#
M E TOO
GROK FREE ISSUE #2 - 2019 THE AFTERMATH OF #METOO IN AUSTRALIA
contributors EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
HEADS OF DESIGN
Amber Weir
Scott Higginbotham
DEPUTY EDITOR
CONTRIBUTING DESIGNERS
Max Vos
Evelyn Swindale Hayley Thoms
SUBEDITORS
Jamie Simcock
Ailish Delaney
Natasha Provan
Belicia Tjendera
Sally Henderson
Daryna Zadvirna
Sarah McKay
Kellie Balaam
Scott Higginbotham
Maria Cristina de Vicente Capua
Willow Springate
Naomi Worthy Urbi Khan CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Adam Smith
Winnie Foss Nancy ye
COVER ARTIST Sally Henderson
Adilah Ahmad Anika Donnison
LOGO
Daniel Patterson
Chris Leopardi
Daryna Zadvirna Ellen Dimitriou Isabel Mountain Kaelen Ruland
PRINTED BY Graphic Source
Venus Choo J.Q CONTACT SPECIAL THANKS
grokonline.com.au
Marilyn Metta
grok@guild.curtin.edu.au
Pamela Boland
facebook.com/grokmagazine
Shannon O’Neill
instagram.com/grokmagazine
Orla Austin
issuu.com/curtinguild
Elissa Down
@grokmagazine
contents NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
02
FROM THE PREZ
03
50 YEARS OF WOODSTOCK
04
THE CULTURE OF VOTING IN AUSTRALIA
08
DISCOVERING YOUR INNER ZEN
12
MANSA MUSA AND THE VALUE OF CURRENCY
16
THE AFTERMATH OF #METOO IN AUSTRALIA
18
'UNDER THE SILVER LAKE': THE MILLENNIAL IN CRISIS
28
THE COST OF CLIMATE CHANGE 32 KEEP AUSTRALIA BEAUTIFUL:
36
TWENTIES: FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF PAMELA BOLAND
40
IRELAND IN PERTH: A GUIDE TO CRAIC'N ON
44
ELISSA DOWN AND HER VOYAGE TO HOLLYWOOD
48
WHY DO WE GET GREY HAIRS:
52
STATMENT ON THE ARREST OF KEARAH RONAN
55
A NOTE FROM T H E E D I TO R AMBER WEIR
“TO UNDERSTAND THOROUGHLY, A N D I N T U I T I V E LY; T H AT I S T H E MEANING OF GROK, THAT IS WHY W E A R E HE RE .”
Thank you for picking up a copy of this year’s second issue of Grok Magazine—a publication run by Curtin students, for everyone.
violence—to name a few. And they are all important.
The pieces within this edition speak to the passions, concerns and interests of those within our student community. Whether it be on the issue of climate change, single-use plastics, student well-being or women’s rights, I hope there will be something here that resonates with you.
These issues, or perhaps others, will touch you in different ways. What you are passionate about won’t always align with the desires or concerns of others, and that’s okay. It is not our responsibility to save the world by ourselves, but we must always appreciate what others are trying to do to make it better. As a collective, we must do our best to love, respect and help educate each other.
At present there are many problems within our society that need our attention: the climate crisis, gender equality, Indigenous rights and recognition, youth homelessness, transgender rights, access to abortion, the pill testing debate, LGBTQI+ adoption rights, racial discrimination, mental health, housing affordability and domestic
This magazine is a platform for students to speak out, to voice their concerns, share their passions and to feel empowered. I hope that in reading these pieces, the voices of our writers connect with you in some way.
from the prez
Hello friends, Welcome to the newest print edition of Grok Magazine and the second semester of the year! I hope that semester one was a success and your break was the appropriate balance of restful and rowdy. The environment, the #MeToo movement, stress and self care, and Australia’s political culture are just some of the topics covered in this edition of Grok, as well as a pretty solid list of the things going through my mind on a daily basis as a student and young person in 2019. For 50 years, Grok has been a strong reflection of the interests and concerns of the student body at Curtin and an amazing display of the calibre of creativity and talent in our community. The relationship between Grok and the Guild is one that is incredibly important and I am proud to be celebrating the 50th birthdays of two entities that are very different, but come hand-in-hand and share the common goal of representing the interests of students.
The Guild’s 50th year is already off to a huge start, and we have a number of projects underway or coming up over the next semester, so make sure you’re following us on our various social media platforms for updates. While you’re at it, we’re always keen to hear your ideas on what you want to see from us, so please don’t hesitate to get in contact. While you’ve got your head down trying to get through all your work in the lead up to the summer break, we hope that you’ll find the time to engage with us, whether it be by sending us an email, observing a Guild Council meeting, chatting to us at one of our regular Grill the Guild barbecues, coming to a Tav party, or all of the above. Enjoy the 2nd 2019 print edition of Grok, and I’ll see you around! Finlay Nolan, 50th Guild President
MUSIC HISTORY
Words // Jennifer Maxwell Design // Natasha Provan
T HE LEGAC Y, T HE DO W NFALLS AND T HE F U T URE Content/Trigger Warning: Mentions of rape and sexual harassment
In its first incarnation, Woodstock epitomised the culture that defines the ’70s: peace, love and happiness. In every revival since, the atmosphere could never be replicated or imitated—making Woodstock ’69 a legacy in its own right. Fifty years on, and speculations confirmed, there will be another Woodstock, one that promises to honour, celebrate and exceed its predecessors, and promote social change and activism. The question, however, is whether the 50th anniversary can rise above the tragedy that was Woodstock ’99, while still delivering a performance that would make the previous generations proud. Our society, our values and our hopes have shifted dramatically over 50 years, and those that attended the original Woodstock to rebel against the middle-class society have now become the middle-class society. Woodstock 50 holds an immense power to unite generations of music lovers, but can it live up to its legacy, a legacy full of highs, lows and opportunities? Looking back as an outsider who wasn’t alive during the time, the Woodstock festival of 1969 could be read as a perfect mess. The idea of Woodstock, concocted by John Roberts, Joel Rosenman, Michael Lang and Artie Kornfeld, didn’t begin as a “party of the century” music festival but as a recording studio. To fund their dream studio, the men—all of whom were in their 20s—decided to organise a music festival. From there, they experienced numerous tribulations: change of venue a month before the date; the ticket booths, fencing and gates not being constructed in time, resulting in the festival being changed to a free event; the attendees number was higher than expected, resulting in traffic jams
on the highways and local roads; artists couldn’t make it to the venue, they had to be helicoptered in; and there was an extreme lack of catering for the surplus audience. It should have been a disaster. It should have been a laughing stock, a black mark in the history of music festivals. And yet, it has lived on because of the music and the legendary performance of Jimi Hendrix. Woodstock was advertised as a three-day event but ran for four days. Jimi Hendrix, who was contracted to be the final performer of Woodstock, had unexpectedly performed his set at 9.00am on Monday, April 18, 1969. Although the crowd had thinned to around 25,000 people, the two hours that Hendrix performed had outshone the rest of the festival. With his stellar performances of ‘Purple Haze’ and ‘Voodoo Child (Slight Return)’, including the legendary guitar rendition of ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’, Hendrix permanently wrote himself into music history—a place where he always belonged.
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MUSIC HISTORY Woodstock and Jimi Hendrix are now synonymous with each other, and he’ll always be honoured as the artist who brought peace, love and happiness into our hearts. Thirty years after the original Woodstock and five years after the previous Woodstock in ’94, Rome, New York was the location of the worst Woodstock ever. To start with the positives, the musical talent for the event was excellent, ranging from James Brown, Alanis Morrissette, to Metallica and Ice Cube. Rage Against the Machine performed a fantastic set which ended with the controversial burning of the United States flag. The performances that stood out were Wyclef Jean and Red Hot Chilli Peppers. Wyclef, unfortunately, had done the one thing that nobody had asked for: a Jimi Hendrix impersonation. The impersonation turned the crowd against him, especially after his attempt at a rendition of ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’. It worsened as the festival closers, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, took to the stage. They decided to close with a cover of Jimi Hendrix’s ‘Fire’ which had set the world ablaze. Literally. The crowd began to riot. Bonfires began to break out, cars were being flipped and set on fire, an audio tower was pulled down, vendor booths and merch tents were destroyed. It truly was a destructive mess. The problems that the organisers faced that year were reminiscent of the original festival, but with a more sinister twist. Besides the rioting, overpriced food and drink, and hot weather, the festival faced backlash due to reports of sexual harassment and poor musical performances. The crowd would constantly shout “show your tits” whenever a woman would appear on stage.
The company had also created a website (Woodstock. com) which had posted non-consensual pictures of topless festival-goers with lewd captions. There were four alleged rapes, including a gang rape in the mosh pit during a set. With Woodstock 50 readily approaching, it will be fascinating to see how the issues raised by previous Woodstock festivals are met. The name “Woodstock” was elevated by the 1969 festival but brought down by the antics of the 1999 event. And with the successes of newer music festivals, such as Coachella and Lollapalooza, the pressure on this year’s festival is substantial. The current line-up has been released and promises a great variety of musical talent from the likes of The Killers, Miley Cyrus, Chance the Rapper, Jay-Z, Imagine Dragons and Halsey. Australia will be represented by fantastic artists such as Courtney Barnett and Brian Cadd. There will also be performances from the 1969 line-up, such as Santana, Canned Heat and John Fogerty of Creedence Clearwater Revival. Woodstock altered rock and roll history and the experience of live music forever. It created legacies and legends, and a cultural shift towards peace and love. Music traverses difference and encourages unity, and as our society tries to fix our current political state and promote positive change for our environment’s sake, maybe three days of music, celebration and remembrance are what we need.
