It all began with a simple question: “How can I do what I love and achieve professional fulfilment?”
This is what led Queensland College of Art and Design (QCAD) alumnus and sessional lecturer Aurelie Maron to build a thriving community and a highly successful creative design business.
Originally from New Caledonia, Ms Maron started her studies elsewhere before realising design was where her future would lie, and began her journey with Griffith University.
It was once she had started her course that Ms Maron discovered and fell in love with the art of typography.
“I’ve always been passionate about lettering,” she said.
“There is so much meaning that can be conveyed through lettering – it moves beyond just words to set a mood or tone and can add many layers to the story or text you’re reading.”
Such has been her success that Ms Maron was invited to give the keynote address at the recent ATypI international typography conference, hosted in Australia for the first time in its 67-year history.
Aurelie Maron
Rounding out the lineup of almost 70 speakers, Ms Maron spoke about how her lifelong love for drawing and a dedication to mastering the art of typography helped her build a thriving community and fulfilling career.
Not only has she built her own business, she also aims to inspire and empower fellow designers, typographers and type enthusiasts to explore their creative passions.
With an Instagram following of more than 170,000, Ms Maron said there was a world of opportunity when it comes to building a career in the creative industries.
“In designing fonts and hand lettering, I feel there are so many possibilities and we will never run out of new ideas,” she said.
“There will always be the chance to create something new.
“Studying design at QCAD gave me everything I needed, all in one place, including not just theory and practical knowledge about design, but also the human aspect of meeting people and working in a real work environment.
“I’ve made connections I will cherish forever and am still in contact with all my friends, students and teachers and still often collaborate with them.
“It was just the best campus and had the best teachers and I learned so much there.”
A Griffith University report shows China has been dominating global trade in electric vehicles (EV), lithium-ion batteries and solar photovoltaic (PV) as the developed world transitions away from fossil-based systems of energy production.
Griffith Asia Institute Director and co-author Professor Christoph Nedopil.
Griffith Asia Institute Director and co-author Professor Christoph Nedopil said the report is a critical contribution to addressing growing concern about international trade and overcapacity.
“China leads global manufacturing capabilities against a growing global demand for energy generation, energy storage and electric vehicles,” Professor Nedopil said.
“China’s lithium battery exports rose by 27.8 per cent in one year and reached USD $65 billion and the US are currently the main importer of Chinese lithium batteries.
“Prices for solar panels have fallen considerably in one year causing a decline in the monetary value of exports raising concern for oversupply issues.
Griffith Asia Institute Research Fellow and co-author Dr Jing Zhang.
“China’s Solar PV exports amount to around 220 gigawatts of energy generation capacity which rose swiftly from 164 gigawatts in 2022.”
Griffith Asia Institute Research Fellow and co-author Dr Jing Zhang said rapid innovation, daring business models and government support have led to the growth and development of new energy vehicle manufacturing in China.
“Reaching 1,545,832 units, China’s electric vehicle exports surged in 2023, marking a 64 per cent increase from 2022,” Dr Zhang said.
“Chinese company BYD Auto overtook Tesla as the leading producer of new energy vehicles and are aiming to produce over 5 million vehicles per year.
“Europe imports the largest share of EVs from China and the export of EVs to European counties increased from 12.55 million in 2017 to 19.20 billion in 2023 – a 1500-fold increase.”
Griffith University’s sports science students are taking their knowledge and skills abroad to elevate the education, training and performance of Pacific Island athletes.
Students stepped up to deliver their own gym and field-based exercise sessions to a range of ages and abilities.
Dr Roberts said students were yearning for more opportunities to experience life outside of Australia during their study, but financial insecurity and fears around stalling study credit became barriers.
“This NCP initiative allows the students an opportunity to receive credit whilst consuming unique experiences, put their skills to the test, embed themselves in local international cultures and know they are still furthering their degree,” he said.
Students were encouraged to present their own information sessions around public health to the community.
“With this opportunity, we’ve addressed those finance and credit concerns by capitalising on our existing connections and the activity produced through the GAPS program.”
