USQ Toowoomba 40th Anniversary Time Capsule Contents
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The time capsule contains memorabilia from the present to tell future generations what university life was like in 2007, what issues we faced and what we thought was important. Many of the items emerged from a competition held between July and September 2007. Winners each received a $50 book voucher from the USQ Bookshop. Our thanks to all who participated. Special acknowledgement is also given to Oliver Kinder, Faculty of Sciences Workshop Technical Officer who designed and built the capsule to stringent specifications. |
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Object |
Rationale |
Acknowledgements
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| Some key messages | |||
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The message-stick is a traditional communication tool used by Indigenous Australians. It provides a good example of a strategy for effective communication across vast distances and even across cultures. People of different language groups who do not understand the others oral language and who may live hundreds of kilometres apart, are able to communicate through symbols used on message-sticks. These message-sticks are made of Brigalow and tied with kangaroo hide. They note the Jarowair, Giabul, Bigarnbul, Wakka Wakka and Goomeri peoples and depict the relationship of these peoples with this land. They also highlight "USQ 2007 supporting Indigenous education, employment and community engagement." |
Kindly donated by the Centre for Australian and Indigenous Knowledges. Produced by local artist Ms Donna Moodie. |
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Mr Doug Plant was one of this institution’s original Founders – an active local community leader and businessman, and a member of the Executive of the Darling Downs University Establishment Association during the early 1960s. He was also a member of the famous ‘Barnstorming Tour’ of 1963 where a group of prominent DDUEA members flew across southern and western Queensland in a borrowed Piper Commanche aircraft to collect subscriptions to support the establishment of a “college on the Downs". Mr Plant, now 91, has kindly agreed to commit to paper some of his rich experiences, which he has asked not be read until 2047. USQ is privileged to be able to include these in the Time Capsule and envies the people of 2047 who will be the first to read these reminiscences. Key message: Taking a leaf from the book of Mr Plant: cherish your history while continually looking to the future. |
Photography courtesy of 'Toowoomba Chronicle'. Memoirs kindly developed especially for this Time Capsule by Mr Doug Plant (second from left in the Barnstorming Tour photograph). |
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What was the world like in 2007? The people of 2047 will be able to determine this for themselves by analysing the contents of this bottle which has been sealed with resin to preserve the air we breathe today. The bottle is an unused wine bottle from the Queensland College of Wine Tourism (QCWT) in Stanthorpe which was officially opened in 2007 with Queensland's first tertiary Wine Sciences program - offered by USQ in partnership with Charles Sturt University. The bottle shows the Banca Ridge Foundation Series label. Key message: Our prayer is for the people of 2047 to have air to breathe that is even cleaner than today’s – this will be a sign that lessons have been learned and solutions found. |
Bottle provided by the Queensland College of Wine and Tourism, Stanthorpe. Suggested by Michael Sankey. |
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The period leading up to 2007 was the time that the world as a whole finally came to accept global warming as a major global phenomenon. The matter has been discussed for a decade but by now the doubters, including some in high levels of government across the world, have largely become silent. A devastating drought across Eastern Australia has rammed home the implications of climate change. In this year Professor Roger Stone joined USQ as Director of the new Australian Centre for Sustainable Catchments. The Spring 2007 edition of 'USQ Phoenix' includes an article entitled 'Ensuring a sustainable future’ about Roger that reflects the world’s awakening to global warming and how USQ plans to contribute to solutions. Also included is a copy of Queensland's latest Climate Change Strategy and an item that has suddenly become common in all Australian households - a shower timer. Key message: USQ is a major regional university serving its community in a wide range of ways. |
'USQ Phoenix' is published by USQ Marketing and Public Relations. The Climate Change Strategy is published by the Queensland Government. |
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USQ is a multi-campus university. In the same year that the institution as a whole celebrates its 40th anniversary, USQ Fraser Coast is celebrating its 10th anniversary and USQ Springfield its 1st. The University also has its fourth ‘virtual’ campus involving students studying remotely from across Australia and the world. Flowers from each campus have been selected and pressed for inclusion in the Time Capsule to reflect USQ’s multicampus nature. USQ Fraser Coast - Tibouchina granulosa is a fast growing small tree consisting of oblong deeply veined leaves with terminal panicles of large violet-purple flowers borne in autumn. This is a very prominent flowering plant at the Fraser Coast campus with a striking floral display. USQ Springfield - Tiarella cordifolia (Foamflower or Butterfly Wing) is a vigorous evergreen spreading perennial