Climate change policies: decarbonisation from Australian, Polish and global perspectives

In April 2023, Professor Jan Kozlowski from the Institute of Environmental Sciences at the Jagiellonian University presented at two AIPA events in Melbourne and Sydney.

About our Guest Speaker

Professor Jan Kozłowski, a prominent ecology expert, was in 2016 awarded Poland's highest scientific prize by the Foundation for Polish Science for his achievements in evolutionary ecology research. Professor Kozłowski, a full member of the Polish Academy of Sciences and an active member of the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences, has for many decades occupied several leadership positions at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków. He now has a professor emeritus status at this oldest university in Poland.

Recognizing the increase of the Earth's temperature and accompanying other climate changes as humanity's greatest threat, Professor Kozłowski has focused his recent activities on climate protection. In this capacity, he participates in the 16-member Climate Crisis Advisory Committee established in 2020 by the Chair of the Polish Academy of Sciences. The Committee has developed a range of recommendations for achieving net zero emission targets in Poland.

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Upcoming AIPA events in Sydney

Dear members and supporters of the Australian Institute of Polish Affairs,

This is a brief announcement of upcoming events in Sydney.

Thursday 27 April

We are delighted to invite you and your friends to hear from our special guest, Professor Jan Kozłowski from the Jagiellonian University. 

Climate change policies: decarbonisation from Australian, Polish, and global perspectives.

Professor Jan Kozłowski will compare the current renewable energy policies in Poland and Australia in the context of the global climate crisis. He will focus not only on the current state of affairs in both countries (and their specific challenges) but will also discuss and compare the future potential of both countries and the related opportunities that may arise. He will also touch on the topic of the potential benefits of Polish-Australian collaboration in developing renewable energy.

This will be our first in-person event in some time, and will be held on site at the University of Sydney. Please note that the planned date has changed to 27th April.

For planning purposes, please register through Eventbrite here - registrations will be open from 8pm, 17th April.

Monday 15 May

AIPA member Professor Wojciech Sadurski is launching his latest book "Constitutional Public Reason" on 15th of May. The book will be launched by The Hon. Michael Kirby AC CMG. This event is being held in-person at Sydney Law School.

Details are in the link.

AIPA special event - Melbourne (21 March)

Dear AIPA Members,

If you are in Melbourne on the day, we are delighted to invite you and your friends to hear from our special guest, Professor Jan Kozłowski from Jagiellonian University. 

Professor Jan Kozłowski will compare the current renewable energy policies in Poland and Australia in the context of the global climate crisis. He will focus not only on the current state of affairs in both countries (and their specific challenges) but will also discuss and compare the future potential of both countries and the related opportunities that may arise. He will also touch on the topic of the potential benefits of Polish-Australian collaboration in developing renewable energy.

Climate change policies: decarbonisation from Australian, Polish, and global perspectives.

WHEN: 21st March, 2023 at 6.00 pm

WHERE:  Armagh House, 226 Kooyong Road, Toorak, 3142

COST:  $15

About our Guest Speaker

Professor Jan Kozłowski, a prominent ecology expert, was in 2016 awarded Poland's highest scientific prize by the Foundation for Polish Science for his achievements in evolutionary ecology research. Professor Kozłowski, a full member of the Polish Academy of Sciences and an active member of the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences, has for many decades occupied several leadership positions at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków. He now has a professor emeritus status at this oldest university in Poland.

Recognizing the increase of the Earth's temperature and accompanying other climate changes as humanity's greatest threat, Professor Kozłowski has focused his recent activities on climate protection. In this capacity, he participates in the 16-member Climate Crisis Advisory Committee established in 2020 by the Chair of the Polish Academy of Sciences. The Committee has developed a range of recommendations for achieving net zero emission targets in Poland.

Kind Regards,

Dr Alexandra Margaret Dunwill

AIPA President

AIPA webinar with the Ukrainian Ambassador to Australia (recording)

The Australian Institute of Polish Affairs (AIPA) invites all its members, friends, and guests to a zoom webinar with the Ukrainian Ambassador to Australia, His Excellency Vasyl Myroshnychenko, who will talk about the situation in Ukraine one year after the Russian invasion, what is at stakes in Ukraine's defence against this aggression, and the importance of assistance given to the people of Ukraine from all their supporters, including those in Poland and Australia.