An extension of Griffith’s highly successful GAPS program, the placement saw students design and deliver their own programs, gaining exposure and opportunities to support gym sessions, field sessions, warmups and running sessions.
Dr Garret said whilst some placements tended to be more observational, this experience was “very hands on.”
“It puts students outside of their comfort zone because it’s a unique environment, they really do have to step up, showcase their skills and take on the role of lead practitioners,” he said.
Student supervisor and Bachelor of Exercise Science student Hannah Walker said working with the Cook Islands’ under 18’s National Netball squad was a stand-out experience.
Students said the opportunity to partake in “unique experiences outside of your standard placement sites is incredible.”
“We were working with a range of ages, from 13-18 years, in this national squad and the athletes weren’t super familiar with conditioning sessions like the one we delivered,” she said.
Miss Walker said their work with the National netball team not only equipped the coach with tools for further development, but gave athletes a taste of high-performance sport.
“Taking into account the dynamics and context of the whole squad and lack of exposure definitely changed the way the program was delivered, trying not to push them too far while introducing conditioning and using terms that were similar with the way the coach had previously delivered training was definitely a spur of the moment adjustment,” she said.
As well as working with different sports and organisations, students were embraced by locals and exposed to their unique island life.
Dual Bachelor of Psychological Science and Exercise Science student Hannah Macleod said the team were witness to a cultural dance night and coconut show.
“From the warm welcome in Rarotonga to being immersed in their close-knit community, I gained a better understanding of the values of family, community and heritage,” she said.
Both students found the trip further fuelled their passion for exercise science and high-performance sport.
“I found so much intrinsic value from working in populations and areas where community and resourcefulness are key values, and it’s sparked an interest for me to work in under-resourced areas where my qualification can make a significant impact,” Miss Mcleod said.
Students were exposed to all elements of island life, including cultural practices and the natural environment.
“The opportunity to work on developing high performance sport outside of the Australian system not only benefits the sports and athletes but sets you up to be a confident practitioner with a broader perspective,” Miss Walker added.
Dr. Roberts emphasised the initiative’s dual focus on practical support and long-term impact.
“By collaborating with our Pacific neighbours, we’re building on enhancing knowledge in sports science but also nutrition and public health, ultimately benefiting the entire community,” he said.
Whilst most students undertook two weeks of placement, two Griffith honours students remained on the islands for 12 weeks, an entire credited trimester, to complete research data collection.
The passionate team behind GAPS are determined to boost opportunities such as this through the NCP initiative, with intentions to deliver assistance to other countries beyond the Cook Islands.
Determining the ecological impacts of firefighting chemicals used to control bushfires is the aim of a Griffith University researcher who was among the 50 Early Career Industry Fellowships announced this week by the Australian Research Council.
The ARC’s Industry Fellowships Programs to help build innovation in the industry, community organisation, not-for-profit, and other government and publicly funded research sectors, and to facilitate the adoption, translation and commercialisation of Australian research over time.
This project will allow Dr Lanctot to determine the ecological impacts of firefighting chemicals used to control bushfires, providing scientific evidence needed to manage the safe use of firefighting chemicals around water catchments.
“Increased bushfire activity has led to a significant rise in the use of FFCs, resulting in a critical need to assess the risk they pose to aquatic ecosystems,” Dr Lanctot said.
“Working in partnership with government agencies and water utilities, this research will provide decision-makers with the scientific evidence needed to manage the safe use of FFCs around water catchments.
“The outcomes of this project will deliver direct environmental benefits by informing best practice guidelines and regulations to safeguard water resources and environmental assets during bushfire emergencies.”
Dr Lanctot said the project will deliver direct environmental benefits by:
offering a roadmap for responsible FFC use that will guide positive changes in policy and inform the development of greener alternatives;
and ensuring effective bushfire management practices that benefit society in the fight against bushfires while minimising harm to Australian ecosystems.
Water NSW and Icon Water Limited are industry partners in this project.
The Australian brook lamprey (Mordacia praecox) is part of a group of primitive jawless fish. It’s up to 15cm long, with rows of sharp teeth.
