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RMIT University and East Gippsland
Research and Education Centre on Bullock IslandRMIT University's Research and Education Centre, to be built on Bullock Island in Lakes Entrance, will focus on looking at environmental issues affecting Victoria's East Gippsland region. The new facility will house flexible learning spaces, an on-line collaborative learning space, teaching and research wet laboratories, information and resource areas, external tanks to hold laboratory specimens, a meeting cum tutorial room, office and preparation, storage and workshop areas. The centre is a partnership project between RMIT University and the East Gippsland of TAFE, which both have strong commitments to the region. RMIT University and the East Gippsland TAFE have been working together to offer joint graduate and postgraduate education initiatives to respond to the economic and social needs of the East Gippsland region since 1994. The four areas that RMIT University will contribute to the Research and Education Centre project are: Research and Development - an increased and integrated research and development program in the East Gippsland region and the positioning of Victoria as the world's best provider of marine science education and research working in partnership with markets in the Asia-Pacific region and offshore academic institutions Education programs - an increase in the educational programs offered in the East Gippsland region particularly science/engineering/biomedical and biotechnology, undergraduate student research project work and enterprise development training International programs - an international educational enterprise based on study abroad programs for students from other countries on educational tourism business and on international community exchange Complementary programs - a range of programs complementary to the above including summer schools, conferences and seminars, short courses and consultancy, partnerships with local schools and community and international projects. RMIT University established a research program in the East Gippsland region in 1999 to respond to the strong community concern for the sustainability of the estuarine and wilderness environments of the East Gippsland Lakes, and for the regional industries that interact with these environments. In 1999, RMIT University awarded 18 East Gippsland Postgraduate Scholarships that focus on the issues raised in a 1998 CSIRO audit of the Gippsland Lakes. This research initiative included the design and construction of the RMIT University Aquaculture Research Facility. East Gippsland Institute of TAFE established the South East Australia Maritime Education Centre (SEAMEC) at Lakes Entrance five years ago as a training provider with specialist expertise in training for the maritime and fishing industries. SEAMEC delivers a wide range of training programs and has been significantly involved in the development of training curriculum. The Research and Education Centre on Bullock Island will offer programs that complement and build upon the work already undertaken by SEAMEC.
Aquaculture Research FacilityThe RMIT University Aquaculture Research Facility is an ecotoxicology and aquaculture wet laboratory located at the South East Australia Maritime Education Centre (SEAMEC) in Lakes Entrance, East Gippsland. The first of its kind in the East Gippsland Lakes region, the $150,000 research centre will allow RMIT University researchers to work on projects over the next few years that respond to the issues and needs of the region. These studies over time will include the investigation of the impacts of the blue-green algal toxin nodularin on black bream, which is an important commercial and recreational fishing species in the Gippsland Lakes, as well as studies on fish, shellfish and crustaceans with potential for farming. The research facility consists of 36 tanks, each of 2000 litres, with saltwater flow-through for ecotoxicology and aquaculture research, as well as an analytical laboratory located in Bairnsdale, which was provided by the Department of Natural Resources and Environment (NRE) and refurbished and equipped by RMIT University. The university hopes to see the infrastructure expanded to improve its capabilities. The RMIT University Aquaculture Research Facility is a partnership project between RMIT University and the East Gippsland Institute of TAFE (EGIT). The research centre is located at SEAMEC (South East Australia Maritime Education Centre), which is part of EGIT. EGIT and RMIT University have been affiliates since 1994. Both institutions are engaged in sustainability issues through the provision of specialised and multi-disciplined education and research for the fishing, maritime and forestry industries. Other projects between RMIT University and EGIT include:
RMIT University East Gippsland Research ScholarshipsIn a bid to address water quality problems in the East Gippsland Lakes region, in 1999 RMIT University made a $900,000 commitment by awarding university research scholarships (RMIT University East Gippsland Postgraduate Scholarships) to applicants from the region and across Australia to study issues relating to the sustainability of ecosystems in the area. The project attracted 80 expressions of interest from across the nation and forty quality applications. Eighteen scholarships were offered to Masters and PhD students through RMIT University’s Faculties of Applied Science, Engineering, and Life Sciences. The fields of study include aquatic ecology, catchment management, ecotoxicology, environmental and water engineering, environmental management, fisheries biology, geographical information systems and plant biotechnology. One of the recipients of the RMIT University East Gippsland Postgraduate Scholarships, Judith Platt, is completing her PhD research at the RMIT University Aquaculture Research Facility Mrs Platt is conducting her study on the effects of the nodularin (blue-green algae) toxin on black bream (which are an important commercial and recreational fishing species in the Gippsland Lakes). The research will involve looking at the pathological changes in the black bream associated with exposure to the nodularin toxin and identifying any potential biomarkers. The absorption, tissue distribution and retention time of the toxin will also be followed to determine if there is significant accumulation in any of the tissues which would have a public health significance. The objectives of the research are to:
Mrs Platt is being supervised by Professor Douglas Holdway from RMIT University’s Department of Applied Biology and Biotechnology. The Marine and Freshwater Research Institute (MAFRI) and Natural Resources and Environment (NRE) also play a supportive and advisory role in her research project. The external organisations working with RMIT University on the research program include:
RMIT University Research by Project (Masters and PhD) program in East GippslandIn 2000, RMIT University launched its new Research by Project (Masters and PhD) program in and for East Gippsland at Lakes Entrance. The program provides a framework for innovation and the development of professional practice within the workplace. It uses real workplace based projects that have tangible outcomes for participants from EGIT, their profession and the Gippsland community. The Research by Project (Masters and PhD) program enables a participant to develop a project that is significant to his or her chosen profession and contribute directly to his or her organisation/community. The aim is to create a research and development capability, produce a tangible outcome from the project in the workplace and develop applied research skills within the participant. Seventeen staff members from EGIT enrolled in the Research by Project program have nominated a wide range of research topics, from “Race Around Gippsland”, to “Youth Allowance Student Counselling and Support” and “Information Technology and the Provision of VET in Small Rural and Isolated Communities”. Of the 17 enrolled in the program, three are PhD candidates.
Adding value to the regionRMIT University believes it can add value to the Gippsland region by providing:
Other regional commitmentsIn addition to the East Gippsland Lakes region, RMIT University also has regional commitments in Hamilton in Western Victoria.
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