The recording is available on the AIPA YouTube page here.

His Excellency Vasyl Myroshnychenko has been an Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Ukraine to Australia since March 2022, Adviser to the Minister of Ukraine (on a voluntary basis) since March 7, 2022, as well as CEO and Partner at CFC Big Ideas. He earned MSc in Politics of the World Economy from the London School of Economics and Political Science (2006, UK). He also holds MA and BA degrees from the Institute of International Relations, Kyiv National Shevchenko University (2002, 2003). Vasyl is a graduate of the Global Village for Future Leaders of Business and Industry program at Iacocca Institute, Lehigh University (2002, USA) and Swedish Institute Management Program (Sweden, 2009), and a two-week intensive course on public affairs and advocacy from the Center of Congressional and Presidential Studies at American University in Washington, DC (USA, 2014).
In March 2022, Mr Myroshnychenko was appointed as an Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Ukraine to Australia. In early April 2022, he met with Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton to discuss the purchase of Bushmaster vehicles and Australian assistance in documenting and prosecuting alleged Russian war crimes. In July 2022, Mr Myroshnychenko welcomed the incoming Albanese government's announcement that Australia would provide A$100 million worth of aid to Ukraine following Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's state visit to Ukraine. He is known for his effective diplomacy, as well as extensive charitable involvements.

President’s Report and list of Key Events 2022

Dear AIPA Members,
I am happy to report that the last eleven months following our AGM in November 2021 were very
fruitful.


Firstly, we conducted a thorough revision of our members’ register. This meant collecting and
reviewing information from all members and correcting any inaccuracies in the register. Physical
addresses, emails, names, and titles have all been updated. We also put in place mechanisms that
will prevent the register from becoming out of date in the future. It was a mammoth task but of
critical importance for our future communication. I thank all the members for filling in the
questionnaires.


Secondly, we reviewed AIPA’s Statutory Rules (Constitution). This huge task took six months and
involved several Subcommittee meetings and discussions. At the Special General Meeting (SGM)
on 25 June 2022, proposed amendments to Statutory Rules were voted on and several minor
changes were introduced to the wording of specific paragraphs. We clarified previously
misinterpreted paragraphs, such as the voting status of bona fide couples.
Despite the time-consuming bureaucratic tasks, AIPA continued to organise events.


Covid-19 continued to affect us in 2021, yet even during the lockdowns, AIPA managed to increase
the number of guests and events. The list of guests during 2021-22 lockdowns includes such
distinguished speakers as Professor Rafał Pankowski, co-founder of Poland’s leading anti-racist
organization ‘NEVER AGAIN’, Professor Stanisław Obirek, cultural anthropologist interested in
the place of religion in modern cultures, inter-religious dialogue, and strategies for overcoming
conflicts between different civilizations and cultures, and Radosław Sikorski, a distinguished
politician and author, a Member of the European Parliament, and Poland’s former Minister of
Foreign Affairs. Special thanks to Gosia Klatt and Jan Pakulski, who were instrumental in
organising these events.


This trend continued in 2022. Several successful online seminars followed. Our Zoom webinar
on Polish Aid to Ukrainian Museums and National Heritage Amid Russia’s Invasion attracted over
one hundred participants. Special thanks to AIPA members Irena Zdanowicz and Joanna Lang, the
event organisers. The webinar was supported by the Australian Institute of Art History (AIAH) and
the Centre of Visual Art (CoVA), University of Melbourne.

Online presentations attracted new audiences and participants from around the world.
Please see the long list of events on our website. You may also access the recordings on the AIPA
YouTube channel.

We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible, both online and in person, at our upcoming
functions and we would welcome hearing about your ideas for future initiatives!
Below is a detailed list of key events and activities that have either been initiated by AIPA, or
with which the Institute has been involved in other ways. The list contains both online and live
events.

Alexandra Dunwill, the AIPA President

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