News – Page 8

The Tamar/kanamaluka: 200 plus Years of Mud and Misunderstanding

The Northern Branch of the Royal Society of Tasmania, invites you to a public lecture by Dr Ian Kidd, at 1.30pm on Sunday 24 September 2023. The lecture will be held in the Meeting Room, QVMAG, Inveresk, Launceston.

Admission is free for members of the Royal Society of Tasmania. General admission – $6. Students, QVMAG or TMAG Friends, and members of the Launceston Historical Society – $4. Full Covid vaccination and the wearing of face masks are highly desirable.

Abstract

For many years since European settlement, the Tamar/kanamaluka has been seen as a unique system and management decisions were based on riverine science with dire consequences for estuarine health and sedimentation. Poor decision making and the paucity of knowledge/science continued into this century in what must surely be a classic Dunning-Kruger scenario. With hysteresis now clearly evident, remediation requires a greater understanding to that which created the present state. Solutions to provide such remediation will be presented.

Historic photo of Trevallyn from Royal Park.

Dr Ian Kidd graduated from UTas (1980) with a BSc in physics. He worked in various roles from tutoring, the public service, to building, before completing a Graduate Diploma of Computing. He spent 20 years in the computer industry before assisting Prof Jenny Davis with research into the Tamar/kanamaluka. That assistance became an obsession and Ian completed a PhD on the topic of the Tamar estuary in 2017.

Making it ‘Real’: Geological Visualisation Methods for Research, Education and Public Outreach

The Northern Branch of the Royal Society of Tasmania, in conjunction with the Tasmanian Branch of the Geological Society of Australia, invites you to a public lecture by Dr Michael Roach, at 1.30pm on Sunday 10 September 2023. The lecture will be held in the Meeting Room, QVMAG, Inveresk, Launceston.

Methods for generation of geometrically correct, three-dimensional, photorealistic, virtual models have developed rapidly in the last decade. These techniques are applicable at a wide range of scales and are very suitable for digitising both natural geological exposures and geological specimens. This presentation will outline methods for generation of 3D digital models and will showcase selected models from around Australia drawn from the AusGeol virtual library. The use of these 3D models, virtual tours, and new analysis software will be showcased for applications in geological education, geological research and public outreach.

Dr Michael Roach

Dr Michael Roach is a geophysicist and long term staff member in the discipline of Earth Sciences and CODES at the University of Tasmania. About 10 years ago Michael saw the potential for the application of emerging digital visualisation methods for geological education and research. Since then, he has pioneered the application of these techniques for teaching, research projects and public outreach.

Waste Management and Resource Recovery in Launceston: The Carbon Story

The Northern Branch of the Royal Society of Tasmania invites you to a public lecture by Michael Attard, at 1.30pm on Sunday 27 August 2023. The lecture will be held in the Meeting Room, QVMAG, Inveresk, Launceston.

The City of Launceston owns and manages the second largest regional landfill in Tasmania. Recycling and reuse are major Council priorities to reduce the impact on the environment and operational costs This supports a circular approach to the purchase, use and reuse of materials. The presentation will explain how the Council goes about diverting valuable materials away from landfill through recovery projects.

Michael Attard is the Team Leader for Sustainability at the City of Launceston. He is a waste and recovery professional working with the City of Launceston for the past seven years to lead and deliver sustainability outcomes for the organisation. He has a science background and has previously worked in diverse roles such as abalone hatchery manager, parasitology for Atlantic salmon, and ecosystem health assessment for Kanamaluka the Tamar Estuary.

View a recording of the lecture by Michael Mansell – July 2023

The lecture will centre around the debate about Aboriginal self-determination, giving Aboriginal people direct decision making as opposed to Aboriginal subordination (advising others to make decisions about us).

Michael Mansell is a Tasmanian Aboriginal leader who, as an activist and lawyer, has worked for social, political and legal changes to improve the lives and social standing of Tasmanian Aboriginal people.

View a recording of the Mid-Winter Dinner lecture by Dr Shasta Henry – June 2023

Our guest speaker, Dr Shasta Henry was the previous Royal Society of Tasmania Student Councillor and science communicator for Melbourne based think-tank, Future Crunch.

Shasta gave us a future’s perspective that will explore the Adaptability Quotient, the new IQ, which is the trait that makes humans better than robots. AQ is the measure of how skilled individuals are in making intentional change in an environment that is evolving at speed. According to the Harvard Business Review, it is the new competitive advantage.

Future Crunch are a team of unlike minds, a collection of different specialists, who are united by their mission to foster intelligent optimism. Future Crunch have shared their inspiring key-note presentations to the staff and boards of global banks, universities, software developers and community organisations to name just a few. Their fact-based talks highlight how humans fit into a future of exponentially expanding technologies, and how we are uniquely adapted to carry on thriving.

Shasta is a recent graduate from the University of Tasmania. She is an entomologist and science communicator. Her doctorate focused on the long-term impacts of fire on the invertebrates of the Wilderness World Heritage Area as well as insect taxonomy. As a communicator, Shasta has presented in a number of different forums around Australia, including speaking as a Young Tassie Scientist, on ABC radio and at the TEDx Hobart 2022 conference.

