Southern Cross Matters

It is fantastic to see the way that our academic colleagues are taking leadership in fields as disparate as e-sports, environmental toxicology, and chemistry and entomology, to name a few. And as you will see, that engagement and connection to community was very powerfully and authentically marked recently when the Governor-General visited our Lismore campus as part of her commitment to understanding progress towards reconstruction and revitalisation post-flood.

We set out at the beginning of this year with a highly ambitious agenda for the quality of the education that we would deliver, for the enhancement of the success of our students, for the attraction of greater numbers of students to the university and for the ongoing march of improvement in our research quality and impact – and as you reflect on the content of the pages of Southern Cross Matters throughout the year, you will see all of those themes reflected and affirmed. That takes enormous courage, hard work and stamina and a genuine passion for building a better and better university every day, and I am truly grateful to each of you for your ongoing commitment to that work. We really are making a difference and you can be very proud of the part that you are playing in that.

As always, I hope you find the material in this edition informative, illuminating and inspiring, and look forward to continuing to hear your suggestions for future areas of focus.

Warmest wishes,

Tyrone

Congratulations to the recipients of our 2024 academic promotions:

• Dr Wendy Boyd, Professor - Level E
• Dr Christian Swan, Professor - Level E
• Dr Louise Whitaker, Associate Professor – Level D
• Dr Erica Russ, Associate Professor – Level D
• Dr Georgina Dimopoulos, Associate Professor – Level D
• Dr Julia Caldicott, Senior Lecturer – Level C
• Dr Lewes Peddell, Senior Lecturer – Level C
• Dr Kylie Day, Senior Lecturer – Level C
• Dr Liz Goode, Senior Lecturer – Level C
• Dr Ruben Laukkonen, Senior Lecturer – Level C
• Dr Michael Brickhill, Lecturer – Level B
• Dr Katie Hotko, Lecturer – Level B
• Julie Young, Lecturer – Level B

For Associate Dean of Education Wendy Boyd, being promoted to Professor in early childhood education is a rewarding career outcome. 

“The field of early childhood education and care is growing exponentially, and consequently there is a huge early childhood staff shortage across Australia and the globe. I am honoured to represent Southern Cross University as a Professor associated with providing transformational teacher education programs and conducting research in this field,” she said.

Dr Ruben Laukkonen, whose research focuses on cognitive science, computational neuroscience and AI, has taught and developed core undergraduate courses in the Bachelor of Psychological Science and supervises a number of PhD candidates.

He said being promoted to Senior Lecturer in Human Sciences is a positive recognition of his work. “It’s a great opportunity to give back, take on more responsibility and share what I’ve learned with colleagues and students.” 

See more on the Academic Excellence page of our website. 

Dexter is also a key researcher and field coordinator for the $2.5 million Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research coral restoration project in the Philippines, led by Distinguished Professor Peter Harrison.

Completing his PhD under the supervision of Distinguished Professor Harrison, Dr dela Cruz has worked to transform degraded reefs back into healthy reefs with positive effects on the entire ecosystem in his home country of the Philippines, as well as here in Australia on the Great Barrier Reef. Dexter’s pioneering Larval Enhancement Method is now internationally recognised and is used on reefs around the world.    

“Being mentored by one of the best is just one of the happiest parts of my life. The way he mentored me is like a friend and a father,” he said, regarding his experience working with Distinguished Professor Harrison.

“I feel like this award is not only recognition of my work but the whole team that I’m working with both in the Philippines and Australia. So, I think this award is like a gentle pat on my shoulders saying I might be doing something good.” 

Watch video and read more here. 

“The world’s biggest esports competition, DOTA TI, had a prize pool of $60 million. There are kids as young as 17 competing and winning these prize pools.”

Dr Krista Fisher, a research fellow at Movember, said “young men are increasingly turning to gaming and esports – not only as a source of entertainment, but for social connection, learning, and relaxation. It’s crucial that we prioritise psychological safety within these communities and collaborate with the esports industry to promote positive mental health outcomes. Movember is proud to partner with Dr Poulus and

Southern Cross University to develop world-class mental health guidelines for the esports industry."
The $104,000 research contract with Movember brings the total funding of the Physical Activity, Sport and Exercise Research (PASER) Theme at Southern Cross University to more than $1 million since it was formed in October 2022.

Read more here.

Faculty of Health Associate Dean (Education) Professor Fiona Naumann said, “what the team's done in transforming Anatomy and Physiology has been astounding”.

“Student satisfaction from their learning was previously around about 60 per cent and it's now thriving in 90 per cent unit satisfaction.”

See video here: https://youtu.be/sVFgFJI0uPs

Since taking on the Chair of Science position at Southern Cross, Professor Andrew became the first Professor of Entomology at the University. 

“With other universities losing entomological expertise, this is an expansion of entomology in Australia, particularly in northern NSW and southern Queensland. This expansion of Entomology at Southern Cross is exciting for the future of the discipline,” affirmed Professor Andrew. 

Since joining the University, Professor Andrew has made inroads into key industry and social issues related to entomology in the region, such as: 

• Red Imported Fire Ants (Solenopsis invicta): Professor Andrew provided expert opinion at the Red Imported Fire Ant Senate Enquiry (April 2024) and was interviewed across a range of media about the recent fire ant incursions into northern NSW.
• Macadamia pests and integrated pest management: Working with local macadamia farmers in northern NSW and the Wide Bay-Burnett region of Queensland, Professor Andrew’s research group is assessing integrated pest management in macadamia orchards.
• Pasture mealybug incursion: Professor Andrew collaborates with NSW Local Land Services to investigate the recent incursion of the pasture mealybug (Heliococcus summervillei) into northern NSW.
• Dung beetles on farms and in native forests: Professor Andrew continues his long-term research on dung beetles and works with both farmers and local conservation agencies on the impact of habitat change and extreme weather exposure on dung beetle physiology and community structure.

“You exemplified care and kindness. The stories I have heard from the University underlines why putting care at the centre of the nation’s future is so important,” she said.

Director of Property Services, Danika Head, said it was an important visit as Lismore approaches the three-year anniversary of the floods.

“When you see those photos and video, it brings up a lot of emotions. But to have the Governor-General there, it feels like you’ve had your voice and experience heard and recognised,” Ms Head said.

“The Governor-General was warm, genuine and spoke from the heart. Her visit had a really positive impact on the staff who were there.”

Work is now underway to design a future emergency management facility on campus in collaboration with government and community organisations.

“The pandemic was our moment to highlight how we’re encroaching on the environments of other species, and how our approach to human-animal relationships is contributing to crises overall.”

Dr Browne said problematic human-animal relationships, where animals are viewed as consumer goods, can be linked to pandemic outbreaks and climate catastrophes, with significant changes needed to minimise these threats.

The book analyses themes of crisis through the lens of ecological disturbance, consumer behaviour and veganism, intensive farming and human-animal relationships in urban life. 

“Sociology has for a very long time ignored the significance of animals in the social world. We read animal stories to our children. We take them to petting farms. People eat animals. People wear animals. People live with animals. It’s such a big part of our social world. We really speak to that in this book which is very exciting.”

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