Events

Upcoming events at Western Sydney University are listed below.

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• Jan 28
  Exhibition: Contemplating Affective Landscapes

  A collection of works by Dawne Fahey

  Exhibitions and performances
  A collection of works by Dawne Fahey

  Contemplating Affective Landscapes showcases Dawne Fahey's abstract atmospheric landscapes, created using cold wax and oil paint during a recent artist residency at Tweed Regional Art Gallery, Murwillumbah. These pieces are timeless, they are rich in colour and texture, signifying contemplative quiet spaces contained within active moments. Dawne works two pieces simultaneously to form a pair which speaks to her emotional experience of immersing herself in the Tweed Valley landscape. She overlaps layers upon layers of the cold wax and oil mixture, which she then scrapes, scratches and sands. Embedded in each piece are unseen words, numbers and letters, which are then painted over. Dawne acknowledges the positive impact of removing herself from the external demands of everyday life has on her ability to create works that invite audiences into her felt experience of the landscape. For enquiries about acquisition of artworks, please contact Monica McMahon, Western Sydney University, Art Curator

  Mon, 28 Jan 2019 00:00:00 +1100
• Feb 25
  ACIAC Art Exhibition: As We Journey Through Life

  There are many challenges and authenticity in the real world. Bingbing Chen takes us to on a journey of fragility, hope and optimism.

  Exhibitions and performances
  General public
  There are many challenges and authenticity in the real world. Bingbing Chen takes us to on a journey of fragility, hope and optimism.

  As we journey through life, from childhood to young adults and beyond, we become increasingly aware of the reality that there are many moments in which we are not prepared for the challenges that confront us. Sometimes these moments are of personal difficulties or perhaps tragedy: the failure for a career to materialise the way we desire or, even more confronting, the death of a friend or loved one. Other times, there is a more global nature to this realisation: that our very actions contribute to anthropocentric climate change that threatens our very planet, large-scale pollution or possibly mass displacement of people in vulnerable communities. While contributing to such phenomenon, as individuals, we often feel helpless to stop such events from occurring no matter how personally inspired we are to act. The result is a growing gap between the realities of adulthood and the childhood enchantment of the world we feel and the sense of endless possibilities for the future we are encouraged to pursue by our parents and teachers. It is in such moments that we often look for meaning in our lives: in a world characterised by the promises of youth but compromised by the toils and tribulations of adulthood, we often wonder what is the point. It is these moments that have often been the focus of philosophers and artists. For philosophers, such as the existentialist Soren Kierkegaard, our life is one in which we search for authenticity in or world that disorientates and confuses us – a world that often feels meaningless and absurd. For Kierkegaard, this is no easy journey, for it is one filled with fear and anxiety: “Standing on a cliff, a sense of disorientation and confusion cloud you. Not only are you afraid of falling, you also fear succumbing to the impulse of throwing yourself off. Nothing is holding you back. Dread, anxiety and anguish rise to the surface.” (Kierkegaard, S. (1957) The Concept of Dread, Princeton University Press) These moments have also been the focus of artists such as Evdard Much most notable in the series of artworks known as The Scream (first exhibited in 1893). The works show a lonely figure with a painful and agonised expression holding his head – capturing a sense of disorientation, fear and isolation. Bingbing Chen’s latest exhibition captures this feeling but with a sense of subtleness reflective of her own personal philosophy – one reflective of her heritage. One notable example in Chen’s exhibition is the image of the eggshell. The metaphor of the egg is a powerful one. We cannot think of eggshells as offering protection – they must be cushioned and carefully handled – but also protect the most cherished of contents. While Chen sees our lives in this way, it is childhood that is her focus here. Children, like eggs, are cushioned but to survive, we must realise that as we grow that our world is often hostile, challenging and occasionally threatening. Despite the fragility of our youth, we must grow to be resilient and tenacious if we are to confront the many challenging elements of life. This creates a complex relationship between parents and their children – with parents wanting to shield their children from the challenges of life to ensure they enjoy their years of play – while also preparing them for the trials ahead. Despite the countless books on parenting, each parent and child’s journey is an individual one – even within the same family. Within this frame, Chen’s work is simultaneously optimistic and concerned. Chen recognises that we all grow up with dreams and ambitions – something that she presents in her growing plants from seedlings and mountain peaks – but she also reminds us that many of these do not materialise. When these dreams do not materialise, we risk being captured by what could have been or become bitter and regretful, like disfigured trees. But Chen’s optimism also comes through as she brings to our attention that a life of meaning often grows out of the soil of uncertainty. We will face challenges but our hearts and spirits will bloom when we remain determined and achieve what we desire despite the many setbacks. In life’s journey, the philosopher and the artist have always danced an intimate routine – reminding us of the challenges of meaning and authenticity in a chaotic world. Chen joins this routine and takes us on a journey of fragility, hope and optimism. Professor James Arvanitakis Institute for Culture and Society Western Sydney University.

  Mon, 25 Feb 2019 00:00:00 +1100
• Mar 19
  Art Exhibition: After All

  An exhibition of works by Visual Arts teachers from Bossley Park High School.

  Exhibitions and performances
  An exhibition of works by Visual Arts teachers from Bossley Park High School.

