Evelyne de Leeuw wins the Lady Mary Fairfax Award and refe

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Play, download and edit the video Evelyne de Leeuw wins the Lady Mary Fairfax Award and references Sandra Bullock and Michael Caine!.

Of course I am incredibly happy and humbled to, first of all, having been nominated for this wonderful Lady Mary Fairfax Distinguished Researcher Award, and then even win it! I find it particularly fitting to receive this award that is named, sponsored and endowed by a woman who came from very humble beginnings, an environment in pre-war anti-Semitic Poland where inequity was the order of the day. As you will know I am heading up CHETRE, the Centre for Health Equity Training, Research and Evaluation – and in a way I am also accepting this honour on behalf of all CHETREttes and CHETRons.

I have watched many an Oscars ceremony… I have learned from Michael Caine and Sandra Bullock in Miss Congeniality how to accept an award. You move your hands in a funny way, as if you are embarrassed and maybe have a little hot flush. Then you say something about world peace.

So here goes.

I am humbled and in a way relieved to have been considered for this Lady Mary Fairfax Distinguished Researcher Award. Relieved, because there have been moments in my career where I have been depressed and convinced that the world and my colleagues had given up on Healthy Cities and health political science – my passions in scholarly pursuit. I use none of these words metaphorically: the scholarly landscape in Australia, especially for younger colleagues, these days resembles a suicidal grants lottery mirroring everything that is bad about the neoliberal gig economy. So much talent is wasted, so many great ideas and inventions are stupidly considered too left field and risky, so many people can’t see fulfilling careers in academia; I want to dedicate this award especially to them, and encourage them to keep going, to stay left field, pursue risk and disruption, and stay in the scholarly gig economy. Your time, like mine, will come.

In accepting this award I’m not just standing on the shoulder of giants…. I am, indeed, standing on the great work of generations of enthusiastic emerging young researchers and educators. They have been receptive to my strange ideas, my often warped humour, and my passionate calls to do things differently. I thank them, and acknowledge with gratitude that without them I would not have been in Sydney, and accepting this award.

Finally, world peace. I think it is a very good idea. Let’s try it.

But seriously: thank you so much for this incredible honour. It does make me feel embarrassed- a little – and proud – a lot.

Thanks…

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