David Moffatt and Dr Luke Carpenter-Bundhoo. Image: Troy Harris
Surprisingly, it doesn’t use these teeth to suck blood like most lamprey species – it’s non-parasitic. As larvae, the Australian brook lamprey lives buried in the bottom of streams for around three years, filter-feeding. Its adult phase is about one year long, in which it doesn’t feed at all.
To unravel the mystery of Queensland lampreys, Dr Carpenter-Bundhoo teamed up with David Moffatt from the Department of Environment, Science and Innovation, who had found isolated populations of lamprey in other Queensland streams.
Together, they confirmed reports of Australian brook lamprey in Queensland, including as far north as Rockhampton. With this enormous extension of its geographic range, Australian brook lamprey becomes the only lamprey species in the world to live in truly tropical waters.
“It’s quite exciting to find an endangered species so far out of its known range, yet so close to populated areas,” Mr Moffatt said.
“We expect these animals naturally occur in Queensland, and have been here for an awfully long time, but have remained hidden due to their cryptic nature.”
The Australian brook lamprey is thought to be extinct where it was first described, in southern NSW. Its existence is thought to be threatened by sedimentation, wildfires, and human developments.
Dr Luke Carpenter-Bundhoo and Josh Whiley sampling a coastal creek on K’gari (Fraser Island). Image: Sunny Yu
Perhaps the biggest threat to their conservation is that they’re very difficult to identify – this species truly faces a case of mistaken identity.
For most of their life, the non-parasitic Australian brook lamprey is indistinguishable from its more common blood-sucking southern relative, the short-headed lamprey (Mordacia mordax), which has a conservation status of ‘Least Concern’. Add to this the fact that, globally, only a few people can tell them apart.
In their new Endangered Species Research article, Dr Carpenter-Bundhoo and Mr Moffatt outline the difficulties of implementing a conservation strategy for this fish and propose some solutions.
The species’ conservation is especially important, given projected sea levels rises mean that many of the lowland freshwater coastal streams where Australian brook lamprey live are likely to become saltwater.
With these new findings, scientists will be better equipped to conserve this unusual and endangered species.
The Pacific Island Centre for Development Policy and Research (PICDPR) at Griffith Asia Institute recently hosted an online joint presentation featuring the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) on April 30.
Anthony Brassil, Acting Deputy Head of the Economic Research Department, RB
Anthony Brassil, Acting Deputy Head of the Economic Research Department at the RBA, discussed the formation of inflation expectations and its implications for monetary policy. Meanwhile, Lewis Kerr, Senior Economic Adviser at the RBNZ, shared key lessons from New Zealand’s recent review of its monetary policy framework.
Dr Parmendra Sharma, PICDPR Convenor, highlighted the significance of this event as the first-ever joint RBA-RBNZ presentation to the Pacific region’s policymakers, predominantly, central banks. This was the second in the 2024 initiated Pacific Seminar Series, following one jointly by Federal Treasury and Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) earlier in the year.
“The region’s key policymaking institutions, including central banks, are benefitting a great deal from these seminars by experts from institutions like the RBA and RBNZ”, said Dr Sharma, “such people-to-people Australia-NZ-Pacific engagements are useful for all of us.”
Lewis Kerr, Senior Economic Adviser, RBNZ
The event was attended by more than 100 participants from across the Pacific, spanning around 9 Pacific policymaking institutions plus students and academics from Griffith. Participants were highly impressed with the session and its delivery, noting, among others, that central bank independence was important for monetary policymaking and that the availability of reliable and adequate data was critical for informed decision-making.
For more details on past and future events, visit the PICDPR events page.
Researchers from Griffith University’s National Centre for Neuroimmunology and Emerging Diseases (NCNED) have made a groundbreaking discovery that could bring relief to those struggling with Long COVID.
In a world-first finding, they’ve identified a way to restore the faulty function of ion channels on immune cells using a well-known drug typically used for other medical purposes.
PhD candidate Etianne Sasso
This significant breakthrough, published in the journal Frontiers in Immunology, builds on previous research showing Long COVID patients share similar issues with ion channels as those with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (also known as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis or ME/CFS).
