Work ensures School remains a world leader
The Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies - like other schools in the ANU Institute of Advanced Studies - is part not only of this university but also of a national and international research scene. The 1995 Review of RSPAS showed that the School is fulfilling its national and international roles admirably. The Review concluded, among other things, that the School "is the leading world centre for historical and social science research on Indonesia and the Southwest Pacific, on Australia's relations with the region, on Australia-Sunda quaternary research, on Austronesian linguistics, Asia-Pacific economies and economic cooperation, and Asia-Pacific security" and "the leading national resource for historical and social science research on most regions of Southeast and East Asia". Maintaining this standard of contribution in an age of unprecedentedly hostile university finances will not be easy, but the School has shown its determination to do all that it can. The first steps have been to establish priorities - defining what is central to our work and what is peripheral - and to get the School's finances under control. This has necessitated tough decisions, but they have been taken on the basis of a collegiate definition of priorities. I know that colleagues around the world, for whom we are valued collaborators and generators of research, expect us to get this right - in their interest as well as ours. I believe that we are doing so and that RSPAS can respond to the challenges facing universities in this country in ways which will enable it to remain the research beacon that it has long been. We need also to collaborate closely with those who are facing similar difficulties around the country and the world (for we should not forget that we are not alone in this). Our National Visiting Scholarships support PhD students registered in other Australian universities. Our International Exchange Network for Junior Academics offers opportunities to early-career scholars from throughout Australia. Collaborative research projects combine RSPAS staff with colleagues elsewhere. We are in discussion with colleagues overseas about a possible joint degree course, and a possible doctoral and post-doctoral program in Southeast Asian studies, to support isolated scholars of that field in the United States. We work closely with other parts of the ANU, notably with the Faculty of Asian Studies. In these and many other ways, we are working to ensure that RSPAS continues to fulfill its obligations to the national and international research effort on the Pacific and Asia. Professor Merle Ricklefs Director, RSPAS