RESOLUTIONS of the 31st AFUW CONFERENCE

ADELAIDE, 17 - 20 APRIL 2000

EDUCATION

1. Funding For Higher Education And Research

The 31st Conference of AFUW resolves to urge the Federal Government to recognise that the current low levels of government investment in higher education and research are short-sighted and counter-productive to Australia's long-term interests, particularly in the light of the considerable investment of countries, such as the UK, USA and Canada, in their higher education systems as a way of capitalising on emerging knowledge-intensive industries.

2. Funding For Higher Education In The Fields Of Health And Education

The 31st Conference of AFUW resolves to urge the Federal Government:

(a) to recognise that the knowledge-intensive revolutionary change will demand more numerous and better-equipped professionals in the allied fields of health and education; and therefore

(b) to invest more in the higher education fields of health and education to enable society to be pro-active and productive in its approach to victims of changing economic circumstances.

3. The Significance Of Tafe In The Education Of Women

The 31st Conference of AFUW urges the Federal Government to re-examine its approach to Technical and Further Education; and, in particular, to restore the financial support needed to enable the nation-wide, urban and rural TAFE institutions to continue to provide those life-enhancing and paid-work-promoting courses which should not be funded on the 'user-pays' principle.

4. Educational Opportunities For Teenage Girls With Babies

The 31st Conference of AFUW recommends that State and Territory Associations lobby relevant State Ministers to formulate, implement and monitor policies which enable teenage girls to continue their education and career training during pregnancy and child-rearing; and recommends that these policies include the provision of facilities in school buildings for child-care.

5. Indigenous Education: Curriculum, Training And Development

The 31st Conference of AFUW recommends to State and Territory Associations that they urge Ministers of Education throughout Australia to support the following principles of best practice in curriculum, training and development:

Indigenous history and culture to be an integral element of social education programs from pre-school level to university;

all teacher education courses to include units of Indigenous culture; and

Indigenous teachers, where possible, be employed to teach the history of Indigenous culture at primary and secondary school level.

6. Education And Training Of Health Professionals

The31st Conference of AFUW:

(a) recommends to State and Territory Associations that they urge State Ministers responsible for Health, Education and Community Services to develop and fund the training of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as community health and education professionals to service communities in remote and rural regions; particularly in the fields of diabetes, glaucoma and alcoholism; and

(b) directs the National Executive of AFUW to urge the appropriate Federal Ministers to co-operate with the States and Territories in furthering this policy.

7. Support For Bi-Lingual Education

The 31st Conference of AFUW urges Federal and State Governments:

(a) to ensure that a range of options exists for Indigenous students through bi-lingual education, English as a Second Language and the Australian Indigenous Languages Framework to enable Indigenous parents and students to choose pathways appropriate to different stages in their education; and

(b) to provide adequate funding to ensure that the benefit of these options are available to all Australians; and

(c) the Conference further urges the National Executive to seek from the Federal Government legislation to provide legal standing for Australia's Indigenous languages.

In this resolution AFUW is in accord with the resolution of the plenary session of the conference on "Mother Tongue Indigenous Languages: Aboriginal perspectives" held at Tauondi College, Port Adelaide, 10 - 11 March 2000.

8. Mentoring Scheme

The 31st Conference of AFUW resolves that AFUW establish a Mentoring Scheme to support the personal and professional development of AFUW members, particularly new or younger members.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

9. The Murray-Darling Basin: Land Management, Salinity And Other Problems

The 31st Conference of AFUW:

(a) urges the Federal Government greatly to increase the financial and other resources required to improve land management, salinity mitigation practices, and other economic and social problems in the Murray-Darling River basin, and

(b) recommends to State and Territory Associations in affected areas that they act in their own States and Territories in accordance with this resolution.

10. Atmospheric Pollution

The 31st Conference of AFUW resolves to encourage all State and Territory Associations to urge their respective governments to maintain a careful watch over activity that contributes to greenhouse gas emission and, wherever possible, to support projects and development that will ultimately lead to a reduction of atmospheric pollution.

11. Groundwater Quality

Given that groundwater quality is a high priority in policies for sustainable development, the 31st Conference of AFUW recommends to State and Territory Associations that they emphasise to their respective governments the long-term dangers to the population of allowing toxic substances to accumulate in soil.

12. Power Generation

The 31st Conference of AFUW urges all State and Territory Associations to monitor proposals to establish new electricity generating plants and, where appropriate, petition Ministers responsible for Energy, Environment and Natural Resources, arguing that priority be given to establish plants which harness renewable sources of energy wherever this can be done efficiently and effectively.

