The characteristics of drowning among different types of international visitors to Australia and how this contributes to their drowning risk

Objective: Australia is a popular destination for international visitors. This study reviews international visitor drowning deaths in Australia and analyses drowning by visitor type. Methods: A total population retrospective study exploring drowning deaths of international visitors was conducted between 2008 and 2018. Data were extracted from the Royal Life Saving National Fatal Drowning Database and categorised into four subgroups: overseas tourists, international students, working holiday makers and work-related visitors. Descriptive statistics, non-parametric tests and relative risk (RR) were calculated. Results: In total, 201 international visitors drowned in Australia, 7% of all drowning deaths; a crude drowning rate of 0.27/100,000 visitors versus 0.95/100,000 for residents (RR=0.19 [95% CI: 0.16–0.22]). Most deaths were males (79%) and people aged 18–34 years (50%). Visitors frequently drowned at beaches (33%), and when swimming (41%). Thirty-five percent recorded a pre-existing medical condition. Overseas tourists on holiday were the most likely to drown compared to other subgroups. Conclusion: International visitors represent a small but increasing proportion of people drowning in Australia. The circumstances of which visitors drown vary by travel purpose, age, country of origin, location of drowning and activity. Implications for public health: International visitors have unique safety needs, requiring tailored prevention based on the purpose of travel and country of origin

Identifying the science and technology dimensions of emerging public policy issues through horizon scanning

Public policy requires public support, which in turn implies a need to enable the public not just to understand policy but also to be engaged in its development. Where complex science and technology issues are involved in policy making, this takes time, so it is important to identify emerging issues of this type and prepare engagement plans. In our horizon scanning exercise, we used a modified Delphi technique [1]. A wide group of people with interests in the science and policy interface (drawn from policy makers, policy adviser, practitioners, the private sector and academics) elicited a long list of emergent policy issues in which science and technology would feature strongly and which would also necessitate public engagement as policies are developed. This was then refined to a short list of top priorities for policy makers. Thirty issues were identified within broad areas of business and technology; energy and environment; government, politics and education; health, healthcare, population and aging; information, communication, infrastructure and transport; and public safety and national security.Public policy requires public support, which in turn implies a need to enable the public not just to understand policy but also to be engaged in its development. Where complex science and technology issues are involved in policy making, this takes time, so it is important to identify emerging issues of this type and prepare engagement plans. In our horizon scanning exercise, we used a modified Delphi technique [1]. A wide group of people with interests in the science and policy interface (drawn from policy makers, policy adviser, practitioners, the private sector and academics) elicited a long list of emergent policy issues in which science and technology would feature strongly and which would also necessitate public engagement as policies are developed. This was then refined to a short list of top priorities for policy makers. Thirty issues were identified within broad areas of business and technology; energy and environment; government, politics and education; health, healthcare, population and aging; information, communication, infrastructure and transport; and public safety and national security

Making the law work for young deaf people

RAD Deaf Law Centre was commissioned to develop a report entitled “Making the law work for young Deaf people” by the Law Centres Network in order to improve young Deaf people’s access to advice from Law Centres

Tourism in turbulent times: Towards safe experiences for visitors

Tourism in Turbulent Times presents an international review of the challenges faced by the world's largest industry and governments around the world to provide safe and enjoyable experiences for visitors. The book draws on the background and expertise of contributors from 11 countries, representing scholars, government officers and industry practitioners. It addresses traditional concerns for tourism (such as crime) as well as emerging challenges posed by the global movement of infectious disease and terrorism. These topics are examined by specialists who share a view that tourism can weather turbulent times through adopting appropriate risk management strategies and continuing to provide quality service for customers. This book differs from other texts on the market by including a large group of tourism industry practitioners as contributors. These writers practice the principles they espouse and have critical insight into the real world issues facing the tourism industry. They are also very committed to finding best practice solutions to the challenges facing their industry. The book will therefore be of particular interest to tourism managers and policy makers since it provides relevant information for the important decisions they need to make

Preliminary Data for Space Grade Spectralon® BRDF Targets & Standards

Spectralon is an extremely stable, near-perfect lambertian reflecting diffuser and calibration standard material that has been used by national labs, space, aerospace and commercial sectors for over two decades. New uncertainty targets of 2% on-orbit absolute validation in the Earth Observing Systems community have challenged the industry to improve is characterization and knowledge of almost every aspect of radiometric performance (space and ground). Assuming “near perfect” reflectance and BRDF performance is no longer going to suffice for many program needs. To ensure lowest possible uncertainty, Spectralon has NVLAP accreditation for total hemispherical spectral reflectance measurements. The hemispherical reflectance provides a good mark of general performance, but without the angular characterization critical data is missing from many applications. Therefore, BRDF measurement capability is needed to characterize Spectralon’s “near perfect” angular response and provide a full uncertainty profile to many users. A preliminary data set will be presented on of materials, instrument capability and resulting measurements. Further data, a paper and complete analysis on products for traceable radiometric BRDF calibration standards will be presented later this year at SPIE Remote Sensing Asia (Oct 13-17, Beijing)

Issues in tourist health, safety and wellbeing

At the time of writing the most pressing issue for the tourism industry is to survive economically until vaccines for COVID-19 can be widely distributed,allowing travel to recommence globally. While international travel has been largely suspended in 2020 the industry focus has turned to domestic tourism in most destinations, taking onboard COVID-safe measures to protect travellers. At the same time, the core issues of how to keep tourists safe and healthy more broadly have not changed. This chapter looks at current issues and examines the shift from risk management and prevention in tourism prevalent in the 1990s, where the industry had a very proactive approach to customer health and safety, to a more recent crisis management and recovery framework economically driven in response to significant challenging events. In the new normal customer care is in ascendency again with the need to anticipate health and safety issues, develop protocols and emergency plans, train staff and constantly monitor activity to deliver quality services. Tools and strategies that have fallen into disuse in recent years are still available and very relevant to address current issues. The tourism industry and individual tourists must accept that COVID-19 will have lasting impacts on the future of travel and recognise that the world will never completely return to the old ways of doing things. In the new normal we will need to embrace both new and existing ways of keeping travellers safe