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POLITICS Words // Anika Donnison Design // Winnie Foss
THE CULTURE OF VOTING IN AUSTRALIA Australians seem to have become complacent with the world of politics, especially with regards to voting. Thousands of us send in invalid or donkey ballots at every election. We are in a state of political instability, especially considering we haven’t had a Prime Minister fulfil their term since the Howard government, which ended in 2007. Voting is one of the most underappreciated rights of Australian citizenship. We have become
complacent in our election of representatives; I know many people who will simply ask their parents who to vote for. This is restricting our ability to truly have our voices heard. The government has control over education, healthcare, economics, and we are who they work for we decide whether they continue with their positions.
HISTORY OF VOTING IN AUSTRALIA In Australia it is compulsory for citizens to vote. Those who don’t, are slammed with a $50 fine. But why is voting compulsory? The Australian Electoral Commission explains that compulsory enrolment for federal elections was only introduced in 1911, 10 years after federation. Compulsory voting was introduced in Queensland in 1915, the first place within the British Empire to
do so, followed by the other states. South Australia was the final state to introduce compulsory voting in 1942. This allowed the turnout rate to rise from 60 per cent in the 1922 election to 91 per cent in the 1925 election. Finally, the last movement was in 1984 when it was enforced that all eligible electors are required to vote, including our First Nations People who could only vote from 1949 onwards.
VOTING OVER THE WORLD There are many arguments for and against compulsory voting, but perhaps we should take a look at the democracies of other countries. There are currently thirty two countries with compulsory voting, of those only nineteen enforce it. In America, voting isn’t compulsory. Not only does this have a dramatic impact on voter turnout, which was a record 58.1 per cent of the population
in the 2016 election, but it can also affect the result; only a quarter (approximately) of American citizens voted for Trump. These results are skewed towards those willing to vote. Therefore, the outcome isn’t really an accurate representation of the majority. Those within Australia, however, can sleep soundly knowing that whoever is in power, was voted for by the majority of Australians.
2 6.7 % 5 8 . 1%
Percentage of Americans that Voted in the 2016 US Presidential Election
Percentage of Trump Voters in the 2016 US Presidential Election
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POLITICS
SO... WHAT’S THE PROBLEM? Australia has one of the best election turnout rates in the world, which means that the outcome of the 2019 election is a pretty accurate representation of what we wanted. So why are people upset with the current state of politics? Turns out we’re more pissed off with politicians than with politics itself. It has been 12 years since we had a Prime Minister fulfil their entire term. Since the end of Howard’s term, every Prime Minister has been deposed by their party. The removal of Turnbull in 2018 led to the (short-lived) ousting of the Liberal’s in the Wentworth by-election, with an ABC poll showing that 17.8 per cent of lost Liberal votes went to Labor. This political instability also has implications for how we’re perceived internationally; we're seen as constantly unsatisfied with those we supposedly elected. How that translates to the outside world can only be detrimental. Currently we lack trust in our politicians, because how are we supposed to trust those who don’t trust their party leaders? Surveys from The Conversation show that 78 per cent of citizens
in 1996 were satisfied with the way democracy works in Australia, dropping to 40.6 per cent in 2018. Just over a third of people stated that they trusted both state and federal governments, with 21 per cent of people saying they trusted state and federal ministers and MPs. They also found that 60 per cent of Australians believe politicians have very little honesty and integrity. The Conversation proposed that the three biggest grievances of the population were due to a lack of accountability for broken promises; politicians don’t deal with the issues that the population cares about the most, and big businesses have too much power. During the vote towards same-gender marriage, many ministers went against their electorate within the parties. Some voted yes when their electorate had a majority no vote and vice versa. This failure to represent their electorate only causes a deeper resentment within the population. We can only hope that Scott Morrison can last his term and deliver some political stability.
WE’RE ONE OF THE LUCKY ONES
Voting is a right that you should exercise as a citizen. It’s a right that many people all over the world don’t have. A right that many people die for. Some elections are incredibly undemocratic, with people having no choice but to vote in someone unwanted. Until 1996, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, head of the Equatorial Guinea, refused to allow other people on the ballot. He supposedly forced a sign off on a vote count with a pistol to the official’s head, with many voters allegedly prevented from voting if they intended to vote for opposition. Rigged elections are not uncommon throughout history. In 1962, the Haiti government only offered one candidate for election, and in 1927 Liberian politician Charles D.B. King won with 234,000 votes from only 15,000 registered voters. North Korea is another state with a single option, and Singapore suppresses opposition parties; there are many countries where electoral fraud runs rampant. So why don’t we appreciate that we are given a choice? We wish to fight for these freedoms, yet we fail to act on those we have inherited, those we are born with. Whether you are threatened with a fine, or potential loss of license if you fail to pay it, you have a right and a duty to care about the government and how it is run. Whether it’s for yourself, or for the future generation who will be affected by policies implemented by the current government, we shouldn’t just tolerate this right. Instead, we should appreciate it and honour it. Because not everyone gets a choice.
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WELLNESS
Let us get straight to the point shall we? Being a university student is HARD. No matter where you are in the semester, university can be stressful. Just when you think you can finally take a breather, another assignment is due and another exam is around the corner. And it never really matters how much you revised or how many post-it notes you've stuck into those way too expensive textbooks does it? You’ll always feel unprepared. Not to mention clubs, societies and those tempting night outs and movie dates. You just want to attend everything in sight and grab all those offers available. After all, it’s uni life; you should be enjoying it to the fullest, right? It’s all so exciting, electrifying, thrilling and so… overwhelming. When we are stressed, epinephrine and norepinephrine are released into our blood stream, resulting in heightened blood pressure and pulse rate, faster breathing, and increased blood flow. With everything gnawing at our heels it can be rather easy for us to forget to take a breather. So here are a couple of easy ways to de-stress and bring back some inner peace into your life—we all need it!
Words // Venus Choo J.Q. Design // Sarah McKay
FOR EST BAT H I N G
JI V E TO G O O D TUN ES
‘Forest bathing ’, or spending time in the woods or a forested area, can lower our cortisol and blood pressure levels. In 2011, Japanese researchers found that it c a n i n c re a s e o u r c a rd i ov a s c u l a r h e a l t h (with significantly increased vigor); decrease our pulse rate and urinary adrenaline; and reduce depression, anxiety, confusion, and fatigue. Spending time outdoors can help us reduce our stress levels, boost feelings of happiness and wellbeing and improve our mood. Being in nature also improves our creativity and problem-solving skills. It’s a win-win situation!
Music is a global way of communicating. It has a relaxing effect on our body and mind; especially slow, and quiet classical music. Music also has a beneficial effect on our physiological functions. It helps us to slow down our heart and pulse rate, and decreases stress hormones and blood pressure levels. So pop your ear buds in, close the door, and dance your heart out!
“Spending time outdoors can help us reduce our stress levels, boost feelings of happiness and wellbeing, and improve our mood.”
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WELLNESS
PR ACTICE MIN D F U L NESS By practicing mindfulness we are looking into four elements: awareness, focus, acceptance and observation. We learn to tune in to the present moment, accepting what we might think or feel, and recognising and observing unpleasant thoughts, feelings and sensations. Learning to be mindful about ourselves and our surroundings can improve our mood, reduce stress, improve brain functions and help us to cope with pain. One way to practice mindfulness is by choosing to spend 15 minutes a day on quiet reflection. Write down significant or unsettling events that happened on that day and ponder on how you could improve from the situation. Finally, breathe; don’t stress, accept that it has passed and let it go.
S P EN DI N G TI ME W I TH A N I MALS hello animal lovers! Boy, have I got good news for you. Your cuddly, fluffy and maybe even scaly bundles of amazingness help relieve stress and make you feel all loved and cherished! According to Dr. Alan M. Beck of the Center for the Human-Animal Bond, pets can help us to reduce stress in 8 different ways! Just their presence can improve our overall physical health by boosting our cardiovascular health, lowering our blood pressure and inspiring us to exercise more frequently! They also remind us to live in the moment, make us feel less lonely, boost our self-esteem and make us laugh. Not to mention, they also help us to fulfill our need for touch. So go on ahead. Pet a dog, cuddle a rabbit, slither with an iguana, and maybe, just maybe, stroke a fish! For non-pet owners, you can visit The Cat CafĂŠ Puurth located in Subiaco to de-stress with some cuddly creatures for $15 an hour, or visit an animal farm near you.
MED I TAT I O N Not only can meditation reduce stress and improve health but it can also decrease anxiety, improve cardiovascular health and achieve a greater capacity for relaxation! Curtin’s Counselling services offers daily mindfulness sessions in Building 109, Level 2. These meditation sessions start at 12pm sharp and run for 30 minutes long. Pop in for a quick chill sesh at Curtin on one of your long lunchbreaks; it might just be exactly what you needed to get through the day. The path to de-stress is not as vague or stressful as it may initially seem. Grab a partner to meditate with, list down 10 things you are grateful for, go on a hiking trip with your friends, hunt down all those petting events, and pop in your earphones or headphones and dance the night (or morning) away. University is exciting, overwhelming, eye-opening and stressful. So while you’re on this rollercoaster of emotions, make sure you take time out for yourself—you do you.