with lobed pale green leaves which bears many spikes of profuse white flowers in early to late spring. This groundcover was selected for the new Springfield campus because of its low moisture requirement, low maintenance demands and its ability to cover quickly. USQ Toowoomba -- Stemmacantha australis (Native thistle or Austral Cornflower) once grew naturally across Eastern Australia but is now only found in Queensland where it is regarded as endangered. An area known as The Australian Native Woodland Reserve has been created on the USQ Toowoomba campus to include native plants indigenous to the Darling Downs and it is here that the Faculty of Sciences Staff are attempting to grow and possibly start reintroducing this plant. It is a typical thistle with a mauve-purple flower appearing in spring. USQ Virtual – To represent USQ’s ‘fourth campus’ we have chosen a flower from the Toowoomba Japanese Garden (Ju Raku En) which is jointly managed by USQ and Toowoomba City Council and reflects USQ’s links with the local and global communities. Prunus shirofugen (Japanese Flowering Cherry) is represented by major plantings just inside the USQ entry to the Japanese Garden. This deciduous flowering cherry tree grows to approximately 10 metres in height and width and in spring produces a display of pale pink blossoms. Key message: USQ is a diverse (and beautiful) institution. |
Flowers collected by USQ Grounds and Gardens staff. Suggested by Lisa Edgar & Emmily Davis. |
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The ' Wollemi Pine' Wollemia nobilis is a living fossil or Dinosaur tree. A Gymnosperm, the Wollemi Pine was thought to be extinct until in 1994 when some were discovered growing in a deep narrow canyon in the extremely rugged Wollemi National Park about 150 kms from Sydney. To ensure the plants longevity a massive propogation programme commenced and in 2006 the plants were introduced for commercial sale with enormous world wide demand. In 2005 the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries took up residence on the USQ Campus and as a gesture of good will, presented the Vice-Chancellor with a gift of a Wollemi Pine which is one of the few which were propagated from one of the original plants. As part of the 40th Anniversary Events the gifted Wollemi Pine will be planted in a area adjacent to Community Drive which will comprise mainly Gymnosperm species. Key messsage: USQ in partnership with its community. |
The Wollemi Pine was donated to USQ by the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries in 2005. | |
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As at 2 November 2007, Miss Emily Hogarth, Administrative Assistant, Office of the Vice-Chancellor, is USQ's youngest full-time employee. Em will have a major role in burying the Time Capsule in 2007 and has promised to return to the University in 2047 when the Time Capsule is reclaimed. She is therefore ensuring us an important physical link with the future - and what stories she will be able to tell them. In this role Em has been asked to contribute items to the Time Capsule that she will not see again for another 40 years. Key message: The present and the future are linked. What we do now matters. |
Materials provided by Miss Emily Hogarth. | |
| The student experience | |||
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In 1969 the Queensland Institute of Technology (Darling Downs) Student Union abandoned the use of ad hoc news sheets in favour of a regular newsletter – that was available free to Union members but cost staff the princely sum of 10 cents. The publication was called the Moneth in reference to the frequency of its publication, The Student Union played an important role in providing services to students over the years. The establishment act for USQ included provision for a Student Guild as a body corporate with its own seal and roles and powers as stated in its constitution. The abolition of compulsory Guild fees – introduced as Voluntary Student Unionism (VSU) by the Federal government from 2007 - hails a new era for the Guild. However, through its services – that range from advocacy through to the operation of the Refectory and the Clive Berghofer Recreation Centre on the USQ Toowoomba campus – it continues to serve its student constituency. Also included is a copy of the latest USQ Student Guild Annual Report. |
Facsimile publication provided by USQ Marketing and Public Relations. The USQ Student Guild provided the latest version of its Annual Report. |
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USQ is a university with a strong reputation for supporting students from diverse backgrounds and with diverse needs. An emphasis is given at USQ to ensuring a high quality student experience. The range of Student Guides offered by USQ Student Services provide an introduction to university life and the beginning to a rewarding student learning journey. As many of USQ's students are the first in their family to attend university, the Guides aim to assist students' family and supporters to understand the experience of being a student. | Booklets provided by USQ Student Services. | |
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Student identification (ID) cards are provided free of charge to all students by the USQ Student Guild. ID cards allow admission into the Computer Labs, are used to borrow books from the Library, for photocopying, to purchase items from some of the vending machines and to purchase goods in some food outlets on campus. They are a mainstay of the student experience at USQ. |
Suggested by Kamarul Janudin. Jessie James McNamara has kindly given permission for his student ID card to be included in the Time Capsule. |
