The Royal Society of Tasmania

The advancement of knowledge

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Climate Disinformation: Strategies to Defeat Decades of Denial and Deceit

The Royal Society of Tasmania invites you to its November 2024 Public Lecture by guest speaker Dr. Mel Fitzpatrick. All RST members, their guests, and the public are welcome.

Please register your interest using this link.

Where: Geology Lecture Theatre, UTAS, Sandy Bay Campus on Sunday 3 November, 2024.

Time: 3.30pm for pre-lecture drinks, 4pm for the lecture.

Dr. Mel Fitzpatrick has been at the forefront of climate science, activism, and education since Australia’s commitment to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in 1992. Over the decades, Mel has witnessed firsthand how disinformation, denial, and deception have obstructed progress on climate action, both within Australia and globally.

In this talk, Mel will shed light on the key players behind these efforts, their tactics, and how we can better inoculate ourselves and others from the pervasive disinformation that threatens meaningful change.

Dr Mel Fitzpatrick

Dr Mel Fitzpatrick is a climate scientist and educator, who over the last two decades has concentrated on effective communication of climate science to both policymakers and the general public.

A specialist in polar and alpine research, Mel has worked for the Australian Antarctic Program, the US Antarctic Program, and in the Department of Earth and Space Sciences at the University of Washington in Seattle.

Mel was an expert reviewer for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, contributing to the reports in both 2001 and 2007, and also worked for six years at the Union of Concerned Scientists as part of a small team developing a series of climate impact reports used for outreach and education in coastal and mountain areas.

Mel now works in the education sector, contributes as a member of the City of Hobart’s Climate Futures Portfolio Committee and continues to be passionate about bridging science and policy.

View a recording of the lecture by Dr Tobias Stål – October 2024

This talk was part of the 2024 PhD Showcase held on 6 October 2024.

Dr Tobias Stål, winner of the 2023 RST Doctoral (PhD) Award, is a geophysicist focusing on understanding Antarctica’s deep and shallow structure and properties. He completed his PhD at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania in 2021. The focus of his PhD research was a study of the Antarctic lithosphere revealed by multivariate analysis.

The Antarctic continent, with an area of about 14 million km2, is larger than Australia; yet due to the ice cover and inaccessibility, its geology and lithospheric structure are to a large extent unknown. Advancing our understanding of the Antarctic continent addresses fundamental knowledge gaps in plate tectonics and understanding the interactions between the solid Earth and the cryosphere.

Dr Stål’s PhD research addressed challenging topics, such as the identification of sub-ice lithospheric boundaries, and the determination of a new geothermal heat flow model for the continent of Antarctica. The research was enabled by innovations in computational and statistical methodologies, including the development of a new software library to enable the multivariate approaches that were ground-breaking for Antarctica.

Since graduating, Dr Stål has taken up a Research Associate position in computation physics at the School of Natural Sciences, funded by the Australian Research Council’s Centre of Excellence in Antarctic Science.

View a recording of the lecture by Dr Katie Marx – October 2024

This talk was part of the 2024 PhD Showcase held on 6 October 2024.

Katie Marx is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the School of Humanities, College of Arts, Law and Education. Her doctoral research focused on the concept of place attachment in Hobart, an Antarctic gateway city. From this, she has built an interest in exploring how we can support members of the public to form a meaningful relationship with remote places (such as Antarctica) that they themselves may never visit. Katie has a professional background in community development; a skillset that she draws upon when examining methods for increasing public participation in the conservation of the polar regions.

Along with Professor Elizabeth Leane, Katie is the current co-lead of the Public Engagement with Antarctic Research Action Group within the international Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research. She has tutored in a range of subjects, including environmental communication and marine and Antarctic governance, and she tends to spend her summers working as a historian and guide with tour operators on the Antarctic peninsula.

In the face of mounting environmental and political challenges, it is more important than ever for members of the public to understand and care about Antarctica. Little is known, however, about the types of strategies that work (or don’t work) when it comes to engaging the public in Antarctic matters. In this talk, Dr Katie Marx shares the findings from her PhD research, which used Hobart as a case study to explore what the Antarctic sector can do to support community members to develop a stronger relationship with the far south.

View a recording of the lecture by Dr Matthew Cracknell – Sep 2024

Dr Matthew Cracknell is a Senior Lecturer in Geodata Analytics for the Discipline of Earth Sciences and the Centre for Ore Deposit and Earth Sciences (CODES) at UTas. Prior to his current position, he held many short-term research and teaching positions at CODES, the Antarctic Climate & Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre (ACE CRC) and the School of Humanities, University of Tasmania. He also currently leads the CODES Research Program for Geophysics and computational geosciences.

Matthew received a BSc (Hons) in geophysics in 2009 and a PhD in Computational Geophysics in 2014, both from UTas. Before entering academia he was employed as a consultant geoscientist and GIS analyst for a variety of public and private bodies.