The team had previously shown success in restoring ion channel function in ME/CFS patients using a drug called Naltrexone, and now they’ve achieved similar results with Long COVID patients.
First author PhD candidate Etianne Sasso said the research team had previously reported restoring the function of these ion channels of immune cells in laboratory trials.
“Ion channels are integral membrane proteins that facilitate the passage of ions (charged particles) across the cell membrane,” Ms Sasso said.
“We found that by restoring the function of these ion channels, important ions such as calcium were again able to move in and out of immune cells, controlling many of the body’s biological processes.”
This breakthrough offers hope for alleviating various ME/CFS symptoms, including brain fog, muscle fatigue, and issues with the cardiovascular and gastrointestinal systems.
Professor Sonya Marshall-Gradisnik
Professor Sonya Marshall-Gradisnik, senior author and Director of NCNED, said the significance of this discovery, achieved through the gold standard test called electrophysiology, will help in better understanding Long COVID and ME/CFS paving the way for potential therapies.
The NCNED is preparing to launch two clinical trials, one for Long COVID and another for ME/CFS, testing the effectiveness of low-dose Naltrexone.
This drug, typically used for opioid addiction, has shown promising results in restoring ion channel function in previous research and in anecdotal reports from patients.
“We will be undertaking two clinical trials testing the efficacy of low dose naltrexone where the first will be in Long COVID patients while the second trial will, for the first time, be in ME/CFS patients,” Professor Marshall-Gradisnik said.
“Should these trials prove successful, it could mean a vastly improved quality of life for countless individuals struggling with Long COVID and ME/CFS.”
Associate Professor Bronwyn Griffin
Griffith University has been awarded $2.2 million across the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Investigator Grants.
Congratulations to Associate Professor Bronwyn Griffin from the School of Nursing and Midwifery, and Dr Yun Shi from the Institute for Glycomics.
Associate Professor Griffin will receive a $1.6 million Investigator Grant which will be used for her project into a new implementable early burn care intervention strategy for children across Australia.
Children with burns require special, often complex treatments within 24 hours of injury to effectively reduce the impact of injury and minimise chronic physical and emotional scars.
Unfortunately, treatments are often not implemented, such as first aid, are too complex (emerging technologies), or patients are too far away (e.g. in regional and remote areas of Australia).
Associate Professor Griffin’s research aims to test simple new technologies to make sure every child, no matter where they live, gets the best care.
Dr Shi will receive a $674,000 Investigator Grant for his project which looks at molecular characterisation of NMNAT2 activity and regulation for neuroprotection.
Dr Yun Shi
Dr Shi’s project aims to study a brain biomolecule that protects nerve cells in the context of neurodegenerative disorders.
With an interdisciplinary approach developed in his biochemistry program, Dr Shi will determine the molecular and structural basis underlying the activity and regulation of this biomolecule and design chemicals to preserve its neuroprotective activities.
This project will lay a fundamental framework to target this biomolecule to treat neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
In October 2023, the federal parliament passed major changes to how children’s cases are decided under the Family Law Act, which kick in next month.
Among other things, they repeal a controversial legal presumption introduced in 2006. It was presumed that “equal shared parental responsibility” is in the best interests of children.
In many cases, this is true. But in cases of family violence, assuming both parents should have equal responsibility for a child can be dangerous.
The journey to having this presumption removed has been long and littered with countless reviews, inquiries and evaluations. How did it come to be in the first place, and what effect will these legal changes have on children?
Laws with baked-in problems
The 2006 reforms originated in a parliamentary inquiry established by the Howard government in 2003. Fathers’ rights groups led the charge for the inquiry and for equal time custody laws.
Equal shared parental responsibility is about the decion-making duties of parents regarding the big decisions in a child’s life such as education, religion and health. This is different to equal time, which is about where children actually live. It often involves the child swapping homes every week. Some children enjoy it, others feel like they are navigating two very different emotional spaces.
Because of the origins of the inquiry with fathers’ rights groups, the focus was on equal time as a starting point. It was not on finding out what actually works best for children after family breakdown.
