Season’s Greetings from EA Chair

As Chair of Engagement Australia (EA) can I take this opportunity to wish you and your family all the very best for the festive season.  This continues to be a challenging year and in these unprecedented times Australian universities have come together to respond to the ‘wicked issues’ facing us. This year the pandemic has taught us that clear, science-led thinking allied to purposive social and collective action for the greater good can effectively counter the threat posed by viruses. They can be kept at bay and in the longer term neutralised so health safety and security can be re-established.

In such a time, universities have chosen to become deeply engaged with their communities in facing and overcoming such challenges. In opting for engagement rather than disengagement universities have worked together towards a collective vision of a better higher education outcome. Such a vision was on proud display at this year’s flagship Engagement Australia Awards which took place on the 30th November 2021.  In its second year of transition from the Business-Higher Education Round Table (BHERT) Awards, the EA Awards received 107 submissions from 35 universities across Australia and New Zealand. The UA Chief Professor John Dewar (who delivered his key presentation at the Awards) commented on the exceptional quality of the 2021 nominations which which can be enjoyed via the following link: engagement-australia-2021-excellence-awards.

As the holiday season fast approaches, I hope you find time to relax, spend time with your loved ones and recharge the batteries.  My thanks to everyone involved in EA for their hard work and commitment again this year.  I would particularly like to thank my fellow Board members for their outstanding contribution this year in advancing the engagement agenda that we all cherish.

And as we look to the New Year which we know will continue to be one of great challenge and great change, we also see that there is great opportunity.  Engagement Australia will be working even more closely with members and the sector to rise to these challenges and opportunities.

For now, can I take this opportunity to wish you and your loved ones my very best wishes for the festive season. My EA colleagues and I are looking forward to working with you, and for you, in 2022.

Kindest regards,

Jim Nyland
Professor Jim Nyland
Chair, Engagement Australia