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CURRENCY
Words // Adam Smith Design // Willow Springate
MANSA MUSA AND THE VALUE OF CURRENCY
The year is 1324 and Mansa Musa (or Musa I) the Emperor of Mali, has set off to complete the pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca—a key religious duty within Islam.
the richest person to have ever lived... It is believed that at the time, the Malian Empire was the largest producer of gold in the world. Fortunately, this coincided with a time-period in which gold was becoming an extremely desirable resource—both as jewellery and more importantly as a currency—making Mansa Musa
standard purity metal would negate the need to purchase the local currency. Much of the food needed for this enormous cohort was also supposedly brought along, with herds of animals accompanying the caravan. Within these animals there were some 80 to 100 camels, each holding anything from 20—100 kilograms of gold.
one of the richest people alive.
intent and outcome don't always align...
As he travelled from West Africa to the Middle
It is with this enormous wealth, that Musa—
East on his pilgrimage, Musa hoped to improve
named the richest person to have ever lived
the lives of the people within the cities he
by Time Magazine—set out on his 8,000
moved through, however, as with many actions
kilometre trip and provided luxurious gifts to
throughout history, intent and outcome don’t
both dignitaries and the poor, and (possibly)
always align.
invested in infrastructure such as mosques.
Over several centuries the Empire of Mali had
The gold that entered the economy from his
risen to prominence and claimed much land
entourage buying antiques and exotic goods,
from the surrounding countries. During his reign
over a short period, resulted in extreme
Mansa himself captured twenty-four cities.
devaluation of gold in these cities and the Eastern Mediterranean in general. It is thought
At the same time, Islam and the nations that
that this devaluation alone took about a decade
observed it were in ascendency, and the last
to revert, with the poor finding themselves
vestige of the Roman Empire, the Byzantine
in possession of gold dust that no one was
Empire, was losing ground and influence on
interested in. This provides a great example of
the people of the East.
the impact of ‘supply and demand’ in the value of a commodity, as well as the macro effects of
It is in this context that Musa I set off on his
an extreme influx of wealth into an economy.
pilgrimage, bringing an enormous entourage of almost 60,000 people, including some 12,000
Mansa Musa’s pilgrimage also provides some
slaves—each holding almost 2kg of gold bars.
context to concerns about policies such as Universal Basic Income; providing a quantity
This was a time when weights and currencies
of money or a resource to an entire population
were one and the same, so when travelling to
doesn’t necessarily mean the poorest members
another country, carrying a large quantity of a
of the population will see any benefit.
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However, the difference between any modern
Certainly, there are downsides to floating
ideas for UBI and the impacts of the Musa
currencies; George Soros famously made
pilgrimage, is that gold was a resource that
something in the order of 1 billion pounds by
also functioned as a currency separate from
selling so many pounds that the currency itself
any government regulation, so I wouldn’t rule
was devalued and bought them back at the new
out UBIs just yet.
reduced rate—essentially committing economic vandalism. But for the most part, the floating
The impact that Musa’s pilgrimage had on the
currency provides a level of stability beyond
price of certain commodities is a prime example
that which a resource is capable of providing.
of why we saw the separation of currency tokens and value, and why we no longer use majority
The final transition to this modern system
gold or silver coins. Not only did people find
happened more recently than you may expect,
other uses for them—silversmiths in the United
with the ending of the Gold Standard value of
Kingdom had a habit of melting down silver
the US Dollar by Nixon in the '70s. At the time,
coins to produce silver cutlery—but a massive
one ounce of gold was worth US$35 and the
surge or decline in the availability of these rare
government was struggling to maintain this
resources had a tendency to significantly affect
value, as gold became an even more useful
the value of a currency.
commodity (hello computers), and inflation was
economic vandalism... Throughout much of the world today we have floating currencies, which are freely traded with their value determined by (supply and demand within) markets. It is the job of Central Banks to try and influence these values, sometimes through interest rates, but mostly by controlling the supply of cash in an economy. This is something that Musa tried to do himself by attempting to buy as much gold as he could on credit (more accurately high interest promissory bonds), to reduce the quantity of gold in the market, to limited effect.
becoming a major issue. What’s more, is that the majority of global currencies were valued against (or pegged to) the US dollar i.e. US$1 = £0.7 effectively making an ounce of gold the basis for most currencies. Today, one ounce of gold will set you back US$1,300, whilst US$35 of cash in 1971 is worth about US$220 today. This gives you some indication of the forces the US gave up fighting!
the safest investment in the world... So, what can we learn from all this at the end
Sure, it hasn’t seen the greatest absolute rise
of the day? Basically, because of its consistent
beyond the inflation rate like some other stocks,
long-term growth in value—and the fact that it
but it has still seen a significant boost, and at
hasn’t had the significant crashes that the global
a far lower level of risk than any other stock
market has seen—Gold is an effective way to
or commodity. Quite simply, despite Mansa
increase wealth.
Musa’s story, buying gold might just be the safest investment in the world.
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#ME TOO
WHE R E AR E WE NOW?
The Aftermath of #MeToo in Australia "CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNING: MENTION OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT AND ASSAULT, MURDER, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE"
WO R D S // E LLE N DI M I T R I OU DESI G N // SA LLY HE NDE R S ON On October 5, 2017, two journalists for The New York Times, Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey, revealed multiple allegations of sexual harassment against lucrative movie producer, Harvey Weinstein. A few days later, The New Yorker released an exposé written by Ronan Farrow, that revealed harrowing accounts from multiple women who had faced sexual harassment and assault by Weinstein. Since then, over eighty women within the film industry have shared similar stories. Shortly after, the #MeToo hashtag created by activist Tarana Burke was revived by actor Alyssa Milano, who took to Twitter on October 15: “If you’ve been sexually harassed or assaulted write ‘me too’ as a reply to this tweet.” millions of people around the world responded using #MeToo.
The subsequent post-Weinstein ripple effect uncovered the systemic abuse and degradation of women throughout the entertainment industry. The launch of #TimesUp on January 1 last year denounced sexual harassment and assault within the workplace, calling upon organisations to implement safe, fair, and dignified workplaces for all women. It seemed there was nowhere to hide: Harvey Weinstein was hit with sex crime charges; Bill Cosby went to jail; Matt Lauer was sacked; and Kevin Spacey’s career imploded. Survivors who’d internalised their experiences for so long were no longer staying silent. The phenomenon we now know as the MeToo movement, gave them the courage to talk about experiences that had previously gone untold or ignored.
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17% MUSIC
OF WOMEN IN W.A.
HAVE EXPERIENCED SEXUAL HARRASSMENT
I N T HE L AST
1 2 M O N THS
!
VIOL ENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN AUSTRAL IA
In 2017, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics found that 60 per cent of assault victims aged 15 years and over were female. In 2016, it was found that 17 per cent of women in Western Australia had experienced sexual harassment in the last 12 months, and that 28 per cent of women avoided walking home alone after dark because they felt unsafe. In 2018, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare reported that 42 per cent of women sought homelessness services because of domestic violence. Marilyn Metta, a psychotherapist and the director and founder of not-for-profit humanitarian organisation Mettamorphosis Inc. says she was not surprised about the aftermath of the Weinstein story.
#
METO O
28% O F W O M E N AV O I D E D WA L K I N G H OM E A LON E A F T E R DA R K
“Whether it’s in Australia or worldwide, I think it was long-awaited. The pressure’s been building up and the floodgate opened with that particular incident,” says Metta. “The social media took on the story in a way that really mobilised it, in ways that other stories didn’t in the past. It’s a classic case of what was previously a very private issue becoming very global and public. It [was] overdue.” In Australia, it’s harder for women to name and shame abusers, as our defamation laws are some of the strictest in the world. Journalist and MeToo Advocate Tracey Spicer has said that in Australia, “women fear that if they speak out, they will never work again”. It’s this fear that speaks to the implicit societal attitudes prevalent within
STRONGER TOGETHER
Australia—attitudes that trivialise and minimise the experiences of survivors. “The legality of defamation laws … that kind of censorship and fear operates on a cultural, social level, as well. We are a highly conservative society and I think to ignore that would be foolish and naïve,” says Metta. “[But] also culturally, how we deal with any complaints from women, generally, you don’t need those defamation laws—unspoken censorship is in our culture.”
ME TO O
#
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WOMEN'S RIGHTS
# M ETO O I N AUSTRA LI A On June 13 last year, news surfaced that 22-yearold comedian Eurydice Dixon had been raped and murdered while walking home. We had heard these stories before; the rape and murder of Jill Meagher in 2012 had drawn similar coverage. In Australia, yet another woman was killed at the hands of a man. In the case of Dixon, the Victorian Police told women that they shouldn’t be walking alone at night, that they should employ situational awareness, carry mobile phones, let people know where they are and wear modest clothing. In response, The Project host and journalist Lisa Wilkinson said that “[the] best way to prevent this crime isn’t to change the behaviour of women but to change the behaviour of men. Instead of telling our girls not to walk through parks, maybe we should be telling our boys not to rape them.” And although her thoughts were shared by many of us, her point is one that shouldn’t need to be reinforced.