13. Tidal Energy

The 31st Conference of AFUW resolves to request the Federal Ministers for the Environment, and Energy and Natural Resources to influence the Western Australian Government to reverse its decision against the use of tidal energy in the West Kimberley and to reinstate the project at Doctor's Creek as a matter of high priority.

PEACE PROMOTION AND RESOLUTION OF CONFLICT

14. Support For Peace And Conflict Resolution Studies

The 31st Conference of AFUW reaffirms the commitment undertaken by the 1988 Conference to support Peace Studies in educational curricula and recommends:

(a) that AFUW audit the number of Peace and Conflict Resolution Courses offered within Australian Tertiary Institutions, the audit to seek details of courses available at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, their content, and their enrolment figures (disaggregated for gender at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels); and

(b) that AFUW promote the socio-economic benefits of Peace and Conflict Resolution Studies and that State and Federal Ministers and Vice-Chancellors be urged to provide financial and academic support for their continuation and extension.

15. Promotion Of Peace And Peaceful Means Of Reducing Conflict

The 31st Conference of AFUW recommends to all State and Territory Associations that during the year 2000 they devote time at a General Meeting to activities related to conflict resolution and the promotion of peace.

16. East Timor - Peace And Reconstruction Process

The 31st Conference of AFUW recognises the importance of gender equity in the reconstruction of East Timor and refers the issue to Council for consideration and any appropriate action.

17. Judicial Discretion In Sentencing.

Mindful that Section 71 of the Australian Constitution establishes the separation of powers as a fundamental democratic principle of this nation, the 31st Conference of AFUW expresses its opposition to legislation which limits the independence of the judiciary and requests the President to inform the Prime Minister and the Attorney-General of its deep concern that legislation in Western Australia and in the Northern Territory has resulted in the removal of judicial discretion in sentencing in a manner which results in unjust and inappropriate penalties being imposed on vulnerable and disadvantaged people ; and affirming the importance of this country's compliance with United Nations Conventions which Australian governments have ratified on behalf of all Australians, AFUW urges the Commonwealth Government to intervene in the States and Territories where legislation breaches such Conventions.

Report, 31st AFUW Triennial Conference, Adelaide, 17-20 April 2000

President's Letter, May 2000 Issue Of Graduate Women

Conference 2000 has come and gone. After 18 months of intensive preparation, and the excitement and tense activity of the Conference itself, it is hard to realise that the time for assessment is here.

When, at the 1997 Sydney Conference, the invitation of AFUW-SA to host this conference was accepted, and Council debated the timing, ruling against the summer as too hot in Adelaide, and against September because of the Olympics, the decision was to hold it in the week before Easter. The challenge to pack the conference into four days was a formidable one, but it also imposed a discipline that necessitated the rethinking of what our conference should be about. Business sessions devoted to reports were reduced to comment on printed and pre-distributed reports, and the maximum time given to debating resolutions. There were no constitutional resolutions - thanks to all the hard work at the New South Wales and Queensland conferences, and the earlier work on incorporation of the Western Australian and Tasmanian conferences. However there were many general resolutions, printed on page 6 of this issue. The division of resolutions into two sessions gave plenty of time between the brief statements on Monday, and the voting on Thursday, for consultation, amendments, in some case withdrawal and redrafting to get achievable and policy guiding resolutions.

The timetabling met the needs of those whose work does not allow them to take extended leave, and also cut down on the cost of accommodation. The two "public" days, the Capacity Building Workshop and the Seminar on Lifelong Learning were widely advertised and made attractive to non-AFUW members. Suggestions of how the plan may be improved will be welcome for the next conference.

Opening the session on Monday 17 April with most of the 100 delegates present, it was my particular pleasure to welcome Linda Souter, President of the International Federation of University Women, and to thank her warmly for making time for this conference in her very busy life, and also for visiting, after the conference, Member Associations in Tasmania, Victoria and New South Wales

I expressed delight at having such a large contingent (11 in all) from the New Zealand Federation of University Women, including President Dorothy Meyer, and CIR Beverley Turner. The international dimension of the conference was further widened with the participants funded by AusAID from S-E Asian and Pacific countries, including the President of the Fiji Association of Women Graduates, Esiteri Kamikamica, the President of the Samoan Association of Women Graduates, Peggy Fairbairn-Dunlop, the President of the Thai Association of University Women, Ratana Tungasavadi and delegates from Vanuatu and Papua-New Guinea. The delegate from the Philippines was prevented from coming at the last minute.

Lastly I expressed my appreciation in having no less than four past-Presidents of AFUW here, an unbroken lineage going back to the 1982-1985 Council in Adelaide when I was CIR. These were Barbara Hale from West Australia (1985-1988), Faith Layton from Tasmania (1988 - 1991), Helen McBride from Queensland (1991 - 1994) and Dorothy Betty from New South Wales (1994 - 1997). I also appreciated having the support of the Presidents of seven of the eight State and Territory Associations present.

