News
Within the framework of academic and scientific collaboration agreements between the universities of Australia and Chile, a meeting was held on Monday, March 25, at the University of Santiago, between the delegation from the University of Melbourne, headed by its rector Glyn Davis, and academics from the CRUCH universities.
The purpose of the seminar was to share research and funding strategies, as well as to learn about our realities, strengthen alliances and initiate alternatives for academic collaboration, advancing in common projects in the areas of earth sciences, sustainability, architecture, engineering and climate change.
The meeting was chaired by the executive vice president of CRUCH and rector of the University of Santiago, Juan Manuel Zolezzi, who welcomed attendees, emphasizing that “we know the importance of Australia and its universities, we are aware of its progress, and we know it is a land of discovery and innovation.” Also participating were Rector Ignacio Sánchez of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile and Rector Luis Alberto Loyola of the University of Antofagasta.
The first part of the seminar focused on sharing information about research funding policies and the challenges faced by universities in Chile and Australia in the various areas of higher education.
In his presentation, the Chancellor of the University of Melbourne, Glyn Davies, placed particular emphasis on the future role of universities: will the university of the future continue to be a campus for learning or merely a facilitator of knowledge transmission? He also presented the Coursera e-learning program, which currently offers seven courses to a total of 110,000 enrolled students, thus raising topics for future debate.
The first panel opened with a presentation by Rector Luis Alberto Loyola on the development of scientific research at CRUCH universities, followed by a presentation by the president of the National Commission of Science and Technology (CONICYT), José Miguel Aguilera, who presented the research funding policy for science and technology at this institution.
A presentation was also given by the Production Development Corporation (CORFO), led by the Deputy Director of Technology Transfer, Darío Morales, on the InnovaChile program. This first panel concluded with a presentation by the Director of the Center of Excellence in Nanoscience (CEDENNA), Dora Altbir, who highlighted the successful advances in nanoscience and nanotechnology achieved through the Collaborative Research Program.
The second panel was led by academics from the University of Melbourne, with Vice-Chancellor for Research Jim McCluskey opening with a presentation on the possibilities of collaboration in scientific research between UMEL and the CRUCH universities.
Next, four academics gave brief presentations in their respective areas: Rick Roush in Agriculture and Environment; Tom Kvan in Architecture; Iven Mareels in Engineering; and Rod Keenan in Climate Change.
After sharing lunch, the second part of the meeting began with four parallel workshops, in which Australian and Chilean academics shared their experiences focused on four themes: agriculture and the environment, architecture, engineering, and climate change. These workshops facilitated direct contact between academics in their respective fields to explore possibilities for future collaborations and thus enhance scientific research.
At the close of this seminar, the dialogue between researchers was valued, which allows new projects to emerge, recalling the words of Rector Zolezzi, "that our responsibility as universities is not only the generation and dissemination of knowledge, but that knowledge becomes practical and improves the quality of life of citizens.".
Spanish 
English