BOOKEND UPDATE -
August/September 2010

Welcome to...  BE: The Bookend Trust Newsletter!

Hi everyone!

Well, it was busy when I started with Bookend, but the past two months have cranked that "up to 11". August/September is our busiest period in the year and our team has been so stretched with the number of events, presentations and planning that we decided to make this a double newsletter for the sake of everyone's sanity!

So welcome again to everyone on our mailing list, from the regulars to those who have joined us recently - whether from events such as the Envirofest, the UTAS and National Science Week Open Days, career expos, other talks and presentations, or simply just following the links on SBS.

There is a LOT to tell you about recent, current and upcoming events, so let's get started...

As I type, our intrepid teacher Andrew Hughes is already out in the snow starting this year's Expedition Class adventure.

In the final weeks before heading out there, Andrew had a busy time directly visiting some 1,500 students who had input to helping him shape the adventure ahead. This included travelling to Sydney as an invited guest of Australian Geographic for Science in the City. This is one of the biggest National Science Week events to be held anywhere in the country. Hundreds, if not thousands of students traipse around the museum listening to talks, doing activities and generally being very enthusiastic about science.

Back in Tasmania, the first ever adventure learning fundraising exhibition for Expedition Class was opened on the 27th of August. Launched by Hobart Alderman Bill Harvey - a long time supporter of the project - twenty framed photos spanning the past four years of exploring Australia and Papua New Guinea were displayed in the Fine Arts Gallery in the TUU building at UTAS, Sandy Bay. Mt Nelson Primary kindly presented Andrew with a self-made book of drawings and comments on his expeditions at the event.

But the excitement does not stop there! This year's Expedition Class adventure, The Tassie Tiger Hunt, was launched by Larissa Bartlett, wife of Tasmanian Premier David Bartlett, on the 2nd of September. The launch was held at UTAS to coincide with the above exhibition, with national Threatened Species Day (7 Sept), and with 2010 as the International Year of Biodiversity. Fittingly, if sadly, national Threatened Species Day marked the 74th anniversary of the death of the last captive Tasmanian Tiger in Hobart Zoo in 1936.

About 100 students from Campbell Street and Herdsmans Cove Primary Schools represented the 5,000+ students expected to follow the adventure online. The launch was followed by an activity day hosted by scientists volunteering their time to work with visiting schools. “I wish you all an exciting journey,” Mrs Bartlett said to the students. “I hope it is full of adventures, discoveries and friends along the way.”

And still it doesn't stop there. There is no rest for those passionate about the environment and Andrew is no exception! On the 27th of August, Andrew attended a luncheon as a finalist in the 2010 Pride of Australia Medal Awards. Andrew was being recognised as a member of "the teaching profession... who has been truly inspiring". [Bookend previously won this Award in 2008 for environmental endeavour].

Phew! All this is enough to earn Andrew a holiday, especially when high winds and snow stopped his flight to Melaleuca. But undeterred, Andrew instead set off on foot on 28 August as planned, walking to Melaleuca from Scotts Peak instead. From here, the adventure REALLY begins...

Want to know more?

It's not too late for primary classes to join this year's adventure, or to access the FREE online workbooks and resources tailored to fit the school curriculum. Go to Expedition Class, or email us at Bookend for more information.

A media kit on this year's Expedition Class program, including a press release, video material and photos is available here. Video previews can also be seen at the bottom of this page.

As mentioned in our earlier updates, our Orangutan exhibition is now up and running in the Visitor Centre at the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens. The exhibition is free to the public, and will be on until 20 October.

  The exhibition has been made possible by Paul Colegrave and Andrew Doran, who constructed the special stands needed for the transparent images at the core of the display.

John Xintavelonis, who helped by presenting links for video material within the exhibition, will appear there at 11.30am on Saturday 2 October to welcome families attending the Spring Community Festival.

Please note that although the exhibition is free, the Botanical Gardens will have an entry fee for the Spring Community Festival on 2-3 October only.

Want to know more?
A media kit, including a press release and photos is available here.

Our most important Bookend addition is our eight new scholarship students (l-r below): Loren Atkins, Priya Kitchener, Louisa Stredwick, Philippa Jensen, Kim Beasy, Lisa Cawthen, Jo McEvoy and Laura Parsley.

They come from a range of different courses and environmental interests, and we look forward to them helping communicate their experiences to schools.

See here for a short biography about each of these wonderful students so you can get to know them. They will also be joining us at Bookend Trust events and visits, so please help us to make them feel welcome!

As well as our documentaries and exhibitions, we continue to run a wide variety of other presentations and activities.

Alastair and Niall recently generated a lot of media attention due to their work with the Royal Zoological Society of London and the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) in assessing the conservation status of the world's freshwater crayfish species.

Both have been busy with a range of other talks (including Niall on topics as diverse as Tasmanian spiders and the Faroe Islands!), while I've been busy with school presentations for the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Technology at UTAS. Meanwhile Ninna is on the long way back from her two month trip to work with aboriginal communities in the Kimberley and Arnhem Land as part of the SharingStories Project, as reported last time.

We recently also had a visit from the University of Ballarat, where a team of students is working on a new interactive project for Bookend in partnership with the Bonorong Wildlife Park - but more on that soon!

 Likewise, in our next update we will have news for you on a new environmental competition for Tasmanian colleges - with a very exciting prize.

But we're not the only ones who have been busy. Bookend supporter and expert biologist Mark Wapstra, together with his equally talented parents Hans and Annie, has just completed a new fully illustrated guide to Tasmanian vascular plant species and the secrets behind their names. Click here for more information on "Tasmanian Plant Names Unravelled", including a $15 pre-order discount on what is sure to be an essential reference work.

And on the subject of books, another publication on the wild beauty of Tasmania is in the wings - but more on that next time.

Ninna filming in northern Australia - she tells us this is work!

Best wishes,

Tanaz