  The teachers involved in this exhibition prove that they are not solely educators but also practitioners within their field, using their knowledge and expertise to create artworks of their own: “After all, we are all practicing artists”. Working across their specialist media, from painting and photography to printmaking and ceramics, they draw inspiration from the world around them in sentimental, commemorative and highly subjective points of view. As practicing artists, the teachers aim to develop relationships with those in the art field and through various avenues, bringing back knowledge and expertise to share with their colleagues and the students in their classrooms. By using the knowledge and skills they have learnt from one another to inform their teaching practice, they are engaging in a professional development that is collaborative, respectful and innovatory. “Without collaboration our growth is limited to our own perspectives” is an ethos that these teachers uphold to ensure that they are keeping up with the changing world, across the realms of art and education.

  Tue, 19 Mar 2019 09:00:00 +1100
• Apr 26
  Symposium - 'Religion and Race/ialisation in Australia'

  Australia has recently seen the return of ‘race politics’ which is often connected to the religious faith of those being racialized.

  academic events
  All Welcome
  Australia has recently seen the return of ‘race politics’ which is often connected to the religious faith of those being racialized.

  Australia has recently seen the return of ‘race politics’ which is often connected to the religious faith of those being racialized. It is evident in discussions of Middle Eastern migrant communities, which are inevitably associated with Islam despite Islam being a global religion and the Middle East being religiously diverse. This discourse treats Islam as a monolithic whole and racializes Muslims and those who appear to be Muslim, ascribing particular characteristics such as violence and criminality, and oppressive attitudes towards women and sexual minorities. Such discourse fails to recognise the diversity within Islam, both in terms of its different legal schools and the cultural and geographical particularities that exist. Although much of the current work on religion and race both in Australia and internationally focuses on Islam, race and religious identity intersect across a range of other religions in Australia to produce various discourses of ‘othering’ both inside and outside religious communities. The relationship of Christianity to whiteness and Australian identity is also pertinent to this discourse: particularly in light of current political discourse on migration policy.The study of religion and raceracialisation is a fast-developing field. Scholarship from the United States dominates the existing literature, with a secondary substantial contribution coming from the UK and Europe. We believe that this event will be an excellent opportunity to:* bring together sociologists working in this field in Australia to reflect on the relevance of trends in the current international debate to the Australian context,* share their work with other sociologists working in cognate areas,*build an Australian network of sociologists with a shared interest in religion and race.Speakers: Professor Fethi Mansouri (Deakin University), Professor Kevin Dunn (Western Sydney University), Associate Professor Farida Fozdar (University of Western Australia), Dr Jennifer Cheng (Western Sydney University) Date and Time: Friday, 26 April 2019: 10.30am – 4.00 pm Venue: Room 03.9.01, Liverpool Campus, Western Sydney University Sponsored by: The Australian Sociological Association (TASA), The Religion and Society Research Cluster (RSRC) and the School of Social Sciences and Psychology (SSAP) at Western Sydney UniversityRegistration: Limited free registration, please RSVP to Rosemary Hancock - rosemary.hancock@nd.edu.au

  Fri, 26 Apr 2019 10:30:00 +1000
• Apr 26
  Writing & Society Research Centre seminar

  Alix Beeston (Cardiff U) on 'Frozen in the Glassy, Bluestreaked Air: John Dos Passos’s Photographic Metropolis'.

  Conferences and seminars
  All welcome
  Alix Beeston (Cardiff U) on 'Frozen in the Glassy, Bluestreaked Air: John Dos Passos’s Photographic Metropolis'.

  The experimental form of John Dos Passos’s first major novel, the episodic, multilinear Manhattan Transfer (1925), has long been understood in connection with the montage techniques of avant-garde cinema. But Dos Passos’s notes and drafts for the book reveal the ahistoricity of this analogy even as they offer up other spectatorial contexts for understanding its experimental form. I draw on new archival work in this paper, which interprets Manhattan Transfer’s serialised mode of narration and characterisation in line with the figuring of female bodies through the photographic apparatus of advertisement and celebrity ancillary to early-twentieth-century Broadway entertainments. By unpacking the image of Dos Passos's central character, Ellen Thatcher, as a photograph, “frozen into a single gesture”, I account for Dos Passos’s critique of the dominations of the male gaze and the complicity of photographic technologies as mechanisms of social control in the modern city. ALIX BEESTON is Lecturer in English at Cardiff University. This paper is drawn from her first book, In and Out of Sight: Modernist Writing and the Photographic Unseen, which was published in 2018 by Oxford University Press. Her work appears or is forthcoming in PMLA, Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, Modernism/modernity, Arizona Quarterly, and elsewhere. She is also the author of Object Women, a digital art history project developed in partnership with the George Eastman Museum: www.instagram.com/objectwomen.

  Fri, 26 Apr 2019 11:00:00 +1000
• Apr 27
  Public Astronomy Night April 27

  The riches of the Universe.

  academic events; Conferences and seminars; Exhibitions and performances; Social events
  students, staff, alumni, general public
  The riches of the Universe.

