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The University of Southern Queensland (USQ) will be alive with the sound of music as 4,000 primary and secondary school students showcase their musical skills at the 4th annual TYME Festival.

The TYME (Today’s Youth in Music Education) Festival will be held at the USQ Toowoomba campus this year on Thursday, September 19 and will feature everything from rock bands to choirs to orchestras to concert bands to solo acts. Thousands of performers from 40 primary and secondary schools will perform at eight different stages across USQ throughout the day and all are welcome to come along and listen to a few tunes, whether you’re into rock or classical.

Student Events Officer Amy Natalier said this would be the first year the event will be held at the USQ Quadrangle, having been held at Laurel Bank Park and the USQ Ovals in previous years. People can expect some excellent, high quality music entertainment from thousands of different performers,” Ms Natalier said. There will also be children’s entertainment, a travelling animal farm, ping pong, giant board games, fairy floss, a snow cone van, campus tours and much more.

The whole event is free so people are welcome to turn up, listen to some quality musicians at no cost and enjoy the spring weather.

USQ Vice-Chancellor Jan Thomas said the event was a celebration of young musical talent. It never ceases to amaze me to see what the diversity and richness of what the Darling Downs and South West Queensland region offers when it comes to education,” Professor Thomas said. The TYME Festival is one of those Education Queensland activities that inevitably receives rave reviews from almost everyone and USQ is proud to support this very worthwhile event.”

This Thursday’s event will be held between 9am and 3pm, with performances running between 10am and 2pm.
The event is run by Education Queensland, with support from USQ.

Submitted by:
Callum Johnson
Office of Corporate Communications and Public Relations
University of Southern Queensland
Toowoomba
Email: callum.johnson@usq.edu.au

USQ Vice-Chancellor Professor Jan Thomas and Toowoomba Chamber of Commerce & Industry CEO Greg Johnson have launched theirl Vice-Chancellor vs CEO Carnival Challenge for the second year.

Both Professor Thomas and Greg Johnson are wearing brightly coloured tropical shirts on each day of the 2013 Carnival of Flowers as they raise funds for two important causes, the Toowoomba Hospice and Australia’s CEO Challenge.

Important features of the Challenge will be a joint presentation to business leaders on Friday, 20th September at the Ergon Energy Flower, Food & Wine Festival and the entry of the Chamber’s first ever float in the Floral Parade on Saturday, 21st September.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Thomas and CEO Greg Johnson raised over $5,000 in their inaugural challenge and hope to top that amount this year.

Toowoomba has received two prestigious multicultural awards announced by the Multicultural Affairs Queensland Department of the State Government on 6 September.

The Cultural Diversity Ambassador (Regional) was awarded to Mrs Gitie House, President of the Toowoomba International Multicultural Society (TIMS). The award recognises an individual who has demonstrated an outstanding and sustained commitment to promoting the values of multiculturalism and promoting harmonious community relations.

The Regional community organisation award which recognises not-for-profit, community-based organisations that have shown leadership in supporting cultural diversity in regional Queensland was also awarded to TIMS. TIMS has successfully promoted the benefits of cultural diversity within south west Queensland, delivering an impressive range of community development initiatives for a small, volunteer, not-for-profit organisation. Notable achievements include the Toowoomba Language and Cultures Festival and cultural awareness programs.

Gitie House has made significant and sustained contributions to developing and increasing cross-cultural understanding in the Toowoomba region. Her work has been dedicated to creating an inclusive community through social, cultural and educational activities; crossing all age groups, faiths and cultures and recognising the rich cultural diversity of the region.
Accepting the Cultural Diversity Ambassador award from Premier Campbell Newman, Gitie House said, Queensland and the rest of Australia is becoming increasingly diverse. Prosperity and harmony in diversity comes from mutual sharing and learning. This takes a big heart so that we are all able to celebrate the diversity and enjoy the many facets in which it enriches our lives. It requires everyone to open their hearts and minds and make room for each other. I’d like to thank the Australian people past and present, the traditional owners, the long established, the mainstream and the new Australians and also all the levels of the Australian Government for their concerted efforts in striving to bring people together, to help break barriers, build bridges and bonds. Together we can continue to build a harmonious and peaceful society where people of all backgrounds can flourish.”

Vice-president Ms Daphne Fung accepted the award for TIMS from the Minister for Multicultural Affairs Glen Elmes. TIMS, is a grass roots community organisation whose members are all volunteers — individuals, families, cultural groups and organisations who are committed to building a harmonious multicultural community. Our members strive to work collaboratively with people from other backgrounds including Indigenous Australians, mainstream Australians, migrants and refugees to create an environment of mutual sharing and learning so that we can all enjoy the benefits of our different cultures in a harmonious way.”

The quest to find Indigenous Australia’s best in 2013 has begun

Finalists have been announced in the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Music, Sport, Arts and Community Awards, aka the Deadlys, and Sue Ray is a finalist in the Most Promising New Talent in Music category.

Brisbane-based country folk singer Sue Ray is steadily gaining recognition for her first solo album, Red Roses, which was released in 2011, and she has been performing at festivals all over Australia and in the US.