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Over the past generation, information and communication technologies have revolutionised how people live, work and interact. Over the past two decades, computers have become ubiquitous and the technologies’ pioneers rank amongst the world’s richest people. A particularly significant change apparent in telecommunications is that everyone now carries a mobile phone. In only a few years these have changed from a cumbersome ‘bag phone’ to a compact multifunction device that stores music, takes photos and videos and connects people to the world. For students on a tight budget “texting” is the communication of choice – “don B L8”. |
Mobile phone kindly donated by Ms Judy Halter. Suggested by Basri Basnet. |
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It was important that the Time Capsule contain items that reflect the typical student experience. However, while there is no such thing as a ‘typical’ student, there are certain issues that all students need to address. For on-campus students a mobile phone, lap top, USB memory stick, library books, student ID card and an iPod could be thought of as essentials in a student’s armoury. For inclusion in the Time Capsule we have chosen to include a mobile phone and a student card (see elsewhere); but also a 512 megabyte USB portable memory stick as these are items that are indispensable to on-campus and off-campus students alike. Unlike the Indigenous Message-Stick that is also included in this Time Capsule, it might be considered doubtful that portable memory in the form of a USB will hold its message for as long as 40 years. However, at a constant humidity and temperature, in a clean environment, away from magnetic fields and with care in handling, we are anxious to see if this will, in fact, be the case*. The enclosed is standard student issue, purchased from the USQ Bookshop in 2007 for $24.95. | Suggested by Lynda Pueltz. | |
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The majority of USQ’s students in 2007 do not have an on-campus experience as some 80% of students study remotely. When the then Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education rose to prominence in distance education in the late 1970s, a strategy was introduced to provide support for 'distance' students – Outreach Services, including the Regional Liaison Officer (RLO) Network. This section has remained a staple of USQ’s student support infrastructure for the whole of its 30 year history. Among just 23 winners of the prestigious 2007 Carrick Awards for Australian University Teaching, the USQ Outreach Services team (led by Ms Suzanne Milroy) won an Award for Programmes that Enhance Learning in the Services Supporting Student Learning Category. | Map or RLO Network provided by Outreach Services, Distance and e-Learning Centre (DeC). | |
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Universities are ultimately about acquiring knowledge and striving for excellence. Included here is an example of a student assignment that reflects both of these key features. The article entitled 'Stabbing Spree' published on pages one and two of the 'South Burnett Times' on 10 July 2007 saw USQ Journalism student, Ms Loretta Bryce, take out the 2007 Queensland Media Award for Most Outstanding Journalism Student - All Media - Regional Campus. |
Permission to use assignment granted by Ms Loretta Bryce. Suggested by Helen Ingram. |
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All work and no play …... A major element of the on-campus undergraduate experience involves the social experience – often remembered as the best times of our lives. A random sample has been taken of notices straight from the student notice board. The lively side of the student experience can be glimpsed from here. |
Notices for a range of sources provided by USQ Student Guild. Suggested by Neralie McDonald. |
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Will chicko rolls still be around in 2047? The food we eat is subject to trends and indicative of our culture, particularly an international one at USQ. The menu items will serve as a reflection of the type and variation of food items that we consumed in 2007. And, it never ceases to be of interest to come across price lists from many years ago, and be amazed at 'how cheap things were back then'. At USQ, many students and staff frequent the Refectory or the Coffee Shop for their breakfast, lunch or refreshments. It is the meeting place for many on a daily basis. The sharing of meals or a cup of coffee provides a vital backdrop for their social dimension for those of us who either study or work at USQ. Throw a couple of salt and pepper sachets; serviettes (do we have any printed ones?); the packaging that we get our meals in from the carvery; the take away cups. It may sound absurd, but objects which we consider disposable today, will be the artefact of tomorrow. |
Material provided by USQ Student Guild. Suggested by Kim Southey. |
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The Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education established a reputation for the quality of its print materials. At the same time it built its reputation as a leader in the use of emerging educational technologies. Both of these qualities are evident in the study package included in the Time Capsule. Course CMS1000 - Communication and Scholarship was introduced as one of the four core courses that were compulsory for all students before the ‘core unit’ strategy was abandoned in the late 1990s but which is still offered today. The course provides a good example of the use of print alongside CD-technology. Also included is a Genpack provided to all students each year which includes the highly acclaimed USQ Student Toolkit. At a time when the pressures of the digital age puts pressure on the University to go entirely “print-free”, this package highlights the full range of USQ’s hard earned strengths. |
