Universities are increasingly becoming pivotal players in shaping the future of regions, and UTAS will play a particularly important role with its move to the centre of Launceston.
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Not only that, but with the move will come a number of exciting new additions to the University of Tasmania.
“That pivotal role includes a different approach to teaching and learning, a different approach to research and a different approach to engagement,” pro vice-chancellor Professor David Adams said.
“Future proofing means being on the front foot around teaching and researching in those industry sectors likely to be pivotal to our growth, innovation and productivity as a region.
“They need to build on the strengths of the university and the strengths of the region – for example, around food sciences or around our arts and cultural potential.
Professor Adams said the university needs to make sure it isn’t producing graduates for jobs that won’t exist in the future, or that will exist in a “very different form”.
“Thirty to 50 per cent of jobs we have now won’t exist in another 10 years, so we need to be teaching new core skills of the future around design thinking, robotification, automation, artificial intelligence and digital technology.
“Even the traditional secure professions such as accounting, medicine and law now face some of the challenges that, for example, banking faced with the shift to online banking. We are just at the beginning of this process.”
In March, UTAS unveiled its planned relocation of both the Launceston and Burnie campuses, saying an extra 12,000 students will be processed over the next decade.
The Newnham campus will move to Inveresk in the heart of the city, costing $260 million. This will create a significant change to the landscape of Launceston.
With the move will come new and expanded research hubs, business clusters, increased movement around the city, and new opportunities for entrepreneurs and industries.
“Tasmania is coming out of 20 years of economic malaise and is now rebuilding a social and economic vibrancy that has been missing,” Professor Adams said.
“This new vibrancy is being built on smart science and technology for traditional industries, such as agriculture, as well as a strong focus on collaborative entrepreneurship around new and emerging industries – such as fermentation.
“Globally, universities have been pivotal to the revitalisation of regions through impact-focused research collaborations with industry, teaching the skills of the future and making learning opportunities more accessible and desirable to a broader range of people.
“We have the opportunity in Northern Tasmania to get ahead of the global game, and this is the best future proofing of all.”
Professor Adams said the primary benefit of having the university located in proximity to the CBD is its ability to create activity in the city.
“That is, you have a higher number of people living in the inner city area and spending time there. But alongside those students and staff living in proximity to the campus, you have all their family friends, business colleagues, who visit.”
There’s an innovation side to the move as well. Professor Adams said that generally occurs at the intersection between good ideas, good technology, good capability around production and distribution of goods and services.
“And by having a university close to the city gives the opportunity for innovation districts or innovation precincts or innovation clusters to pop up around the university precinct so that the businesses in the city have immediate access to the knowledge within the university.”
That includes research knowledge and the ability to pool resources around research. One example Professor Adams gives is the potential to have a single centre at the university around fermentation.
“All the different industries in Northern Tasmania interested in fermentation might be able to access the centre collectively, out of which they all get a private benefit, but also the public benefit of our knowledge of fermentation as it relates to food, to wine, dairy, meat, fruit and vegetables. Everyone can share the benefits, which are both public and private.
“Being close to the city, being close to where businesses are located helps that, and the jargon is called ‘hyper-proximity’.”
That ‘hyper-proximity’ will create a much stronger opportunity for industries to co-locate for research and commercial activities on campus, alongside community facilities and traditional student amenities.
”And the idea is that people generally will feel comfortable seeing the university as their university, and coming onto the campus for a whole range of reasons and often it’s that informal network settings that spark innovation.”
Professor Adams listed some likely areas of research and growth on campus as areas that are likely to grow in the region already, such as food sciences, wood sciences, health and sports.
“A smart digital city is one that is connected up through technology to create benefits for the community as well as for industry.
“Data about movement around the city, about the types of people in the city at any point in time – the economic and social characteristics, where they spend time, and what their preferences are.
“That enables businesses that might have access to that knowledge to make judgements about open and closing times, staff numbers, product placement and so on. That’s the sort of digital smart city, which we understand at the moment.”
