Latest news with #Curtin
Daily Record
3 days ago
- Health
- Daily Record
Avocado alert as popular fruit's future in doubt warns new study
Avocados are a popular choice for healthy shoppers at Tesco, Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury's, Aldi and other supermarkets A new study has issued a warning that avocados could disappear from our plates if native vegetation doesn't survive alongside crops. Avocado trees, originally from Mexico and Central America, are now cultivated in various parts of the globe, including Australia. Australian scientists have discovered that the survival of avocado crops may hinge on preserving patches of native vegetation near farmland. The research, published in the journal Environmental and Sustainability Indicators, highlights the crucial role these habitats play in sustaining the insects vital for crop pollination and maintaining our brunch menus. The team from Curtin University found that insect communities in avocado orchards next to native remnant vegetation fed on more than double the number of plant species during periods of limited crop flowering, compared to those in orchards bordered by pasture, reports Surrey Live. Avocado future and crop pollination They explained that insects with a diverse diet are more likely to survive and pollinate crops, suggesting a potential strategy to ensure global food security. With estimates suggesting that up to 10 billion people worldwide will need access to safe and nutritious food by 2050, agricultural productivity may need to increase by as much as 75%. Lead researcher Dr Joshua Kestel, who carried out the work during his PhD studies at Curtin, described the study as "particularly compelling" since it had historically been challenging to measure the variety of pollen gathered by complete insect populations - especially across expansive farming regions. He said: "Using a novel method pioneered at Curtin University, we applied a cutting-edge biodiversity assessment technique - environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding - to pan traps to identify the diversity of pollen transported by entire insect communities collected during sampling. This approach allowed us to demonstrate that natural vegetation adjacent to orchards may enhance the resilience of insect communities, potentially contributing to greater food security." 'Healthy insect communities are needed' Co-researcher Professor Paul Nevill, from Curtin's School of Molecular and Life Sciences, described the findings as crucial given that insects are responsible for pollinating 75% of all farming crops, despite many species facing extinction threats. He said: "In order to meet the food needs of the planet, diverse and healthy insect communities play a critical role in supporting essential ecosystem services such as pollination and the biological control of pests. "In Australia alone, an estimated 320,000 insect species exist, yet only 35% have been formally identified - and the plant resources many of them rely on remain largely unknown." He added: "By using sophisticated eDNA metabarcoding capable of detecting the trace of a single grain of pollen or even the footprint of a bee, we're helping to close these knowledge gaps and better understand how these insects might contribute to safeguarding global food security." The scientists gathered over 2,000 insect samples and pinpointed more than 250 plant varieties through eDNA analysis, encompassing crops, weeds and indigenous Australian vegetation. The research team suggested integrating standardised biodiversity assessments into routine agricultural monitoring, preserving ecosystems through recognising the importance of natural plant life and replanting barren areas within farming operations.
