Following the receipt of feedback from the ANU community, the 2025 graduation ceremonies will now take place in the week commencing Monday 3 February 2025.

Learn more: Adjustment to end of year arrangements

Vice-Chancellor Genevieve Bell has an update for our community following the August ANU Council meeting. This is a time of challenge and opportunity for the University, as we review and reassess the best way for us to operate within our financial means and also in line with being a modern 21st century university.

Read more: Vice-Chancellor's Message

The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) invites you to participate in the inaugural Commonwealth Integrity Survey. This 15-minute survey is critical in helping the NACC understand the risk and occurrence of corruption in the Australian public sector. Even if you consider your workplace to be corruption-free, your answers help ensure corruption is prevented and that integrity is fostered. 

Survey closes Friday 20 September, 5pm.

Learn more: 2024 Commonwealth Integrity Survey

Thursday 22 August, 12-1pm 

Language and communication allow us to connect with people and the world around us. This Community of Practice session run by People and Culture will cover the communication model, the power of verbal and non-verbal communication, reframing techniques and the impact words have on our relationships. Enhance your communication skills and build stronger relationships at this ANU Staff workshop.  

Register now: The power of language and communication 

Monday 26 August, 12-1pm 

Blended learning is a teaching approach that takes advantage of online and face-to-face education to increase collaborative learning experiences for students. This Lunch Vox, hosted by the Centre for Learning and Teaching will include educators and students sharing their blended learning experiences at ANU, a deep dive into the flipped classroom model and a Q&A session.  

Register now: Lunch Vox 

Tuesday 27 August, 5.30-7.30pm 

Celebrate your passion and pride for Wear It Purple Day, an annual LGBTQIA+ awareness day where supporters wear purple to celebrate diversity. Listen to a range of representatives from the ANU Queer community deliver five-minute pitches of passion and share their pride points.  

Register now: Queering the ANU

Tuesday 27 August, 6-7pm 

Catherine Fox will be in conversation with Michelle Ryan on her new book Breaking the Boss Bias. How to get more women into leadership. Despite the surge of women into university, jobs and sitting in federal parliament, why are men still overwhelmingly running the show? In Breaking the Boss Bias, Catherine Fox sounds the alarm.   

Register now: MTA Catherine Fox 

Wednesday 4 September, 9am-5pm 

Academic staff are invited to attend an all-day workshop on generative AI run by leading scholars from the University of Sydney, Adam Bridgeman and Danny Liu. Generative AI is radically changing how and what we assess, with a need to balance assurance of learning with our need to equip our graduates for a rapidly changing world. Adam and Danny will demystify generative AI in the learning and teaching space. The all-day workshop consists of four segments, you are welcome to join all or an individual segment of your choice, either in person or online. 

Register now: Generative AI Workshop Day

Image: Senator Penny Wong. Photo credit: ANU.

Yesterday, Senator Penny Wong - Minister for Foreign Affairs, delivered the inaugural ANU Centre for Asian-Australian Leadership (CAAL) annual lecture. In her address, Minister Wong discussed Australia’s relationship with Asia and the role of Asian-Australians in supporting Australia’s engagement with the region.

The annual CAAL lecture features an influential Asian-Australian leader to present a topic of importance to Australia’s national interest.

Watch now: 2024 CAAL Annual Lecture

Image: Dr Bjorn Sturmberg with an EV charger. Photo credit: Crystal Li/ANU.

Senior Research Fellow at the Australian National University, Dr Bjorn Sturmberg has been named the 2024 ACT Scientist of the Year for his work to accelerate the ACT’s transition to becoming a zero emissions economy.  

Working at the University’s Battery Storage and Grid Integration Program, Sturmberg’s research focuses on the crucial role electric vehicles and batteries could play in powering our electricity grid into the future.  

Read more: Clean energy scientist powers into new role

Since the commencement of Semester 2, there has been an increase in vehicle related injuries and deaths of local wildlife, mainly ducks. Please slow down, stay alert, and watch for wildlife crossing, especially near wetlands and waterways, and during wet weather. 

