ample sprinkling of awkwardness and raw emotion, this movie is a special treat for this year's Wear it Purple Day as we celebrate the 2023 theme, "Write your Story." 

All are welcome so please feel free to bring a friend, family or colleague. Registration is free for this event. 

As we celebrate Wear it Purple Day, we hope to see you this August in your favourite shades of purple.  

Doors open at 7pm. The film will start at 7.30pm. 

Thursday 24 August – Friday 25 August, 10-8.30pm 

Sound, Image, Text brings together a range of art historians, musicologists and literary scholars to speak on Jean-Benjamin de Laborde’s long-forgotten illustrated songbook Choix de Chansons (1773) and other related topics. 

Register now 

Friday 25 August, 4.30-6.30pm 

Come all to celebrate youth and diversity within our LGBTQIA+ communities on the annual Wear It Purple Day. The ANU Ally Network invites you to a Courtyard Party filled with keynote speakers and performances, local services activities, queer-led small business markets, and food and drinks enjoyed among the sunset fairy lights. 

Register now

Tuesday 29 August, 2-5.30pm

A workshop with experts and practitioners to identify priorities and challenges faced by case management service providers for victims of domestic, family and sexual violence, and sex trafficking.

Register now  

Tuesday 29 August, 5.30-8.30pm

Hosted by the ANU Research School of Economics, Michele Bullock, Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), will discuss the RBA’s work on climate change and the transition to net zero emissions. Michele has been appointed as Governor of the RBA, commencing 18 September. 

Register now  

Wednesday 30 August, 6-7.30pm 

Join Professor Matt Tomlinson from the ANU College of Asia and the Pacific as he examines the different meanings of monologue and dialogue and the ways they are related in political and religious speech. 

Register now

Tuesday 5 September, 10.30am-1pm 

Universities have a rich history of collecting nationally and internationally significant cultural and scientific materials from around the world. These collections allow for complex, multidisciplinary research, teaching and engagement with community, and also present a tangible connection to the University’s research legacy. Come hear the panel, featuring expert voices from the University of Glasgow Hunterian Museum and ANU, discuss how the university sector can drive developments in collections and research. 

Register now

Tuesday 5 September, 5.30-7pm 

Author Thomas Parks will discuss his new book – Southeast Asia’s Multipolar Future: Averting a New Cold War. This discussion will be moderated by Associate Professor Mathew Davies. 

Register now 

Tuesday 5 September, 6-7pm

Sam Roggeveen will be in conversation with Rory Medcalf on his new book The Echidna Strategy: Australia's Search for Power and Peace.

Register now

Racism and discrimination on campus 

The ANU community is inclusive, open and respectful. We are committed to creating a learning and working community that is free from racial discrimination, harassment, and vilification.  

 "We are stronger because of our diversity"

Our diverse community of students and staff makes us who we are. We are stronger because of our diversity. The many different cultures and backgrounds that make up our community bring a richness that The University prides itself on. 

Racism, discrimination, bigotry, intolerance, and harassment or vilification of any kind are not acceptable behaviours within our community. 

If you have experienced, or witnessed, an incident of racism or discrimination, we encourage you to submit a complaint of racism or discrimination. For more information on how to do this, please visit the Submitting a complaint of racism or discrimination webpage. All submissions are treated with care and confidentiality. 

Discrimination of any kind will be met with decisive action. 

If you need to speak with someone about an incident of racism or discrimination at The University, or feel like you need further support in making a complaint, please don’t hesitate to reach out to one of the below services and teams; 

The Dean of Students 

ANU Students Association (ANUSA) 

ANUSA BIPOC Department 

Student Safety and Wellbeing 

ANU Counselling 

The Australian National University is a proud signatory of the Australian Human Rights Commission Racism. It Stops With Me. campaign. 

To learn more about the campaign, and to access further resources and information, please visit the Racism. It Stops With Me webpage. 

Don't miss your chance to complete the Student Experience Survey

Calling all students - it’s the final week of the Student Experience Survey (SES).

Don’t miss your chance to share your experience as an ANU student. Your answers are used to shape the future of higher education.

Complete the survey now

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Is social media impacting your sleep and mental health?

Have you used social media for more than one year?

Are you aged between 18 and 30 years old?

If you answered yes to these questions - keep reading!

The National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health (NCEPH) is looking for young adult social media users to fill out a baseline and three follow-up online surveys to assess the association between social media use, sleep and mental health. 

The gap between each survey is three months. You can fill out the surveys using your own devices, when it is convenient. Each survey should take 20-30 minutes. 

For questions, please contact oli.ahmed@anu.edu.au.

Complete the survey now

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Student Giveaway   

Meet the Author – Melissa Castan and Lynette Russell

We have a special giveaway for the Meet the Author with Melissa Castan and Lynette Russell on Wednesday 30 August. You can win a copy of their new book, Time to Listen. An Indigenous Voice to Parliament, and be one of the first in line to have it signed at the event.    

Two copies of their book are up for grabs for ANU students (any program level) to win. Follow the instructions in the entry form to go into the draw and you could be one of the lucky winners!    

Competition closes at noon AEDT on Friday 25 August. Terms and conditions apply.

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Student Giveaway   

Meet the Author – Sam Roggeveen

We have a special giveaway for the Meet the Author with Sam Roggeveenon on Tuesday 5 September. You can win a copy of his new book, The Echidna Strategy: Australia's Search for Power and Peace, and be one of the first in line to have it signed at the event.    

Two copies of Sam's book are up for grabs for ANU students (any program level) to win. Follow the instructions in the entry form to go into the draw and you could be one of the lucky winners!    

Competition closes at noon AEDT on Tuesday 29 August. Terms and conditions apply.

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Brush up your Library Research Skills for Semester 2 

Get a jump start on your research and study skills by attending a Library Research Skills 101 session in August. With all the information out there, finding where to start can be overwhelming. Come along and learn the skills you need to find the best possible resources as quickly as possible. 

Choose from one of two upcoming sessions: 

Wednesday 23 August, 5pm

Wednesday 30 August, 10am 

Sign up now

Saturday 9 September, 7-9pm  

Songs for Freedom is an inspiring concert bringing you soul, blues, and unique country music, created by artists in the Ieramugadu community (Roebourne, WA) and beyond. Together with guests from around this country, Songs for Freedom tells stories of the vast and striking beauty of this place and its people. 

Guided by Ngarluma and Yinjibarndi Elders, and an inter-cultural band including Shellie Morris, Kankawa Nagarra, Fred Ryan and John Bennet, Songs for Freedom joins these friends and other musicians in paying tribute to the family of John Pat in the 40th anniversary year of his passing in custody. Musical direction is provided by Grammy Award winner Lucky Oceans, with a powerful narration by Ngarluma man, Patrick Churnside. 

Songs for Freedom is the tangible manifestation of a project that has been running since 2010. Supported by Elders, the project has delivered workshops in the community, the school, and the prison, creating digital content, music, theatre and performance to create a positive change in Ieramugadu and beyond. 

We welcome everyone to this is family-friendly concert experience, that will fill your night with hope, peace, and freedom. 

We acknowledge and respect the Ngunnawal people, their ancestors and Elders, past and present, the traditional custodians of the land on which the Australian National University is situated. We are committed to honouring First Nations Peoples’ unique cultural and spiritual relationships to the land, waters and seas and their rich contribution to society.
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