  Public Astronomy Night: The Riches of the Universe Speaker – Dr Chris Matthew Where do some of the most precious elements on Earth - the gold in our banks and the platinum in our jewellery - come from? You might be surprised to learn that many of the precious metals that are so rare on Earth, but which you may be wearing right now, are present in unimaginable amounts in the universe. These elements have travelled many billions of kilometres, and over billions of years, to reach the early Earth; only to be mined in our recent history. This lecture will examine how these riches are made, where they are found in the universe, how they got here, and the projects that are currently underway to access the great wealth of the Solar System and beyond Includes presentation, short 3D movie, tour of the dome and viewing of the night sky through a range of telescopes (weather permitting). $18.00 Adult $12.00 Child/Concession $50.00 Family (2 adults + 2 children) Children under 3 years of age free. IMPORTANT: Parents/Carers are responsible for and must remain with their children at all times. BOOKINGS VIA OUR WEBSITE ESSENTIAL

  Sat, 27 Apr 2019 19:00:00 +1000
• Apr 29
  Grammar Workshop

  Free 2 day Grammar Workshop available

  Training and skill upgrade
  Students
  Free 2 day Grammar Workshop available During the April/May intra-session break there will be a free 2 day Grammar Workshop available to help you brush up on your grammar skills, including the use of articles, the use of pronouns, subject-verb agreement and complex sentences. For more information and to register go to www.westernsydney.edu.au/academicliteracy
  Mon, 29 Apr 2019 00:00:00 +1000
• Apr 29
  Free Academic Literacy Workshops

  2 and 4 day Academic Literacy Workshops April/May 2019

  Training and skill upgrade
  Students
  2 and 4 day Academic Literacy Workshops April/May 2019

  During the April/May 2019 intra-session break there will be a number of free 2 and 4 day academic literacy workshops to help you brush up on your academic style of writing, essay writing and referencing skills, based at Parramatta 1PSQ and Liverpool campuses. Check the webpage for more information and registration. https://www.westernsydney.edu.au/academicliteracy

  Mon, 29 Apr 2019 00:00:00 +1000
• Apr 29
  eResearch: Excel for Researchers - Campbelltown Campus

  eResearch: Excel for Researchers - Course for academics and HDR Candidates.

  academic events; Training and skill upgrade
  All academics and HDR Candidates
  eResearch: Excel for Researchers - Course for academics and HDR Candidates.

  Please come along to the next eResearch: Excel for Researchers course being held at our Campbelltown Campus. Why do this course? Data rarely comes in the form you require. Often it is messy. Sometimes it is incomplete. And sometimes there's too much of it. Frequently, it has errors. We'll use one of the most widespread data wrangling tools, Microsoft Excel, to import, sort, filter, copy, protect, transform, summarise, merge, and visualise research data. While aimed at novice users, most attendees will walk away with new tricks to work more efficiently with their research data. By registration only. https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/excel-for-researchers-at-western-sydney-campbelltown-registration-55135713403

  Mon, 29 Apr 2019 09:30:00 +1000
• Apr 30
  SSAP Challenging Racism Project Seminar

  The presentation discusses the issue of perception vs. 'reality' of the insider/outsider view.

  academic events
  All Welcome
  The presentation discusses the issue of perception vs. 'reality' of the insider/outsider view.

  A view from within and a view from without: Muslim residential concentrations in Melbourne and Sydney ABSTRACT This presentation draws from the insights of two large empirical projects, one completed (2016-2017) and the other in progress (2018-2020). The second project builds on the findings of the first, and both are focused on Muslim residential concentration areas. The entrenched policy wisdom is that ethnic residential concentrations concentrations are (potentially) problematic; the lived experience of their residents is that they are supportive and protective. When we look at available data (Census etc.) on Muslim concentration areas in Melbourne and Sydney, the only certainty is that most of them are 'socio-economically disadvantaged'. Our findings so far indicate that local policy interventions should focus on education, including migrant English, and employment, rather than on issues of 'radicalisation' and social cohesion. The presentation discusses the issue of perception vs. 'reality' of the insider/outsider view on these concentrations in relation to the issues of Islamophobia and socio-economic disadvantage. PRESENTER Associate Professor Val Colic-Peisker Val Colic-Peisker is an Associate Professor in the School of Global, Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia. Val does research in Urban Sociology, focusing on diversity, Global Mobility and Ethnic Relations. She uses Quantitative and Qualitative Research methods Her most recent publication (Palgrave, 2018) is a book, coauthored with Adrian Flitney: 'The Age of Post-Rationality: Limits of economic reasoning in the 21st century'. She currently researches neighbourhood diversity and Islamophobia in Australia.

  Tue, 30 Apr 2019 12:00:00 +1000
• May 1
  eResearch: Excel for Researchers - Penrith Campus

  eResearch: Excel for Researchers for Academics and HDR candidates.

  academic events; Training and skill upgrade
  All academics and HDR Candidates
  eResearch: Excel for Researchers for Academics and HDR candidates.

  The Office of the DVC R&I is hosting Excel training for Researchers at Kingswood campus on 1 May 2019. Why do this course? Data rarely comes in the form you require. Often it is messy. Sometimes it is incomplete. And sometimes there's too much of it. Frequently, it has errors. We'll use one of the most widespread data wrangling tools, Microsoft Excel, to import, sort, filter, copy, protect, transform, summarise, merge, and visualise research data. While aimed at novice Excel users, most attendees will walk away with new tricks to work more efficiently with their research data. By registration only via this link: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/excel-for-researchers-at-western-sydney-penrith-kingswood-registration-55135732460

  Wed, 01 May 2019 09:30:00 +1000
• May 1
  ACIAC Seminar: Takeuchi’s Lu Xun / China’s Takeuchi 竹内《魯迅》・中国の竹内好

  In this seminar, Professor Jon Eugene von Kowallis will talk about modern Chinese literature and his foremost exponent in Japan.

