Annual Report 2015-2016

Australian War Memorial Annual Report 2015–2016

Annual report for the year ended 30 June 2016, together with the financial statements and the report of the Auditor-General

Copyright © Australian War Memorial

ISSN 1441 4198

This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, recorded, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Cover:

Dedication of the sculpture Elevation of the senses, 8 October 2015.

Ewen Coates, Elevation of the senses. (detail) (AWM ART96850)

Australian War Memorial
GPO Box 345
Canberra, ACT 2601
Australia

www.awm.gov.au

INTRODUCTION TO THE REPORT

The Annual Report of the Australian War Memorial for the year ended 30 June 2016 was produced in the format for an annual report for a corporate Commonwealth entity under the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013. The report has been constructed to reflect the Memorial’s outcome and outputs structure and to address government reporting requirements.

Part One

Governance includes the Chair’s Report and details of the Council and its operations and performance.

Part Two

Corporate Operations includes the Director’s highlights and overview of the Memorial’s performance during 2015–16.

Part Three

Corporate Summary provides information on the structure and reporting framework of the Memorial.

Part Four

Annual Performance Statements details performance information against the Memorial’s outcome and against external and internal outputs.

Part Five

Accountability provides detailed information about the Memorial as required for reporting.

Part Six

Financial Statements includes the Report by the Auditor-General and Financial Statements.

Appendices

Appendices provide additional information about the Memorial, including staff profiles, collection acquisitions and disposals, and major sponsors.

Contact Officer

The contact officer for enquiries about this report is:

The Executive Officer
Corporate Services
Australian War Memorial
GPO Box 345
Canberra ACT 2601

Phone: (02) 6243 4290
Fax: (02) 6243 4330
Email: executive@awm.gov.au

A copy of this report may be found on the Memorial’s website at www.awm.gov.au

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION TO THE REPORT

CONTENTS

HIGHLIGHTS

GOVERNANCE

Governance Structure

Council of the Memorial

Council Performance

CORPORATE OPERATIONS

CORPORATE SUMMARY

Purpose

Mission

Vision

Values

Planning and Reporting Framework

Location

Organisation Chart and Senior Staff

Branch Descriptions

Focus on … 

ANNUAL PERFORMANCE STATEMENTS

Outcome and Outputs Structure

Overall Performance against the Outcome

Commemoration performance indicator 

Accessibility performance indicator

Knowledge and understanding performance indicator 

OUTPUT 1.1 Commemorative Ceremonies

Overview

Other commemorative activities

OUTPUT 1.2 The National Memorial and Grounds

Overview 

Other related activities

OUTPUT 1.3 The National Collection

OUTPUT 1.4 Exhibitions

Overview 

OUTPUT 1.5 Interpretive Services 

Overview 

OUTPUT 1.6 Promotions and Community Services 

Overview 

OUTPUT 1.7 Research, Information, and Dissemination 

OUTPUT 1.8 Visitor Services 

INTERNAL OUTPUTS 

OUTPUT 1.9 Corporate Governance 

OUTPUT 1.10 Executive Strategic Management 

OUTPUT 1.11 Resource Management 

OUTPUT 1.12 Revenue Generation 

OUTPUT 1.13 Team Management 

ACCOUNTABILITY 

Legislation, Functions, and Powers 

Enabling legislation 

Functions of the Memorial 

Powers of the Memorial 

Responsible Minister 

Powers of the Minister 

Internal and External Audits 

Fraud Control 

Effects of Ministerial Directions 

Government policy order under section 22 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 

Indemnities and Insurance Premiums 

Legal Actions

Ombudsman

Social Justice and Equity

Advertising and market research expenditure

Freedom of Information Act 1982

Freedom of Information Act 1982, statistics 2015–16 

Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act 1999, Section 516A Statement 

Energy consumption and environmental management 

Heritage management 

Work Health and Safety 

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 

APPENDICES 

APPENDIX 1 

Council membership 

APPENDIX 2 

Council profiles 

APPENDIX 3 

Senior Staff Profiles 

APPENDIX 4 

APPENDIX 5 

Key Acquisitions and Disposals 

APPENDIX 6 

APPENDIX 7 

Staff publications, lectures and talks 

APPENDIX 8 

APPENDIX 9 

Glossary 

Compliance Index 

Index 

HIGHLIGHTS

The year in figures …

Visitors:

• More than 1.232 million visitors came to the Memorial, its storage facility in Mitchell, and its touring exhibitions

  › 1.084 million to the Memorial

  › 3,008 to the storage facility in Mitchell

  › 145,264 to touring exhibitions

• More than 130,680 school student visitors
• More than 340,000 visitors made their first visit to the Memorial
• High attendances at ceremonies:

  › 153,242 at the Last Post Ceremonies

  › 55,000 at the Anzac Day Dawn Service

  › 11,500 at the Anzac Day National Ceremony

  › 3,900 at the Remembrance Day National Ceremony

• More than 130,200 visitors attended Memorial public programs, facilitated programs and special events
• At least 12 free highlight tours were conducted by voluntary guides each day
• Media coverage to an audience of more than 33.719 million during the Anzac Day period

Collection:

• More than 17,560 items acquired for the National Collection
• More than 423,940 National Collection items that can be accessed via online public databases

Education:

• 97 Memorial Boxes loaned to 453 schools across the country and used by more than 54,400 students
• More than 5,231 students participated in school wreathlaying ceremonies
• Professional development sessions provided to 115 school teachers and librarians, representatives of other cultural institutions, and tourism industry professionals

Research and online access:

• More than 5.495 million visits to the website
• Almost 77,500 followers on Facebook
• More than 1.9 million views of Memorial photographs on Flickr
• More than 32,760 visitors to the Reading Room accessed more than 18,830 collection items
• More than 14,840 research enquiries were answered

Australian War Memorial Annual Report 2015–2016

GOVERNANCE

As the Director of the Australian War Memorial, Dr Brendan Nelson, noted in his address to the crowd gathered for the 2016 Anzac Day Dawn Service:

With a sense of awkward humility, abiding reverence, and overwhelming pride, we pause here at the Australian War Memorial – free and confident heirs to a legacy born of idealism, forged in self-sacrifice, and passed now to our generation.

We gather in renewed commitment to one another, our nation, and the ideals of mankind.

As the Centenary of the First World War moves into its second year, we are faced with continued challenges, as well as great opportunities.

100 years ago Australians were engaged in battles from Gallipoli in the east, to France and Belgium in the west. As a nation, we faced the awful reality of the campaign on Gallipoli, where the men who fought forged a name for themselves as some of the bravest and best, while on the Western Front the enormity of that Great War was yet to become apparent.

100 years later, the Australian War Memorial has been able to continue to tell the stories of the Australian men and women who fought for the great ideals of our young nation in the First World War, who took up the fight again in the Second World War, and then again in the conflicts that have presented our nation with new challenges in the 70 years since that time.

The Australian War Memorial in 2015–16 has taken up the challenge of telling these stories and allowing Australians of all ages, in all parts of our country, to commemorate the efforts of these men and women. The Council of the Australian War Memorial has continued to reaffirm its commitment to the stories of men and women who have given everything for our nation in the 100 years since the First World War, and is working to ensure that Australians are able to commemorate their sacrifice for the next 100 years.