Stories of women being killed at the hands of men have circulated the news cycle for years. This year in Melbourne, a 32-year-old woman was murdered and found slumped against a wall in Melbourne’s Chinatown; in January, 21-yearold Israeli university student, Aiia Maasarwe, was killed after getting off a tram near La Trobe University; last month, 25-year-old Courtney Herron, was bashed to death in Royal Park in Parkville—making her the twentieth woman to be violently killed by a man in Australia this year. Responses to acts of violence against women that point to women’s behaviour only serve to substantiate that these crimes are incidental, expected, and, at times, inevitable. Dixon’s death, and the countless others that followed, opened up a dialogue, dissecting male rage, misogyny, power and control in Australia. “How we understand perpetrators has shifted, and what #MeToo shone a light on was that power is part of the conversation. We didn’t really get it before. It’s about power, coercion,” says Metta, in response to the Dixon case.
W H AT T H E R US H D EFA M AT I O N CAS E M E A NS FO R WO M EN In Australia, our own version of #MeToo came about in the case of Geoffrey Rush v Nationwide News. In 2018, the Daily Telegraph ran a story alleging that Rush had behaved inappropriately towards a female co-star, later identified as Eryn Jean Norvill. Actress Yael Stone later said that she’d also encountered similar experiences with Rush. Justice Michael Wigney said that The Daily Telegraph had produced “recklessly irresponsible pieces of sensationalist journalism of the very worst kind", ruling in favour of Rush. He claimed that Norvill “was prone to embellishment and exaggeration” and stated that she was not a “credible witness”, quoting past interviews in which Norvill had spoken positively of Rush. The severe judgement from Wigney comes without any acknowledgment of the fact that Norvill’s “allegations” were a private workplace complaint—she did not wish to take it to the
public. However, after becoming aware of the complaint, The Daily Telegraph published Norvill’s allegations. Norvill’s confidentiality was breached, and she was dragged through what was sure to be an arduous and distressing defamation case. On top of it all she was deemed a liar and a fraud. Where is the justice in that? The impact of this verdict serves only to further alienate the women of Australia and prevent them from speaking out about their own experiences with sexual harassment and abuse. The kind of language used to characterise Norvill isn’t dissimilar to the language used against most women when they speak out against men who behave badly. Too often, when women speak out, they are told to ignore the men responsible for making them feel unsafe. They are brushed off and told they’re imagining things. They are questioned when they speak out and questioned when they don’t speak out sooner. They’re expected to behave a certain way. To be polite, but not to give men the wrong idea or lead men on. They are told not to get angry, and to wear modest clothing so that men aren’t tempted to touch or rape them. The responsibility always falls back on women.
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WOMEN'S RIGHTS
The issue at large is cultural and is deeply entrenched within a conservative society that stifles and silences the women of Australia— particularly if you’re a woman and are speaking out against any form of harassment. The archaic and insulting delusions that women make up claims of assault and harassment further reinforces the deeper issue that is the unconscious gender bias that exists within our culture. This inherent unwillingness to trust, to believe and to empower women who are mistreated by men, only forces more and more women into silence.
D I S M A N T LING P OWE R Power and sexism go hand in hand. It is often the everyday casually sexist practices that people do all the time that bleed into social institutions. However, as we discovered in the case of Weinstein and cases within Australia, there is the insidious exploitation of power used against those who are most vulnerable within the workplace, at home and within religious organisations.
making choices about what they want to do. Not only do you have a chorus—a really loud sustained chorus of people sharing their stories— but the most powerful aspect is that they are being acknowledged. They’re being believed. They are being listened to,” says Metta. In Australia, abuse is most common inside the home. The most at risk women are young women, Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander women, pregnant women and women with a disability. On average, one woman a week is killed at the hands of a man. Domestic violence is the leading cause of homelessness for women. Not acknowledging the vast disparity and the abuse of power that exists on a cultural level between men and women only empowers predators and abusers, and further marginalises the already disenfranchised women of Australia.
LOOKI NG TO THE FUTURE
Convicted child sex offender and Australia’s highest-ranking Catholic official, George Pell, will spend the next few years behind bars. Would this have come to be without the global momentum of #MeToo?
#MeToo has enabled us to identify the institutions of power that exist within our society. Cases like Weinstein and Pell have proven that the exploitation of power can be disassembled and that marginalised voices should be and are heard.
“ T h e r e ’s a p l a t f o r m n o w. T h e r e ’s a n acknowledgment now in a very global, public, sustained way,” says Metta.
“When you look at Indigenous women speaking out against incarceration, violence and racism and sexism … that’s huge. The more we understand how power works, the more we’re
“There’s still lots of survivors who have not spoken out, but they’re watching. And they’re
able to expose it. We, as a nation need to grow up,” says Metta. “Young people have grown up without the kind of amnesia that older generations had. The #MeToo movement is a very interesting moment in our history." “You can’t keep up with that kind of conservatism, that blindness and deafness, anymore. It’s given us a vocabulary, given us a consciousness we haven’t had before.” It’s time for a fundamental change in our culture. It’s time to challenge the pre-conceived notions we internalise regarding women and their experiences. The work to achieve gender equality and the work to lessen the endemic violence against women in this country
isn’t the responsibility of women. It’s up to the men of Australia. It’s up to them to acknowledge and understand the unconscious gender bias that exists within our society. Women have had enough. Enough of being controlled and confined. Enough of being disbelieved, shamed and publicly vilified. Enough of being harassed, abused and raped. It’s time for real change. Enough is enough.
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NIHILISM
‘UNDER THE SILVER LAKE’: THE MILLENNIAL IN CRISIS Warning: This article contains some spoilers.
Words // Daniel Patterson Design // Scott Higginbotham What are some of the modern man’s worst traits: entitlement, laziness, immaturity? Writer-director David Robert Mitchell isn’t afraid to delve deep into examining the worst tendencies of the male millennial in his latest film Under the Silver Lake. I’m sure many guys dream of a young, charming, bubbly and rebellious woman to come and rescue them from their benign existence. They wouldn’t be alone, especially if we count one of cinema’s favourite romance tropes: the manic pixie d re a m g i r l . How e v e r, w h e n i t c o m e s t o Mitchell’s film, you’ll find no such fondness for the boring man’s saviour. The film’s lead, Sam, has not an ounce of ambition and is trapped in a state of flux. Without a job and about to be evicted from his humble condo, Sam’s life boils down to lounging around in his apartment, getting high, drinking excessively and watching classic cinema. He’ll occasionally hook up with his friend, known only as ‘The Actress’— who he has zero emotional attachment to— and will unashamedly spy on his neighbours with a set of binoculars in tow. Why is this not received as creepy in any way? Well, because he has the scruffy boyish looks and charm of Andrew Garfield. One day, he spots a beautiful young woman named Sarah (Riley Keough) in the pool below
his apartment. She lives beneath him, has a cute white dog, and looks a lot like the girls Sam fascinates over in his vintage Playboy magazines. With business as usual for Sam, he starts spying on her. Still really creepy? I thought so. Instead of being shunned for his blatant spying, Sam and Sarah spend a night together getting high and bonding over shared interests, with nothing overtly sexual on display. Sam heads back to his apartment, wanting to meet again, but he arrives at Sarah’s apartment the next day to find it empty and Sarah gone. Sam, intent on finding Sarah, decides to follow the breadcrumbs, connecting cereal boxes, billionaire moguls, comic books and pop culture itself to find her. Oh, and there’s also a dog killer on the loose too—Los Angeles sounds wild. T h e f i l m i s e x t r e m e l y t i e d t o S a m ’s perspective. The frequent use of point-of-view (POV) shots means that there’s lots of closeup of women’s asses and never-ending ogling at women’s bodies. In his quest to find Sarah, he confronts many women who are unnamed and listed in the credits as ‘The Girlfriend’, ‘Balloon Girl’ and ‘Shooting Star’—it’s no unintentional choice. Throughout the film we see these women delving into their lives and personal struggles, often as young actors
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N I HFIILLIM S M& A R T
who can’t get work in the industry and who, unlike Sam, are yearning for purpose. Any potential connection with them is forgone by Sam in order to find out more about Sarah’s disappearance and the conspiracies that encompass it. Sam is caught up in his own narcissism, with women as glorified objects for him to leer at and get help from before moving onto the next one, as opposed to whole people. Sam is a prime representation of how men’s behaviour can become toxic and their worldview can become warped if their purpose in life is found through the objectification of women. It’s no surprise that Sam goes on the hunt for Sarah, as she’s the only woman he’s shown to have somewhat of an emotional connection to—the manic pixie dream girl. This term was coined in 2005 by film critic Nathan Rabin, describing female characters who exist to help the protagonist achieve happiness without ever seeking any independent goals for themselves. Sarah fits that criteria. As well as that, she abides by the MPDG traits
of being uncynical, eccentric and energetic— things that Sam is not. He only spent two innocent hours with her, yet he feels entitled to search every corner of Los Angeles for her in order to gain her full affection and give his life any sort of purpose. It makes sense that he’d go after the one girl who he never really got it on with. Displayed very subtly, this is a story which is nihilistic to the core. Sam is unfazed by the dog killer I mentioned earlier. You’d think that, with someone like that lurking around your city, you’d probably want to stay on a sharp lookout. To an ordinary person, these things may seem slightly more important than chasing a girl but not to Sam. Early in the film, Sam dreams of Sarah eating her own dog, and when he sees her swimming in the pool, she starts barking. Women don’t seem to be people to Sam, they’re just companions used for personal gain and pleasure. Mitchell is clearly satirising modern culture with this story beat. Society today seems so eager to cling to things that are very self-indulgent
and minor in the grand scheme of life, that we forget the most important things that are happening right in front of our noses. Sam tries to locate Sarah using zines, prizes in cereal boxes and The Legend of Zelda maps. He also dances to R.E.M. and chats with scantily-clad women on the gravestones of Alfred Hitchcock and Grace Kelly. Sam is surrounded by pop culture artefacts, obsessed with a past that he never lived through. Sam is caught up in a meaningless film-noir he’s created for himself, refusing to pay attention to his own reality, and is just chasing the girl that’s clearly not too interested in him. In an interview with French newspaper Libération, Mitchell said that “Under the Silver Lake tells the story of someone who is looking for answers everywhere, including places where there’s no answer to be found”. It’s a journey of pointlessness. The mystery is Sam’s distraction from the hollow world around him. In comparison to a movie like Brie Larson’s Unicorn Store—which wants its protagonist to embrace their inner child—
Under the Silver Lake is the antithesis to that. What Mitchell wants Sam to do is grow out of his immature ways, and instead of putting all of his efforts into chasing a girl he hung out with for a couple of hours, focus on what’s important and actually take responsibility for his failing life. N o t o n l y t h a t , i t ’s v e r y a w a r e o f i t s p r o t a g o n i s t ’s c r e e p y a n d p o s s e s s i v e behaviour. Unlike so many films with the manic pixie dream girl trope, Sam is not sympathetic, sweet and soft-hearted; he’s a flat-out creep, and Mitchell isn’t trying to disguise it. This film is not directing us to the simple, wholesome, love at first sight conclusion. To put it in the most cliché way possible, this film isn’t setting us up for a happy ending, it’s about witnessing Sam’s toxic behaviour through his journey as a loser in Los Angeles. Mitchell pulls no punches in critiquing the modern man’s lifestyle along the way. It may just get a few people looking uneasily at themselves in the mirror. Uplifting, I know!