The 2006 reforms did not contain a presumption of equal time, but they did include a presumption that equal shared parental responsibility is best for children.
A presumption is intended as strong message to judges and the legal system. It tells a judge the law says shared parenting is generally a good thing.
While that is true in some families, that can be a dangerous message to a decision-maker for families where there is violence or abuse. Although there were exceptions for family violence or child abuse, research showed orders for equal shared parental responsibility were made in many cases where there were serious allegations of family violence.
An order for equal shared parental responsibility meant parents had to consult each other about important decisions regarding their children. In some families this works well and ensures both parents have ongoing roles in their children’s lives after separation. Where there has been domestic violence, including coercive control, such an order provides the perpetrator of abuse with a legal channel to continue it.
Orders for shared parental responsibility also affected the daily lives of children and their parents. Once a judge made that order, they had to “consider” making an order for equal time, or what was called “substantial and significant” time order. This meant where orders for equal shared responsibility were made, orders for equal time or substantial and significant time were often made as well.
There was also a new list of factors a court had to take into account when deciding what was in a child’s best interests. It included the “benefit” of “meaningful” post-separation relationships with parents and the need for protection from harm. These two things could be difficult to reconcile.
Michaelia Cash says a Coalition government would overturn the reforms. Mick Tsikas/AAP
Problems with the presumption and the dominance of the ideal of ongoing “meaningful” relationships are consistently reported, including by a 2017 parliamentary inquiry on family law. That report found the existing laws were “leading to unjust outcomes and compromising the safety of children”.
Much of the research has shown victims of family violence are told not to raise it – or feel unable to do so. Wanting to restrict or limit the perpetrators contact with the children, may be seen as being obstructive, rather than protective.
While the government baulked at touching the presumption in 2011 when it introduced changes to the act to improve its response to family violence, it’s now gone.
Needs of the child at the centre
The 2023 changes have also repealed the section about equal and substantial and significant time and simplified list of the best interests’ factors. The new factors include:
the safety of the child and others who have their care
the views of the child
their developmental, psychological, emotional and cultural needs
the capacity of each of the parents to provide these needs
the benefit to the child having a relationship each of their parents.
In terms of safety, the court must consider any history of family violence, abuse or neglect and any family violence order.
Implementation of the amended legislation will have its challenges.
Despite their flaws, the old laws did have useful guidance about what a court should think about if considering making order for equal (or lots of) time. And a judge can still make those orders despite the repeal of the presumption.
The old guidance included considering the parents’ capacity to implement a shared care arrangement and communicate with each other, and the impact of that kind of arrangement on the child. These considerations, which also influenced out-of-court negotiations, have been removed.
It will be interesting to see whether this will provide an opportunity for judges to develop thoughtful and creative orders tailored for the families they see, or whether it will just lead to uncertainty and inconsistency in outcomes.
Future reform processes (because there will be more) should consider restoring a list of factors relevant to shared parenting orders or arrangements.
Alternatively, or additionally, there could be a list of factors that prevent or caution against such arrangements – such as a history of family violence or abuse or an inability of the parents to communicate effectively.
Late last year, Shadow Attorney-General Michaelia Cash said the changes “send a message to the courts that parliament no longer considers it beneficial for both parents to be involved in decisions about their children’s lives” and would be repealed under a Coalition government.
Her concerns aren’t borne out in the legislation. Nothing in these new laws takes away from the importance of both parents.
The government has listened to and acted on concerns about safety which have been expressed over many years. Now we should wait to see how they actually operate.
Author
Zoe Rathus AM is a senior lecturer at the Griffith University Law School. Her research focuses on women and the law, particularly the family law system and the impact of family violence on women and children. Her current focus is on the problems with the term ‘parental alienation as applied in family law’. Zoe commenced in private legal practice in 1981 and was coordinator of the Women’s Legal Service between 1989 and 2004. She is currently Chairperson of the Immigrant Women’s Support Service and a member of the Queensland Law Society Domestic Violence Committee. Zoe has received a number of awards including Young Lawyer of the Year (1990) and Women Lawyer of the Year (2001). Zoe was awarded an Order of Australia in 2011 for her services to women, the law, Indigenous peoples and education.