At the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, we have built on the legacy of 2015 by continuing to offer new ways for Australians to understand the Australian experience of war. That Australians came to the 2016 Anzac Day Dawn Service in greater numbers, notwithstanding the record attendance at the Centenary Dawn Service, is clear evidence that as a nation we continue to honour the service and sacrifice of those who have gone before. That significant numbers attended the 2015 Remembrance Day service, despite the pouring rain, is still further tribute.

The most significant battles fought during the Gallipoli campaign – Lone Pine, The Nek, and Sari Bair – were commemorated in front of near-record attendance at the Memorial’s daily Last Post ceremonies. The evacuation of the Gallipoli Peninsula was commemorated a few days before Christmas, on 20 December, marking 100 years since the end of the conflict that has defined Australian soldiers for 100 years.

While 2015 was the first year of the Centenary of the First World War, in this year the Australian War Memorial also commemorated the 70th anniversary of Victory in the Pacific, which brought the Second World War to a close. Commemorating the end of the most destructive conflict in human history, we remembered the lives of the men and women who participated, and the future those who celebrated the end of that conflict were gifted.

On Remembrance Day 2015 we acknowledged one of the soldiers in that conflict, Captain Reginald ‘Reg’ Saunders MBE, who served in the Second World War and the Korean War, was awarded an MBE for his service, and was the first Indigenous Australian to receive a commission as an officer in the Australian Army. Captain Saunders has been honoured by the Australian War Memorial with a gallery, the Captain Reg Saunders Gallery and Courtyard, named for him and his service.

This year was significant for the Australian War Memorial in other ways as well. Record numbers of Australians and international visitors walked through the front gates, spurred by the centenary of the start of the First World War and the magnificent new First World War galleries.

The 2015–16 financial year has been one of great challenge, but also of great promise. As with other Australian government agencies, the Memorial continues to operate in a tight fiscal environment, ever conscious of upholding our mission and our values. We have continued to work successfully with partners in the private sector, and convey the thanks of the Council of the Australian War Memorial to BHP Billiton Sustainable Communities, Seven Group Holdings, the Seven Network, Lockheed Martin, Boeing Australia, BAE Systems, Qantas, Kingold, and Thales. Of course the commemoration efforts of the Australian War Memorial would also not be possible without the support of the De Lambert Largesse Foundation, RSL and Services Clubs across the nation, and the associations of individual services and units.

There have been a number of changes to the Council of the Australian War Memorial during 2015–16. We farewell two members: the Honourable Graham Edwards AM, and Ms Gabrielle Trainor. Mr Edwards and Ms Trainor have been invaluable in their tireless work for the Council, their vision for the future of the Australian War Memorial, and their deeply-held belief in the role of our Memorial within Australian society. We have also welcomed Mr James McMahon to the Council, and at the beginning of 2016–17 will welcome Wing Commander Sharon Bown (Retd) and Corporal Daniel Keighran (Retd). With the addition of Mr McMahon, Wing Commander Bown, and Corporal Keighran, I am assured that the Australian War Memorial will continue to tell the stories of the Australian experience of war to new generations for years to come.

Special tribute should also be paid to Rear Admiral Ken Doolan AO RAN (Retd) whose steadfast leadership of the Council of the Australian War Memorial has guided this great institution for the past three years. Rear Admiral Doolan has guided the Memorial through significant changes to its operations and galleries, and has ensured that it will have a special place in the heart of Australians for many years to come. Rear Admiral Doolan’s efforts have been tireless, and his continued work as a member of the Council pays further tribute to his dedication to the Australian War Memorial. On a personal note, I was honoured to accept the legacy as Chairman of the Australian War Memorial from Rear Admiral Doolan.

As we begin another financial year, the Council of the Australian War Memorial will continue to look towards our future as we put in place the means to continue to tell the stories of Australians at war. Work has begun in earnest to write the Official history of Australian peacekeeping, humanitarian and post–Cold War operations, the Independent history of the medical legacies of the Vietnam War, and the Official history of Australian operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Australian peacekeeping operations in East Timor. Plans are also in place to ensure that our galleries continue to remain relevant and engaging for all Australians.

However, we cannot rest on the laurels of the past. The Council of the Australian War Memorial will continue to work with the government to ensure that the Australian War Memorial has the facilities available to tell not only the stories of conflicts long past, but recent conflicts and, with a somewhat heavy heart, those that might occur in the future. As Australians, we owe it to the men and women who participate in future conflicts to tell their stories alongside those of the men who waded ashore on Gallipoli on 25 April 1915, or who flew missions over Germany as a part of Bomber Command in 1943.

Finally, I extend my sincerest thanks, on behalf of the Council, to the Director of the Australian War Memorial, Dr Brendan Nelson, and the dedicated staff that he leads for their hard work, dedication, and initiative. I thank all of them, paid employees and volunteers, for what they do for our nation. Along with every visitor to the Memorial, the Spirit of Anzac Centenary Exhibition, or the Memorial’s website, they carry a commitment to our nation and the ideals of mankind, and we remain truly thankful for this.

Mr Kerry Stokes AC

Chair

Australian War Memorial Annual Report 2015–2016

Dr Brendan Nelson AO and Mr Kerry Stokes AC Chairman of the Council of the Australian War Memorial attend the opening of the Anzac Centenary Print Portfolio at Parliament House.

Governance Structure

The Australian War Memorial was established as a statutory authority under, and draws its authority from, the Australian War Memorial Act 1980 (the Act). The Act allows for the appointment of a Council and a Director as Chief Executive Officer of the Memorial.

The performance of the Memorial and the accountability of its Council and management are subject to the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013, which imposes key reporting, financial, and pecuniary obligations on the Memorial and its Council members. Many of these are modelled on provisions which apply under corporations law, particularly those for directors.

The Memorial is subject to other acts that bear on its operation, and is accountable to the government through the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs. It has a strong link to the Department of Finance for budgetary processes, appropriations, grants, and financial management processes, and it follows the better practice guides produced and regularly updated by the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO). The Memorial adheres to Australian accounting standards in the preparation of its financial reports and follows best practice in its financial management.

Council of the Memorial

The Council of the Australian War Memorial is established by Section 9 of the Australian War Memorial Act 1980.

The Council is responsible for the conduct and control of the affairs of the Memorial, and the policy of the Memorial with respect to any matters is determined by the Council. In particular, the Council:

• establishes the strategic direction and vision of the Memorial
• approves the goals and key objectives of the Memorial
• approves the annual budget and monitors expenditure and financial reporting, including for major projects
• ensures agreed corporate objectives are met
• adopts a strategic plan, which includes a business plan with objectives and key reporting measures
• ensures the Memorial has adequate financial resources to meet known and planned future commitments
• ensures that systems, processes, and internal controls are in place for effective management and monitoring of the principal risks to which the Memorial is exposed
• ensures that satisfactory procedures are in place for auditing the Memorial’s financial affairs and that the scope of internal and external audit is adequate
• ensures decisions made are consistent with the ethos of the Memorial
• ensures that the Memorial communicates effectively with the public and key stakeholders
• monitors and evaluates the performance of the Director.

