Speakers
It is our club’s tradition to invite guest speakers who inform, inspire, stimulate, and deepen our understanding of various issues thus broadening our contact with the community and a wide variety of professionals. Following is a list of some of our recent guest speakers and relevant highlights:
2010
2nd March, 2010
Lynette Power & Kay Harris from Bambruk Cultural Centre
Indigenous Weather Knowledge Project, Bureau of Meteorology
What a fascinating meeting it was! After an introduction by our Charter Member Lynette Power, we learnt of the project at Bambruk Cultural Centre, Halls Gap in Gariwerd (or the Grampians National Park). Kay Harris, CEO of Bambruk shared the story with us: The aim of the project was to record the traditional knowledge of the aboriginal community before it is lost. Bambruk was contacted to see if they could put weather measurement facilities on Mt William, the highest point in the Grampians.
What was a pleasant surprise was that the information being sought had already been documented by the indigenous community identifying six seasons—Late Summer, Autumn, Winter, Pre-Spring, Spring and Early Summer with features for each. Kay shared with us some of the stories of aboriginal elders feeling and seeing the environment and its signs. When anticipated events do not occur, such as the eels running, this is an indication of upset in the seas (ie tsunamis). Butterflies provide guidance on what is happening. With bushfires, the regeneration of grasses and butterflies are important signs.
The old men are known to sit around and discuss the likelihood of wildfires—through the watching all around—ants, birds, crows, etc. Dr McBride gave us aProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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insight into the purpose—being an altruistic one to have the Indigenous Knowledge sitting in parallel with the standard weather profiles. It has been a highly visited site from throughout the world.
2009
7th July, 2009
Kathy Monley
Interplast
It was both a pleasure and an inspiration to hear Kathy Monley speak about her Interplast experience in the Phillipines. Kathy has been an active Rotarian for several years and was thrilled to be chosen from the Templestowe Club to accompany the group of volunteer surgeons, anaesthetists, speech pathologist and nursing staff as an “observer” on their two week journey to Cagayan de Oro to perform 62plus cleft palate and cleft lip operations.
Kathy shared the experiences with us. Undaunted by flight delays and a subsequent long and difficult bus journey due to typhoon activity, the large group and their huge amount of equipment were welcomed and hosted by the Rotary Club of Cagayan de Oro, established over 60 years. Kathy witnessed both the extreme poverty of the area and the financial struggle of those in health and education striving to make a difference. With the impact of her experiences so dear to her heart, Kathy has invited her Rotary Club to embrace her journey. Her Club has already commenced an ongoing meal program and repairs to St John’s Elementary School. She invited all of us to be involved in Interplast on an ongoing basis; sponsoring a piece of medical equipment, sponsor someone to come to Australia to train / learn / take back skills; knit teddy bears for patients and their families.
14th July, 2009
David Mattiske
Transparency International
David Mattiske shared the story of Transparency International, formed in 1983 to fight corruption and now having 98 chapters worldwide. David spoke of how corruption distorts the level playing field, undermines the rule of law, degrades social order, causes uncontrolled damage to the environment and is ethically wrong. The estimated cost of corruption is estimated at $US2.6 trillion pa – a truly stunning impact. The burden of this falls on poor countries who suffer high prices and poor quality.
How did David become involved, you may wonder. After working in an Asian country, his interest was heightened upon returning to that country, he observed that some workers were being chauffeur driven to work in limousines. Clearly this is not ethical in a country receiving overseas aid. David spoke of the funding of Transparency International by governments, large corporates and philanthropy. The danger of the work is always present with some staff having lost their lives and whistle blowers have subsequently been unable to gain employment. Many offer their services to the organisation on a pro bono basis. The strategy of Transparency International is to engage with governments in a supportive manner to build an integrity system, so that corruption becomes high risk.
21st July, 2009
Ben Nicholson
Green Roofs and Walls
Ben Nicholson shared his profession and passion for green roofs and following international trends, he predicts their wider adoption in Australia as a permanent building landscape and practice. He introduced the hydrological cycle of our landscape comparing an impression of 1886 in Box Hill with today’s urban environment. The challenge is how to make our built environment of houses, roads, workplaces, etc. more hydrologically friendly. The aim is to achieve a position where rainfall is more absorbed, nourishing local flora and stimulating the natural ecocycle rather than mostly gathered and channelled off into stormwater drains to the Bay.
