By Helena Burke
If you spent this week focusing on tactics to escape the rain, here’s the news you might have missed.
COVID-19
This week the Federal Government’s China travel ban was extended again. It will now be in place until at least 9 March. On Thursday, an ANU spokesperson confirmed that students affected by the travel ban will be able to claim up to $5000 in reimbursement for the “costs they have incurred as a consequence of the travel restrictions”.
Campus
ANU celebrated International Women’s Day (IWD) this week with a number of events on campus. On Tuesday, Antoinette Braybrook presented the annual Pamela Denoon lecture with her speech entitled Making First Nations Women Safe and Strong. Braybrook is the CEO of Djirra, an organisation which provides legal and non-legal support to indigenous people experiencing family violence. On Friday, ANU’s IWD panel discussed climate change, which is the theme of IWD this year. At the event, Vice-Chancellor Brian Schmidt also spoke about the importance of flexibility in the workplace.
On 4 March, ANU announced that the closure of University House would be extended until 2021. The building was damaged during Canberra’s severe January hailstorm. University House is ANU’s oldest residential college, and usually operating as both a hotel and residence for postgraduate students.
Kambri’s first bicycle store, PARSA Cycles, opened in Joplin Lane on Wednesday. The store will sell second-hand bicycles, as well as a limited number of new bicycles. Free bicycle maintenance and repair workshops will also be offered.
On 5 March, the amphitheatre in Kambri flooded following two days of heavy rainfall. This was at least the second time this year that the amphitheatre has flooded.
ANUSA
Content warning: sexual assault and sexual harassment
The first ANUSA Student Representative Council (SRC) meeting for 2020 was held on 4 March. Treasurer Maddy Wang defended her decision to enter into a partnership with property developer JWland to sponsor O-Week, stating that it was the only way that ANUSA “could continue providing O-Week to the standard people expect it to be”. A motion was later passed, binding ANUSA to a review by the SRC of any corporate partnerships or sponsorship deals.
Other notable reports included the one delivered by Women’s Officer Siang Jin Law, who reported that after “lengthy delays over the last two years”, ANU had finally launched an online reporting tool for sexual misconduct.
Canberra
On 4 March, UNSW announced a deal with the ACT Government to build a new $1 billion campus in Canberra’s CBD. The site of the proposed development, on Constitution Avenue in Reid, is currently home to the Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT). UNSW intends to commence construction within a year, however, estimates predict it will be 15 years before the new campus is complete. Programs at CIT will be gradually relocated to a new, $250 million campus in Woden.
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