Plenty of Aussies have researched public policy (and Christmas) topics thanks to Sir Winston Churchill’s legacy. Photo: File.
The Winston Churchill Trust has embraced the Christmas spirit and released a catalogue of research into what could be termed various festive studies.
With their creative thinking and deeply-studied topics, Churchill fellows have thrown up some clever ideas for the holiday season.
Studies into brandy and cognac production, toys for kids with a disability, pine trees, berries, baking and more reveal the special interests of these scholars who want to share their knowledge with fellow Australians.
Each person has a driving passion, has travelled overseas and brought back learnings to benefit Australia as a Churchill Fellow.
At the same time, the Churchill Fellowship has put out the call for applicants for future research grants, saying the holiday period is the best time to prepare submissions for consideration.
The fellowship is very keen to explore public policy research topics, with Canberra residents having recently contributed to a number of groundbreaking studies in this area.
Those studies include policy studies into areas such as road safety, ADHD in adults, child protection, pregnancy loss support, urban landscapes, urban farms, social housing, and more power for renters.
These and more of the latest insights from overseas can be found at the 2023 Churchill Fellow report compilation.
“For summer reading you can travel vicariously around the world from the comfort of your armchair, and head into 2024 with the latest ideas gathered by Churchill Fellows for Australia,” the Trust says.
“A Churchill Fellowship offers Australian citizens and permanent residents a life-changing opportunity to travel overseas for four to eight weeks to learn more about a topic or issue that they are passionate about. Topics are endless.
“Over this holiday period, people may find they suddenly have time to apply for that Churchill Fellowship they’ve been thinking about.
“Applications open 1 March 2024, so sign up today for one of our information sessions being held online throughout February.
“Churchill Fellows have created some of Australia’s best-known innovations such as Questacon, the Playschool theme song, and Crime Stoppers, just to name a few.”
Just four weeks after the death of Sir Winston Churchill on 28 February 1965, the ‘Churchill Memorial Sunday’ doorknock appeal was held across Australia.
The doorknock was to raise funds for an unusual type of memorial to Sir Winston – something like Rhodes Scholarships, but more egalitarian, and available to all people and on a much wider basis.
The concept, endorsed by Churchill before he died, was fellowships, bearing his name, for ordinary people – providing a unique opportunity to travel, learn, and bring knowledge back to their country.
“Such was the admiration and respect that Australian fighting men and women of World War II held for Churchill, that this became one of the greatest one-day doorknocks in Australian history,” the Trust says.
“Funds collected from everyday Australians together with donations from government and Australian companies totalled the impressive sum of 2,206,000 pounds ($4,412,000).
“This laid the foundation for an incredible opportunity – fellowships offered annually and worth on average $35,000 each, available to Australians who want to make a difference.”
The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust was established to administer not only the total funds raised by the 1965 Appeal, but also the Churchill Fellowship award scheme.
Since the inception of the Churchill Trust, more than 4700 Australians have identified projects where overseas research allowed them to bring back vital networks and skills.
Meanwhile, the current research with festive season topics (although some are more relevant to Christmas than others) can be viewed individually from this list:
- Ann Forell – Toys for kids with disabilities
- Holly Klintworth – Brandy
- Paul Boland – Walnuts
- Geoffrey Law – Trees in temperate forests
- Trevor Butcher – Pine-trees
- Colin Beer, Game-birds – Colin and Maggie Beer are sponsors of the Saskia Beer Churchill Fellowship.
- Gwynn Roberts – Orchestras
- Gavin Merrington – Stained glass
- Lloyd Cooper – Perfume
- Alan Irish – Sheep
- Camilla Humphries – Orchards & cider
- Paul Trigleau – Baking
- Stuart McGruddy – Berries
- Gregory Williams – Cake decorating and baking
- Rachael Cruwys – Brahman Cattle
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