Council performance

Council reviews its performance at least once a year in terms of the achievement of targets associated with the outputs specified in the Business Plan. A report on Council activities is included under Output 1.9.

New Council members are expected to undertake orientation training before attending a Council meeting, and all are provided with a manual that outlines the functioning of the Council in terms of applicable acts and members’ responsibilities.

Details of Council membership, Council committee membership, and terms of reference for committees are in Appendix 1.

Profiles of Council members can be found in Appendix 2.

CORPORATE OPERATIONS

This past year has been one of many anniversaries, significant additions to the collection, and moving ceremonies. As commemorations of the Centenary of the First World War continue, the Memorial remembered the battles of Lone Pine, the Nek, the August Offensive, and the evacuation from Gallipoli with moving Last Post ceremonies.

In contrast, the spectacle of two Chinook helicopters hovering over the Australian War Memorial for over 20 minutes was one which excited staff, visitors, and Canberra residents. After landing close to the Memorial’s annex at Mitchell, I was proud to accept the key to CH-47D Chinook A15-202 "Centaur" as it became a part of the National Collection.

The redeveloped First World War galleries continue to attract a steady flow of visitors, with audio handsets providing an enhanced experience of the exhibition. After opening to the public in July, the last surviving German tank of the First World War, A7V No. 506 "Mephisto" has also been a popular must-see for visitors. This sole surviving tank of its type will be on display until March 2017. The powerfully visual temporary exhibition Reality in flames: modern Australian art and the Second World War explores how modern Australian artists have responded creatively to the Second World War.

Telling the story of current conflicts is a major priority for the future development of the Memorial, and is critical for those who have served or are currently serving in regions of conflict. With limited space, the Memorial has expanded the Australians in Iraq 2003 exhibition, displaying powerful black and white images of service personnel and the landscape by official photographer David Dare Parker. Plans are underway to further tell the story of conflicts in the Middle East Area of Operations, including investigations into additional space for Afghanistan. The personal stories recorded in Afghanistan: the Australian story continue to create a strong emotional connection with visitors. Additional stories have recently been recorded to enhance the exhibition and will become part of a DVD that is soon to be released.

I am grateful to the families, museums, and associations that have loaned the Memorial rarely seen Victoria Cross medals. Over the next few years, the Memorial is hoping to display as many of the 100 VC medals awarded to Australians as possible, alongside their stories. These simple medals, created from metal and a single-coloured ribbon, represent extraordinary courage and tenacity in the face of extraordinary danger.

We honoured the life and service of Captain Reginald ‘Reg’ Saunders MBE. The Western Gallery and Courtyard was renamed the Captain Reg Saunders Gallery and Courtyard. With Captain Saunders’ daughter and other family members in attendance, Indigenous historian and academic Dr Jackie Huggins presented the keynote address, with a special presentation by singer-songwriter John Schumann.

On Remembrance Day 2016, it will be 75 years since the opening of the Memorial. This magnificent building has been a dominating feature of the Canberra landscape, but is showing signs of wear – in particular, the sandstone sculptures in the Commemorative Area. Master stonemasons were commissioned to carve replicas, using the original maquettes, in a temporary workshop on site, designed with a window so visitors could view the re-creation of these iconic sculptures. The western side of the Commemorative Area is complete, along with refreshed garden beds, and plans are underway to complete the eastern side.

Two new memorial sculptures were dedicated within the Sculpture Garden. As one of his first public engagements as Prime Minister, the Honourable Malcom Turnbull MP attended the unveiling of the War correspondents memorial. This curved granite oculus, designed by architects Johnson Pilton Walker, honours the journalists, photographers, film and sound crews, writers, and artists who have travelled to war zones to record the horrors of battle and the Australian experience of war. In October, Dr Harry Cooper and Tania Kernaghan participated in the dedication of the Elevation of the senses sculpture by artist Ewen Coates. This striking sculpture conveys the vital role and contribution of dogs and their handlers in war, and highlights the deep bonds that are forged between the two, as well as the mutual dependence on which their work is based. A number of dogs and their handlers attended the dedication ceremony and stayed for the moving Last Post Ceremony which commemorated the service of Sapper Darren Smith and his explosive detection dog Herbie.

The Memorial’s former travelling exhibition program continued despite budgetary restraints. Through the generous support of Wesfarmers, Remember me: the lost diggers of Vignacourt travelled to Perth, Albany, Kalgoorlie, and Geraldton in Western Australia. This very moving exhibition drew over 54,000 visitors in Western Australia, while total visitation for the tour to date is 178,000. Similarly, Thales Australia supported the Ben Quilty: after Afghanistan exhibition to tour Darwin, Townsville, and Castlemaine. The exhibition series Australians on the Western Front, 1916–1918 is a joint project with the RSL and Services Clubs Association and the Memorial. Commencing in February, the exhibition has toured eight venues so far. The popular exhibition, A camera on Gallipoli: the photographs of Charles Ryan, which features a selection of remarkable images taken by Sir Charles Ryan in Egypt and on Gallipoli in 1914 and 1915, visited six venues in digital and graphic formats.

Strong positive visitor feedback continues as the Spirit of Anzac Centenary Experience tours around Australia. Popular in both regional and major cities, the response from local communities is universally positive, with many expressing their appreciation in the most glowing terms. Additional funding for this project was welcome, and has allowed it to continue to all planned venues.

Beyond exhibitions, the Memorial continues to produce major publications – in particular, official histories of Australia’s involvement in war and other operations. With financial support from government, the Official history of Australian operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Australian peacekeeping operations in East Timor will be completed under the auspices of the Australian War Memorial, and I welcome Professor Craig Stockings as the Official Historian to lead his team of six authors and many researchers as they commence this six-to-seven-year project. Dr Peter Yule has been appointed to write the Independent history of the medical legacies of the Vietnam War, due for publication in 2020. Specialist epidemiologist Dr Michael Fett has been appointed to assist this project, which will identify health impacts and consequences of the war, and veteran’s post-war experiences. Work continues on volumes I, IV, V and VI of the Official history of Australian peacekeeping, humanitarian and post–Cold War operations, which are due for completion in stages during 2016 and 2017.

The Official War Art Scheme is one of the longest running and largest commissioning programs in Australia. Initiated during the First World War, the Memorial has continued this tradition by commissioning the artist Dr Dacchi Dang to produce work depicting the experience of Vietnamese and Australians during the Vietnam War. Turkish artist Köken Ergun has been commissioned to develop a film-based work exploring the shared Turkish–Australian legacy of Gallipoli. The David Jolly commission capturing the centenary Dawn Service on Gallipoli, is complete and currently on display in the Captain Reg Saunders Gallery.

Families continue to visit the Memorial to view specific names projected onto the dome of the Hall of Memory at night. Each name from the First World War Roll of Honour, which contains more than 60,000 names, will appear for 30 seconds on up to 30 occasions over the four years of the centenary period. Since the project commenced in August 2014, it is estimated that approximately 1,500 visitors have gathered and paused through the night and predawn darkness to see a particular name. The Roll of Honour Soundscape, which voices the names and ages of those on the First World War Roll of Honour, has seen additional names added to the recording. Schools and students have been eager to contribute to this commemorative project, and I thank the ABC radio stations for their ongoing support by providing the recording studios to make this project possible.

