Visiting some of our partners in the Worldwide Universities Network over the past few weeks has served as a reminder that two opposing forces are at work in the academic universe: competition and cooperation.
Finding a healthy balance between the two - building links with our network partners while at the same time fighting hard for resources and rankings - is complex and challenging, but is critical to our success as a global university.
The point was neatly illustrated in New York, where our recent activities included welcoming Rochester as the 18th member of the WUN - the start, one hopes, of many fruitful collaborations - before a round of meetings with some of the major international agencies such as the UN and the WHO, aimed at securing opportunities for Sydney researchers.
The agencies will be a major focus for the International Portfolio this year. We already enjoy good relationships with key players such as the OECD and the Asian Development Bank, and we need to nurture and expand these links to give us the capacity to tackle the many global challenges that confront us.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has given strong backing to the new Centre for the Abandonment of Female Genital Cutting (FGC) in Kenya, announcing a partnership that will provide US funding for the project.
The centre has been established at the University of Nairobi under the guidance of Dr Nesrin Varol, a gynaecologist at Sydney Medical School and the Regional Manager for Africa in the International Portfolio.
Dr Varol is part of the international movement to end FGC, a distressing and dangerous procedure that is still widely practised in 28 countries in sub-Saharan Africa and other parts of the world, including Australia. In the coming year it is estimated that three million girls in some of the poorest parts of Africa will be put through the operation as part of their traditional rite of passage into womanhood.
The procedure is typically carried out without anaesthesia by untrained village ‘cutters’ using unsterilised instruments and blades. The girls run the risk of contracting HIV/AIDS and have a greater likelihood of complications at childbirth.
Speaking at a State Department event in Washington to celebrate International Day of Zero Tolerance to FGC, Mrs Clinton said it was unacceptable to view the practice as a cultural tradition. “We cannot excuse it as a private matter. It has no medical benefits. It is, plain and simply, a human rights violation,” she said.
Announcing State Department funding for the Centre, Mrs Clinton said the United Nations and other partners would be looking at new laws, resolutions, and strategies to raise awareness of the practice.

A team from the Faculty of Health Sciences and the Faculty of Pharmacy has taken part in a joint symposium on breast cancer in Saudi Arabia.
The two-day multidisciplinary symposium focused on breast cancer imaging, rehabilitation and medication formulation and safety. It included presentations from the Sydney team and staff from King Saud University's Vice Rectorate for Health Specialties, as well as workshop sessions with students.
The visit was funded by a grant from DFAT's Council of Australian-Arab Relations.
One of the aims of the symposium was to share best practice. The Breast Cancer Research Group in the Faculty of Health Sciences is focused on identifying and modifying the painful, long-term effects of breast cancer treatment to improve overall quality of life. The Medical Radiation Sciences team is working on novel ways to enhance the visualisation and detection of breast cancer and through effective industrial partnerships has been instrumental in assessing innovative mammographic and ultrasound technologies.
Faculty of Pharmacy researchers are interested in factors affecting the use of medicines and patient safety, and in the complex interactions between potent therapy such as cancer chemotherapy and other pharmacotherapy, including non-prescription, complementary and alternative medicines.
Preparation for the symposium involved six months of teleconferences to pinpoint exact areas of mutual research interest.
The Sydney team consisted of Professor Patrick Brennan, Professor Sharon Kilbreath, Clinical Associate Professor Jane Beith, Associate Professor Daniela Traini, and Sandra Margon from the Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor International who facilitated the organisation of the event.
It is hoped the symposium will pave the way for long-term research and teaching links between King Saud's Health Specialties division and the Faculties of Health Sciences and Pharmacy at Sydney.

The Portfolio’s Regional Updates booklet for 2012, giving up-to-date information and intelligence about the University’s engagement around the world, is now available online to staff.
The report reviews activity and sets out action plans for ten regions: China, SE Asia, South Asia, Europe, North America, NE Asia, Africa, the Middle East and the Pacific.
The preface gives a global overview and a summary of return on investment from international activity. Members of the regional expert groups are listed in the appendix.