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C L I M AT E
T HE COST OF CL IMAT E CHA NGE The cost of climate change seems obvious to most; it is costing us our lives, our children’s future and the entire planet. Unfortunately for us, the government doesn’t seem to see it this way. The economy—in particular it’s growth—always seems to be a priority in politics; a short-sighted pursuit to boost numbers is often the hidden addenda behind
every political policy. Hence, unless climate change starts to seriously cost our economy, it’ll never be a real political priority. But the consequences of climate change are already churning away big bucks, and if we continue not to use our initiative and take action, it’s likely to have a huge impact on our economy.
"E S S E N TI AL LY, I T WOU L D BE THE EQ U I VA LE N T TO T H E WOR L D EX P E R I E N C I N G AT L E AST FO UR 2008- S TY L E GLO BAL F I N A N CI AL CRI S E S E VE RY Y E AR "
This year’s Federal Budget saw the Liberal Party cut the Climate Change Solution Fund by $70 million a year, sparing just $2 billion over the next 15 years—that’s just over $130 million a year. Seeing as $3.9 billion was set aside for natural disaster relief, this is an extremely ignorant and counterproductive way of dealing with the issue. Comparably, it’s like restricting your spending on medicine when you’re sick, and instead, setting the money aside for hospital bills when you eventually get sicker. As scientifically proven again and again, the Earth will get sicker, and Australia is more than likely to be hit by bigger natural disasters. So, why finance “relief” when you can invest in potential prevention? A report released by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute has argued that the country is not keeping pace with the worsening climate and consequent natural disasters. Recent recordbreaking heatwaves, bushfires, ongoing droughts,
and torrential flooding plaguing Australia, are forecast to continue and worsen. According to the Australian Business Roundtable report, the annual economic costs of natural disasters are projected to increase to $39 billion by 2050. Ironically that is exactly ten times the amount set aside for “natural disaster relief”. The rising sea-level is another consequence of climate change that’s set to cost Australia billions. According to Coastal Adapt, the Australian sealevel has risen at an average rate of 2.1 mm per year over the past half century. Projections show that (at the high-end scenario) there is likely to be a 1.1 metre global sea-level rise by 2100. While this is some way into the future, it could have a catastrophic effect on infrastructure close to the coast. The Climate Council of Australia estimated that if the sea-level rise predictions formally mentioned are correct, more than $226 billion in Australia’s infrastructure could be exposed to damage and destruction by floods and erosion.
Words // Daryna Zadvirna Design // Evelyn Swindale
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C L I M AT E
Even the insurance industry will be adversely affected. Last year a US study into the impact o f i n c re a s e d t e m p e r a t u re o n e c o n o m i c growth concluded that “high temperatures negatively affect health, resulting in increased hospitalisations … As health outcomes worsen, insurers would face increased claims”—but you don’t exactly need a study to make that connection. According to the Australian Medical Association, roughly 500 people die of heat stress across the country every year. With global warming increasing that number, Australian health fees will surely surge.
But this is much bigger than Australia—the economy worldwide is likely to take a big hit as a result of climate change. According to a National Climate Assessment report released by the U.S government last year, climate change could “knock as much as 10 per cent off the size of America’s economy [by the end of this century]”. In last year’s report by The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, scientists calculated that the world would lose $23 trillion dollars a year if the Paris Agreement comes undone and warming is not limited by two degrees. Essentially, it would be the equivalent to the world experiencing at least
"SO, WHEN WILL AUSTRALIA F I N A L LY WA K E U P A N D SMELL THE POLLUTION?"
four 2008-style global financial crises every year. The report says that for Australia, the cost will roughly be around $126 billion a year—and if that number doesn’t scream out ‘act’ to the government, frankly, I don’t know what will. The cost of climate change has been a hot global topic (pun intended) in the recent years, and it’s becoming hotter by the minute. Just a few weeks ago the UK became the first country in the world to declare an environment and climate emergency. Subsequently, the Committee on Climate Change released a report urging the UK to reduce emissions to zero by 2050.
The report highlights that using the “word ‘costs’ to describe decarbonisation expenditures is somewhat misleading, because in a very real sense such expenditures are also investments”. While it’s impossible to agree on the ultimate future price tag of climate change, we can certainly agree that in decades to come, our economy will heavily depend on it. Although most of the data mentioned are projections, you’d be pretty ignorant to overlook it. So, when will Australia finally wake up and smell the pollution?
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Words // Kellie Balaam Design // Scott Higginbotham
KE E P AU ST R ALI A BEAUTIFUL: FROM OCEAN BINS TO DISSING THROW-AWAY LIVING
I t ’s a p e r f e c t l y c a l m , s u n n y We d n e s d a y m o r n i n g — i d e a l f o r a s n o r ke l a n d s w i m at the northern suburbs’ local summer hangout, Mettams Pool. The cool, pristine water slowly immerses me as I wade in, causing gentle waves to lap over the s u r r o u n d i n g w e e d y re e f. O c c a s i o n a l l y, your eye will catch a shell in the notyet-sweltering sunshine; it’s easy to see why our stunning coastline puts P-town on the map. But Perth’s beloved Mettams Pool, as well as every ocean, lake, river and surrounding environment, is at risk of harm from the debris demon. Every day these waterways fall victim to endless amounts of plastic and waste, either escaping from rubbish bins, or left careles sly to tumble with the breeze. T h a n k f u l l y, A u s t r a l i a i s b e g i n n i n g t o
put measures in place to protect our environment, address our waste issue a nd cr a ck d own on p rol onged concer ns.
OC EAN RU BBI SH BI N A floating ocean rubbish bin, who would have thought? This invention gained attention when Perth surfers Andrew Tu r t o n a n d Pe t e C e g l i n s k i c r e a t e d a S e a b i n p ro t o t y p e i n 2 0 1 5 . B y N ov e m b e r 2 0 1 7, a n d a f t e r s e v e r a l p r o c e s s e s involving finding an industrial distributor a n d p a r t n e r, t h e S e a b i n w a s r e a d y f o r commercial production. With the first S e a b i n s i n s t a l l e d i n Fr a n c e w h i l e M r Ceglinski was working in Europe, 60 bins are now being installed around Australia; City of Cockburn was the first council in
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S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y
P e r t h t o s c o o p o n e u p. O n 1 7 Fe b r u a r y t h i s y e a r t h e b i n w a s p l a c e d i n t h e Po r t Coogee boat marina and behaves just like a vacuum cleaner, sucking in any drifting rubbis h alo n g th e s u r f a c e. The Seabin is the same size as a standard rubbish bin and can collect up to 20 k i l o g r a m s o f l i t t e r. W i t h t h e b i n b e i n g e m p t i e d e v e r y d a y, t h i s n i f t y m a c h i n e w i l l b e d o i n g wo n d e r s f o r t h e c re a t u re s o f t h e m a r i n a a n d i t ’s c e r t a i n l y a s t e p i n t h e r i g h t d i r e c t i o n . H o w e v e r , i t ’s g o i n g t o t a ke m o r e t h a n a l i t t l e t e c h t o solve the eight million tonnes of rubbish entering the world’s oceans each year, an alarming figure often quoted many times by s c ien tis ts. Anything that helps our oceans is wo r t h w h i l e , b u t w e s h o u l d n’ t l e a v e a l l the work up to machines. As a society, we need to do our best to take responsibility f o r c l e a n i n g u p a f t e r o u r s e l v e s. S o, t h e next time you spend an arvo down at the beach, make sure that the only thing you leave b eh in d is fo ot p r i n t s i n t he s a n d .