  Conferences and seminars
  General public
  In this seminar, Professor Jon Eugene von Kowallis will talk about modern Chinese literature and his foremost exponent in Japan.

  Abstract Despite the ups and downs in their relationship, China and Japan have been engaged in a process of cultural exchange for nearly two millennia. A recent outcome of this interaction has been the discourse surrounding the founder of modern Chinese literature, Lu Xun 鲁迅 (1881-1936), his foremost exponent in Japan, the writer and philosopher Takeuchi Yoshimi 竹内好 (1910-1977) and the effect of their interaction ever since on intellectuals in both countries. This is an interaction which had substantial influence on the intellectual climate in post-war Japan and now plays a role in intellectual discourse in contemporary China, particularly in the debates surrounding modernity and nationalism, which have headed in directions unforeseen by either Takeuchi or Lu Xun. Biography Jon Eugene von Kowallis is Chair Professor of Chinese Studies at the University of New South Wales, where he founded and taught courses on both modern and classical Chinese language and literature; Chinese Poetry and Poetics: Theories of Translation; the history of Chinese Cinema; Orientalism; and Translating the Epistolary Genre. He began the study of Chinese literature under C.T. Hsia 夏志清 at Columbia University for the BA, continuing at Taiwan University and Hawaii (as a fellow of the East-West Centre), at Peking University and the University of California, Berkeley, where he wrote his PhD thesis under Cyril Birch. Jon taught at Berkeley, UCLA, Oregon, Williams, Prague and the University of Melbourne before coming to UNSW, Sydney, which he renamed. Monographs include: The Lyrical Lu Xun: a Study of his Classical-style Poetry and The Subtle Revolution: Poets of the ‘Old Schools’ during Late Qing and Early Republican China. He is currently completing an ARC Discovery project on the formation of Lu Xun’s early thought during his Lerhjahre in Japan. Jon has also published on Chinese film in Taiwan and Hong Kong and translated pre-modern Chinese humour. He writes in Chinese under the name Kou Zhiming 寇志明 and was a columnist for Dong Hua Shibao 东华时报, Australia’s oldest Chinese-language newspaper. He was elected Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society (London) and presently serves as President of the Oriental Society of Australia, the nation’s oldest professional organization for Asianists, founded by the late Professor A. R. Davis at the University of Sydney.

  Wed, 01 May 2019 16:00:00 +1000
• May 3
  Writing & Society Research Centre seminar

  Carla Guelfenbein: On being a Chilean writer and a woman writer.

  academic events; Conferences and seminars
  All welcome
  Carla Guelfenbein: On being a Chilean writer and a woman writer.

  Most Latin American writers and certainly, all Chilean writers of my generation, lived through some kind of revolution, and many of us, a dictatorship. Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Nicaragua, Perú, Cuba… In my case, the military coup of Pinochet, and then exile, had a profound influence on my life and on my writing. Since I flew from Chile, and landed in a country whose codes and language I didn´t understand, I have felt like an orphan. And that is the place from where I write. CARLA GUELFENBEIN is a Chilean novelist and screenwriter. She was born in Santiago into a family of Russian-Jewish origin. She lived for many years in the UK, where she studied at Essex University and Saint Martin’s School of Art. She has worked as a designer, art director, and editor of Elle Magazine in Chile. Her novels including El revés del alma, La mujer de mi vida, El resto es silencio (The Rest is Silence) and most recently Contigo en la Distancia (In the Distance with You) which won the prestigious Premio Alfaguara de Novela.

  Fri, 03 May 2019 11:00:00 +1000
• May 4
  I Spy: Family Fun day at the Whitlam Institute

  Know a spy kid? You're invited to the Whitlam Institute's family fun day featuring our exhibition SPY: Espionage in Australia.

  Social events
  Know a spy kid? You're invited to the Whitlam Institute's family fun day featuring our exhibition SPY: Espionage in Australia.

  This adventure includes a Spy family activity trail and special spy training activities for kids aged 5-12. Learn to experiment with invisible ink and crack the code with cipher wheels, or dress up as a spy to take a secret selfie #spy

  We’re open 11am – 4pm on Saturday, 4 May and there's something for everyone throughout the day, but registrations are essential for special spy training sessions.

  • Spy Exhibition Family Trail - FREE, available all day, bookings not required. Collect a Spy Mission book and explore this fantastic exhibition from the National Archives of Australia.
  • Spy Training Sessions for kids - Book today FREE - bookings essential, places limited. Children must be accompanied by an adult. For ages 5 - 12 years.
    • Invisible Ink: experiment with different materials to create your own secret message. Participants will learn about and take turns writing secret messages using different methods.
    • Crack the Code: create your own cipher wheel to crack a series of codes, and write your own coded message.
      • Session 1 - 11:30-12:30pm
      • Session 2 - 1:30-2:30pm
      • Session 3 - 3:00-4:00pm
  • Female Orphan School: Secret File for kids - FREE, available all day, bookings not required. Pick up your secret file from our Visitor Services Centre and discover this heritage building’s secrets on your own secret fact-finding mission. Or look for answers on one of our free tours.
  • In Disguise: Spy Dress ups for kids - FREE, available all day, bookings not required Do you make a convincing spy? Try on one of our disguises and take a selfie. The top-secret hashtag is: #Spy
  • Free guided tours of the Female Orphan School - FREE, 11am or 2pm, 30mins, bookings not required Our expert volunteers will guide you through Australia's oldest three storey building, which has a fascinating social history and a picturesque location by the Parramatta River.
  Sat, 04 May 2019 11:00:00 +1000
• May 7
  ACIAC Artist Workshop “Peasantography: Photographing Left Behind Children”

  Photo project addressing the unique voice of contemporary socially engaged Chinese art through a specific case study on these "Left Behind Children".