An initiative that brings together 30 young leaders from India and Australia to discuss contemporary economic, social, cultural and political issues, has been launched in Delhi.
The Australia India Youth Dialogue is designed to provide participants with an opportunity to build a stronger strategic partnership between the two countries through shared knowledge. It will be an annual event, involving 15 delegates from each country aged between 18 and 35.
The impetus behind AIYD comes from a steering committee set up in early 2011 which includes Monika Barthwal-Datta, a researcher in Asian Food Security at the Centre for International Security Studies at the University of Sydney, and Ruchir Punjabi, a former President of the University of Sydney Union.
Ruchir was the Founding Chair of the Australia India Business Council NSW Young Professionals Chapter and is currently the Vice-Chair. He is Vice-President of the International Advertising Association Australia Young Professionals and a member of the Australian Web Industry Association National Committee, the Australian Interactive Media Industry Association (NSW) Committee and the Australia India Business Council NSW Management Committee.
He is also a Board member of International House at the University of Sydney and was actively involved between 2005 and 2010 in raising awareness of problems faced by international students in Australia and helping mitigate them.
The University of Sydney is an associate partner of the Australian India Youth Dialogue, and Professor John Hearn, Deputy Vice-Chancellor International, said: "We fully support the vision of AIYD and are pleased to be part of an initiative that provides young people from both countries with an opportunity to engage in dialogue and knowledge sharing."
For more information about the AIYD go to http://www.aiyd.org/index.php?page_id=83

Associate Professor Daniela Traini from the Faculty of Pharmacy has been awarded an Ikerbasque Visiting Fellowship to study in the Basque region of Spain.
The 12-month fellowship is funded by the Marie Curie Program of the European Union. Ikerbasque is the Foundation launched by the Basque Government to reinforce the Basque Science System.
Professor Traini will work alongside local researcher Professor Jose Luis Pedraz at the Department of Pharmacy and Food Science in the University of the Basque Country (Vitoria-Gasteiz)on a research project looking at respiratory infections.
The total funding for the fellowship includes a net monthly stipend of 2750 Euros plus a moving allowance and start up funds.

The English language Korea Herald newspaper has reported on the Next Generation Leaders Program visit to Korea by 10 Australian delegates from the water industry (see article here).
This year’s program focused on sustainable water resource management, and included leadership briefings, networking events and meeting with Korean experts. The visit in December was coordinated by the International Leaders Program in the International Portfolio, in partnership with the Australia Korea Foundation, the Korea Foundation and the National Strategy Institute.
The program aims to develop the leadership skills of potential and current leaders from Australia and Korea in specifically identified subject areas or themes.
Since then the ILP has hosted a Korean education group, student leadership programs from Kyoto University and Meiji Gakuin University and an AusAID funded program for the National Development and Reform Commission, China, focused on eco-compensation mechanisms to help inform future policy development and implementation.

World Scholars
For commencement in Semester Two 2012, World Scholars application forms must be submitted to the DVC International by 3 March. See http://sydney.edu.au/documents/future_students/USWS2012_GuideApp.pdf

AusAID Scholarships
AusAID scholarships are available for study in 2013. They are known as Development Awards under the Australia Awards banner. Visit http://www.australiaawards.gov.au/ or  
http://www.ausaid.gov.au/scholar/default.cfm.
 They aim to:

• develop capacity and leadership skills so that individuals can contribute to development in their home country
• build people-to-people linkages at individual, institutional and country levels.

Long-term awards tenable at the University of Sydney include Australian Development Scholarships (ADS) and Australian Leadership Award Scholarships (ALA Scholarships) for high achieving applicants. Short-term awards include Australian Leadership Awards Fellowships (ALA Fellowships), the Prime Minister's Pacific-Australia Awards and short courses.
Opening and closing dates vary for each eligible country. 
For study in 2013, the opening and closing dates are listed here.
The list of participating countries is here, including Asia (various), Pacific, Africa (open now, closing 28 February), Middle East (open now, closing 30 April), Caribbean and Latin America (open now, closing 30 April).

