Mathematics education in the margins: Proceedings of the 38th Annual Conference of the Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia

Proceedings of the 38th annual conference of the Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia (MERGA) held on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland in 2015

The Occurrence of Bioactive Micromonosporae in Aquatic Habitats of the Sunshine Coast in Australia

Screening strategies based on the ecological knowledge of antibiotic producing microorganisms and their roles in the natural environment are being increasingly employed in the search for novel antibiotic agents. Micromonosporae are common inhabitants of aquatic habitats and have proved to be a continuing source of novel bioactive compounds including antibacterial and antitumor agents. The ecological distribution and frequency of bioactive micromonosporae in Sunshine Coast region aquatic habitats were studied through a range of selective isolation procedures designed to negatively select against the isolation of unwanted microbial taxa commonly associated with marine environments. It was revealed that bioactive compound producing species of micromonosporae were present in the aquatic habitats of the Sunshine Coast region in Australia

Human capital, innovation and the productive ageing: growth and senior aged health in the regional community through engaged higher education

[Abstract]: This paper examines how low relative economic growth and high service and infrastructure costs in non-metropolitan regions that are increasingly attractive to lifestyle-seeking seniors, can be offset by focussing more positively on the human capital dimension of this cohort through closer engagement with higher education learning and innovation. At present, many senior-aged persons attracted to ‘lifestyle’ locations are allowed to let their knowledge, networks and skills ossify through a lack of engagement with processes of learning and innovation and institutional impediments of a structural and attitudinal nature. It represents poor return on sunk investment in human capital, has cost impacts on enabling health and community services and infrastructure and does not contribute as positively as it could to regional growth outcomes through productivity gains. The spatial impact of this will exacerbate as the demographic profile of the nation continues to age. Higher education in these places could be a key instrument in the learning and innovation required to realise the greater productivity gains from senior-aged human capital and the consequential growth and health outcomes at the local and regional scale. The paper reports on the literature, research undertaken and analysis to understand these potentially important issues of policy and practice. The paper has a particular focus on the Sunshine Coast and Wide Bay Burnett regions of Queensland which have some of the highest concentrations of senior aged people in Australia

Connecting communities - Contextualising literacies

Over time, the Meanjin local council of ALEA, has been running a series of Key Teacher inservice days for teachers in the Brisbane and Ipswich area, and more recently further north in Yandina for Sunshine Coast teachers. Teachers who are ALEA members or whose schools are institutional members are able to attend up to three of these inservice days each year for a nominal cost. In the first part of this article Beryl Exley reviews the sessions presented on Friday 17 October, 2003 at Ipswich, a region mentored by ALEA Queensland State President, Nikki King. The sessions all dealt with the theme of connecting communities and contextualising literacies. In the second part Sandra Wright, a key teacher at Hatton Vale State School, details the experiences of her school’s attempt to connect with its community and to contextualise children’s multiple literacies

Destination Branding - Tracking Brand Equity for a Competitive Set of Near-Home Destinations

In the emerging literature related to destination branding, little has been reported about performance metrics. The focus of most research reported to date has been concerned with the development of destination brand identities and the implementation of campaigns (see for example, Crockett & Wood 1999, Hall 1999, May 2001, Morgan et al 2002). One area requiring increased attention is that of tracking the performance of destination brands over time. This is an important gap in the tourism literature, given: i) the increasing level of investment by destination marketing organisations (DMO) in branding since the 1990s, ii) the complex political nature of DMO brand decision-making and increasing accountability to stakeholders (see Pike, 2005), and iii) the long-term nature of repositioning a destination’s image in the market place (see Gartner & Hunt, 1987). Indeed, a number of researchers in various parts of the world have pointed to a lack of market research monitoring destination marketing objectives, such as in Australia (see Prosser et. al 2000, Carson, Beattie and Gove 2003), North America (Sheehan & Ritchie 1997, Masberg 1999), and Europe (Dolnicar & Schoesser 2003)..