  Conferences and seminars
  Photo project addressing the unique voice of contemporary socially engaged Chinese art through a specific case study on these "Left Behind Children".

  In China, 63 million children grew up with their grandparents or great grandparents in the countryside while their parents working in the cities, sometimes thousands of miles away. Photographer Tami Xiang’s “Peasantography: Family Portrait” addresses the unique voice of contemporary socially engaged Chinese art through a specific case study on these "Left Behind Children" (LBC). To develop this series, Xiang photographed and interviewed hundreds of children and their family. The ethno-photographic project provides some background information and describes the negative effects on the Left Behind Children of policies and political circumstances that have led to this situation. In this workshop, Tami Xiang will discuss the influence of household registration system, financial burden and the lack of care on the children, and how art offers them a voice that has hardly been heard in the particular sociopolitical context in contemporary China. The photography series will be exhibited at the Festival Hub – Paddington Town Hall during Head On Photo Festival, between 4 and 19 May 2019. Tami Xiang is a Perth based Chinese-Australian artist and academic scholar. She has achieved the Masters of Fine Arts from University of Western Australia (UWA) and she is currently undertaking a PhD by research at UWA. Tami’s work has been exhibited in Australia, Mainland China, France, Taiwan and the U.S. Her work has been published on the New York Times and the Eye of Photography in France and Artlink in Australia.

  Tue, 07 May 2019 13:00:00 +1000
• May 9
  SSAP Professorial Lecture - Shaking the Cybersecurity Kaleidoscope - An Immersive Look into Human Behaviour and Cybersecurity

  Professor Maurushat will weave a story through the thread of human behaviour & cybersecurity with the primary objective of making sense out of chaos.

  academic events; Conferences and seminars
  All Welcome
  Professor Maurushat will weave a story through the thread of human behaviour & cybersecurity with the primary objective of making sense out of chaos.

  Professorial Lecture: Shaking the Cybersecurity Kaleidoscope - An Immersive Look into Human Behaviour and Cybersecurity Presented by Professor Alana Maurushat Professor of Cybersecurity & Behaviour, School of Social Sciences and Psychology Over 10,000 new cybersecurity technologies are developed each year yet we do not see a correlating decrease in cybersecurity threats. This is because cybersecurity isn’t a mere computer science problem. The most vulnerable part in the security chain is humans. But humans are also a valuable asset in countering cybersecurity threats. A kaleidoscope is constantly changing pattern or sequence of elements. In cyber we need to shake the kaleidoscope to create new ways of both identifying and solving problems. This presentation will be somewhat unorthodox. Maurushat will weave a story through the thread of human behaviour and cybersecurity with the primary objective of making sense out of chaos. What do Mars Bars, Perestroika, Carrots, Transylvania, Robin Hood, Tallinn, Mahjong, Anti-Vaccination, the Mayor of Montreal, The Black Panther, Tails and Pineapples have to do with cybersecurity? In her presentation, Professor Maurushat encapsulates key human behaviour issues in cybersecurity based on 17 years of experience and research in ethical hacking, vulnerability markets, cybercrime investigations and cybersecurity policy consultation with governments and intelligence agencies. There are no easy answers to cybersecurity challenges. However, this presentation will stimulate thinking about how to use the power of human behaviour to improve cybersecurity through emerging fields of behaviour data engineering, artificial intelligence, behavioural economics and neuro-diversity (as evolution). Alana Maurushat is Professor of Cybersecurity and Behaviour at Western Sydney University, is a Cyber Ambassador for the NSW Cybersecurity Network, and is a Director and Special Cyber Advisor for the cybercrime private investigations intelligence firm IFW Global. She is an expert in cybercrime, cybersecurity, data privacy and the data processing regulatory environment. She is author of the books Ethical Hacking (2019) and Disclosure of Security Vulnerabilities (2013). She has been in the media with 60 Minutes, 730 Report, Insight, ABC TV, ABC Radio and the New York Times. She is passionate about human rights and cybersecurity, and has done consultancies with NGOs, Industry as well as the Australian and Canadian governments RSVP: SSAP-research@westernsydney.edu.au by 2/5/2019.

  Thu, 09 May 2019 13:00:00 +1000
• May 13
  ACIAC Art Exhibition: Adam Chang's Pandas and Treasures

  This exhibition includes a collection of seven paintings by award-wining Chinese Australian artist — Adam Chang.

  Exhibitions and performances
  General public
  This exhibition includes a collection of seven paintings by award-wining Chinese Australian artist — Adam Chang.

