Welcome from the Chairman

It is exciting to initiate a new venture, especially one involving the development of links between Australia and China in the area of environmental technologies.  This is an area in which the University of New South Wales has a wealth of experience and ideally positioned to translate its strength in innovation to practice. This translation will only take place however with the engagement of partners either confronted with environmental challenges requiring advanced solutions or interested in evolving their own practices and products to the next stage of development. It is to the goal of translation that the UNSW Centre for Transformational Environmental Technologies (CTET) is focused with a base established in the city of Yixing in Jiangsu Province with our partners the Yixing Industrial Park for Environmental Science & Technology (ES&TP). The development and operation of CTET will be implemented through the Torch Innovation Precinct at UNSW with our partners in Yixing a key element of the Torch program in China.

CTET will house a team of specialists in Yixing with this team engaged in both realizing opportunities for development, demonstration and commercialization of UNSW technologies and management of projects as they evolve. This team will interact closely with UNSW researchers involved in these projects with a dynamic interchange of staff and students between Yixing and Sydney expected. In addition to project procurement and management, it is expected that our Yixing Centre will, though our interaction with industries throughout China, provide excellent opportunities for industrial training and specialist education.

In conclusion, I see great opportunities for all UNSW researchers and both Australian and Chinese companies with an interest in any aspect of environmental technologies to become engaged with CTET.  I look forward to facilitating this engagement and, given the strength of the team already established, am confident of success.