Students remain one of the Memorial’s key audiences. The Memorial continues to produce high–quality education programs, as a strong part of the Australian national curriculum, to ensure that young people continue to engage, connect, and think critically about our history. These programs link strongly to classroom learning, focusing on the individual experience of war in the context of broader conflicts. School children who visit the Memorial contribute to the Commemorative Cross project by inscribing individual wooden crosses with personal tributes during their visit. The crosses are then delivered to Australian ambassadors and high commissioners in 39 countries, to be placed on Australian war graves and memorials.

Rain did not dampen the enthusiasm of visitors on Remembrance Day 2015. Many turned out to welcome His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales and Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cornwall who jointly laid a wreath at the Stone of Remembrance. His Excellency General the Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove AK MC (Retd), Governor-General of the Commonwealth Australia, and the Honourable Malcolm Turnbull, Prime Minister of Australia, were also in attendance. Of most importance, Dr Jackie Huggins delivered the first commemorative address by an Indigenous Australian. She spoke movingly of her family’s service to our nation through two world wars.

After extraordinary numbers at last year’s Anzac Day centenary ceremonies (128,000), 55,000 paused in pre-dawn darkness this year. This far exceeded the 37,000 who attended in 2014 and suggests interest continues to grow. Images from the First World War photographic collection were projected onto the façade of the Memorial from dusk until 5.15 am. Prior to the service, Lieutenant Commander Desmond Woods, Air Commodore Stephen Osborne, and Lance Corporal Daniel Haddad read excerpts from letters and diaries, the first two taken from conflicts spanning a century, and the final readings focusing on contemporary experiences. At 5:30 am the silence was broken and the Dawn Service commenced with Sergeant Norman Daymirringu, Elder of the Manharrngu people, playing the didgeridoo. Sergeant Daymirringu later commenced the National Ceremony, which this year saw a change in format, with the Turkish reading of President Ataturk’s 1934 message of reconciliation, delivered by Major General Abdullah Baysar. Strong numbers attended the veterans’ march, and the commemorative address was delivered by the Prime Minister, the Honourable Malcolm Turnbull MP.

The Last Post Ceremony conducted every evening at the Memorial is one of the Memorial’s most meaningful and poignant offerings. The Memorial’s staff have invested immense commitment in this simple, nightly ceremony. Last Post ceremonies are increasingly a means by which military units and associations commemorate anniversaries or service. Requests from families and veterans’ associations continue to grow, with an average of around 300 requests annually. In addition to commemorating First World War events, many other significant anniversaries and milestones were commemorated over the last 12 months, including: the 75th anniversary of the Siege of Tobruk and the Battle of Bardia; the 70th anniversary of Victory in the Pacific; 65 years since the Battle of Kapyong; and the 25th anniversary of the end of the Gulf War. Ceremonies also acknowledged 75 years since the establishment of the Women’s Auxiliary Australian Air Force, and 115 years since the colonial armies were merged to form the Commonwealth Military Forces.

The ever popular Big things in store was held again in September, with the Memorial annex at Mitchell opening its doors to the public. Over 2,000 visitors took the opportunity to see a wide range of collection items, including large technology items that are unable to be displayed in the current galleries. One large technology object now on display for visitors to the Memorial is a Bushmaster Protected Mobility Vehicle. Sitting alongside the Centurion tank, this iconic Australian-made vehicle saw operational service in Iraq in 2005 and 2006, and Afghanistan from 2006 to 2010.

In late July, soil was collected from the base of the Lone Pine tree in the Memorial grounds and transported to Gallipoli, where it was added to other soils from Gallipoli battlefields. The soil was cleansed in a smoking ceremony and returned to Australia. An Indigenous Soil Return Ceremony was held in November to replace the cleansed soil at the base of the tree. This ceremony is based on a traditional Indigenous Australian ceremony; just as the Unknown Australian Soldier represents the bringing home of the physical remains of all Australians, the returning of soil symbolises a spiritual homecoming.

Sound financial management practices are in place and we will continue to manage our operations within the Memorial’s available funding. Considerable effort is being invested in seeking government and non-government sources of support for the Memorial. In this context, I thank those companies and individuals who have partnered with the Memorial and contributed to its work as the soul of the nation. We are very grateful to our generous supporters and partners, including BHP Billiton Sustainable Communities, Mr Kerry Stokes AC, Seven Group Holdings, the Seven Network, Boeing Australia, Qantas, Lockheed Martin, BAE Systems, Thales Australia, Kingold, RSL Victoria, RSL Queensland, RSL New South Wales and Services Clubs, and the De Lambert Largesse Foundation. I also thank the Commonwealth Government, the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, and ministers, Senator the Honourable Michael Ronaldson, the Honourable Stuart Robert, and the Honourable Dan Tehan MP for their ongoing support.

My appreciation goes to Rear Admiral Ken Doolan AO RAN (Retd) who retired as Chair in November 2015. Appointed to Council in 2009, he served as Chair from March 2012. Admiral Doolan, with the strong support of his wife Elaine, was very active in Memorial events and ceremonies, and his leadership and support to management is deeply appreciated. Mr Kerry Stokes AC was appointed Chair in November, and I thank him and all members of Council for their leadership, oversight, strategic direction, and guidance.

This has been a busy year for the Memorial, and little would have been achieved without the talent, enthusiasm, and commitment of the Memorial’s staff and our many volunteers in their various capacities. I thank them and acknowledge their professional and passionate contributions. This year marks 40 years since the delivery of the first free guided tour. Fittingly, the Voluntary Guides were awarded the Team Award in the Education, Science and Technology category of the 2016 ACT Volunteer of the Year Awards. The Memorial currently has 150 credited volunteers who undergo rigorous training and reassessment to provide professional and informative interpretive services to visitors.

In particular, I thank my Assistant Directors Rhonda Adler and Leanne Patterson from Corporate Services, Tim Sullivan from the National Collection branch, and Anne Bennie in Public Programs for their support, expertise, commitment, and leadership. It is their work that has delivered so much and prepared the Memorial so well for its future in service to the nation.

The achievements and dedication of staff, I believe, is reflected in the news that the world’s top online travel reviewer, TripAdvisor, ranked the Australian War Memorial as the Number One Landmark in Australia and the South Pacific in the 2016 TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice awards, ahead of Sydney’s Opera House and Harbour Bridge. This is as much a tribute to the service and sacrifice of the men and women whose lives we honour as it is to our staff and volunteers. Australians can be immensely proud of each and every one of them. I certainly am.