Growing up in a musical family in Toowoomba, Sue learned from a very early age that music was something to be valued and treasured. For the past 15 years she has followed a path that has taken her around the country and the globe.
In 2012, Sue ventured to the Americana Music Festival in the ‘Music City’ of Nashville, Tennessee, where she performed alongside some of Australia’s most iconic country-music performers.
She has been receiving rave reviews for her album “Red Roses” and notably her single Shake It Off”.

Her list of achievements over the last two years is impressive: in 2011 she was the winner of the ‘Breakthrough Contemporary Emerging Indigenous Artist Recording Initiative’ and performed at the Bigsound Music Conference Brisbane – Showcase; in 2012, she was a finalist for the Grant McLennan Memorial Fellowship, nominated for Best Country Album for Red Roses in the AIR Independent Music Awards and a finalist in the Queensland Music Awards, with two songs in three categories, where she took out the Indigenous Award for Red Roses”.

The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Music, Sport, Arts and Community Awards, aka the Deadlys, is back for its 19th year at the Sydney Opera House on 10 September 2013. Deadly Award finalists have been announced and voting in Australia’s largest Indigenous awards night is open at www.deadlys.com.au/vote
Voting closes on 18 August 2013, so get in and have your say on who’s Deadly.

Strong finalists across all award categories have ensured the Deadlys will be a night to be remembered.

Tickets to the Deadlys are on sale through the Opera House booking office (02) 9250 7777 or head to http://www.sydneyoperahouse.com/whatson/the_deadlys_2013.aspx

Submitted by:
Maryann Weston
e: maryann@gjcvibe.com.au

The Emirates Melbourne Cup Tour is in Dalby for a full day of special events today to unite the community in celebration of ‘the race that stops a nation.’â„¢

Racing legend, John Marshall is accompanying the glorious 18-carat gold Emirates Melbourne Cup trophy to each event and to share his unique and memorable tales from the track. Some lucky members of the community of Dalby will have the unique chance to ‘don the white glove’ and hold the iconic trophy, valued at $175,000.

Dr Andrew Lemon, Victoria Racing Club representative, is also accompanying the Melbourne Cup Trophy on the Tour. Since 2003, the Emirates Melbourne Cup Tour has travelled more than 325,000 kilometres, visited more than 236 regional, rural and metropolitan destinations and engaged tens of thousands of people.

The Dalby itinerary is:

• 8:45am – 10:00am Visit to Our Lady Southern Cross Catholic College, Nicholson Street, Dalby

• 11:00am – 12:00pm Visit to South State School, Cnr Owen and Bunya Street, Dalby

• 12:30pm – 2:15pm Lunch at Mary’s Commercial Hotel, Cunningham Street, Dalby

• 2:30pm – 3:30pm Afternoon Tea at Ningana Retirement Village, Horace Street, Dalby

• 6:00pm – 9:00pm Cup Cocktail Party, 46 Drayton Street, Dalby

Since 2003, the Emirates Melbourne Cup Tour has travelled more than 325,000 kilometres, visited more than 236 regional, rural and metropolitan destinations and engaged tens of thousands of people.

Fine and sunny weather and almost summer temperatures drew many thousands of people to the eighth Toowoomba Languages and Cultures Festival at Queens Park on Sunday, August 11th.

This year’s festival, with the theme ‘One World – Many Faces’ features music and dance performances from scores of different cultural groups from across the Toowoomba region.

The centrepiece of this year’s fiesta was an Indonesian Spectacular.

“The day has become Queensland’s signature regional cultural diversity festival,” Events and Tourism Chair, Cr Geoff McDonald, said. “Stalls, art and music performances and workshops invite people from all cultures and faiths to learn a little about each other’s background. Every new community member adds a fresh dimension to our region and it’s important to welcome them to our city and region. This was the focus of the recent walk and event to declare Toowoomba a Refugee Welcome Zone.

Three non-stop stages featured Bollywood dancers, young Chinese performers, Korean word song, displays of Highland, Maori, German, Congolese and Indian classical dancers and many singing groups from South East Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe.

International food  and market and gift stalls were well patronised. The Interfaith and Health and Wellness marquees were also popular.

The Toowoomba Languages and Cultures Festival is a joint initiative of the Toowoomba International Multicultural Society and Toowoomba Regional Council, with assistance from many groups and organisations and volunteers.

Science is all about facts. And it’s a little-known fact that one of Australia’s most popular sporting legends, former cricketer Mike Hussey, is also a qualified science teacher!

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Mike (aka Mr Cricket), and the 2012 Young Australian of the Year and robotics expert Marita Cheng, are encouraging all Australians to get involved in the excitement of this national event, which runs from the 10th – 18th August.

Mike and Marita may seem worlds apart, but from a cricket ball to a robot and everything in-between, they both know that almost everything in day-to-day life owes itself to science. Without science, there’d be no mobile phones, no cars, no antibiotics, no Internet and – wait for it – no radio!

Now in its 16th year, National Science Week is a celebration of science in Australia, with more than 1,000 fascinating events taking place across every state and territory.