ACDS Newsletter – March 2025 Posted in Featured, News, Research, Teaching and Learning on March 11, 2025 by Glenda Key. Welcome to the first of our quarterly newsletters of the ACDS for 2025! This newsletter includes updates from the ACDS, including a recent publication on global trust in scientists, some highlights at the national level, including new appointments, awards and recent events, and a summary of upcoming ACDS events and activities. Trust in science In January, Nature Human Behaviour published a fascinating and encouraging paper entitled: ‘Trust in scientists and their role in society across 68 countries’. Key findings from an international survey of >71K people were: Globally, public trust in scientists is moderately high (average score 3.62/5) Australia ranks 5 / 68 countries surveyed with a score of 3.91/5 There is some association between trust in scientists and demographics (e.g. age, education, income), attitude to science, and country level indicators (e.g. income distribution, government spend on education) 54% of respondents agree or strongly agree that scientists should work more closely with politicians in policymaking 83% of respondents agree or strongly agree that scientists should communicate science to the general public More than 80% of respondents indicated that scientists should prioritize certain areas (e.g. health, energy) more than respondents perceive to be the case (noting that this is likely different from what scientists actually do). Please see a commentary and expert reactions from a range of people, including the ACDS President, Melissa Brown, here. Welcome to new Deans Samuel Muller, Executive Dean, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Macquarie University Geoffrey Will, Interim Dean, School of Science, Technology and Engineering, University of Sunshine Coast. Farewell and thank you Thanks to outgoing Dean, School of Science, Technology and Engineering, University of Sunshine Coast, Stuart Parsons, for his engagement with and contributions to the ACDS! National scene New appointments and accolades Ute Roessner, who has been appointed as the next Chief Executive of the Australian Research Council Tony Haymet, who has been appointed as the next Chief Scientist of Australia Anna-Maria Arabia, Chief Executive of the Australian Academy of Science, who has been recognised for her service to science with a Medal of the Order of Australia in the Australia Day Honours Science Meets Parliament Several of our Deans of Science and many others from our member universities attended the 25th Science Meets Parliament held in Canberra in February. Our Executive Director, Tony Willis and our Director, Strategic Communications and Engagement, Brian Yates represented the ACDS and arranged meetings with the new Chief Scientist, the Deputy PM, and the Shadow Minister for Science and Arts. All are very interested in university science and were keen to discuss the current landscape. A highlight was to hear Minister Ed Husic discuss the strategic review of research and development during his speech at the National Press Club. Universities Australia Solutions Summit: Our President, Melissa Brown attended the Universities Australia Annual Conference: Solutions Summit 2025 last week. Highlights included: A bold vision for the future of the national competitive grant scheme: This proposal calls for replacing the 15 existing ARC schemes with 6 with a focus on enabling research translation, supporting EMCRs and collaboration, and an explicit commitment to indigenous research. For full details see: https://www.arc.gov.au/sites/default/files/2025-02/NCGP%20Policy%20Review%20Discussion%20Paper.pdf Please note that we will be calling for your input on the proposed changes soon so please let us know if you have any feedback. Sessions on student pathways, experience and careers: Multiple sessions covering a range of topics including enabling access and success for a broader range of students, leveraging AI to provide customized resources and personalized support for students, the need for coordinated careers advice, forecasting the demand for discipline and employability skills in the future, and (importantly) the value and benefits of a university experience beyond skills development. National Press Club Address: Luke Sheehy, CEO of Universities Australia focussed on the current and future opportunities and challenges for the Australian university sector followed by a grilling from the press. This is worth watching on iview. Other interesting sessions included an address from Catherine Livingstone, Chancellor of UTS and business veteran, who provided a fierce narrative on the failure of universities to deliver on the needs of Australia. Claims included being too inwardly focussed and too inefficient and were followed by a series of recommendations including the development of interactive spaces to enable engagement with external stakeholders, adaptive curricula, outsourcing translation and commercialization and codesigning policies. The Shadow Minister of Education, Sarah Henderson, also addressed the conference and provided some insight into the potential impact of a coalition government being elected, including a tougher cap on international students, reintroducing the 50% pass rule, disestablishing ATEC and a new performance index for universities that focuses on national impact. The full program can be found here. It was also wonderful to hear about the finalists and winners of the Australian Awards for University Teaching and the Shaping Australia Awards at the conference, including many staff in our Faculties of Science and equvalent. Congratulations to all! ACDS update – 2025 events and initiatives Important ACDS dates in 2025 Please mark your calendars for these key ACDS events in 2025: 28 April, Annual General Meeting, 3pm – 4.30pm AEST, online 1-2 July, T&L Leaders Forum, Flinders University 2-3 September, Research Network Forum, UTAS 30 September-2 October, ACSME, University of Melbourne 21-22 October, ACDS Annual Conference, Canberra ACDS Annual General Meeting, 28 April by zoom Our Annual General Meeting (AGM) is approaching. This is your chance to nominate for the Executive Committee (see below) and hear from a panel of esteemed guest speakers, including Emma Johnston (Vice Chancellor, University of Melbourne), Liz Johnson (Deakin Distinguished Professor and Senior Deputy Vice Chancellor Academic, Deakin University) and Aidan Byrne (Emeritus Professor and Past Provost, University of Queensland). We will also extend our heartfelt thanks to Melissa Brown, Mark Buntine and other members who are stepping down for their invaluable contributions and leadership of our organisation. Call for new members of the ACDS executive The next executive of the ACDS will be elected at the AGM on Monday the 28th of April 2025. Please consider nominating yourself or a fellow Science Dean or equivalent for membership. It is a fabulous opportunity to contribute at the national level, to meet many amazing people from across the sector, and to provide support and opportunities for Deans and Associate Deans of Science. A formal call for nominations for the Executive Committee will be distributed shortly, with nominations due shortly after. 2025 Strategic Priorities for the ACDS We are excited to announce our nine priority initiatives for 2025, which are based on your feedback and will drive our efforts in advancing science education and research. Keep an eye on our website for detailed updates on each initiative. Enable science education pathways(advocate to improve the science pipeline) Develop strategies to leverage and manage the impact of global changes in education(share good practice by supporting communities of practice among various groups and making resources available) Integrate First Nations Science into curricula(hold capital city workshops to introduce and use our recently released framework) Facilitate and Support Research Translation(share strategies for building productive partnerships with industry and other research partners) Science ADR Career Development Improve Public Confidence in Science(develop small impactful stories that are accessible and resonate with the community) Amplify the Voice of the ACDS(partner with key science organisations to leverage our engagement with policy makers) Celebrate 30 years of the ACDS (see below) Develop the ACDS 2026–2030 Strategic Plan (see below) Celebrating 30 years of the ACDS in 2025 In 2025, we mark 30 years of the ACDS. We will use this opportunity to celebrate the achievements of the ACDS, to acknowledge our members over the last 30 years, to reflect on the evolution of university science and consider the challenges for the future as we promote the role and importance of university science. We have a series of activities planned in 2025 to commemorate this milestone including: guest speakers at our AGM special sessions at our other ACDS forums a gala dinner at our annual conference opportunities to meet & greet past members of the ACDS at various add-on functions when the ACDS is meeting face-to-face (likely to be Sydney, Adelaide, Canberra, Melbourne) Development of the ACDS 2026-2030 Strategic Plan We are in the process of developing our next five-year strategic plan. We will shortly be reviewing our current vision, mission and strategic objectives, in consultation with all members of the ACDS. Our new strategic plan will guide our efforts and priorities, ensuring we meet the evolving needs of our community and continue to be the voice of university science. ACDS and the National Consultation Processes The ACDS is actively involved in several national consultation processes, including: R&D: Strategic Examination of Research and Development ARC NCGP: Consultation on the proposed changes to the National Competitive Grants Program University Governance: Inquiry into the quality of governance in higher education providers. View the ACDS submission here. Universities Australia: Universities matter Please let us know your views so that we can incorporate them into our submissions ACDS Webinars We have an exciting lineup of webinars planned, covering topics in: teaching and learning research leadership special ACDS webinars to focus on the changing nature of university science and the role of the ACDS(We welcome your suggestions for speakers for our first ACDS webinar.) Please keep an eye out for notices about all of these webinars. Planning for Issue 13 of ACDS magazine We are gearing up for Issue 13 of the ACDS magazine Australian University Science, which will include articles reflecting on the successes and challenges in teaching and research in university science over the last 30 years. In 2025 we are excited to be transitioning to digital distribution and marketing strategies of the magazine so as to reach a wider audience. ACDS Director, Strategic Communications and Engagement We are pleased to announce the appointment of Brian Yates as the ACDS Director of Strategic Communications and Engagement. As you know, Brian has been a President and then Immediate Past President of the ACDS since 2015 and has enthusiastically contributed to our Council. He will play a pivotal role in enhancing our communication strategies and stakeholder engagement. External events AI in Science: The Australian Academy of Science (AAS) has organised a public series of fascinating talks on the promise, perils and path forward for AI in Science. More information about the online sessions is available here: https://science.org.au/ai-in-science. International Council of Academies of Engineering and Technological Sciences (CAETS): The Australian Academy of Technological Sciences & Engineering (ATSE) is honoured to host the 2025 annual conference of CAETS in Brisbane 8-11 September 2025. https://caets2025.org/ The symposium will bring together some amazing speakers and members of the ACDS and their teams may be interested in attending. Thank you for your contribution to Australian University Science and support of the ACDS and we look forward to seeing you at the upcoming ACDS Annual General Meeting in April and other events during the year. And for those of you in South East Queensland, stay safe as Cyclone Alfred heads our way. Professor Melissa Brown – President, Australian Council of Deans of Science, and Professor Brian Yates – ACDS Director, Strategic Communications and Engagement