Call for Nominations for the 2024 RST Doctoral (PhD) Awards

Nominations for the annual RST Doctoral Awards open on 1 October 2024. Two awards are offered for recent PhD graduates who have made significant advances in the course of their doctoral research. The two Doctoral Awards are open for nominations from any discipline field.

The value of each award is $1,000 (AUD). Awardees may be invited to present a lecture to the Society.

Conditions of the Doctoral Awards

The awards shall be made to nominees who are no more than three years, or three years equivalent-full-time, after their PhD graduation.

The awards are intended to recognise significant advances based on the PhD research, as shown by published or in press peer-reviewed papers in national/international journals or equivalent outputs in fields where publications are not the norm.

The research should have been largely carried out in Tasmania or under the aegis of a Tasmanian-based organization.

Nominations may be made by anyone, although no self-nominations will be accepted.

Nominations must be received before COB, 15 November 2024.

Nomination guidelines are given at https://rst.org.au/guidelines-for-annual-doctoral-awards/.

Information on previous winners of the RST Doctoral Award is available at https://rst.org.au/awards/past-recipients/.

A flyer for the 2024 Doctoral awards is available via this link.

Richard Coleman, on behalf of the RST Honours and Awards Committee.

Vale Professor David Headley Green AM FAA FRS, 1936 – 2024

Professor David Green died on 6 September 2024 in Hobart. He was a long-term member of the RST and was awarded the RM Johnston Memorial Medal in 2016. Professor Green’s career in geology (igneous petrology) was truly remarkable for the breadth and significance of his research and achievements, especially his contributions to understanding the formation of magmas deep in the Earth through a radically innovative experimental approach.

Professor David Green receiving the RM Johnston Memorial Medal from Professor Matt King, RST President, in 2016. Photo courtesy of Mary Koolhof.

Professor Green was born on 29 February 1936 (a leap year), in Launceston and awarded BSc Hons (1957) and MSc (1960) degrees by the University of Tasmania (UTAS), followed by a PhD at Cambridge University (1962). For the next fifteen years, he pursued an academic research career at The Australian National University (ANU), returning to the University of Tasmania in 1977 as Professor and Head of Geology. In 1994, he was appointed Director of the Research School of Earth Sciences at ANU, a position he held until retiring in 2001. Professor Green remained actively involved in research for another two decades in his Honorary capacity at both UTAS and ANU.

Professor Green’s achievements have been recognised by numerous national and international awards, including the most competitive and prestigious awards available to geologists: Fellow, Australian Academy of Science (AAS, 1967), FL Stillwell Medal of the Geological Society of Australia (1977), Mawson Medal of the AAS (1982), Honorary Foreign Fellow of the European Union of Geosciences (1985), Honorary Foreign Fellow of the Geological Society of America (1986), Jaeger Medal of the AAS (1990), Fellow of The Royal Society London (1991), Murchison Medal of the Geological Society of London (2000), Humboldt Research Prize of the Humboldt Foundation Germany (2001), Honorary Fellow of the Mineralogical Society of London (2001), Honorary Fellow of the American Geophysical Union (2001), Member of the Order of Australia (2006), and the International Gold Medal of the Geological Society of Japan (2007).

Professor Green served on numerous professional and government committees and advisory bodies, including the Australian Research Council, Australian Science and Technology Council, and the Geological Society of Australia. He held the position of Chief Science Adviser for the Federal Government and was the Chair of the National Greenhouse Scientific Advisory Committee.

In addition to a vast network of local, national and international professional colleagues and friends, Professor Green and his wife Helen Green had six children, seventeen grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Professor Green’s scholarship, wisdom, curiosity and patience will be missed by all who had the privilege of knowing him.

Jocelyn McPhie
2 October 2024

The 2024 PhD Showcase

Join us for an exciting PhD Showcase, where emerging experts will present their research and innovative ideas. This event highlights the work of future leaders in academia, offering cutting-edge insights into a wide range of fields. All RST members, their guests, and the public are welcome.

Where: Geology Lecture Theatre, UTAS, Sandy Bay Campus on Sunday 6 October 2024.

Time: 3.30pm for pre-lecture drinks, 4pm for the lecture.

To assist with organization, please use this link to ensure a seat.

Our 2023 PhD medallist, Dr Tobias Stål will start proceedings and be followed by postdoctoral Antarctic scholar, Dr Katie Marx, discuss her current research projects.

Dr Tobias Stål – Deep Antarctica-Exploring Earth Under the Ice

Tobias Stål is a geophysicist with backgrounds in geology, art, and engineering. He is currently a research fellow at the Australian Centre for Excellence in Antarctic Science at the University of Tasmania. He focuses on innovative approaches to understanding our planet using computational methods and information theory.

Dr Tobias Stål

Artificial Intelligence for society and science – why should you care?

The Royal Society of Tasmania invites you to its September 2024 Public Lecture by guest speaker Dr Matthew Cracknell. All RST members, their guests, and the public are welcome.