Rodney Gibbins named Tasmanian Aborigine of the Year

At the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre’s flag-raising event on Monday 3 July, the first day of NAIDOC Week 2023, Rodney Gibbins was named Tasmanian Aborigine of the Year. This award is intended to recognise Aboriginal individuals who make outstanding contributions to improving the lives of members of the Tasmanian Aboriginal community.

Rodney Gibbins was recognised for his selfless and unwavering dedication to advance the negotiations for Treaty by means of an Aboriginal-led process. At the same time, Rodney has been advocating for Truth Telling as the essential context for achieving Aboriginal rights and recognition.

Rodney has generously given his time and experience to support these causes, both within and outside the Aboriginal community. He is also committed to developing the understanding of younger members of the Tasmanian Aboriginal community so they can reach their full potential and gain confidence in their own abilities and skills.

Rodney’s connection with the RST began in February 2021 when, together with Michael Mansell, he spoke on behalf of the Tasmanian Aboriginal community at the paired RST-TMAG Apology to Tasmanian Aboriginal people.

Rodney Gibbins responding to
the paired RST-TMAG Apology
to Tasmanian Aboriginal people,
February 2021.

The text of Rodney’s speech was published in the Papers and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmanian December 2022 issue (Volume 156).

Rodney delivered an RST lecture in December 2022 entitled “Truth-telling and treaty as it relates to Tasmania now” (click here to view).

Rodney Gibbins giving the
December 2022 RST Lecture.

Congratulations Rodney!

2023 Voice Referendum – Referendum Road: An exploration of the Voice to Parliament – how we got here and what we might expect after the referendum?

The Royal Society of Tasmania invites you to a lecture by senior member of the Tasmanian Palawa community, Kerry Sculthorpe, at 3pm on Sunday 30 July 2023. The lecture will be held at the Stanley Burbury Lecture Theatre, University of Tasmania, Sandy Bay, Hobart.

To attend in person, please register using this Eventbrite link. Eventbrite registrations close at 3pm on Saturday 29 July.

To view the livestream, please register using this Zoom link.

Admission is free, and everyone is welcome to attend.

The presentation will reflect on some of the key moments which preceded the Uluru Statement and offer insights into the wider context in which it was formulated. It will advance some ideas about what a Voice might look like and how it might operate. It will offer a personal view of the consequences of a ‘yes’ and a ‘no’ win in the referendum.

Kerry Sculthorpe is a senior member of the Palawa community. Her involvement in community affairs has spanned more than forty years. She has experience in policy and administration. Kerry has held elected and appointed positions at the community level and has been a strong advocate for Aboriginal rights. She is a former senior executive of the Australian Public Service and more recently has served on the government’s Voice co-design committee considering local and regional arrangements. In her retirement Kerry tries to get her opinions on Aboriginal issues published in the newspapers.

RST member, Dr Keith Corbett, awarded an OAM in the 2023 King’s Birthday Honours

Congratulations to RST member, Dr Keith Corbett on being awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in the King’s Birthday Honours announced on 12 June.

Dr Keith Corbett OAM enjoying Tasmanian dolerite.
Picture: Chris Kidd.

Keith’s passion for geology, conservation and wild Tasmanian places has lasted a lifetime, during which he has contributed relentlessly to promoting and caring for Tasmania’s natural environment. Keith’s wife, Elizabeth Bothwell Corbett, was also awarded an OAM for service to conservation and the environment.

View a recording of the lecture by Prof. Jocelyn McPhie – March 2023

The 2007 eruption of Piton de la Fournaise on Reunion Island was one of the largest for the past two centuries and remarkably complex, involving multiple events at different locations and contrasting eruption styles. Nevertheless, analysis of the eruption records and the products has revealed spatial and temporal connections among the different events and styles that were fundamentally controlled by the magma supply.

Jocelyn McPhie is a volcanologist and for most of her career (1990 to 2015), she held an academic position at the University of Tasmania. Since retiring from the university, she has been consulting to the minerals industry, providing technical advice and professional training in volcanology. She maintains an adjunct position with the University of Tasmania, continuing to supervise PhD students and to participate in research projects. She became a member of the Royal Society of Tasmania in 2020 and President in 2022.

Nominations now open for the RST 2023 RM Johnston Memorial Medal and the MR Banks Medal

The Royal Society of Tasmania is the oldest scholarly society in Australia and New Zealand and its mission is the advancement of knowledge.

The RM Johnston Memorial Medal was established in 1920 by the Royal Society of Tasmania, with the first award being presented in 1923. It is intended to acknowledge a scholar of great distinction in any field within the Society’s purview. The Medal commemorates Robert M. Johnston who served as Vice-President of the Society from 1897 to 1911 and 1916 – 1917. The awardee may be invited to deliver the “RM Johnston Memorial Lecture”.

In 1997, the Royal Society of Tasmania instituted the MR Banks Medal, to be awarded biennially to an outstanding mid-career scholar in any field within the Society’s purview. The medal honours Dr Maxwell R Banks’ contributions to science and to the Royal Society of Tasmania. The awardee may be invited to deliver the “MR Banks Lecture”.

Nominations for these medals are now open:

Nominations may be made by anyone, although no self-nominations will be accepted.
Nominations must be received by cob on 31 August, 2023.

Further guidelines for medal nominations are available via this link.