A n d r e w a n d P e t e ’s p r o j e c t h a s g a i n e d worldwide attention; there are now more than 700 Seabins around the globe with an aim to reach 2,000 by the end o f t h e y e a r. S o, w i t h C o c k b u r n j o i n i n g the clean-up bandwagon, hopefully other Pe r t h c o u n c i l s w i l l g e t o n b o a r d t o o. I t would be top-notch to find these Seabins i n p o p u l a t e d m a r i n a s l i ke H i l l a r y ’s B o a t H a r b o u r, t h e Fr e m a n t l e P o r t a n d l o c a l b oa t r a mp s.
BANNING SINGLE USE PLAST I C I T EM S W h i l e w e ’r e o n t h e t o p i c a b o u t p l a s t i c, WA w a s h a v i n g a n i m p o r t a n t — a n d , a t t i m e s, h e a t e d — d i s c u s s i o n l e a d i n g u p t o the ban of lightweight single-use plastic b a g s . I s t i l l r e m e m b e r t h e g r e y, h i g h density polyethylene, limp at the touch. My frustration at the cashier, who packed it too full, causing the groceries to drop out of the bottom. The eggs I got on sale giving the shopping centre’s glos sy floor a n ext r a gl oop y shi ne.
T h e b a n w a s s u c c e s s f u l a n d I ’m s u r e that our glorious wildlife is forever g r a t e f u l . K e e n t o t a k e a s t e p f u r t h e r, Australian states and territories are announcing bans which will see other single-use plastic items such as coffee cups, takeaway containers and disposable cutlery also thrown out the window (not l i t e r a l l y t h o u g h , b e c a u s e t h a t wo u l d b e litterin g ) . The Australian Capital Territory banned plastic bags in 2011 and according to Inside Waste they will be continuing the w a r o n w a s t e w i t h a p ro p o s a l t o b a n a l l single-use plastics. This proposal follows Sou th A u s tralia , w ho c a l l e d f o r a ba n i n January with mostly positive outcomes from consumers and businesses. With c o u n t r i e s s u c h a s I t a l y a n d Fr a n c e banning plastic cotton buds, and the latter also banning plastic plates and cups, why shouldn’t WA—heck, even the whole country—follow similar measures?
THE LIFE OF PLASTIC P l a s t i c h a s n’ t b e e n a r o u n d f o r e v e r, it wasn’t invented until the late 19th c e n t u r y. J u s t a s t h e wo r l d t h o u g h t t h i s convenient and versatile material couldn’t g e t a n y b e t t e r, a l o n g c a m e t h e i d e a o f ‘throwaway living ’. According to National Geographic’s June 2018 is sue, disposable plastics arrived in households in 1955. U n f o r t u n a t e l y, t h e f a m i l i e s a t t h e t i m e would have no idea just how problematic these items would become decades later. National Geographic’s article states that roughly 40 per cent of the 448 million tonnes of plastic produced every year is—yep, you gues sed it—disposable. This i s e x t r e m e l y s h o c k i n g, e s p e c i a l l y w h e n you consider that much of this plastic is
made just to hold your 50 pack of plastic p l a t es a nd cu t l er y. I f yo u’re c o n c e r n e d a b o u t w h a t w i l l h a p p e n i f yo u w a n t t o g r a b a q u i c k b i t e a t U n i , d o n’ t s t r e s s. T h i s c a n e a s i l y b e solved with alternatives that can be as simple as bringing your own cutlery and straw from home, or choosing biodegradable options such as paper straws and bamboo cutlery on offer at many of the cafes around campus. Since April 29th, the Curtin Student Guild has taken the right initiative by no longer providing plastic straws as a standard w i t h b e v e r a g e s, t h e y a r e s t i l l a v a i l a b l e on request but hopefully it encourages less usage for all you iced coffee and s m o o t h i e d r i n ke r s — o u t o f s i g h t, o u t o f mi nd , r i ght ? We s t i l l h a v e a l o n g w a y t o g o o n t h i s s u s t a i n a b i l i t y j o u r n e y, a n d i t i n c l u d e s coordination from businesses and c o n s u m e r s. A g o o d t i p i s t o b e a c t i v e l y aware of your waste habits. According to an article published earlier this year by The Conversation, households and b u s i n e s s e s a re s t i l l t h row i n g re c y c l a b l e packaging into the wrong bin. It also mentions working towards a ‘circular economy’—making use of reclaim, reduce, recycle—which means avoiding packaging waste, improving recovery of recyclables and increasing the demand of products containing recycled material. Getting around to local cafés and businesses, you’ll find many are on board with changing old habits and are keen to p u r su e su st a i na b l e p r a ct i ces. If we all start or continue putting effort into managing our plastic use and waste habits, together we can get on track with sa vi ng ou r home— Pl a net Ea r t h.
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PERSPECTIVES
T WENTIES: FRO M TH E PERSPECTIVE OF PAMEL A BOL AND Words // Kaelen Ruland Design // Jamie Simcock
MEETING STAR GIRL
Dauntless spirit and communal belief saw the seed of this idea sprout, and conversations branched from small groups of friends and family to something much bigger.
Twenty-something Pamela Boland was in her final years of study when she met real-life Star Girl Lola Stephen, a moment that changed her life immeasurably. It launched her on a trajectory that some can only dream of.
Reflecting on the early stages of the zine, Pam said that maybe the pair “got a little too excited.”
Bonding over baby Justin Timberlake’s frosted tips and a conversation filled with FOMO about Patti Smith’s upcoming appearance in Melbourne soon saw them purchasing flights, bunking at The Nunnery in Fitzroy and sharing in a live music experience of an idol, unrivalled by anything else. The soon-to-be business partners became fast friends and it wasn’t long before conversations about their musical darlings turned into an ode to female and non-binary musicians in zine form—Love Letters was born.
THE BIRTH OF AN IDEA Pam said the purpose of Love Letters was to be an intersection between a magazine about music, and a fanzine. “Hopefully Love Letters is more accessible because it’s written by fans,” she said. “It’s bridging that gap between articles written by people in the industry and fans who write love letters to their favourite musicians.”
“We said let’s turn this into a thing, and so it grew more arms and legs and we just turned it into this thing and produced it.” A glitter-filled affair at Fremantle’s Mojos Bar in January 2018 provided a setting, quintessentially Love Letters, and the prime space to launch edition one.
A FORK IN THE ROAD But, as the glitter settled, the duo hit a roadblock—Scottish-born Lola had to return to the UK. Working across borders, time-zones off-kilter made it next to impossible for Pam and Lola to pour love into their venture the way they wanted and the way it needed if it was going to flourish. Pam said in terms of her uni commitments this was not great timing. “Love Letters gave me a taste of what I was learning at university, and I was putting it into practice which was very exciting and strange given I hadn’t finished yet, I didn’t think I would be ready” she said.
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PERSPECTIVES
“What this said to me was ‘you can do that, and it’s alright if you don’t finish your degree just yet’.” There was a giant pull for her to uproot her life, move to the UK and work on the zine against the backdrop of London’s iconic red phone boxes, the Thames and Big Ben. “There’re people passing through all the time." “I feel like it’s a really big hotspot; there’s access to a lot of people, a lot of different ideas, and a lot of different music is being produced here." It’s important to have conversations about line-up diversity and representation, especially in major cities like London where it’s hugely an example to the rest of the world. “I’m not saying we’re just here because of the spotlight, but I think that there’re a lot more ears to hear the conversations from a myriad of voices." “And these ears, perhaps, have bigger mouths than we do,” she said.
TWO PERSPECTIVES “I think if you look at my life as like a stranger, maybe you’d just say, ‘okay, there’s a 22-year-old girl who’s halfway through a university degree and works in hospitality and that’s where she is in her life',” she said. “‘She has no money, she has no savings, she isn’t set up.'” “But the way that I look at my life is; hospitality is enjoyable work for me, it’s a means to an end and it supports what I like to do because unfortunately what I do enjoy doing doesn’t pay yet.” “I’ve just taken a really giant step in moving to a foreign country to work on something that I love, so it’s okay.” “My job, no matter what it is, provides me with enough money to pay my bills and to pay my rent.”
Pam said for her the most important thing was to have a strong network of people around so she could feel supported in her venture.
was an integral part of life for her—she realised there were many places on this planet where satisfaction and success could be enjoyed when she heard her best mate’s dad’s story.
“The rest is a bonus.”
