• Seven months after announcing they would be conducting an independent report into Gender Based Violence, the University of Tasmania published their findings in May 2024.
  • Lyn Walker, an expert in designing prevention and support strategies within the higher education sector, compiled the report and describes the University’s work in prevention of Gender Based Violence being described as ’embryonic.’
• The report identifies 47 key recommendations to the University alongside a five-year recommendation for implementation of those recommendations.
  • The report rightfully acknowledges the social responsibility that the University of Tasmania has in being the catalyst for social change by shaping the response to Gender Based Violence in the community and instilling gender equity as a core value in the next generation of professionals and in the broader Tasmanian context.
  • However, the report fails to acknowledge the lack of resourcing that currently exists in the support space for staff and students.
• The TUSA State Council believes that now is not a time for conversations of budgetary constraints and financial implications. If the University is serious about protecting their students and staff and responding to and preventing Gender Based Violence, then the required resources must be provided by senior management to fully adopt the 47 recommendations made by this report.
• The TUSA State Council call for the University Council and Executive to step up to the plate and provide adequate resources to allow the implementation of this report.
• The TUSA State Council also calls for University management to have clear and transparent communication with the broader student body in how they are progressing with the implementation of all 47 recommendations.