Packages provided by USQ DeC. Suggested by Lujer Santacruz. |
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A major revolution of our age is represented by the internet environment. Going “online” is a daily experience for most students to access information of all kinds for all purposes. Included here are a range of Images from the USQ website showing the range of information maintained for USQ’s broad mix of stakeholders. |
Material provided by DeC. Suggested by Noel Dixon. |
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| USQ2007: 40th anniversary celebrations - a 'calendar of events' listing key contributors will be included in the Time Capsule | |||
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As in most periods, 2007 sees the world in conflict. Wars rage in areas including Afghanistan, Iraq and the Darfur region of Sudan. Civil unrest, fears of a proliferation of nuclear weapons, and sectarian tension and conflict are occurring in locations across the globe. Australia remains arguably the most successful model for multiculturalism – differing cultures living together in harmony – in the world. However, racism, xenophobia and mistrust still persist. Each year USQ supports national Harmony Day and NAIDOC Week that celebrate Australia's multicultural society and rich Indigenous culture, respectively. These events are a celebration of our diversity. Included here are photographs of Harmony Day 2007. | Photographs provided by the USQ Multicultural Centre. | |
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USQ’s 40th anniversary celebrations incorporated a diverse calendar of events. The largest single project has been the Community Drive development that aims to develop a meaningful and long-lasting symbol of the link between the community and the University. It also aims to reflect our regional development, internationalisation and past achievements. Features of the beautification plan include: a formal avenue of Norfolk Island Pines; informal plantings in a number of groves including the Indigenous Garden to illustrate the University’s transnational identity; an avenue of international flags of the countries of origin of USQ students and staff; and the installation of a windmill sculpture as a commemoration to the University’s ties with the region. Included here are photographs of Mr Harry Spencer, Community Drive Project Champion, Mr Rusell Campbell, Curator; and Grounds and Gardens staff who made the plantings happen. | Photographs provided by Mr Harry Spencer, Faculty of Sciences. | |
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The windmill sculpture serves as a major feature of the Community Drive Redevelopment Project. It was manufactured by Buchanan Advanced Composites based on an original design by artist Andrew MacDonald with additional design work by staff from the USQ Faculty of Engineering & Surveying. The sculpture is modelled on an original farm windmill that pre-dated the institution and stood on the eastern ring road and Baker Street until 2000. An early conceptual model for the windmill sculpture is included in the Time Capsule. | Initial conception by artist Mr Andrew MacDonald. | |
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An off-cut of the advanced fibre composite shell used to manufacture the base of the windmill sculpture will be included in the Time Capsule. The photo shows the base under construction at Buchanan Advanced Composites in Toowoomba - Norm Watt AM, Managing Director. |
Photograph provided by:
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BEHIND THE LENS A film by Jae Martin, Joe Dobson and Mitch Wood |
‘Behind the Lens’ is a light-hearted look at life as a media student in the first year of the Bachelor of Applied Media program at USQ Springfield’s campus. It is laced with typical Australian self-deprecation, humour and playfulness, all of which belie the craft skills involved in making this short film within the 40 hours’ competition limitation. ‘Behind the Lens’ won first prize in the USQ 2007: 40 Years of Community Engagement film competition. |
Permission to use the winning film kindly provided by Jae Martin, Joe Dobson and Mitch Wood. Suggested by Karen Kay. |
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| Looking back and looking forward | |||
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USQ: The First 40 Years was produced by John Clarke and Alison McDonald to commemorate USQ’s 40th anniversary. It provides an overview of the development of USQ up to the year 2007. Also included in the Time Capsule is a second Clarke/McDonald production, USQ Regalia which describes the University's official regalia. |
Cover art by Ms Alison McDonald | |
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In 2007 the City of Toowoomba initiated a process to develop a vision for development to 2050. This document discusses the issues faced by a regional city and region in the first half of the 21st century and presents the beginnings of a vision for the future for contemporary society as it appeared in 2007. |
Material provided by Toowoomba City Council. Suggested by Noela Nolan. |
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* A contemporary notebook computer with all relevant software is being kept in the USQ Historical Archives in the event that contemporary technology is not able to be read when the Time Capsule is opened in 2047.