Home | Databases | WorldLII | Search | Feedback Maritime Studies

Editors --- "AAMA: Minutes of AGM" [2006] MarStudies 29; (2006) 150 Maritime Studies 28

• MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING held on Tuesday 12 September 2006

MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
held on Tuesday 12 September 2006

1. Present

H. Adams (Chair), T. Lesh, R. McMillan, G. Newton, M. Ward, J. Reeve, E. Davitt, J. Davitt

2. Apologies

S. Bateman, P. Rimmer, J. Chapman, J. Reeve, R. Kenchington, M. Tsirbas

3. Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on 16 August 2005

The Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on 16 August 2005 were confirmed as a true record. Proposed T. Lesh/seconded E. Davitt/CARRIED.

4. Chairman’s Report

It is with pleasure that I present my report for 2005-2006.

The year completed has been, I believe, a good one for the Association. This is our first year as the Australian Association for Maritime Affairs, following the Board’s decision to change our name from the Australian Centre for Maritime Studies on 1 September 2005.

Of particular mention was our attendance in Sydney in February this year at the “Pacific 2006” exhibition. In addition the Association was involved in two Senate Inquiries which was an opportunity to raise our profile at the political level.

In one of the hearings associated with the Marine National Parks inquiry we were able to point out that, figuratively speaking, there are over one million Australians who every day put their feet in salt water – in other words the whole spectrum of marine activities together with national policies which drive the maritime economy. The role of the Association, to my mind, becomes more and more important as the years progress: both these inquiries provided an opportunity to present our Association as uniquely representative of the broad scope of maritime affairs at the national level.

The Sydney Expo was to a degree disappointing in that few companies, although interested, were prepared to join the Association and support our work. Most are focussed on their particular sector of the maritime world. The wider holistic issues pass them by, which is disappointing. It is important however that we attend the Expos when they are held as they provide an opportunity to “show our face” in public and to generate some goodwill for the Association. I am particularly grateful to Jean and Ernie Davitt who manned our stall with panache and enthusiasm.

The two Senate Inquiries involved, firstly, the management of Marine National Parks, and secondly the future of Naval Shipbuilding in Australia. Following our written submission, appearances were made before both committees to develop further the ideas expressed in our written submissions. As indicated above both these inquiries provided an opportunity for the Association to be noticed at the political level. Both the Senate Committees have yet to report their findings.

The Centre’s principal activity remains the publication of Maritime Studies, the flagship journal of the Centre, published every two months. Maritime Studies is now a refereed journal. Nine editions were published during the year so that our publishing is now back on schedule. A feature of the journal since edition 146 has been the introduction of colour which makes it both attractive and professional. The quality and intellectual content remain high while the diversity of articles reflects the rapidly changing maritime scene both nationally and internationally. The inclusion of articles written by overseas contributors has been a particular feature. Maritime security and oceans governance are growing areas of interest both at home and worldwide. The amount of material awaiting publication is basically steady but we need to encourage authors from the maritime community to contribute articles. Particular areas which have not been addressed for some time include Australian and international interests in Antarctica, shipping, and some of the emerging problems in fisheries, both national and international. I would like to use this opportunity to thank the authors for their valuable contributions as well as Sam Bateman for his unstinting efforts as Editor. Also Dr Marion Ward for her valuable assistance in proof reading. Together with Jean Davitt who word-processes the journal we have a team which produces, I believe, a first-class publication.

The Centre’s aim to publish the ‘Maritime Australia’ poster remains an unfulfilled project principally due to lack of sponsorship. Enthusiasm from industry evidenced during Pacific 2006 in Sydney failed to garner any sponsorship dollars − likewise Commonwealth agencies, while expressing enthusiasm for the project, lack the vision to support this project which is particularly disappointing, especially at this time when vocational and skills training are a national priority. We also have an offer to update the material held by our publisher – the Exhibition Centre – so that once funding can be obtained, publication can proceed with minimum delay. (The purpose of the Poster is to engage senior school students in considering careers in marine activities, pointing out that 1,000,000 Australians figuratively put their feet in salt water every day!).

In May 2006 the Government released its response to the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs Defence and Trade Report on Australia’s Maritime Strategy. To say the least, the responses to specific recommendations were bland and obfuscatory, to the point where no particular recommendations are to be taken up with further work on specific issues. Thus recommendations made by the Committee and supported by this Association in areas such as Regional Oceans Policy and a National Shipping Policy have become peripheral issues. This is disappointing as the Report provided an opportunity for the Government to commit to the concept of Australia as a genuine maritime nation with strong policies across the board in the maritime field.

The Centre also continues to publish monthly the Australian Maritime Digest. Distributed widely to industry, institutions and governments it appears to be well-regarded and continues to fill a niche role. The number of subscribers stands at 234, which is not sufficient to sustain the publication at the current rate of subscription ($66 p.a. including GST). It would be a pity to see this useful publication go under. Sponsorship to support its publication has also been difficult to obtain. Colour has now been introduced to this publication which makes it particularly attractive.

Turning to membership the situation as at 10 September 2006 is as follows:

Corporate Members 4 (no change)

Institutional Members 50 (decrease of 5)

Individual Members 53 (decrease of 10)

Included in the above figures are a number of overseas subscribers. We still need to continue to improve our efforts to increase our membership.

The Centre’s website continues to receive four or five hits per day. These hits often result in requests for our information pack and back issues of publications, leading in turn to new members.

On the financial side the Centre recorded a profit of $127. This included more than $16,000 in donations. Understandably, the financial outlook for the Centre remains difficult, unless the membership base can be increased. Hopefully the new name for the Centre will be more attractive to individuals and the corporate world. The long-held objective of employing a part-time director is unlikely to be realised unless support can be obtained from industry, government or philanthropic organisations.

On behalf of the Board I thank most profusely our Business Manager, Mrs Jean Davitt, for her superbly efficient work in dealing with the Centre’s administration and financial matters in what has been a challenging year. One cannot speak too highly of her untiring efforts and quiet efficiency.

Finally, I would like to thank the Board for their support during the year.

I move the adoption of my report.

H.J.P. Adams

Chairman of the Board

11 September 2006

The Chairman’s report was accepted by acclamation.

5. Treasurer’s & Auditor’s Report

The Consolidated Income Statement for the Australian Association for Maritime Affairs and the Kindred Maritime Organisations was tabled. Also tabled were the statements of profit and loss, the balance sheets and the Auditor’s reports for the year 1 July 2005 to 30 June 2006 for both the Australian Association for Maritime Affairs and the Kindred Maritime Organisations. (All these documents are attached to these minutes.)

The Treasurer moved that the financial statements and the Auditor’s report be adopted/ seconded E. Davitt/CARRIED

6. Election of Auditor

The Board agreed unanimously that Mr A. Marland should be reappointed as Auditor for 2006-2007.

7. Nominations for Board Membership

The Chairman proposed that all those serving as Board Members at the end of 2005-06 be reappointed/seconded G. Newton/CARRIED. CAPT McMillan advised the Board that he could only serve on the Board until the end of 2006.

8. Election of Office Bearers

The Chairman proposed that, subject to their acceptance, all Office Bearers be reappointed/seconded E. Davitt/CARRIED.

Accepting reappointment at the meeting were Commodore H.J.P. Adams (Chairman), Mr R.E. Lesh (Treasurer), and Dr Marion Ward (Editor, Maritime Studies). In his absence Commodore W.S.G. Bateman was reappointed Vice Chairman & Managing Editor, Maritime Studies, subject to his acceptance.

Commodore Adams thanked those present for their attendance and declared the meeting closed.