Ben spoke of the unchecked urban environment which is an ecological and hydrological disaster, producing urban heat island effects of up to several degrees higher which impose impacts such as greater air conditioning energy use and poorer flood handling capacity. The concept of green roofs and walls is to reinstate the missing vegetation over the built environment. This was initially demonstrated in cold climate regions with high rainfall for improved insulation benefits and run-off retention, but is now recognised for all climates. Green roofs, being generally inaccessible are different from roof gardens which are not as complete. A green roof on even moderate days is dramatically cooler than a traditional tiled roof – amazingly typically around 15 degrees centigrade under the roof compared to 50 degrees). In Germany, lower temperatures have improved the efficiency of solar panels as well as lessening urban stormwater runoff. In the United Kingdom, where some disturbed sites have been reinstated by roofs, they have been noticing a return to their previously lost eco-systems. Ben presented many inspiring photographs of sites from Austria, Germany, United Kingdom, Singapore, Japan and from within Australia – Queenscliff, Sydney, Crown Casino and the Blue Mountains.
4th August, 2009
Dr Ursula Manuelpillai
Amnion Stem Cells
Dr Manuelpillai engaged us in her research on amnion stem cells and the potential for them to be used therapeutically to replace cells that are damaged or dying. She shared with us the background that stem cells are undifferentiated cells that can give rise to various cells and tissues in the body. Her work is based on specialised stem cells derived from the epithelial layer of amnion from term delivered placental tissue (afterbirth). These cells are foreign to the mother as they are derived from the baby, thus making the potential to use these cells to transplant into other people more favourable.
Dr Manuelpillai spoke of the process for the studies of growing the cells, reproduction of the results, testing and experimenting with mice who had severe lung damage which recovered with the tests. Further experiments were carried out on mice with liver cirrhosis. Currently, the only curative measure for this disease is transplantation. Amazingly, mice injected with human stem cells showed signs of reduced liver cell death, improved liver function, reduced inflammation and reduced collagen deposition. Whilst results have been promising, there are still many ongoing studies required to answer some of the the following on the use of Stem Cells:
> Are they safe to be used therapeutically?
> Are the effects long lasting?
> Are there other side effects?
> Are they going to the damaged organ only or elsewhere?
> Can they cause cancers down the line?
An intriguing presentation which educated everyone and also asked many questions. We look forward to learning more of the answers.
8th September, 2009
Mary Muirhead & Melanie Larkie
Learning For Life
Mary and Melanie – two inspiring ladies spoke about the Not For Profit organisation that they are passionate about. Learning For Life’s mission is to provide subsidised, intensive, early intervention programs to pre-school children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). ASD is a neurological disorder which is thought to be genetic. It produces problems with communication, socialisation and behaviour and includes Autism, Aspergers and Pervasive Developmental Disorder. In Australia, the prevalence in the 0 to 6 age group is 1:160 – more common than HIV/AIDS, Diabetes, Down’s Syndrome or Childhood Cancer. The therapy is intensive and expensive and must be tailored to the individual and their needs. There is no cure, only an opportunity to improve functional communication and behaviours at a very large Cost. Mary shared stories and there are many successes. This organisation has grown from humble beginnings in 2004 in our local community of suburban Surrey Hills. It is focussed on its service and fundraising creatively.
15th September, 200
Roger Lough
Defence Technology – Is It Rocket Science?
Roger Lough spoke on this intriguing topic to the membership at MASH. His address focussed on the military aspects of defence technology which has to be designed and built for a military purpose. The military domains cover: Physical such as tanks, ships and planes; Electromagnetic, for example Stop hearing and seeing early warning system planes; Cyber including watching networking operation centres, detecting hackers into the defence systems.
The history of warfare is the history of technology. Up until 1990, military science led the world in advances in science. The current powerhouse in this area remains the Pentagon, with the future going towards automation, network centric, space warfare emerging systems. We learnt that the Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) consists of twelve research divisions with 2,200 staff working at seven sites – simply an amazing fact.