A nation reveals itself in subtle but powerful ways. We honour most the idealism and heroism of the everyday Australian. Enshrined in stained glass windows standing sentinel above the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier are 15 values informing character:

RESOURCE CANDOUR DEVOTION CURIOSITY INDEPENDENCE COMRADESHIP ANCESTRY PATRIOTISM CHIVALRY LOYALTY COOLNESS CONTROL AUDACITY ENDURANCE DECISION

These values stem not only from the men and women of 100 years ago, but are found in those who today continue to serve others in the Australian Defence Force. Their stories need to be told, and will be told. As we respond to emerging, unseen horizons, the Memorial will continue to tell the Australian experience of war. Charles Bean, when putting the case to parliament for a permanent war museum and memorial reminded them "how precious to those who died in the dawn of Ypres and elsewhere, was the thought that, whatever happened, their homeland would remember them".

We do remember them – they will not be forgotten.

Dr Brendan Nelson AO

Director

CORPORATE SUMMARY

Purpose

The purpose of the Australian War Memorial is to commemorate the sacrifice of those Australians who have died in war or on operational service.

Mission

To assist Australians to remember, interpret, and understand the Australian experience of war and its enduring impact on Australian society.

Vision

Our vision is for the Memorial to:

• play the leading role in the nation’s commemoration of the Australian experience of war
• engage with people and communities to achieve our purpose
• collaborate with a wide range of stakeholders and partners to create mutual long-term value
• be a workplace that inspires integrity and excellence.

Values

The Memorial is committed to the Australian Public Service values:

Impartial

The APS is apolitical and provides the government with advice that is frank, honest, timely, and based on the best available evidence.

Committed to service

The APS is professional, objective, innovative, and efficient, and works collaboratively to achieve the best results for the Australian community and the government.

Accountable

The APS is open and accountable to the Australian community under the law and within the framework of ministerial responsibility.

Respectful

The APS respects all people, including their rights and their heritage.

Ethical

The APS demonstrates leadership, is trustworthy, and acts with integrity in all that it does.

Australian War Memorial Annual Report 2015–2016

Planning and Reporting Framework

The Memorial is a statutory authority within the Veterans’ Affairs portfolio, and is responsible for functions in accordance with the requirements of the Australian War Memorial Act 1980, the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013, and other applicable acts. The Memorial’s strategic direction and policies are set by its Council, which typically meets four times per year.

Management and implementation of strategies and policies are the responsibility of the Director, who is a Statutory Appointee under the Australian War Memorial Act 1980.

The strategic direction for the Memorial over 2015–16 has been provided by the Memorial’s Corporate Plan. The plan includes, among other things, the outcomes to be achieved by the Memorial, as well as its vision, corporate priorities, and values. The Corporate Plan, approved and regularly reviewed by Council, provides the framework for drafting the annual Business Plan and its related budget. This identifies the outputs that relate to the priorities: all Memorial activities are linked directly to these outputs with associated performance targets. Performance information related to these outputs is contained later in this report.

The Memorial has a number of other plans that focus on particular activities, including collection development, collection documentation, collection conservation, gallery and site development, audit, business risk, business continuity, budget, fraud control, information technology, workplace diversity, and security of physical assets, people, and information.

Further details of applicable legislation, functions, and powers can be found in Part 5.

Location

The Memorial’s main site is located at the northern end of Anzac Parade, in Campbell in the Australian Capital Territory, with storage and collection facilities approximately nine kilometres away in Mitchell.

Organisation Chart and Senior Staff

The day-to-day corporate operations are conducted by management in accordance with the policies and strategic direction set by the Council of the Memorial. The management structure of the Memorial comprises three branches based on functional responsibilities, but outputs are achieved by cross-branch activities.

Project teams for particular tasks are established as required. These draw on staff from sections across the Memorial and are managed and coordinated by the Memorial’s senior executive committee, the Corporate Management Group (CMG), which comprises the Director and three assistant directors. CMG meets weekly and is responsible for overall leadership and management and implementation of strategies and policies, and for the regular review of performance. For all financial matters, the Chief Finance Officer attends CMG and also has direct access to the Director as necessary.

Profiles of senior staff are at Appendix 3.

Branch Descriptions

National Collection

The National Collection branch develops, manages, conserves, researches, and interprets the National Collection and makes it accessible through an extensive range of programs.

The Memorial’s collection is an invaluable resource comprising the historical and cultural artefacts of Australia’s experience of war and our involvement in peacekeeping, humanitarian, and other operational service. It underpins the Memorial’s capability to tell the stories of Australian service in exhibitions and other public programs, to educate and inform its visitors, and to meet the information needs of public enquiries, researchers, and academic and official organisations.

Each section of the branch manages a particular collection type and provides management information services to provide the essential historical and cultural contact of the collection. The National Collection branch comprise Art; Military Heraldry and Technology; Photographs, Film and Sound; the Research Centre; and Collection Services. Curators in these areas are responsible for researching and developing the collection; ensuring that it is accessible, well documented, and appropriately stored and conserved; and that its significance is understood. National Collection staff provide the intellectual input to the curatorial development and interpretation of exhibitions and public programs, deal with public and official enquiries, engage in archival research and access, and make collection material available online. Collection Services staff provide expert services in conservation, storage, movement, and physical handling of the collection, as well as management of the collection management system. The branch also manages the Roll of Honour and Commemorative Roll, national and international loans of Memorial material, and donations of historically significant material.

The Branch maintains liaison with the Australian Defence Force and its history and heritage units through the Collections Coordination Group (CCG), which enables the Memorial to maintain its traditions of collection in the field during current operations.

Public Programs

The function of the Public Programs branch is to engage all Australians and visitors in commemoration through ceremonies, exhibitions, education, interpretation, digital engagement, and marketing services.

The branch develops and undertakes activities to enhance commemoration at the Memorial and throughout the Australian community. It does this by conducting major ceremonies to mark anniversaries relating to Australia’s experience of war, in particular Anzac Day and Remembrance Day, and by producing and conducting the daily Last Post Ceremony to remember those individuals who lost their lives in conflict. Through the exhibitions program the branch contributes to the remembrance and understanding of the Australian experience of war by developing and maintaining world-class museum exhibitions incorporating multimedia and interactive displays, relics, photographs, and works of art. The Memorial’s goals are further supported through a program of changing temporary displays and exhibitions in the Special Exhibitions Gallery. The Memorial’s Touring Exhibition program has been able to continue due to much-appreciated support from sponsors.

The Public Programs branch conducts research to identify the needs and expectations of visitors and major interest groups, and evaluates the extent to which those needs are being met. It conducts a program of public events and a range of visitor services, including those provided by the Memorial’s volunteers and historians. The branch develops and implements education programs that are linked with national education curriculum, both for delivery on site and as part of its outreach strategy. A focused digital experience has commenced to provide a deeper and more connected Memorial experience through further development of the website and use of social media channels.

The branch is also responsible for seeking, managing, and servicing development and sponsorship opportunities; developing and coordinating marketing initiatives across the Memorial; providing public relations direction and support; supplying authoritative historical research and interpretation; and researching and writing the official history of Australia’s involvement in peacekeeping, humanitarian, and post–Cold War operations.

The Public Programs branch has also had the responsibility for coordinating many Memorial activities in relation to the Centenary of Anzac.

Corporate Services

The Corporate Services Branch is responsible for the delivery of a range of internal and external governance, compliance, and resource management functions. Implementation of government reforms relevant to the Memorial is also coordinated by the branch.