Sky News AU
5 days ago
- Politics
- Sky News AU
Former Home Affairs chief Mike Pezzullo tears into Albanese's 'unoriginal' tribute to John Curtin in 'mythical' portrait of legendary PM
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's recent portrait of John Curtin was an unoriginal and mythic repetition of the Curtin tropes. He painted Curtin as a canonised Labor hero who locked horns with Churchill over the return of Australian troops from the Middle East, and who maintained a ceaseless vigil as those troops made their way home by sea. Somehow this was a declaration of independence, when Australia, supposedly for the first time, thought and acted for itself. Never mind Alfred Deakin building our own navy before World War I, or Billy Hughes pursuing our security interests after that war at the Paris Peace Conference. The real Curtin was a courageous political leader who, after being appointed Prime Minister in October 1941, did his best to mobilise the Australian people for the coming war in the Pacific. In December 1941, he famously turned to the US. He had little choice but to appeal desperately for US military assistance, as Australia could not defend itself, and could not rely upon Britain, which was fighting for its life against Nazi Germany. Curtin knew that Australia would be a crucial base for future US operations against Imperial Japan. First, however, Australia would have to be defended. In early 1942, he and Churchill had a disagreement over the disposition of Australian forces. Curtin wanted them to return home; Churchill wanted them sent to Burma. The resultant flurry of cables between the two was a minor dance of allies arguing over war strategy. Churchill and Roosevelt had far more serious arguments, especially over the invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe. In 1944, as James Curran showed in Curtin's Empire (2011), after the danger to Australia had passed, Curtin tried to resuscitate the idea of 'imperial defence', whereby Britain and its self-governing British dominions would better coordinate their defence strategies and foreign policies. Curtin turned back to the British Empire, which is surely an inconvenient blindspot in the mythic origin story of an 'independent' Australian foreign policy. Forget such myths. A grittier and unsanctified version of Curtin would serve us better today. Indeed, that Curtin would be a leader for these dark days. With a largeness of mind and a strength of character, the Curtin of history grasped the terrible reality that global circumstances did not suit his agenda of socialistic reform. Instead, he had to focus on questions of war. After he became Leader of the Opposition in 1935, Curtin recognised that he would have to champion what was, for him and his party, an unnatural cause – namely, how best to independently defend Australia, at a time when the prevailing orthodoxy was to rely on Britain, and its naval base in Singapore. Had Curtin won the elections of 1937 and 1940, Australia would have been better prepared. The national panic of 1941-42 might have been avoided. Australia might have even re-armed in time to be able to deploy a powerful force in its sea-air approaches to confront Imperial Japan's southwards thrust. Perhaps, Australia might have 'looked to America' sooner - but demanding the final say in its own local defence. Those who would seek to appropriate Curtin's legacy should not be allowed to admire only what he did as a wartime leader. To honour him properly, we have to ask what a modern-day Curtin would do in the face of a looming war. While working tirelessly for peace through diplomacy, Curtin today would be vocal about the threat posed by China. He would argue for greater defence self-reliance and dramatically increased defence spending. He would be concerned about the threat of missile and air attack, offensive cyber strikes, raids in remote areas, attacks on shipping, and so on. He would be deeply engaged with his professional advisers on how best to deal with these military problems. He would show a deep interest in complex matters of war. He would recognise that, in a new 'look to America', ANZUS would need to become a warfighting alliance, with a standing headquarters (but this time headed by an Australian). He would authorise the development of war plans, including jointly with the United States. He would ask to see those war plans, and to approve them. He would also give priority to home defence, mobilisation, defence production, and the introduction of national service. The problem with meeting our heroes is that they always disappoint us. Meeting the real Curtin – the one who was focused on technical military issues, even if that meant setting aside a socialistic reforming zeal – would disappoint the Prime Minister. That, however, is the Curtin that we need today. The Curtin who in the 1930s was concerned that Australia was not doing enough to get ready, and who would today be deeply concerned to see history repeating itself. Michael Pezzullo was the Home Affairs Secretary from December 2017 until November 2023.
West Australian
6 days ago
- Business
- West Australian
Traditional MBA degree back in business amid economic downturns, says Curtin University's Shahid Ghauri
Curtin University's Shahid Ghauri expects a resurgence in demand for the traditional master of business administration degree as professionals look to enhance their skills amid a slowing economy and rapid artificial intelligence advancements. Dr Ghauri recently took on the role as the new director of Curtin's MBA and doctorate of business administration programs earlier this month. He says MBAs and DBAs can often be seen as a safe haven amid economic downturns. According to the Graduate Management Admission Council, applications to MBA programs globally grew more than 12 per cent in 2024, reversing two consecutive years of declines. Dr Ghauri expects that rebound to continue. 'When there's a bit of a downturn, you see that people want to come back and upskill,' he said. 'They've got perhaps more time to to be able to reflect on their studies and they can go through it a bit more intensively . . . rather than dragging it on over four or five years because of full-time work.' Dr Ghauri pointed to a World Economic Survey that showed AI, big data, technological skills and analytical thinking among the core skills employees would need over the next five years. 'That's why there's always going to be demand for prestigious MBAs,' he said. 'These are the real challenges that our economies are facing, the world is facing, and that's why (people) come into an MBA because they're able to synthesise those challenges with what we teach.' Dr Ghauri notes that while Curtin has a 'very strong' domestic intake, he also sees strong interests from students coming from Brazil, the Middle East, Malaysia and Singapore. Dr Ghauri brings over 25 years of global experience across the financial services, agri-business, medical, renewable energy and education sectors. He has worked in more than 12 countries across Asia Pacific, Latin and South America and East Africa.