10th November, 2009
Linda Latto
DEBRA Victoria
This meeting was an inspiring one for those in need of help, there can be no more deserving than the children suffering from Eipidermolysis Bullosa. Linda Latto, the coordinator of DEBRA Victoria gave us an insight into the suffering and challenges for the 1 in 20,000 individuals within the population affected by this recessive genetic disorder. These “Butterfly” children are divided into three groups depending on the severity of the disorder – Simplex, Dystrophic and Functional EB which is the worst.
We heard of the stories where children who survive face a life of constant pain, bandaging to protect the skin and reduce the web formation between fingers and toes and feeding via a tube to minise the damage to the internal surfaces of the gut. Although no cure is available for these children today, two treatments are showing promise, being Fibroblast injections in which genetically correct cells are injected into the skin which allows the skin to heal and secondly Gene Therapy . Our club contributes annually to DEBRA and it is so much in need.
17th November, 2009
Dr Alex Buchanan
The Impact of The Rotary Foundation
Dr Alex Buchanan, the recipient of the 2008/2009 Rotary Foundation Global Alumni Service to Humanity Award was recognised for his work in developing high protein milk biscuits and other collaborative food projects in South East Asia.
Alex shared his journey which began in 1959/60 as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar in Iowa, USA where he completed a degree at the Iowa State University. On his return to Australia, he obtained a position with the CSIRO in the Food Technology area. At that time, Australia had a surplus of milk, but could not sell it to South East Asia because of the lack of reliable refrigeration. He developed a high protein milk biscuit in cooperation with Arnotts Biscuits. These biscuits and other subsequently developed products were provided to developing countries. The Australian Government of the day stockpiled the biscuits for use as an emergency source of food in the event of a national disaster in any developing country and the support of Arnotts and the General Manager there was essential in this program.
The biscuits are no longer being produced due to a decision of the Government of the day and Arnotts Biscuits decision, nevertheless the work of Alex and all involved with this project has provided valuable nutrition to countless thousands of children in developing countries. Currently, investigations are progressing in Timor Leste with a view to starting local production of the biscuit to assist with protein deficiencies in the local diet.
1st December, 2009
Angela Esnouf
Creating Order From Chaos
Angela Esnouf, an expert professional Organiser spoke on “Creating Order From Chaos”. She is President of her Professional Association and recently became accredited. The association has a membership of 225 in Australia and New Zealand. She has been active in this area for 5 years. Her speciality is in corporate, concierge, family or home based business areas, and treats chronic disorganization e.g. ADD, depression, and situational disorders e.g. a new mum. She listed 7 steps in decluttering your desk and 7 steps to arriving on time. As an example, she narrated 2 stories.
The client that cried
Her client was changed after decluttering, cleansing, donating and discarding clutter in a room which represented, belonged to and was painted in accordance to her mum’s persona. She had an unhealthy & distressing relationship with her mum who was dying at the time. The decluttering allowed her clarity , changed her life and led to her utlising the room for her original intention of a jewelry workshop/studio. The process incorporated decision making, and emotional outpouring.
The Dentists’ missing money
It is always amazing how you can find money, cheques or vouchers in drawers.
Angela advises that her most simple suggestion is to start to de-clutter by allocating just 5minutes at a time. You will be surprised at what is achieved. Focus on the now and work through the current and have it addressed and then work back through the backlog.
8th December, 2009
Claire Button
ROMAC
Claire, a member of the District ROMAC Committee provided an overview of the structure of ROMAC (Rotary Oceania Medical Aid for Children) which is an Australian initiative in international service with its mission, “To provide medical treatment for children from developing countries in the form of life saving and/or dignity restoring surgery not accessible to them in their home country.”
Over 350 patients have been treated since 1987, with a high precedence of burns related injuries. Despite difficulties in obtaining bed space for ROMAC identified patients due to changes in government guidelines, District 9810 of which our club is a member, recently had a very special ROMAC patient who was looked after by the Rotary Club of Monash. Joyce, a young girl from Papua New Guinea was suffering from severe burns to her legs as well as her upper body. She had fallen into a fire and her grass skirt caught on fire. She was unable to walk. Joyce and her mother have spent two years away from their home while Joyce has undergone numerous surgeries. They have both learnt how to read and write and her mum has learnt to sew. On their recent return to PNG, Joyce was able to run to the plane and her mother was given a sewing machine that she can now use for generating income in her village.