The goal of the Queensland government’s new Community Safety Plan is to make Queensland a safer place by reducing crime, particularly violent crime. A key plank of the plan is to expand police use of metal detector wands, even though there is no evidence that wands help reduce violent crime.
The plan commits to tripling the number of wands for police, and an increase in places where they can be used. Currently this is limited to nightclub zones and public transport, but the plan will see them also deployed in shopping centres, retail outlets, sport and entertainment venues, and licenced premises throughout the state. Police will be able to stop anyone in those places without needing to give a reason, use the wand and if it activates, search the person and their belongings. These searches take place in public.
However, there is no evidence that wanding reduces violent crime.
“Wanding did not reduce the use of weapons to commit crimes, and it did not deter people from carrying weapons, even when they knew there was a risk of being wanded.”
Gold Coast Wanding Trial
Our evaluation of the trial of wands on the Gold Coast showed they can increase detection of metal weapons, leading to increases in weapon-carrying charges. But there was no evidence that this in turn led to reduced violent crimes using knives.
One reason for this is that confiscated knives are easily replaced by new ones or by other weapons. Wanding did not reduce the use of weapons to commit crimes, and it did not deter people from carrying weapons, even when they knew there was a risk of being wanded.
We also found that wanding came with side effects. Allowing police to stop people without reasonable suspicion undermines human rights. And because police can’t wand everyone, everywhere, all the time, they must choose who to target. Our review found evidence of the use of unfair stereotypes in those choices, and the 2022 independent Inquiry into QPS also reported widespread racist and sexist attitudes among police. This can lead to negative police interactions with vulnerable people, and reduced trust in, and cooperation with, police.
Our review also found evidence that because of the effective increase in search powers, wanding led to increases in drug detections and charges, mainly for minor possession offences. This runs contrary to the government’s own new approach to drug diversion, and can increase the risk of further criminal involvement, especially for young people.
While recent horrific knife crimes have understandably led to calls for action, deterring knife carrying and preventing violent crime takes more than additional police and new equipment.
Understanding who carries knives and why is important, so that prevention efforts can be targeted for maximum impact. There is a clear need for more Australian research on what works to prevent knife crime, especially among young people. Government also needs to focus on more investment to address the multiple disadvantages faced by some young people that can lead to offending. This evidence is crucial to approaches that actually work to reduce violence and offending.
It is also important to consider that the government’s own statistics show that crime rates across the state continue to fall, as recently acknowledged by the Premier and QPS, with the exception of domestic, family and sexual violence offences. Police resources should be directed at better responses to the urgent problems of family violence, and to addressing the systemic cultural problems among police raised by the recent Independent Inquiry.
Authors
Janet Ransley is a Professor in the Griffith Criminology Institute (which she led from 2018-August 2023) and School of Criminology and Criminal Justice (which she led from 2011-2015). Prior to joining Griffith as a Lecturer in 1999, she held senior policy positions with the Queensland Legislative Assembly and for the Criminal Justice Commission (now the Crime and Corruption Commission), and worked as a solicitor.
Nadine M. Connell is an Associate Professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice. Her research focuses on juvenile delinquency, specifically in the domain of school safety. Her work examines the aetiology of school based violent victimization and perpetration as well as more extreme forms of youth violence, including drug use, weapon carrying, school shootings, and targeted violence. She works with schools and communities to implement and evaluate prevention and intervention strategies, with a particular interest in evidence based strategies for school safety.
Dr Margo van Felius is a Lecturer in Financial Crime in the Academy of Excellence in Financial Crime Investigation and the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice (CCJ). She is a former Queensland Police Service Detective (working in child protection, organised crime, and economic crime) who completed her PhD in CCJ, receiving an Award of Excellence for her thesis: Improving the uptake of multi-agency and third-party policing partnerships: facilitators, barriers and the role of legal levers. Margo has a special interest in organised crime, transnational crime convergence, wildlife crime and money flows.
Shannon Walding is a Research Associate in the Griffith Criminology Institute and an HDR candidate in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice (CCJ) at Griffith University.