ADVICE FROM A TWENTYSOMETHINGYEAR-OLD Packing her life neatly into a knapsack, tossing it over her shoulder and taking that one-way ticket to the land of tea and biscuits, beef wellington and The Beatles and Brexit, Pam was leaving behind a wonderfully colourful life she had manifested in a Fremantle Warehouse. In a conversation with her best mate—who in equal parts wanted Pam to blossom but wanted her to stay because she needed her and she
“This man is a big exec, he’s on a board, he’s important and in a position of power.” "The catch though, this man didn’t finish his degree until he was nearly 30. My mantra became ‘my best mate’s dad didn’t finish his degree until he was 27’.” Pam said her degree would be there when she was ready to get back to it, but she was in the right space for right now. “If you have this idea that you want to be somewhere, you shouldn’t not be there because of your age or the path you think is laid out for you.” “At any age, you’re just doing what you need to do out in the world, what you have to do, what you are drawn to if you are lucky.”
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C U LT U R E
IRELAND IN PERTH
A GUIDE TO CRAIC'N ON Words // Isabel Mountain Design // Hayley Thoms Ireland has played a major role in modern Australia’s development, with many of the initial convict fleets being comprised of Irish prisoners. The Irish made up as much as 30 per cent of Australia’s population pre-1914, and there have been multiple major inflows of Irish immigrants throughout the ensuing 20th century, especially as economic conditions worsened back home. Even Ned Kelly, the man behind the most recognisable mask in Australia, was Irish. To this day, there is a large portion of the population who are of Irish descent, but coming from a culture that has been historically muted through repeated colonisation, discouragement of the Irish language, and historical anti-Irish sentiment can mean that connections with your roots can be difficult.
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C U LT U R E
Originally hailing from Waterford in Ireland’s southeast—famous for its crystal and Viking roots— my family scattered the globe, anglicising their surname to avoid strong anti-Irish sentiment. My great-grandfather was a worker on a merchant ship, docking at Fremantle and establishing himself in a young Perth, bringing his family over several years later. Despite Ireland being only two generations away, I grew up knowing very little of the culture I came from. Most of the people I knew were at least a little bit Irish, but they also seemed to know very little—I was not alone in my lack of knowledge. Shannon O’Neill, a first year student at WAAPA, hails from Newry—a border town in Northern Ireland which she visits semi-regularly, although not as often as she would like. “A lot of people I talk to, even if they’re part Irish, they don’t know about The Troubles (a Northern Irish political conflict lasting from 1968 to 1998, resulting in over 3,500 fatalities, over 1,800 of which were civilian), they just think of the Irish as ‘Oh, it’s drinking and it’s partying’. It really annoys me when people use that as a stereotype … it’s not all drinking!” she says. As we were chatting I noticed her accent— unmistakably Australian, but sprinkled with the characteristic soft Irish ‘r’ throughout. A beautiful example of Irish-Australia, and lovely to listen to. Shannon’s advice to Irish youths? Listen to Irish music. “If you go to an Irish pub, even if you just sit in there, a lot of the time they have live music playing, and it’s so great.” On this note, she has some venue suggestions: Fibber McGee’s Irish Pub & Steakhouse on Oxford St. in Leederville opened in 1998 and boasts ‘bringing Perth excellent Irish food ever
since’. They offer the classic Irish Sunday roast, as well as regular live music and other cultural entertainment, such as Irish dancing. Shannon also emphatically recommends Irish sausages and Tayto Crisps. Órla Austin, a first year student at Curtin University, comes from a southern Irish background. Órla’s father hails from Dublin in the southeast, while her maternal grandparents are from Country Clare and Kerry in the southwest. We talked about how her family celebrates their Irish identity. “There’s the parade for St. Patrick’s Day, and then there’s the Irish pubs … everyone in there is Irish.” St. Patrick’s Day parades are held yearly by the City of Vincent to celebrate the patron saint of Ireland,
" THEY S H O U L D L EA RN THEIR H I STO RY… PEO PL E SHO UL D KNOW WH ER E T H EY CO M E F RO M " and provide a great opportunity to participate in Irish culture. The event offers several traditional Irish past-times, such as performances of Irish dancing, hurling and Irish football, and is celebrated by both Irish and non-Irish peoples. The Perth Irish pub scene is also thriving. Some other options for the Irish youth-about-town include Rosie O’Grady’s in Northbridge, where there are regular screenings of GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association) events and Gaelic football. There is also ‘Australia’s biggest Guinness seller 8 years running’ J.B. O’Reilly’s, and Ma Mooney’s Kitchen in Osborne Park, the proud owners of a 4.5 star rating on Tripadvisor and purveyors of Irish fare. Órla mentions a WA Irish magazine; these are a great source of information on Irish entertainment, news and events in Australia. IRISHecho is an Irish-Australian newspaper that started in 1988, in response to an influx of Irish immigrants, and seeks to ‘[create] content that celebrates the shared heritage between the two countries’. Another magazine is The Irish Scene, a Western Australianspecific magazine that has been running for over 20 years. It is distributed globally, and has contributors from interstate and from Ireland. As you enter their website, the words ‘Céad Míle Fáilte’ appear, which mean ‘one thousand welcomes’ in Gailge. Some other ways to get involved in Perth’s Irish scene include visits to the Irish Club of WA. Since 1950 they have provided Irish theatre, language, dancing classes, choir and hosted Comhaltas (an Irish organisation for the promotion of Irish music, dance and culture). They also host an annual St. Patrick’s Day traditional breakfast and other celebrations.
Aside from engaging with the culture, venues like these enable engagement with other members of Perth’s Irish community. “I think they should learn their history … people should know where they come from,” says Shannon, as she offers a last piece of advice for Irish-Australian youths. Learning the Irish language and culture has been deeply meaningful to me—it is empowering to know where you come from, to participate in your ancestor’s traditions, and know that you are keeping those traditions alive. Ireland has a vibrant, proud culture that has resisted erasure for centuries and that, through us, can continue to live.
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REFLECTION Words // Naomi Worthy Design // Scott Higginbotham
FOR THE LOVE OF
FILM
Elissa Down and her voyage to Hollywood Now based in LA, former Curtin graduate and film director Elis sa Down is just getting started. Describing herself as “one of those a n n oy i n g k i d s a l w a y s p u t t i n g o n p l a y s a n d telling stories”, Elissa realised her passion at a young age, which lead her to studying film and television at Curtin University under Bill Constable, founding head of cinematography at the Australian Film and Television School. T h e p ro c e e d i n g y e a r s s a w D ow n b re a k i n t o t h e f i l m i n d u s t r y, m a k i n g s h o r t f i l m s w i t h Screenwest, and eventually leading to her to her debut feature The Black Balloon—a critically acclaimed coming-of-age film about a t e e n a g e b oy f i n d i n g l ov e a n d l e a r n i n g t o a c c e p t h i s c h a o t i c f a m i l y. T h e f i l m d r a w s h e a v i l y o n E l i s s a’s ow n c h i l d h o o d ; g row i n g up as an ‘Army kid’ with her autistic brother Sean, moving around a lot and regularly ha v i n g t o a d a p t qu i ck l y t o fi t i n. Her debut film opened doors she hadn’t predicted: “ You expect your life is just going to continue on as it was just with a film, then a l l o f a s u d d e n i t ’s l i ke, ‘ O h s h i t, i t w e n t t o Berlin, oh shit agents are interested in me i n L A ! ’.”
