October 20, 2023

A Tale of Two Cities: unlocking innovation to drive change

Newcastle and Wollongong team up to tackle shared challenges and opportunities

University of Newcastle and the University of Wollongong (UOW) partnered with Business Illawarra and Business Hunter today to bring together more than 80 key government and industry stakeholders to discuss the best approach to drive economic and social change through innovation.

Hosted at the University of Newcastle’s Q Building, A Tale of Two Cities focused on how the two regions’ businesses and communities can best leverage rapid advances in innovation, highlight the opportunities and barriers to success, and discuss what our region’s need to support the workforce of the future.

University of Newcastle Vice-Chancellor Professor Alex Zelinsky said he was pleased to again partner with University of Wollongong as their communities shared similar challenges and opportunities to grow and transition.

“Our two regions have a strikingly similar history as industrial regional centres, and similarly both universities are absolutely committed to working with our partners to grow new industries for the benefit of our communities," said Professor Zelinsky.

“We understand that we need more skilled people to keep pace with technology development and the changing nature of work, and this is felt even more acutely regionally. Collaborating with business and government today reinforced that our universities have the innovation capabilities, and the industry relationships to meet the demands of our new economies that will shape our regions for the next 10 to 20 years.”

^{University of Newcastle Vice-Chancellor Professor Alex Zelinsky.}

A Tale of Two Cities featured a keynote address by Google Australia’s Engineering Site Lead and Director of Cross Google Engineering, Daniel Nadasi, who reflected on the changing landscape of innovation and the broader economic landscape, and how education institutions, business and government can work together to plan for future workforce needs, and different work practices.

The event included two panel discussions on Innovation Opportunities and Innovation and Future Workforce that featured leaders from government, business and the education sector. The panel and Q&A focused on what innovation opportunities and barriers there are, and how stakeholders can work together and prepare to support the workforce of the future.

UOW Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Patricia M. Davidson said Wollongong and Newcastle share a remarkably parallel history.

“Likewise, our universities both serve as anchor institutions, collaborating with partners to foster new industries in our regions,” Professor Davidson said.

“Through our research and expertise, we are helping businesses and industry to access new technologies and adopt sustainable practices. Through our education and training we are equipping our graduates for the evolving workforce of the future, in sectors such as clean energy, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, healthcare, and advanced manufacturing.

“These sectors stand at the forefront of innovation, and it's within this arena that our universities are truly demonstrating their value to our communities.”

^{University of Wollongong Vice-Chancellor Professor Patricia Davidson.}

ABOUT A TALE OF TWO CITIES

A Tale of Two Cities is a collaborative event between University of Wollongong (UOW) and the University of Newcastle, in partnership with Business Illawarra and Business Hunter.

A Tale of Two Cities provides an opportunity for UOW and the University of Newcastle, and our partners to work on similar economic, energy, technology and industry challenges and opportunities for our regions.

This is the second and return edition of A Tale of Two Cities held in Wollongong in 2022, which discussed the role that universities are playing in making Australia a leader in clean energy.