  From ‘human beings’ to ‘Shan Shui with Panda’, the theme of Adam Chang’s paintings has shifted from the ‘national treasure’ level cultural celebrity portraits to the grand environmentalist natural kingdom series. Many claimed to have been stunned by the ‘sudden change’ of identity that is happening to a ‘portrait artist’. In fact, this feeling of shock could only have resulted from a misreading of him - although Chang has been internationally acclaimed for his impressive achievements in the art of portraiture, this represented only the tip of the iceberg in the bulk of his artistic attainment. The recent launch of his ‘Shan Shui with Panda’ series should be useful in drawing the attention of the international art world to the breadth of Chang’s artistic thinking and his aesthetic magnitude. Adam Chang is often referred to as ‘a quiet artist’. This is because he, like a ‘hermit’, rarely has any contact with the world outside his studio. This seems to bear a connection with the spiritual ‘inertia’ of the asceticist practice of a senior generation of artists such as Zhao Wuji and Zhu Dequn. The difference is that Chang does not directly draw from the theory of ‘yijing’ (artistic conception) in traditional Chinese painting; instead, he follows the Taoist view of ‘Nature and Man in One’. Following the core concept of ‘harmony’, he is now moving his reflections from about ‘human beings’ to the ultimate realm of harmony between ‘Man and Nature’. From the 2007 Australian national Archibald Prize finalist ‘Brian, the Dog and the Doorway’ to the 2011 People’s Choice Winner ‘John Coetzee’, from the shocking surrealist portrait ‘Salvador Dali’ (2017) to today’s high-profile ‘symbol of China’ combination ‘Shan Shui with Panda’, the new exhibition ‘Adam Chang’s Pandas and Treasures’ very well ‘captures’ some of most representative works of his ‘transitional period’. The national Archibald Prize requires that ‘portrait subjects’ need to be cultural celebrities, but Chang has deliberately chosen to work on two ‘immigrants’- Brian Sherman and John Coetzee are both migrants from South Africa. This choice probably reflects the artist’s own immigrant background, but it simultaneously conveys his appreciation of the beauty of the Australian concept of multiculturalist society. From the cultural perspective of ‘national treasure’ as a symbol, if Brian Sherman’s identity as a philanthropist, John Coetzee’s identity as a poet and novelist and Salvador Dali’s identity as a master of artistic creativity display three dimensions of human civilization- ‘compassion’, ‘poetry’ and ‘mimesis’, the ‘Shan Shui with Panda’ series offers an ‘ultimate’ illustration of the philosophical altitude and the universal value of Lao Zi and Zhuang Zi’s ideal – let all ‘ Human Mankind Sharing a Common Destiny’ understand ‘Nature and Man in One’. In Chang’s inner world, the ‘panda’ probably stands as an embodiment of the contribution made by the Chinese civilization to the world. However, the ‘Shan Shui’ here is not only ‘Chinese landscape’, but rather a general ‘image’ that communicates a globalized ‘Shan Shui’, or ‘the grand Shan Shui’ of the entire universe. If such an artistic vision psychologically and naturally ‘fits’ the upcoming international art trend in the third decade of the 21st century, one might say that, in a way, Chang has helped to ‘pioneer’ for world art through the use of ‘oriental aesthetics’ a ‘harmonious’ way out of a long-term western predominance in international artistic thinking. Dr Sheng Tong Editor-in-Chief, Contemporary International Chinese Poetry Research fellow, International Diaspora Literature and Art Research Association January 2019.

  Mon, 13 May 2019 00:00:00 +1000
• May 14
  Exhibition: Where it Shines

  An exhibition featuring the works of Grace Sui.

  Exhibitions and performances
  An exhibition featuring the works of Grace Sui.

  "From the Greek, photographer phos, photos graphein means a person drawing with light whilst in Chinese 摄影师 (shèyǐng shī) refers to a person capturing shadows." 'Where It Shines' will be on display at the Margot Hardy Gallery, Building 23, Bankstown Campus, from 14 May - 28 June 2019. We welcome everyone to drop in and admire this gorgeous photography from artist, Grace Sui. Please visit our website for more details.

  Tue, 14 May 2019 09:00:00 +1000
• May 16
  Women in Maths

  The First Women in Mathematics Day in Western Sydney will celebrate the achievements and contributions of women active in Mathematics.

  academic events
  WSU students
  The First Women in Mathematics Day in Western Sydney will celebrate the achievements and contributions of women active in Mathematics.

  The first Women in Mathematics Day in Western Sydney will be held on the 16th of May to celebrate the achievements and contributions of women active in Mathematics. The day has been planned around Maryam Mirzakhani's birthday, who was the first ever woman who won the Fields medal. The event consists of several invited talks given by mathematicians active in Western Sydney and other institutes in Australia.

  Thu, 16 May 2019 15:30:00 +1000
• May 16
  Making the City Series - Resilience

  The 2019 Making the City (MTC19) speaker series is a collection of six events from March to October 2019.

  Conferences and seminars
  The 2019 Making the City (MTC19) speaker series is a collection of six events from March to October 2019.

