14 April 2016
The University of South Australia has welcomed the Chief Scientific Adviser for National Security to Her Majesty's Government, United Kingdom, Professor Anthony Finkelstein, to a special role at its new Future Industries Institute (FII) as Adjunct Research Professor.
Instrumental in forging a landmark research partnership between FII and University College London in his former role as Dean of Engineering Sciences and Professor of Software Systems at UCL, Prof Finkelstein will continue to promote high-level scientific engagement between the two universities.
UniSA Vice Chancellor Professor David Lloyd says the appointment underlines the strength of the relationship with UCL and the enormous potential to foster more globally-engaged research at UniSA.
“Becoming a university that is globally visible and connected is a key priority for any university that is serious about developing the innovation required to build industries of the future,” Prof Lloyd says.
“This is especially important for Australia and South Australia as we take on an innovation agenda to secure opportunities to develop the future industries that will provide employment and economic growth and help to meet goals around sustainability and environmental security.
“Prof Finkelstein’s experience as a scientific leader and his continuing role as a UCL Chair in Software Systems Engineering and a research leader at its Alan Turing Institute, the UK national institute for the data sciences, will support further scientific engagement and joint research and teaching opportunities.”
Already, the UniSA-UCL partnership is supporting new research and teaching opportunities such as the new Master of Science degree in Global Management of Natural Resources commencing this year.
The program will bring up to 30 UCL postgraduate students to South Australia every year to spend a six-month research internship in the Future Industries Institute.
“The Future Industries Institute is a visionary initiative that brings together research and innovation particularly, though not exclusively, around the challenges of energy and natural resources,” Prof Finkelstein says.
“UniSA and South Australia are uniquely well placed to do this and UCL’s international partnership reflects our strong shared commitment to addressing these challenges.
“South Australia is, in my view, the only place in the world where the expertise, the broader societal commitment, the entrepreneurial drive and the industry leverage can be brought together to deliver the sort of innovative technologies and methods that will make a difference.”
A software engineer, Prof Finkelstein is an elected Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng) and an elected Member of Academia Europaea. In 2013, he was appointed as a Member of Council of the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.
As part of his new role with the University, Prof Finkelstein will make regular visits to UniSA’s Future Industries Institute.
Media contact: Michèle Nardelli mobile: +61 418 823 673 email: michele.nardelli@unisa.edu.au
