Beacon Bulletin, October 2024 Edition

Ava Carter announced as 2024 Churchill Fellowship recipient?

Congratulations to Dr Ava Carter (B Oral Health Dental Science (Hons) '12; GDip Dentistry '13) who was recently announced as a 2024 Churchill Fellowship recipient. Ava’s project is to explore the implementation and design of dedicated dental care units for psychiatric patients. As a dual-trained dental surgeon and medical doctor specialising in psychiatry, she uses a profit for purpose mindset to improve outcomes for patients and families, either directly through clinical work or indirectly through her roles in clinical governance and management.??

Griffith graduate success at GOTYA hosted by the Design Institute of Australia?

Congratulations to Rhianna Pearce (B Design '23) and Jan Pimping (B Digital Media '19; B Design (Hons) '23) who were both acknowledged with commendation awards in the Queensland Interact category, while Kyla Little (B Design/B Business '23) was named Graduate of the Year in both the Queensland and Australian Interact categories as well as overall Queensland Graduate of the Year.?Read more here.

Griffith graduates shine in Opera Australia 2025 season announcement?

Congratulations to Iain Henderson (B Music '17) and Samuel Dale Johnson (B Music '11; GCert Music Studies '11) who have been announced for key roles in the 2025 season.??

Iain will be debuting as Alfredo, in La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi (12-27 March, 2025) and as Rodolfo in La Boheme by Giacomo Puccini (18-20 September, 2025). Visit Iain’s website for more details: https://www.iain-henderson.com

Samuel will return to Australia to make his Opera Australia debut as mischievous barber, Figaro in The Barber of Seville.

?Griffith alumni spotted on campus?

• Dylan Saunders (B Photonics & Nanoscience '08; Doctor of Philosophy '13) is back in Australia for PsiQuantum as Director, Quantum Systems and recently joined Vice Chancellor Professor Carolyn Evans a tour of the facility that will be used for a PsiQuantum research lab and also some of the 澳大利亚格里菲斯大学 quantum labs.

• Thank you to James Marshall (B Film&Screen Media Production '08), Founding Partner, The International Games Group (TIGG) for helping with the Screen Entrepreneurship course recently. Our aspiring producers are fortunate to be able to learn from you. Connect with James here.?

• It was a pleasure to welcome MP, Olympian and Griffith University Alumni , Zali Steggall OAM MP (B Arts (OUA) '02) to our Nathan campus. Like many elite athletes who had to juggle study with competition, Zali studied remotely so it was good to have a chance to show her the campus. Zali joined the Vice Chancellor for a tour of the Eco Centre at Nathan campus.?

• Thank you to Sarah Ward (LLB/BBusiness '07), Jonathan Nyst ( B Laws '14) and Brendan Reidy (B Laws/B Comm '16) for participating as panelists for the 2024 Griffith University Law School Careers Night. We hope you enjoyed being back on campus and we know the students found your insights are career journeys inspiring. Connect with Sarah, Jonathan and Brendan here.??

• Brendan Reidy (B Laws/B Comm '16) was also joined earlier this year by Ronald Behlau (LLB/BA Japanese '07) for the “Meet the Profession” day hosted by the Griffith University Law School. Thank you Ronald and Brendan for connecting with our current students.??

Griffith alumni in the spotlight?

• Congratulations to A/Prof Johanna Nalau (Doctor of Philosophy '13) on being selected to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change's (UNFCCC) United Arab Emirates–Belém work programme on the Global Goal on Adaptation technical expert indicator group. Johanna’s topic area #culturalheritage, is guided by the GGA thematic target: "Protecting cultural heritage from the impacts of climate-related risks by developing adaptive strategies for preserving cultural practices and heritage sites and by designing climate-resilient infrastructure, guided by traditional knowledge, Indigenous Peoples’ knowledge and local knowledge systems;". Find out more about the?Global Goal on Adaptation here.

• Congratulations to Ruth McPhail, (Doctor of Philosophy '05) on being nominated for Workplace Giving Champion of the Year! Under her guidance, 澳大利亚格里菲斯大学 staff proudly supported 113 students in need through the Brighter Futures Scholarship Program in 2024, and over 15% of staff now participate in the staff giving program. Many alumni will recognise Ruth as our Lead with Impact Program Lead. Thank you Ruth for all that you do for Griffith University!??

• Congratulations Peter Copp (GCert Business Administration '15; M Business Administration '17) on your appointment as the inaugural Chief Executive Officer of Voice of Change Australia (VOC). Co-founded by Shaynna Blaze. (MAICD) and Neva Morrissy , VOC is an organisation which uses the Arts to amplify the voices of victim-survivors of abuse, and to change the cultural attitudes that underpin family violence.

• Selected as one of 100 women globally to join Homeward Bound (HB8), a prestigious leadership initiative for women in STEMM, Dr Sarah Cresswell (GCert Higher Education '16) is dedicated to amplifying the voices of women making critical decisions for our planet’s future.? In this Q&A for Humans of Griffith, she reflects on her career so far, the lessons she’s learned along the way, and what continues to drive her in her work at 澳大利亚格里菲斯大学 .

• Hear Dr Larry Crump (Doctor of Philosophy '02) explore the intricacies of the PACER Plus agreement—a crucial trade and development treaty involving Australia, New Zealand, and 14 Pacific island countries. Whether you’re a researcher, policy-maker, or simply passionate about Pacific regional dynamics, this seminar provides valuable perspectives on how economic agreements shape regional cooperation and development. Watch here.?
• Congratulations Luke Shanahan (B Exercise Science '05; MBA '16) for being named a finalist in the 2024 MBA Australasia (MBAus) Awards. Luke is the Director Clinical Measurements – Cardiac Investigations GCHHS where his department provides approximately 15,000 patients with non-invasive and invasive cardiac services annually. Luke is also a Director on the International Board of Heart Rhythm Examiners .??

• Congratulations Sophia A. Anderssen (B Business '06; B Laws '15) on being named a finalist in the Lawyers Weekly Women in Law Awards 2024 as a Rising Star of the Year – SME Law.??

• Congratulations to Queensland College of Art and Design alumni Edwina McLennan (B Fine Art '21; B Visual Arts (Honours) '22) and Melissa Stannard (B Contemp Aust Indigenous Art '19; B Visual Arts (Honours) '23), selected as finalists for 'the Churchie' 2024! The Churchie is Australia's most diverse emerging artist prize for emerging contemporary artists. This year, 16 emerging artists have been selected as finalists from 500+ entrants. Wishing Edwina and Melissa the very best for the announcement next month!?

• Congratulations to Nakshathra Suresh (M Crim&Criminal Justice '23) on being named a finalist for the Emerging Leader in Tech category for the 2024 Women’s Agenda Leadership Awards. Read more here.??

Early career success for Jennifer!?

Congratulations to events management graduate, Jennifer Osborne (B Business '23) for her work with the Big AMP music festival. With over 600+ student attendees, months of planning and stakeholder engagement ensured a successful night for an early career milestone for Jennifer. Read more here.?

Upcoming events

• 24 October: Brisbane Career Compass Event (Early Career Alumni)?

• 24 October: MBA For Life End of Year Celebration, Brisbane

• 30 October: Professional Development Webinar with Kim McCosker (B International Finance '99)

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Keep an eye out for the Griffith Alumni eNewsletter hitting inboxes on Thursday 31 October. Email [email protected] to be added to the mailing list.???

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