  Created in a collaboration between Western Sydney University, City of Parramatta, the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, and the NSW Chapter of the Australian Institute of Architects, this series examines and reflects upon key cultural and design practices that contribute to the quality, amenity, and character of 21st century cities. Drawing upon a broad range of expertise and leadership in the areas of architecture, urban design and planning, art practice, government, indigenous leadership, and industry, MTC19 will foreground conversations on the following six topics: culture, disruption, resilience, identity, equity, and density. Events are hosted by the WSU Architecture Program. The May 16 session of MTC19 focuses on Resilience. Climate change is happening and it’s impacts affect cities and the quality of life of their citizens. Issues such as urban heat and flooding, limited water and energy sources are all major challenges for cities. Within this context how do cities plan, design, and implement strategies which address the environmental challenges of the future? In what ways can cities build from the inherent qualities of place to achieve a resilient future? Are there ways in which these issues can be addressed such that the impacts of climate change are minimised and opportunities found for citizens to thrive? Join us as leaders from industry and government speak on these topics, and share their thoughts in a moderated discussion with event attendees.

  Thu, 16 May 2019 18:00:00 +1000
• May 16
  ACIAC Art Exhibition Opening Event: Adam Chang's Pandas and Treasures

  The exhibition opening of a collection of seven paintings, ranging from celebrity portraits to the grand environmentalist natural kingdom series, by award-winning Chinese-Australian artist, Adam Chang.

  Exhibitions and performances; Social events
  General public
  The exhibition opening of a collection of seven paintings, ranging from celebrity portraits to the grand environmentalist natural kingdom series, by award-winning Chinese-Australian artist, Adam Chang.

  From ‘human beings’ to ‘Shan Shui with Panda’, the theme of Adam Chang’s paintings has shifted from the ‘national treasure’ level cultural celebrity portraits to the grand environmentalist natural kingdom series. Many claimed to have been stunned by the ‘sudden change’ of identity that is happening to a ‘portrait artist’. In fact, this feeling of shock could only have resulted from a misreading of him - although Chang has been internationally acclaimed for his impressive achievements in the art of portraiture, this represented only the tip of the iceberg in the bulk of his artistic attainment. The recent launch of his ‘Shan Shui with Panda’ series should be useful in drawing the attention of the international art world to the breadth of Chang’s artistic thinking and his aesthetic magnitude. Adam Chang is often referred to as ‘a quiet artist’. This is because he, like a ‘hermit’, rarely has any contact with the world outside his studio. This seems to bear a connection with the spiritual ‘inertia’ of the asceticist practice of a senior generation of artists such as Zhao Wuji and Zhu Dequn. The difference is that Chang does not directly draw from the theory of ‘yijing’ (artistic conception) in traditional Chinese painting; instead, he follows the Taoist view of ‘Nature and Man in One’. Following the core concept of ‘harmony’, he is now moving his reflections from about ‘human beings’ to the ultimate realm of harmony between ‘Man and Nature’. From the 2007 Australian national Archibald Prize finalist ‘Brian, the Dog and the Doorway’ to the 2011 People’s Choice Winner ‘John Coetzee’, from the shocking surrealist portrait ‘Salvador Dali’ (2017) to today’s high-profile ‘symbol of China’ combination ‘Shan Shui with Panda’, the new exhibition ‘Adam Chang’s Pandas and Treasures’ very well ‘captures’ some of most representative works of his ‘transitional period’. The national Archibald Prize requires that ‘portrait subjects’ need to be cultural celebrities, but Chang has deliberately chosen to work on two ‘immigrants’- Brian Sherman and John Coetzee are both migrants from South Africa. This choice probably reflects the artist’s own immigrant background, but it simultaneously conveys his appreciation of the beauty of the Australian concept of multiculturalist society. From the cultural perspective of ‘national treasure’ as a symbol, if Brian Sherman’s identity as a philanthropist, John Coetzee’s identity as a poet and novelist and Salvador Dali’s identity as a master of artistic creativity display three dimensions of human civilization- ‘compassion’, ‘poetry’ and ‘mimesis’, the ‘Shan Shui with Panda’ series offers an ‘ultimate’ illustration of the philosophical altitude and the universal value of Lao Zi and Zhuang Zi’s ideal – let all ‘ Human Mankind Sharing a Common Destiny’ understand ‘Nature and Man in One’. In Chang’s inner world, the ‘panda’ probably stands as an embodiment of the contribution made by the Chinese civilization to the world. However, the ‘Shan Shui’ here is not only ‘Chinese landscape’, but rather a general ‘image’ that communicates a globalized ‘Shan Shui’, or ‘the grand Shan Shui’ of the entire universe. If such an artistic vision psychologically and naturally ‘fits’ the upcoming international art trend in the third decade of the 21st century, one might say that, in a way, Chang has helped to ‘pioneer’ for world art through the use of ‘oriental aesthetics’ a ‘harmonious’ way out of a long-term western predominance in international artistic thinking. Dr Sheng Tong Editor-in-Chief, Contemporary International Chinese Poetry Research fellow, International Diaspora Literature and Art Research Association January 2019.

  Thu, 16 May 2019 18:30:00 +1000
• May 18
  Art Exhibition Opening: Where it Shines

  An exhibition featuring the works of Grace Sui.

  Exhibitions and performances
  An exhibition featuring the works of Grace Sui.

  You are cordially invited to join us at the opening of 'Where it Shines', an exhibition featuring the stunning photography of artist, Grace Sui. Saturday, 18 May 2019, 2pm – 4pm at the Margot Hardy Gallery, Building 23, Bankstown campus. To be opened by Professor Marc Stears, Director of the Sydney Policy Lab at the University of Sydney. Refreshments provided. For further information and RSVP, please see the invitation attached.