The branch facilitates the management of the Memorial’s resources, including staff, finances, facilities, information technology, and office services. It provides grounds and property management, communications strategies, and security and records management services. It is responsible for corporate planning and issues relating to administrative law, public liability, fraud control, risk management, and ethics. Corporate Services also manages tax administration, financial policy, internal audit, and asset management. The branch is also responsible for management of the Memorial Shop and e-Business.

Executive functions and ministerial and parliamentary liaison are also coordinated in this branch.

Focus on …

Grief is an intensely personal response. Yet at the Last Post Ceremony it merges with solemnity to become part of the nation’s response to the loss of the more than 102,000 men and women listed on the Roll of Honour. As Project Officer for the Last Post Ceremony I am privileged to work closely with families whose common hope is that their loved ones are remembered as individuals. These are the first principles of the ceremony: the story of one who died in uniform, the family and friends that were left behind, and a nation that must never forget the perils of war.

As a history and English teacher, I was working in the Memorial’s Education Section in early 2013 when the Director introduced changes to the closing ceremony, which would become known as the Last Post Ceremony. I am proud to have been a part of the project since its inception. With my husband and daughter serving in the Royal Australian Navy, I feel very grateful to work in a job that pays tribute to those in uniform and the families that support them.

Our two-person team, Jennifer Surtees and I, coordinate the planning of each ceremony including liaison with families, veterans, and Defence. We work alongside the Military History Section for the stories, Multimedia for the production of images and broadcasting of the ceremony, and the Visitor Services team, whose empathy and professionalism ensures the daily delivery of a world class commemorative ceremony.

I am also honoured to work closely with our current Australian Defence Force members. There can be no more powerful representation of service and sacrifice than to stand in the Commemorative Area and witness one who is currently serving read the story of one who has served before.

The most rewarding part is knowing that in some small measure I am helping to ensure that we have not forgotten those that have died in uniform, that we are united in recognising the cost of service to families, and that the individual stories of those on the Roll of Honour become part of the nation’s memory, now and for future generations.

Jodi Hammond

Project Officer, Last Post Ceremony

The Last Post Ceremony began around the time I started work at the Memorial as a historian. In my first few weeks it was suggested I might like to write "a few stories" to contribute to the project. Three years later, I have researched and written more than 670 stories for the project and have coordinated the production of another 1,000 by my colleagues in the Military History Section.

The Last Post Ceremony project is not just an exercise in understanding the lives of the soldiers and their experience; this project has opened a window into the day to day lives of ordinary Australians. It has been incredibly rewarding to take a name from the Roll of Honour and discover the life and character of that person. We are able to present to the public the stories of individuals who had families, friends, hobbies, and personalities, and who gave their lives in service of our nation.

While at times the project can become somewhat repetitive, a visit to a Last Post Ceremony quickly demonstrates the resonance these stories have with the public. No other historians have such an immediate example of the impact of their work. We are very lucky to be working on this project.

Meleah Hampton

Historian, Last Post Ceremony

ANNUAL PERFORMANCE STATEMENTS

Outcome and Outputs Structure

Australian government agencies are required to measure their performance in terms of Outcomes. These are the results, impacts, or consequences of their actions on the Australian community. The performance of the Australian War Memorial is expressed in terms of a single Outcome:

Australians remember, interpret, and understand the Australian experience of war and its enduring impact on Australian society.

The Outcome will be achieved through the maintenance and development of the national memorial and a national collection of historical material, and through commemorative ceremonies, exhibitions, research, interpretation, and dissemination.

The Memorial delivers 13 programs, five of which are internally generated, to achieve the Outcome:

External programs

Output 1.1: Commemorative Ceremonies

Output 1.2: The National Memorial and Grounds

Output 1.3: The National Collection

Output 1.4: Exhibitions

Output 1.5: Interpretive Services

Output 1.6: Promotions and Community Services

Output 1.7: Research, Information, and Dissemination

Output 1.8: Visitor Services

Internal programs

Output 1.9: Corporate Governance

Output 1.10: Executive Strategy Management

Output 1.11: Resource Management

Output 1.12: Revenue Generation

Output 1.13: Team Management

A Bible given to Arthur Edwin Cooper prior to his embarkation for the First World War by the Bakers Road Methodist Church in Melbourne.

Australian War Memorial Annual Report 2015–2016

Overall Performance against the Outcome

… we are out to make our war museum, our war gallery, our war library, if possible, not merely fine museums for Australia, but the finest that the world contains.

Charles Bean, Memorial founder.

We have different audiences with sometimes mutually exclusive characteristics but they are almost singular in their desire to see and experience everything the Memorial has to offer. As our audiences change the Memorial strives to evolve, taking sophisticated approaches to interpretation, communication, and commemoration. These approaches will be evident throughout this report.

In the push and pull of modern life, finding the time to pursue personal interests or enjoy leisure time can be challenging. The 2015 Centenary of Anzac created significant impetus for people to travel to Canberra, contribute their solemn presence to the Memorial’s commemorative ceremonies, and acknowledge the experiences of Australian military personnel through their time and interest in the Memorial’s galleries.

The 2015–16 financial year includes the second half of the Centenary of Anzac commemorations and the start of the post-centenary period for the Memorial. The number of visitors walking through the front doors has increased on last year, as those who did not come over the last two years now make a return visit. The number of people motivated to visit specifically by the Centenary of Anzac decreased by 13 per cent to 28 per cent, but general visits grew by seven per cent – public interest in our military history is not on the wane. To see the Memorial in general is still the main reason people are coming, with 86 per cent citing this in the annual general visitor survey.

The Memorial’s contribution to Canberra was in the spotlight this year, with audience research highlighting the contribution made to the local community. When interstate Memorial visitors are asked what their main purpose was for visiting Canberra, "to see the Memorial" is typically in third place, behind holiday/leisure and to visit friends or family. This year, visiting the Memorial moved up and was the second most prominent reason (26 per cent) followed by "to visit friends or relatives" (19 per cent). As another measure of satisfaction, visitors were asked as part of the general visitor survey if they would return again to the Memorial. An overwhelming 92 per cent said that they would return.

The Memorial’s growing national and international presence was expressed through unsolicited feedback provided through the TripAdvisor website, with patrons of the website voting to rank the Memorial number 23 of the top 25 landmarks in the world, above the Sydney Opera House.

Commemoration performance indicator

Whether people were actively involved in commemoration by attending the national Anzac Day and Remembrance Day ceremonies and other commemorative ceremonies held at the Memorial.

The Memorial’s main satisfaction performance areas received consistently high ratings from our visitors. Given the Memorial’s focus on the Centenary of Anzac for half of this financial year it is rewarding and not surprising that the two most highly rated areas this year were the First World War galleries and the commemorative areas, with satisfaction ratings of 93 and 92 per cent respectively.

Public attendance at the Memorial’s Anzac Day Dawn Service and National Ceremony was lower than in the centenary year. It was, however, the highest on record excluding 2015.

The Anzac Day Dawn Service has been becoming a focus for public commemoration since 2003. An estimated 55,000 people attended the service and 11,500 attended the Anzac Day National Ceremony. A resulting combined 66,500 people paid their respects at one of the Memorial’s major ceremonies this year.