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REFLECTION Fa s t f o r w a r d e l e v e n y e a r s a n d D o w n h a s n ow r e l e a s e d h e r f i r s t U S f e a t u r e , T h e H o n o r L i s t , a n d a t e l e v i s i o n s e r i e s, C o n f e s s , b o t h o f w h i c h c e n t re o n yo u n g a d u l t s d e a l i n g w i t h t h e m e s l i ke c l o s u re a nd d esi re. “A l o t o f p e o p l e s e e m e i n t h a t s o r t o f youth space, but I just love a good story,” she said, “On my slate I’ve got a horror, a biopic of Leni Riefenstahl ( infamous Third Reich director), and other types o f p r o j e c t s. I t ’s a l l a b o u t t h e m e r e a l l y. If a theme excites you, it can come in so m a ny d i fferent for ms.” Knowing that Elissa was a successful filmmaker from Perth inspired me to p u r su e a si mi l a r p a t h. As a second-year human biology student, I found myself unsure of the career path ahead of me. I have always had a love of films, but while I dreamt of t h e p o s s i b i l i t y o f s t u d y i n g f i l m m a k i n g, I wasn’t sure that it could be serious c a re e r o p t i o n . T h a t w a s u n t i l o n e n i g h t when, after re-watching The Black Balloon (pos sibly my favourite film of all time), I casually decided to google the background o f t h e d i r e c t o r. W i t h i n a f e w d a y s o f learning she was a Curtin graduate, I had deferred from my previous degree a n d h a d e n ro l l e d i n F i l m A r t s a t C u r t i n U n i ver si t y. D own refl ect s on wha t i nsp i red her a s a you ng a sp i r i ng fi l m- ma ker. “I met Heath Ledger when he came back t o Per t h i n 1999. 10 Thin g s I Hat e Abou t You was just about to be released and he was about to film The Patriot. I was doing t h e s e Pe r t h A c t o r C o l l e c t i v e wo r k s h o p s
"How the fuck am I going to get into an industry that’s based in Hollywood?" and he came to talk to us. The way he spoke, I was just so like ‘Yes!’. He invited u s t o a s c r e e n i n g o f T wo H a n d s a t t h e Luna, and I got the opportunity to chat to h im ag a in .” Expanding on her love for the old L e e d e r v i l l e c i n e m a , D ow n e xc l a i m s : “ I mis s the Luna HARD! That’s where I saw Life of Brian and Clockwork Orange. They ha d th e b es t lo l l y b a g s ! ” Down said it was nice to be inspired, but that living in a small town like Perth can o f ten feel qu ite i s o l a t i n g. S h e j o k i n g l y r e c a l l s w h a t i t w a s l i ke t o wo r k i n Pe r t h : “ I t f e l t l i ke yo u w e r e o n t h e a r s e e n d o f t h e wo r l d . W h e n I w a s s t u d y i n g, t h e i n t e r n e t w a s h a p p e n i n g, but not at the level it is now and so I r e a l l y d i d f e e l c u t o f f f r o m t h e wo r l d . I was like, I’m in Perth. How the fuck am I going to get into an industry that’s based in Ho lly wo o d ? ” Reflecting on how much life has changed since she studied film, Elis sa expres sed her awe at how it easy it is for anyone to m a ke a n d d i s t r i b u t e c o n t e n t w i t h t h e i r mo b iles. “[Back then] the majority of shorts were done on film. To be considered for a festival you needed a film print and
making shorts could be quite expensive, so you’d have to fundraise; it could be a l i t t l e rest r i ct i v e,” she reca l l s. “Now, there’s nothing stopping you. You can just go out, shoot on your phone and u p l o a d i t o n t o Yo u Tu b e. P l u s, f e s t i v a l s accept digital formats now; it’s fantastic. I t ’s j u st crea t e, crea t e, crea t e.” Down adds that exposure is not enough. “ I t ’s a l s o a b o u t a l ov e o f l e a r n i n g,” s h e s a i d . “ Yo u h a v e t o l e a r n h o w t o w o r k with actors, read as many scripts as possible, do courses, and keep that quest of learning. Hopefully all of that just a ma s ses t o a t i p p i ng p oi nt.” Like many of the characters in her films, Elis sa Down feels like an old friend. She is intimately relatable, inspiring and very, very funny. With her self-determination, c re a t i v i t y a n d a b i l i t y t o c a p t u re re a l i t y, it is no wonder her stories have captured a wor l d - wi d e a u d i ence. I for one, am grateful that pioneers such as Down and Ledger have paved the way for those venturing into the film industry from Perth, proving that geographical distance is no barrier; all that is required is passion, a commitment to life-long learning and making use of the tools at you r d i sp osa b l e
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H E A LT H
There was this one time I found the longest strand of grey hair on my head and freaked out wondering how long it had been there. Of course, my natural reaction was to pull it out like it was some unthinkable horror on my head. However, like wrinkles, grey hairs are a visible sign of aging (I’m not even 25), and there’s nothing wrong with that—it’s part and parcel of life. But like me, if you're wondering why hair turns grey and whether stress accelerate this process, read on!
WHAT DETERMINES THE COLOUR OF HAIR? At the head end of hair is the root. The root of every strand of hair is surrounded by a hair follicle. Each follicle contains cells called keratinocytes which constructs hair and melanocytes which produce melanin, a pigment which gives hair as well as skin its colour. The more melanin, the darker the hair colour. A single hair grows from 1 up to 3 years— known as the growth phase. At the end of this phase the follicle shrivels, the keratinocytes and melanocytes die and the hair is shed—the follicle enters a resting phase. As the hair dies and is lost, new hairs are regenerated via remaking keratinocytes and melanocytes. Due to this cycle—the constant death and regeneration of cells to produce hair and give it its pigment— melanocyte stem cells become depleted (as they are not as hardy as keratinocytes) and as a result, yep you guessed it, our hair loses colour. So, it’s not that our hairs ‘turn’ grey, they just gradually lose their natural pigmented colour. Hairs that have lost most of their melanin are grey and hairs that have lost all of their melanin are white.
Words // Adilah Ahmad Design // Nancy Ye
GREYING FACTORS Hair greys due to many factors. Natural aging is the biggest culprit of grey hairs. Dermatologists have a 5050-50 rule, meaning that 50 per cent of the population will have 50 per cent grey hairs by the age of 50. Like skin, your hair changes texture as you age. Interestingly, your ethnicity makes a difference, although scientists have no idea why yet. Caucasians tend to go grey earlier (redheads earliest of all), then Asians followed by Africans. So, I guess that’s why the saying goes “black don’t crack?,” Although the when and how much of your hair turns grey depends largely by the genes you inherit from your parents. Premature greying is a term used for hair greying before the age of 20/30. Usually occurring because of genetics or other abnormalities such as underlying autoimmune medical conditions. Apart from genetics, nature taking its course and ethnicity and other factors that may also influence hair health and colour.
Hormones such as melanocyte stimulating hormone (MSH) can darken light hair, and high levels of oestrogen and progesterone, produced during pregnancy, can also lighten it.
Lifestyle: Poor nutrition is thought to reduce the production of melanin, especially a lack in proteins. Tying into poor nutrition, are low levels of vitamin B12, prolonged exposure to the sun and smoking. In fact, a 2013 study found that smokers are 2.5 times more likely to develop premature grey hairs compared to their non-smoking counterparts.
Chemical hair dyes and hair products: Excessive use of bleaching products, cheap products or even certain chemicals in shampoo may harm your hair and its melanocytes, affecting melanin levels.
Medical conditions: Grey hairs can also be due to certain medical conditions such as vitamin deficiencies, thyroid issues and vitiligo (a condition where melanocytes are destroyed hence loss of hair and skin colour in blotches). Medications can also alter pigmentation, for example, epilepsy medications can darken hair and drugs used to prevent malaria may lighten it.
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H E A LT H DOES STRESS ACCELERATE GREYING? Yes and no. It’s actually not so simple, as both greying and stress involve many factors. A 2013 study claimed there was a link between on-going stress and hair colour: Researchers found that hormones produced during stress can deplete melanocyte activity. Other studies have found no clear link that stress accelerates the greying process.
IF YOU PULL OUT A GREY HAIR WILL MORE GROW? No doubt we’ve all heard the old wives’ tale that if you pull out a grey hair more will grow in abundance and thickness in its place. But basically, no this isn’t true. What actually happens, as I previously mentioned, is that you are traumatising the hair follicle, causing it to die and those cells to regenerate, possibly depleting those melanocyte cells.
SO, CAN WE STOP IT? There is no cure for grey hairs. Most people uncomfortable with their grey hairs are usually ‘treating’ it with hair colours and dyes. However, eating a well-balanced diet with good sources of proteins such as fish and eggs, decreasing harmful chemicals used on hair, cessation of smoking, and vitamin intake, may of course help in looking after our hair and keeping those melanin producing cells happy for as long as possible. Currently though scientists are working on a series of agents administered in the form of a serum or shampoo, which may protect melanocytes within hair follicles from damage at the end of each cycle. So, it won’t re-colour already grey hairs or bring back dead melanocytes, however, they will try to preserve and protect the remaining melanocytes. In the meantime, silver foxes, embrace your grey hairs and marvel in the science behind it.
STATEMENT ON THE ARREST OF KEARAH RONAN On behalf of Curtin University’s School of Education, together with our colleagues from the Centre for Aboriginal Studies and the Centre for Human Rights Education, we wish to express our profound concern, dismay and disappointment about the recent experiences of one of our valued community members, Kearah Ronan. Kearah recently sought the support of the court system and despite needing understanding, care and support, she experienced the opposite. Our justice and legal system failed her in a most serious way. This was avoidable and unnecessary, and emphasises the systemic failures experienced by our Indigenous brothers, sisters, children, parents, young and old. Our response is united: we cannot be silent about the mistreatment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and institutionalised racism. We can do better than this and we must.
Our young people are positioned to contribute to their vibrant communities and to build civil society when they experience the very best of what power and authority can provide. Kearah lives these intentions through her role as a preservice Early Childhood Educator. She fosters confidence in her students by understanding them as individuals and by offering them empathy and respect. She knows that strong interpersonal relationships underpin productive, resilient communities. She understands the responsibility that comes with her role, which she performs with compassion, knowledge and self reflection. We acknowledge Kearah as an important and integral member of Curtin University’s community and celebrate what she offers through her passion and commitment. Now it is time for us to learn from her.
DR CHAD MORRISON DR SAMANTHA OWEN GROKONLINE.com.au
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To understand profoundly, intuitively, or by empathy.
Grok Magazine is Curtin University’s studentrun media outlet. The writers, editors and designers of our six departments (Student Life; Politics and Current Affairs; Music; Science and Technology; Art and Film; Economics and Business) cover the good, the bad and the ugly—delivering a variety of content to keep you informed. We publish regularly through our website and produce a glossy print edition each semester, which you can pick up at Guild outlets and across campus. To make sure you don’t miss a thing, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram. If you’re interested in contributing to Grok as a writer, editor or designer, or if you have a scoop you want us to cover, hit up the editors at grok@guild.curtin.edu.au
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