Introducing Vice-Chancellor of Adelaide University, Professor Mary O'Kane, who opened the Conference I acknowledged the very great advantage that the Executive and Council has enjoyed this Triennium through her generosity in allocating us an office in the Mitchell Building, the use of the University Council room for our Council Meetings, and the benefits of a University e-mail and postal address. This close connection and that with the Flinders University and the University of South Australia has been an important factor in helping AFUW maintain a high educational profile.

Some Programme highlights of Conference were:

  • The International morning, when Linda Souter gave her Plenary address and showed the IFUW CD, and there were speakers on the topic of Regionalism. Beverley Turner, Chair of the Steering Committee of the Pacific Graduate Women's Network (PGWNet) reported, Peggy Fairbairn-Dunlop from Samoa, Esiteri Kamikamica from Fiji and Hanson Matashalkot from Vanuatu spoke on what their countries looked for in a regional alliance, and Ratana Tungasavadi on the University Women of Asia grouping.
  • The NGO Capacity Building Workshop, partly funded by the Federal Office of the Status of Women and with representatives from not only AFUW and IFUW but also Business and Professional Women, Women's Electoral Lobby/ SA UN Status of Women Committee, the National Council for Single Mothers and their Children and the Council for Australian Women Postgraduate Students. Led by Kathy Mumford, AFUW Membership Convener, and with Linda Souter as Chief Facilitator, this day was a great success.
  • The all-day Seminar on Wednesday which focused on the conference theme of Lifelong Learning - Effecting Change in the Global Society with well-known speakers including Professor Denise Bradley, Vice-Chancellor, University of South Australia, Dr Ngaire Brown, formerly AMA Adviser on Aboriginal Health, Mrs. Cathy McGowan, President of Australian Women in Agriculture, Ms Fij Miller, Small Business Advocate, Adelaide, Ms Robyn Layton, QC, Mr Geoff Spring, Chief Executive, Department of Education Training and Employment. The State Government recognised the international dimension of the conference with financial support, and AFUW has entered into a partnership with the SA Centre for Lifelong Learning and Development to publish the papers from the Seminar. It was opened by the Executive Director of the Centre, Professor Denis Ralph, who will write the forward to the book.
  • The Young Members event on International Action and Advocacy on Monday evening, organised by Kathryn Seymour, Helen Kavanagh, Debra King and Bronwen Wyatt, with Susan Brennan, Joint President, YWCA as keynote speaker, discussants Danielle Duffield, Secretary of Labor Women and active in the UTLC and CPSU, Ella McHenry, activist with Amnesty International and CAA, Amrita Dasvarma who attended the 44th UN CSW as the Australian NGO Co-ordinator at Beijing +5, Sarah Goulding, NGO member of the Government delegation to the 44th UN CSW 2000, and chaired by Bronwen Whyatt (AFUW)

Thanks:

Many people contributed to the success of the Conference, too many to mention here, but I must acknowledge the dedication and behind the scenes activity in two areas, by the Treasurer, Lois Gibson, who although Conference Organisers handled registrations, had ongoing dealings with overseas currency to cope with, and by the Local Arrangements Committee, an innovation for AFUW. My sincere thanks to members Erica Jolly, Margaret Messenger, Wendy McGuffog, Kate Twidale, and Chair Joan Brewer.

Some outcomes:

  • The Seminar papers will provide a continuing guide to future directions in education.
  • AFUW delegates had the opportunity to debate the hard-hitting resolutions. The resolutions were moved with passion and the rationales prepared with conviction. The debates were characterised by willingness to listen and an underlying common commitment.. Successful resolutions will set aspects of AFUW policy for the next Triennium and will guide future submissions.
  • In this Triennial Conference AFUW has opened up its resources, in both intellectual and in concrete financial terms, to our international neighbours, and our sister NGOs. Most importantly, we offer them our friendship. For AFUW members fortunate enough to come to the Conference, there was the opportunity of building lasting connections.
  • A regional grouping within IFUW has taken on a life of its own. Regional cooperation has been greatly advanced by the opportunity given to the Pacific Graduate Women's Network Steering Committee to meet, and the invitation to the AusAID-sponsored delegates and PGWNet members to speak in the Regionalism debate, the Capacity Building Workshop, the Seminar and the closing session. of the Conference
  • It was an opportunity to showcase AFUW, its progress in national organisational structure and communication, how its profile has been enhanced, its contributions to advocacy; and to express the confidence and optimism felt in the way forward.

Daphne Elliott

President, AFUW Inc.

22 April 2000

 

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