The Rare Books Library at the University of Sydney holds a copy of the 1891 NSW Royal Commission into Alleged Chinese Gambling and Immorality, a rare and valuable document which invites us to view life in 19th century Sydney through Chinese eyes.
The stated aim of the commission – as Shirley Fitzgerald explains – ‘was to establish the extent of bribery and extortion within the Chinese gambling community, and between gambling syndicates and the police.’ Ostensibly a tool of the state to enact surveillance on Chinese urban life at a time of heightened anti-Chinese xenophobia in the city.
Sophie invites us to read the Commission against the grain, excavating the Chinese lives evidenced in its pages. What can the Commission tell us about Sydney’s Chinese ghosts?
Speaker: Sophie Loy-Wilson is a lecturer in Australian history at the University of Sydney. She is the recipient of an ARC DECRA Grant for her project Chinese Business: social and economic survival in white Australia, 1870-1940.
About two years ago, the Library’s Peer Learning Advisor (PLA) team were looking for a new way to reach out to students and help enhance their student life. As current postgraduate students, they felt they had a wealth of knowledge and experience to share, which could be a useful guide for all students looking to understand and make the most of university life.
Their answer: PeerPod – a bi-monthly podcast series in which the PLAs discuss topics and issues related to student life and share their own stories, experiences and advice.
Since its creation, PeerPod has covered all kinds of subjects, from how to start semester and make new friends, to bouncing back after failing an exam. We’ve heard stories from PLAs and advice from experts, but this year we’d like to add something more. We want students of all levels to join us in the recording studio and share their voices, opinions and experiences!
Do you have a unique insight into student life? Some handy advice that you want to share? Maybe a suggestion for a topic you’d like us to cover?
Email us at peerpod.pla@sydney.edu.au and let us know what topic you’d like to talk about as a guest speaker, and why!
In celebration of LGBT History Month, the University of Sydney Library and the Pride Network are proud to be co-hosting a presentation by a trailblazing activist of the Sydney LGBTQIA+ community, Peter de Waal AM.
The presentation will be held online, via Zoom, on Thursday 29 October from 2 to 3pm.
Peter de Waal (left) with his partner Peter Bonsall-Boone
Peter will speak about what it was like being a homosexual couple in the 1960s and 1970s and the challenge of being ‘out’ in that era. After sharing this personal story, Peter will participate in a 30-minute Q and A session about his work as an activist.
Don’t miss this opportunity to meet a true pioneer of LGBTQIA+ rights as we commemorate the fighting spirit of all those, like Peter, who worked tirelessly to improve the lives of so many.
About the speaker
Peter de Waal AM is a long-term LGBTQIA+ rights activist and author. Among his many achievements, he was a foundation member of CAMP Inc (Campaign Against Moral Persecution) in 1970, the first national homosexual rights organisation in Australia and publisher of the monthly magazine CAMP INK, from 1970 to 1977.
Peter was involved in the first homosexual rights demonstration in Sydney in 1971 in support of law reform. In 1972, he appeared on the ABC program Chequerboard, together with his partner Peter Bonsall-Boone. In 1973, they established the first Australian volunteer homosexual telephone help line, Phone-A-Friend, now called Twenty10 – Gay and Lesbian Counselling Service.
A few years later, Peter’s initiation of the first-ever Tribunal on Homosexuals and Discrimination resulted in the NSW State Government developing anti-discrimination legislation. Peter became a member of the Sydney-based Gay Task Force in the late 1970s, and participated in the first Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in 1978.
During the 1980s, Peter was a health promotion coordinator at the Bankstown Community Health Centre, and a volunteer immigration advisor with the NSW Gay and Lesbian Immigration Task Force from 1989 to 1998.
Calling all students keen on making a strong start to Semester 2, and who want to get motivated for online study, now! Calling all students who want to tackle stress, improve their personal organisation skills, and build a strong social network at uni!
And…calling all academics and university staff who want to help their students start the semester on the front-foot: with healthy online study habits, a firm foundation of personal resilience, and the skills and confidence to tackle stress, and thoughtfully organise their time and their study routine!
Your University Library is teaming up with the University’s Student Life portfolio, and Student Support Services, to present a series of Online Study Tips workshops. This innovative, cross-university collaboration will strengthen the virtual (and on-campus) student experience of new, returning and International Students.
Each session will be full of hints and tips to ensure participants get the most out of online study, and will be delivered twice weekly in a casual, conversational online environment. And best of all, they’re hosted by our experienced team of student peers, who – as currently enrolled University of Sydney students- have a wealth of practical knowledge about healthy study routines, and navigating the often-challenging world of university.
These sessions will also give students with English as a second or other language a perfect opportunity to practice their English in a casual, non-judgmental environment.
Topics covered include:
Getting your study space ready for online study
Managing stress and motivation
Understanding Canvas
Navigating your online classroom
Organising your digital life
We know the last 6 months have radically changed the way we all study, learn and work, so these sessions are for all students, including new and returning students, International students, or anyone wanting a bit of support developing healthy study-from-home/online learning skills.
To book, simply go to this page, scroll down and find the next Online Study Tips session (or sessions – you can attend more than one!) and register online. Academics and University staff – please pass this notice on to any students you think could benefit from it.
We can’t wait to see you – or your students – there!
Between May and November 2018, the University of Sydney Library Cultural Competence Community of Practice in conjunction with the Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Indigenous Strategy and Services) hosted a series of seminars examining various perspectives on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledges. The seminars were presented by experts on areas including History and Language, Cultural Astronomy, Connection to Country, Visual Art, Health, and Perspectives on Gender. The video recordings of these sessions, accessible via the below links, remain a valuable resource for members of the University community wishing to wishing to learn more about the rich cultures of our First Nations peoples.
With permission, these seminars were recorded and are available here as videos.
History and Language, Presenters: Professor Jakelin Troy, Matt Poll and Joel Davison.
Cultural Astronomy, Presenters: James Smith, Robert Fuller and Carla Guedes
Discover more about the Library & see what your future might look like as a University of Sydney student.
This Info Day, join us in a tour of Fisher Library, explore our spaces and learn about the fantastic facilities and support available to you as a student through your studies at University. Tours will run throughout the day.
Info Day is also the perfect opportunity to discover ThinkSpace – our technology-driven, creative play-space that provides you with the opportunity to collaborate, design and create interesting things using new technologies. Come in and and try our 3D printer, or experience the world of virtual reality with Oculus Go. Our friendly staff will be on hand to explain the technologies, answer questions and show you some of the other great features of our libraries.
Where: Fisher Library Foyer
When: Saturday 15 December, 10.00am – 2.00pm
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are advised that this website may contain images, voices and names of people who have died.
The University of Sydney Library acknowledges that its facilities sit on the ancestral lands of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, who have for thousands of generations exchanged knowledge for the benefit of all. Learn more
