5 Minute Research Pitch national finals on the Gold Coast tomorrow

Southern Cross University will host the 2016 national finals of the prestigious 5 Minute Research Pitch at the Gold Coast campus tomorrow (Tuesday, November 22).

Fifteen academics from eight universities will each have five minutes to present their current or recently-completed research with the aid of three PowerPoint slides.

The competition, open to academic research staff, is similar to the 3 Minute Thesis competition run nationally for postgraduate research students.

Southern Cross University won the right to host this year’s event after shark researcher Dr Daniel Bucher from the School of Environment, Science and Engineering became the overall winner at the 2015 national final hosted by Australian Catholic University.

Southern Cross University Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research) Professor Geraldine Mackenzie said the event encouraged researchers to communicate their work to a wider audience, developing their skills and enhancing their ability to communicate their expertise to a non-specialist audience.

She said SCU would welcome anyone interested in attending the event, including members of neighbouring universities, industry representatives and the public.
“The presentations from all those competing will be of a high quality, covering a diversity of topics, and it is a significant achievement to take the overall prize,” Professor Mackenzie said.

“The event itself presents a unique opportunity for researchers to network and foster new collaborative linkages and has enormous potential to lead to new and exciting research opportunities for all involved.”

This year Dr Naomi Wells from School of Environment, Science and Engineering and Dr Renaud Joannes-Boyau from Southern Cross GeoScience will represent Southern Cross University after winning their respective groups at the campus finals.

Dr Wells will discuss ‘Following waste streams across landscapes: The power of stable isotopes’ while Dr Joannes-Boyau will speak on ‘Reconstructing the dietary habits of early humans’.

The academic who wins the national final will take home $3000 and hosting rights for next year’s event.

Participating universities for 2016 include Australian Catholic University, Central Queensland University, Charles Sturt University, Edith Cowan University, Federation University, University of Southern Queensland and Victoria University.

The audience at the event will vote for the winner of the people’s choice prize sponsored by ThinkWell

The event starts at 10.30am (QLD time) at the Southern Cross University Gold Coast campus at Southern Cross Drive, Bilinga.

Photo caption: Dr Renaud Joannes-Boyau will speak on ‘Reconstructing the dietary habits of early humans’