With spring approaching, ducks are nesting, and ducklings will soon be on campus. Please give way when needed. If you are involved in or witness a wildlife collision, please contact Facilities and Services by emailing Fs.director@anu.edu.au or fixmycampus.fs@anu.edu.au. 

Round three of the Carers’ Career Development Assistance Fund (CCDAF) has opened. The CCDAF supports academic and professional staff with caring responsibilities who require financial support to participate in significant career development initiatives. Grants of up to $2,000 are available for reasonable costs relating to the care of dependents. For enquiries, please contact HRD.Development@anu.edu.au. 

Applications close on Friday 20 September.  

Learn more: Carers' Career Development Assistance Fund

We are pleased to advise that invitations to nominate staff for the 2024 Vice-Chancellor's Awards for Excellence in Education have been emailed to all designated nominators in colleges, schools and divisions. The awards recognise a great range of contributions staff have made to the quality of learning, teaching and the student experience at ANU.  

Individuals or teams involved in education as either academic staff or professional staff may be nominated. Nominees will be notified on Monday 2 September and will have until Monday 30 September to make an award submission. 

The nomination period will close on Sunday 29 August.  

Learn more: Vice-Chancellor’s Awards for Excellence in Education

Friday 6 September, 12-12.30pm 

Are you passionate about nurturing your mind, body, and soul? Join the ANU staff community of book lovers who believe that reading can be a powerful tool for personal growth and wellness. The book club will meet monthly during a Friday lunch via Microsoft teams. 

Start reading this month’s book, Ikigai – The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life by Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles.  

Learn more: Wellbeing book club 

One-on-ones are important checkpoints where you can coach, align, unblock and engage. As a people manager, asking the right questions in your one-on-ones will help you improve work conditions for all.

In this week’s skills coach course spend five minutes per day to improve your one-on-one skills. As an ANU staff member, you have access to development skills coach courses using your U number email address and your single sign on (SSO) password.

For any enquiries or feedback about skills coach please contact HRD.Development@anu.edu.au.

People manager module: One on ones

Monday 9 September - Monday 23 September

Celebrate the cultures of Asia and the Pacific, diversity, inclusion, wellbeing and community at the 2024 Immersia festival. Hosted by the ANU School of Culture, History and Language, Immersia is more than just a showcase of the school’s cultural studies and research relating to the Asia-Pacific region. Enjoy fun, immersive, informative and free to attend celebrations with diverse events and activities for everyone.

Sample Mongolian cuisine, try your hand at batik from Indonesia or learn Korean calligraphy at the 2024 Immersia festival.

Learn more: 2024 Immersia Festival

James C. Scott, professor of political science, anthropology and environmental studies, founder of the Agrarian Studies program at Yale University, small-a anarchist and sheep farmer, passed away at his farm on 19 July, aged 87. Students, mentees, colleagues and friends are invited to gather for conversation, food, drink and celebration to remember and appreciate his legacy at the Coombs Tea Room on Thursday 22 August from 4-6pm.
 
Learn more: Remembering James C. Scott

We are excited to announce that for the next 12 months ANU Library users will have access to the entire British Online Archives (BOA) primary source collection. The BOA boasts more than five million primary source records, covering over five hundred years of history. This is a major investment in humanities subjects and gives students and researchers access to millions of valuable primary source materials dating back as far as the sixteenth century.

Learn more: British Online Archives

From Monday 9 September - Wednesday 18 September, staff are invited to get a first look at our new learning management system, Canvas. This online platform will support teaching, centralise course materials and allow students to learn at their own pace, while also providing spaces for collaboration and engagement between students and educators.

All staff are also welcome to join us online next week, on Wednesday 28 August from 12-1pm, to hear about how the ANU Digital Master Plan Learning and Teaching and Student Experience streams are delivering work, what's happened so far and what's coming next.

For more information about the DMP Learning and Teaching initiatives, visit our SharePoint site or contact the Office of the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Learning and Teaching) at pvc.ed@anu.edu.au.

Learn more: Get a first look at canvas

If you are dealing with a personal or work-related issue, including distress related to the conflict in the Middle East, the University encourages you to seek support through the Employee Assistance Program.

If you need to support a student in distress, please refer to this guide that was developed by the Student Safety and Wellbeing team.