  Sat, 18 May 2019 14:00:00 +1000
• May 22
  Public Lecture: 'Are Filter Bubbles Real?'

  In this public lecture, Professor Axel Bruns (QUT) considers the evidence for and against filter bubbles.

  academic events; Conferences and seminars
  In this public lecture, Professor Axel Bruns (QUT) considers the evidence for and against filter bubbles. The success of political movements that appear to be immune to any factual evidence that contradicts their claims – from the Brexiteers to the ‘alt-right’, neo-fascist groups supporting Donald Trump – has reinvigorated claims that social media spaces constitute so-called ‘filter bubbles’ or ‘echo chambers’. But while such claims may appear intuitively true to politicians and journalists – who have themselves been accused of living in filter bubbles –, the evidence that ordinary users experience their everyday social media environments as uniform and homophilous spaces is far more limited. For instance, a 2016 Pew Center study has shown that only 23% of U.S. users on Facebook and 17% on Twitter now say with confidence that most of their contacts’ views are similar to their own. 20% have changed their minds about a political or social issue because of interactions on social media. Similarly, large-scale studies of follower and interaction networks on social media show that such networks are often thoroughly interconnected and facilitate the flow of information across boundaries of personal ideology and interest, except for a few especially hardcore partisan communities. This talk explores the evidence for and against echo chambers and filter bubbles. It moves the present debate beyond a merely anecdotal footing, and offers a more reliable assessment of this purported threat.
  Wed, 22 May 2019 11:00:00 +1000
• May 31
  2019 Researcher Development Showcase

  Register now for the Researcher Development Showcase Event.

  academic events; Exhibitions and performances
  All welcome
  Register now for the Researcher Development Showcase Event.

  Come along to the 2019 Researcher Development Showcase event being hosted on 31 May between 9-1pm at Parramatta South. Each year the University awards research funds to our upcoming researchers. These awards focus on both gender equity and early career academics. These funds are awarded for 12 months and at the end of the year our researchers come together to present the outcomes of their research. This year, hosted by Professor James Arvanitakis - Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research and Graduate Studies) welcomes you to come along to this event, showcasing 30 of our finest researchers, presenting in just four minutes, what took them a year or more to achieve. The presentations will be hosted in our research streams and we welcome you to come along and enjoy the presentations.

  Fri, 31 May 2019 09:00:00 +1000
• Jun 24
  Neuropsychology conferences 2019

  Neuropsychology conference

  academic events; Conferences and seminars; Exhibitions and performances
  Professors and Practitioners in Psychology
  Neuropsychology conference PULSUS GROUP takes an immense pleasure to extend our warm welcome to invite all the participants from all over the world to attend “International Conference on Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology” scheduled during June 24-25, 2019 at Rome, Italy which will entail lively debates, prompt keynote presentations, Oral talks, Poster presentations, workshops and networking opportunities around a core of plenary and concurrent sessions based on pivotal issues in the Psychology and Neuropsychology sector. The organizing committee is organizing an exciting and informative conference program including informative lectures, symposium, workshops, poster presentations and various programs for participants from all over the world. Thus, attend the conference and create a platform to share information, recent technologies and scope in the field of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology.
  Mon, 24 Jun 2019 23:18:00 +1000
• Aug 8
  Property and Construction Management Expo

  The event connects Western Sydney students in all years of study with a wide range of employers in the Property and Construction industry.

  academic events; Exhibitions and performances
  The event connects Western Sydney students in all years of study with a wide range of employers in the Property and Construction industry.

  Western Sydney University is again proud to host the highly successful Property and Construction Careers Expo in 2018. This year's event will connect Western Sydney students in all years of study with a wide range of employers in the Property and Construction industry. As a student,the Expo will provide a forum for you to explore available employment opportunities, allow you to enhance your networking skills in meeting with these employers, and help you top;explore your individual career direction and career opportunities more broadly. As an employer, you will be able to raise your organisation's profile through heightened awareness across Western Sydney Students and have the opportunity to meet face-to-face, and to get the first pick of potential candidates for current and upcoming job vacancies. Registration

  Thu, 08 Aug 2019 00:00:00 +1000
• Aug 27
  Tourism and Heritage Careers Expo

  This event will connect Western Sydney University Tourism and Heritage students with a wide range of employers from relevant industries.

  academic events; Conferences and seminars; Exhibitions and performances
  This event will connect Western Sydney University Tourism and Heritage students with a wide range of employers from relevant industries.

  Western Sydney University is again proud to host the Tourism and Heritage Careers Expo. This event will connect Western Sydney University Tourism and Heritage students in all years of study with a wide range of employers from relevant industries. As a student, the Expo will provide a forum for you to hear from graduates about their journey into satisfying work, explore available employment opportunities, allow you to polish up your networking skills in meeting with these employers and help you to explore your own personal career direction and hear about career opportunities more broadly. As an employer, you will be able to raise your organisation's profile through heightening awareness across the WSU campus student and staff communities and have the opportunity to meet face-to-face with potential candidates for current and upcoming job vacancies.

  Tue, 27 Aug 2019 00:00:00 +1000