PA/02/11 21 January 2011
Australia-India Council opens applications Australian Studies Fellowships for 2011
Australia-India Council (AIC) board member, Professor Gillian Whitlock, today invited applications for the 2011 AIC Australian Studies Fellowships at the second International Australian Studies Conference in Kolkata.
“Strengthening ongoing links and fostering new academic collaborations between Australia and India is a priority for the Australia-India Council”, said Mr John McCarthy AO, AIC Chairman.
AIC fellowships support Indian university teaching staff and postgraduate scholars to undertake up to ten weeks of research in Australia through Australian studies centres and programs. The AIC will award up to four senior and junior scholars fellowships in 2011.
Dr Lachlan Strahan, Acting Australian High Commissioner in India, said “programs such as the AIC Australian Studies Fellowships build important people-to-people links between our countries and promote greater understanding”.
Fellowship program alumni will meet on 25 January at the conference in Kolkata to share their experiences of Australia and discuss their research. Monash University will also launch an alumni website to facilitate networking among AIC fellows.
The AIC has awarded 42 fellowships since 2003 to a range of academics with interests as broad as the Indian diaspora in Australia to sustainable tourism.
The fellowships are managed by a consortium of Australian universities, led by Monash University. Other partners are the Australian National University, University of New South Wales, University of Queensland, Curtin University and the University of South Australia.
The AIC was established in 1992 to broaden the relationship between Australia and India by encouraging and supporting people-to-people links and increasing levels of knowledge and understanding between both countries.
Information about the fellowship program is available online at: http://www.dfat.gov.au/aic/