Public attendance at the Memorial’s outdoor ceremonies is typically affected by the weather. Remembrance Day 2015 was very wet and rainy, but attendance matched the previous year at an estimated 3,900. This was owing to the presence of His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales and Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cornwall at the National Ceremony.

The Last Post Ceremony is still increasingly popular, with total attendance up another six per cent on the previous financial year. A total of 153,242 visitors attended the moving daily commemorative ceremony this financial year.

Good attendances were also recognised at other special commemorative services held throughout the year.

3,240 people attended dedicated wreathlaying ceremonies (60 per cent decrease on 2014–15, but 61 per cent increase on 2013–14).

5,800 students attended school wreathlayings (24 per cent increase on 2014–15, and 21 per cent increase on 2013–14).

There were five plaque dedication ceremonies this year, with 565 attending (290 per cent increase on 2014–15, and 77 per cent increase on 2013–14).

Accessibility performance indicator

Whether a significant number of Australians visited or had access to the Australian War Memorial and its services, including exhibitions, touring exhibitions, collections, website, Research Centre, and research and interpretive programs.

There was a three per cent increase in first-time visitors and growth in the categories of visitors who had not visited for 2–5 years (five per cent increase) and 5–10 years (six per cent increase). A six per cent increase was recorded in the typically strong category of visitors who have not visited for over ten years. This was matched by a decrease in visitors who had recently visited the Memorial (within one and two years). General public attendance at the Memorial has increased by seven per cent this year, although attendances numbers in other categories (ceremonies, events, and schools) were good but reduced in comparison to the previous year. These remain strong results. Many programs recorded an increase on 2013–14 results, with records being second only to the Centenary of Anzac 2015 year.

Overall, a combined total of 1.087 million people visited the Memorial’s main site or storage facility at Mitchell. A further 145,264 visitors attended one of the Memorial’s touring exhibitions at other venues.

The school audience is also significant, and this financial year 130,689 students visited the Memorial’s main site at Campbell. This is a six per cent decrease on the previous financial year, but a four per cent increase on 2013–14. With the exclusion of the outlying 2015 Centenary of Anzac year, the school audience is the highest recorded.

This financial year saw changes to the typical demographic profile of visitors to the Memorial during the commencement of the Centenary of Anzac period.

Once again, 97 per cent of the Memorial’s visitors were satisfied with their visit and 96 per cent rated the Memorial as either exceeding or meeting their expectations.

Knowledge and understanding performance indicator

Whether as a result of their contact with the Memorial, visitors and clients had an increased level of knowledge and understanding of the Australian experience of war and its enduring impact on our society.

The Memorial has continued tracking visitor perceptions of the importance of the Australian experience of war in creating and shaping the Australian identity through a dedicated question in the general visitor survey. This year there was an eight per cent increase in visitors believing that the experience of war was very important to extremely important – from 75 to 83 per cent.

The recently added display of the Mephisto tank stirred great interest from visitors who either came especially to see the tank or fortuitously encountered it on their visit. Ninety-five per cent could recall at least one piece of information from the display. Visitor recall was the highest for aspects of the crew and the conditions they experienced, especially as visitors tried to imagine 26 men within the tight confines of the tank. Also memorable were its age and rarity, insights into First World War technology and weaponry, and the story told by its exterior etchings, wartime graffiti and bullet strikes.

I was made far more aware of mechanisation and the dangers posed by it.

I think it would be fairly terrifying to be confronted with such a weapon.

Was fascinated by participation and appreciative of contribution to western front.

Visitor comments, general visitor survey 2015–16

The remainder of this report assesses the Memorial’s achievement against the performance measures and targets established in the Portfolio Budget Statements for each of the Memorial’s eight external and five internal outputs. Much of this data is drawn from the Memorial’s continuing program of evaluation and visitor research.

OUTPUT 1.1 Commemorative Ceremonies

Major national ceremonies, particularly Anzac Day and Remembrance Day, and other commemorative ceremonies are conducted in an engaging, dignified, and appropriate manner, with assistance provided to organisations conducting commemorative ceremonies.

Overview

The Memorial’s commemorative program continued to grow, with a significant increase in the number of ceremonial requests received in addition to the scheduled annual commemorative calendar.

On Saturday 15 August 2015, the Memorial marked the 70th Anniversary of the end of the Second World War in the Pacific with a ceremony to recognise this significant moment in history and honour the service and sacrifice of the more than one million Australians who served in the Second World War.

A rainy Remembrance Day marked the 97th anniversary of the armistice that ended the First World War. In attendance at the National Ceremony were His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales and Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cornwall who jointly laid a wreath at the Stone of Remembrance. The commemorative address was delivered by renowned Indigenous academic and historian, Dr Jackie Huggins AM.

Following the National Ceremony, the Memorial’s Western Gallery and Courtyard were renamed the Captain Reg Saunders Gallery and Courtyard in honour of the service of Captain Reginald Saunders MBE, the first Aboriginal Australian commissioned into the army. Dr Jackie Huggins AM delivered a moving keynote address, which was followed by a special performance by singer–songwriter Mr John Schumann to an audience comprised of senior defence personnel, dignitaries, and members of the Saunders family.

Monday 25 April saw the 101st anniversary of the Gallipoli landings commemorated at the Anzac Day Dawn Service and the National and Last Post ceremonies. As in previous years, a series of collection imagery, battle names from various conflicts, and portraits of the 42 Australian servicemen who were killed as a result of their service in Afghanistan were projected onto the Memorial façade from dusk until dawn on 23 and 24 April. Prior to the Dawn Service, Lieutenant Commander Desmond Woods, Air Commodore Stephen Osborne, and Lance Corporal Daniel Haddad read moving excerpts from letters and diaries of servicemen and servicewomen who served in conflicts spanning a century. The final readings included Lance Corporal Haddad’s personal reflection on his deployment to Afghanistan.

In the stillness of the morning, the Dawn Service commenced at 5:30 am with a digeridoo performance by Sergeant Norman Daymirringu, Patrol Commander of Arnhem Squadron, North West Mobile Force and Elder of the Manharrngu people. The Director of the Australian War Memorial, Dr Brendan Nelson, delivered a moving commemorative address to the 55,000 visitors assembled on the parade ground and surrounds.

The National Ceremony was attended by 11,500 visitors and veterans who participated in the Anzac Day march. The commemorative address was delivered by the Prime Minister of Australia, the Honourable Malcolm Turnbull MP, who also reviewed the veterans’ march with Vice Chief of the Defence Force, Vice Admiral Ray Griggs AO CSC RAN representing the Chief of the Defence Force. In recognition of the centenary of the Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL), the veteran’s march was led by the National President of the RSL, Rear Admiral Ken Doolan AO RAN (Retd) accompanied in the unity of Anzac by the New Zealand Defence Advisor, Air Commodore Shaun Clarke ONZM, of the Royal New Zealand Air Force.

To conclude the commemorations, the story of Lance Corporal Philip de Quetteville Robin, 10th Battalion, AIF, who was killed in action on Gallipoli, was read by Ben Roberts-Smith VC MG to an audience of 922 visitors assembled in the Memorial’s Commemorative Area.

