From the desk of the Vice-Chancellor

On 1 August 1946 our University was founded with a formidable mission, to “advance the cause of learning and research in general, and take its rightful place among the great universities of the world”.

The Minister of the day, John Dedman, also said, “The reputation of a university depends not on the number of its students or the splendour of its buildings, but on the quality of its members and the nature of its contribution to learning.”

The University was built on that concept of excellence and while recent rankings have confirmed the quality of our people and their outstanding contribution to human knowledge, there is no room to be complacent.

As a result, we have forged a partnership with seven of the world’s leading research-intensive universities to enhance the potential for our staff and students to collaborate with the world’s best. There are two others likely to join.

The partners are a select group of universities that share similar values, a global vision and a commitment to educating future world leaders.

The partnership will be deep: the level of trust, understanding and compatibility between the partners allows for substantial and meaningful engagement to occur.

At the same time, the partnership will be broad: a wide range of teaching and research possibilities are now open to us that will be better than any single one of us could provide on our own. =

Finally, the partnership will be influential: the quality of the universities involved is beyond dispute, as is their commitment to benefit humankind through the education of leaders with the global vision, tolerance and empathy with different cultures so necessary in the world today.

Combine those educational objectives with top quality and shared research that addresses many of the huge issues that confront us wherever we live on this planet and the benefits will flow far beyond the usual range.

This partnership provides an outstanding opportunity for ANU to further enhance its excellence and its links with the world’s best scholars — an exciting prospect not just for the University, but for all Australians.

Professor Ian Chubb AO
Chancellor and President

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