AusAID ALAF
Round 12 of the AusAID Australian Leadership Award Fellowships (ALAF) program opens on 14 May and closes on 20 June, for programs from January 2013 onwards. ALAFs aim to develop leadership, address priority regional development issues, and build partnerships and linkages between Australian organisations and partner organisations in developing countries in the Asia-Pacific region, Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa and the Middle East. Visit http://www.ausaid.gov.au/scholar/alafellow.cfm. The internal closing date for applications is 15 June.

Endeavour Awards
Endeavour Awards for study in 2013 are also known as Achievement Awards under the Australia Awards banner (http://www.australiaawards.gov.au/). Applications open on 1 April and close 30 June, for study commencing in 2013.
Endeavour Awards are the Australian Government’s internationally competitive, merit-based scholarship program providing opportunities for citizens of the Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas to undertake study, research and professional development in Australia. Awards are also available for Australians to undertake study, research and professional development abroad. Currently around 500-600 awards are available each year. Applicants who have already commenced study in Australia are ineligible.
Guidelines for these awards are available here: http://www.deewr.gov.au/International/EndeavourAwards/Documents/ApplicantGuidelines.pdf  and will be updated on 1 April.
Applications are made online; please refer to the guidelines for each individual award type.

Australia–Japan Foundation Grant Program 2012–2013
The AJF Grant Program is currently open to applications for projects commencing between 1 July 2012 and 30 June 2013. Applications must be submitted online by Friday 23 March.
AJF Grants are intended to provide seed funding for innovative proposals relevant to the objectives and key themes of the AJF.
Objectives:
(1) Increase understanding in Japan of shared interests with Australia
(2) Increase understanding in Australia of the importance of Japan as an economic and strategic partner
(3) Increase recognition in Japan of Australian excellence and expertise 
Themes:
- Economics and Trade
- Security, Regional and International Relations
- Education and Science
- Society and Culture
- Communication, Information and Advocacy
The AJF Board is particularly interested in grant applications for projects that aim to assist communities in the Tohoku region to recover from the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
AJF Grants website:  http://ajf.australia.or.jp/en/awards/grants/
Online applications:  http://dfat.smartygrants.com.au/ajf

Australia–Korea Foundation Grants 2012–2013
The AKF Grants are currently open to applications for projects commencing after 1 August 2012 and completed by 30 September 2013.  Applications must be submitted online by Friday 2 April.
The AKF’s objectives are to:
- Increase public awareness of Australia in Korea, and of Korea in Australia, and the importance of the bilateral relationship
- Develop partnerships in areas of shared interest in the bilateral, regional and global context
- Increase Australians’ capacity to effectively engage in Korea
In 2011, priority will be given to projects that strengthen Australia’s relationship with Korea through people-to-people engagements across a diverse range of sectors. 
AKF Grants website:  http://www.dfat.gov.au/akf/funding.html
Online applications:  http://dfat.smartygrants.com.au/akfgrants2012

 
Australia–Korea Foundation Scholarships 2012–2013
AKF Scholarships applications close on Thursday 12 April. 
The AKF Scholarship Program aims to develop Australian graduates with a good understanding of Korean society, politics, economy, culture and bilateral relationship with Australia, and to increase Australia’s capacity to engage with Korea through people-to-people and institutional linkages.
The Scholarships are open to all Australian citizens and permanent residents who are currently enrolled or recent graduates of an Australian tertiary institution.  Two referees are required, including one who can comment on the applicant’s academic achievement.
website:  http://www.dfat.gov.au/akf/program_activities/akf_scholarship_program.html
Online applications:  http://dfat.smartygrants.com.au/akfscholarship2012
 

Asian Development Bank Vice-President Stephen Groff will be speaking at an International Portfolio event on 19 March.
Mr Groff will talk about Asia’s economic transformation, and the region’s role in sustaining world economic growth against the backdrop of the Eurozone crisis. He will also discuss Australia’s role in ensuring that growth is environmentally sustainable and socially responsible.
Mr Groff is responsible for the full range of ADB’s operations in East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific. His mandate includes establishing strategic and operational priorities, producing investment and technical assistance operations amounting to $4-5 billion annually, managing a portfolio of about $23 billion, and leading about 700 staff.
The event will take place from 10.30am to 12.40pm in the new International Portfolio Lecture Theatre in the Woolley Building. For further details contact Rebecca Rock.