Where: Geology Lecture Theatre, UTAS, Sandy Bay Campus on Sunday 1 September, 2024 for the talk.

Time: 3.30pm for pre-lecture drinks, 4pm for the lecture.

Join us for an enlightening journey into the world of Artificial Intelligence, where innovation meets possibility. As Artificial Intelligence (AI) rapidly transforms industries, from healthcare to finance, and even creative arts, understanding its potential is more critical than ever. This talk will explore how AI is reshaping our world, driving progress, and challenging us to think differently about the future. Dr Matthew Cracknell aims to shed light on the profound impact of AI on both society and the scientific community. As AI continues to advance at an unprecedented pace, understanding its implications becomes increasingly crucial.

Don’t miss this opportunity to dive into the cutting-edge of technology and discover the advancements and ethical considerations surrounding AI and our world. Click here to register.

Dr Matthew Cracknell is a Senior Lecturer in Geodata Analytics for the Discipline of Earth Sciences and the Centre for Ore Deposit and Earth Sciences (CODES) at UTas. Prior to his current position, he held many short-term research and teaching positions at CODES, the Antarctic Climate & Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre (ACE CRC) and the School of Humanities, University of Tasmania. He also currently leads the CODES Research Program for Geophysics and computational geosciences.

Dr Matthew Cracknell

Matthew received a BSc (Hons) in geophysics in 2009 and a PhD in Computational Geophysics in 2014, both from UTas. Before entering academia he was employed as a consultant geoscientist and GIS analyst for a variety of public and private bodies.

50 years of the Aboriginal movement in Lutruwita (Tasmania) and some reflections on the next 50 years

The Royal Society of Tasmania invites you to its August 2024 Public Lecture by guest speaker Heather Sculthorpe, CEO of the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre. All RST members, their guests, and the public are welcome.

Where: Piyura kitina/Risdon Cove Aboriginal Land on Sunday 4 August, 2024 for the talk.

The event begins at 3.30pm with refreshments and an introduction to piyura kitina.

piyura kitina
Risdon Cove Aboriginal Land.

The talk by Heather Sculthorpe, CEO of the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre, will begin at 4:00pm..

Heather Sculthorpe,
CEO of the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre.

Heather Sculthorpe is the outgoing long-term CEO of the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre (TAC). She has an Arts degree and an Honours degree in Law from the University of Tasmania; a graduate Diploma of Environmental Management and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. She has been involved in the campaigns of the TAC since the 1970s and has unique perspectives on the challenges facing the organisation and community today.

Nominations open for The Royal Society of Tasmania Medals on offer in 2024

The Louisa Anne Meredith Medal and The Peter Smith Medal

The Louisa Anne Meredith Medal is awarded every four years to a person who excels in the field of arts or humanities or both, with outstanding contributions evidenced by creative outputs. The medal honours Louisa Anne Meredith’s contributions to the areas of natural history art, scientific art, literature, history and to The Royal Society of Tasmania. The medal will be awarded in 2024 for the first time having been established by the Society in August 2023.

The awardee receives a medal and will be invited to deliver the “Louisa Anne Meredith Lecture”.

Louisa Anne Meredith (née Twamley) was a remarkable woman, a prolific artist, writer and social commentator. She was the first woman to be granted Honorary membership of The Royal Society of Tasmania in 1881. The RST has a large number of her sketches and watercolours in its Art Collection, as well as a number of her books in its Library.

Meredith contributed a great deal to the work of The Royal Society of Tasmania. Over several decades, she sent interesting specimens to the Royal Society Museum and presented beautiful and accurate watercolours of many specimens to the RST. These artworks were much admired at Society meetings as being ‘beautifully executed’. The Royal Society of Tasmania also purchased a number of her illustrations at the time.

Further details and nomination guidelines for the Louisa Anne Meredith medal are at this link.

The Peter Smith Medal is awarded biennially to an outstanding early career researcher in any field. The awardee receives a medal and will be invited to deliver “The Peter Smith Lecture” to the Society.

For the purpose of the medal, “early career” means within the first seven years since the award of a PhD, at the time of the nomination deadline. Extensions to the seven years post-PhD eligibility requirement will be offered to applicants whose career has been interrupted to accommodate carer responsibilities, illness or other circumstances.

Further details and nomination guidelines for the Peter Smith medal are available at this link.

Nominations for these medals open on 30 June, 2024.

Further conditions of these medals are:
• Nominations may be made by anyone, although self-nominations are not accepted.
• Nominations must be received by cob on 31 August, 2024.

All nominations should be submitted by email as a single pdf file to the Honorary Secretary of the Society at admin@rst.org.au by the due date given above. Please give the name of the medal in the subject line.

Guidelines for medal nominations are available at https://rst.org.au/guide-for-medal-nominations/.

Information on the previous winners of the RST medals is available at https://rst.org.au/awards/past-recipients/.