LeMonde
10-07-2025
- Politics
- LeMonde
'Trump treats his allies in Asia like those in Europe, with intimidation and blackmail. The result is the same: Trust breaks down'
In politics, drawing parallels with universally respected icons is often more effective than building long arguments. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese demonstrated as much on Saturday, July 5, as debate raged in his country over the future of Canberra's relationships with the United States, China and Europe. Albanese paid tribute to his distant predecessor John Curtin, also a Labor Party leader, on the 80 th anniversary of Curtin's death. On December 27, 1941, three weeks after the Pearl Harbor attack and in the midst of the Pacific War, Curtin published a now-famous article in the Melbourne Herald urging Australia to "look to America." In reality, this was a way to avoid leaving his country's fate in the hands of Churchill. In February 1942, Curtin stood up to the British prime minister, who had claimed the right to deploy Australian troops to Myanmar, and insisted they be brought home to defend Australia. Curtin's message, as Albanese interprets it today, was that "Australia's fate would be decided in our region. (...) This was a Pacific war. (...) Our security could not be outsourced to London, or trusted to vague assurances from Britain." Replace "London" with "Washington," and the message is rather clear. Albanese, comfortably re-elected in May over a conservative opponent who boasted of good relations with Donald Trump, does not appreciate the dictates of the 47 th US president. In a country that, like Japan, is key for the US presence in the Indo-Pacific, doubts about the strength of the alliance with Washington have come to the fore. Trump treats his allies in the Indo-Pacific like those in Europe: with intimidation and blackmail, from ultimatums in military cooperation to tariff wars in trade relations. The result is the same: a breakdown in trust. US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's remarks at the annual Shangri-La Dialogue security forum in Singapore on May 31 had an effect on the US's Asia-Pacific allies akin to that of Vice President JD Vance's address to European allies in Munich in February: chilling and domineering. Declaring the Indo-Pacific the "priority theater" for the US, and calling the Chinese threat "imminent," Hegseth urged them to follow the example of NATO allies, "even Germany," who have committed to raising their defense spending to 5% of GDP. Australia is currently spending 2% and aiming for 2.4% by 2033.
The Age
07-07-2025
- Politics
- The Age
Why are WA's one-year teaching diplomas being trashed?
Western Australia's peak teachers' union has backed criticism of the state's one-year teaching diplomas, which have drawn the ire of east coast education bodies for offering underqualified teachers a loophole to avoid completing the national standard two-year course. The New South Wales and Victorian governments are investigating ways to close the loophole that allows graduates of Curtin and Edith Cowan universities' one-year graduate teaching diplomas from working in those states despite not having met the minimum two-year full-time study requirement. That requirement was set in a national agreement in 2014, but last year WA's Teacher Registration Board reintroduced the one-year registration as the state aimed to combat its teacher shortage. The national agreement includes mutual recognition of studies, meaning those who have completed their course in WA are eligible to teach anywhere in the country. The State School Teachers' Union WA has long railed against any changes that lessen training requirements and senior vice president Natalie Blewitt reiterated those concerns following news of the east coast backlash. Loading 'The SSTUWA has warned for many years that putting underqualified teachers in classrooms is not a long-term solution to the teacher shortage,' she said. 'This not only includes shortening the post-grad courses but also includes putting those who are completing their undergraduate degree in front of students in our classrooms and expecting them to teach without the necessary skills and training to do so.' 'What we need are policies that address the real issues – workload and a lack of respect for the teaching profession.'