The Anzac Day National Service commemorating the 101st Anniversary of the Gallipoli Landings attracted a diverse array of visitors, all of whom came together to remember those Australians who served and died in war.

Remembrance Day events marking the 97th anniversary of the Armistice which ended the First World War were attended by high level dignitaries including His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales and Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cornwall; His Excellency General, the Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove, AK MC (Retd), Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, and Her Excellency Lady Cosgrove; Rear Admiral Ken Doolan AO RAN, (Retd); and the Chairman of the Legacy Australia Council, accompanied by Junior Legatees.

Annual performance statement: commemorative ceremonies

Deliverable 1

Three major ceremonies – the Anzac Day Dawn Service, the Anzac Day National Ceremony, and the Remembrance Day Ceremony.

Result

Attendance at the three major commemorative ceremonies held during 2015–16.

1. Anzac Day Dawn Service: approximately 55,000 visitors (128,700 last year)

2. Anzac Day National Ceremony: 11,500 visitors (31,500 last year)

3. Remembrance Day Ceremony: 3,900 visitors (3,900 last year)

Deliverable 2

At least ten other commemorative ceremonies.

Result

Deliverable 3

At least two ceremonies per week for the school wreathlaying program.

Result

The school wreathlaying program continues to be an engaging and meaningful commemorative experience for students visiting the Australian War Memorial. The program enables students to participate in a ceremony in the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier and includes a guest veteran to provide a personal perspective on service and sacrifice. The opportunity to ask questions of the veteran is a valuable learning experience for the students.

Throughout the year 120 ceremonies were attended by 5,800 students, and 15 of these ceremonies were attended by a member of parliament who greeted and spoke to students from their electorates. In March 2016, two additional ceremonies per week were offered to school groups, on Wednesday and Thursday afternoons, taking the number of school wreathlaying ceremonies available for booking to five each week

Funding support provided by the Department of Veterans’ Affairs enables this commemorative program to continue to be delivered.

On behalf of the 2016 Frank MacDonald Memorial Prize Tour Group, I offer a belated but none-the-less sincere thank you for the time you spent with us at the Australian War Memorial (AWM) on 9 February 2016.The highlight of the day for many of the group was partaking in the wreath laying ceremony and your informative explanation of the features of the Hall of Memory.

The day trip to the AWM constitutes an integral part of our program and will remain as one of the many wonderful memories from the tour for each group member. We sincerely appreciate your involvement.

I would like to take this opportunity to advise that the staff we dealt with on the day were fantastic.

Joan W.

Deliverable 4

The Last Post Ceremony on a daily basis.

Result

The Last Post Ceremony continues to be one of the most important commemorative programs in the Memorial’s calendar. Since its inception in 2013, there have been more than 700 requests, averaging around 300 personal requests from families and veterans’ associations each year. In the last year, more than 150 family requests were delivered, and more than 10 annual association Last Post ceremonies were facilitated. In addition, the ceremony now marks important annual anniversaries. In the last 12 months, more than 50 significant anniversaries were commemorated at the ceremony. Approximately 200–250 ceremonies each year deliver specific requests for families, associations, or significant anniversaries.

Each significant anniversary is enhanced by the additions of Australia’s Federation Guard, choirs, VIP attendees, and selected readers from Australian Defence Force. Of note, the Chief of Defence Force Air Chief Marshal Mark Binskin AC read the Roll of Honour story and recited the Ode for the 70th Anniversary of Victory in the Pacific. Recipients of the Victoria Cross for Australia continue to volunteer to read at the ceremony, Corporal Ben Roberts-Smith most recently participated in the 2016 Anzac Day Last Post Ceremony.

VIP attendance has markedly increased. Visits have included Australian and foreign service chiefs, heads of state, ambassadors, high commissioners and senior diplomatic officers, and national sporting teams. The ceremony is well supported by visiting school students, who regularly raise attendance levels by up to 300–400 at each ceremony.

The ceremony is an opportunity for visitors to engage in commemoration on a personal level, whether it be through laying a wreath or hearing the stories of the men and women of the Roll of Honour read aloud by a uniformed member of the Australian Defence Force – to hear where they were born, educated, whether they married, became parents, where they worked before enlisting, how they served and how they died; at its heart lies the individual story of life and loss, service and sacrifice. Their stories may be different, but just as Charles Bean intended, they are all equal in death.

2015–16 Portfolio Budget Statement and Corporate Plan: Key performance indicators

Attendance at and participation in a commemorative ceremony is an explicit act of remembrance. Therefore the KPI for measuring the effectiveness of this program is the total attendance figure at commemorative ceremonies.

Result

Just over 70,400 people attended commemorative ceremonies during 2015–16.

Other commemorative activities

School engagement in commemoration

In addition to engagement in learning activities ranging from the Discovery Zone, an experiential learning area, to facilitated education programs, visiting students also increasingly participated in commemorative ceremonies. In 2015, 887 students and teachers attended the Remembrance Day National Ceremony, with 102 students participating in the poppy-laying component of the program. In 2016, 51 students and teachers attended the Anzac Day National Ceremony. Students continue to be active participants in wreathlaying during the daily Last Post ceremonies.

On behalf of the students, staff and wider community of Young High School can I thank you and the team at the Australian War Memorial for the invitation and opportunity to participate in the National Remembrance Day Ceremony.

This was indeed and amazing and memorable day for all our students and staff, and to represent NSW in the period of centenary commemorations was truly special. Our students treasured the day and the experience, and it was extremely pleasing to see some of our quieter and less confident students rise to the occasion and shine on the day.

The smiles, discussion and pride they displayed after participating in such a special event were fantastic and a reminder of why working with young people is so rewarding. As for the weather, well it just added a special touch to the ceremony.

Keith D., Young High School, NSW

We arrived back safely to Guluguba late Friday night after a wonderful trip to Canberra. Of course being part of the Remembrance Day ceremony will always be a highlight and memorable occasion for all, including the parents and small community who watched it at home. I even had an email from a past pupil of Guluguba who attended the school in the 1960s, to say what a special moment it was for her to hear the school name and see the students representing the youth.

Pauline K., Guluguba State School, QLD

Additions to the Roll of Honour

In a private ceremony held on 10 November the name of a serviceman who lost his life following his service in Afghanistan, Sapper David Wood, was added to the Roll of Honour. Family members and Defence personnel were in attendance.

War correspondents memorial dedication

On Wednesday 23 September 2015, the C.E.W. Bean Foundation dedicated a memorial in honour of war correspondents in the Sculpture Garden of the Australian War Memorial. The dedication ceremony included addresses by the Honourable Malcolm Turnbull MP, Prime Minister of Australia, and Mr Kerry Stokes AC, C.E.W. Bean Foundation Patron and Chairman of the Council of the Australian War Memorial. This unique memorial commemorates the achievements and sacrifice of those who have entered war zones to report and interpret the Australian experience of war and peacekeeping operations, and is dedicated to the journalists, photographers, film and sound crews, writers, and artists who have and continue to record the story of Australians in conflict.

Explosive detection dog and handler sculpture dedication, Elevation of the senses

The Memorial conducted a ceremony to dedicate the explosive detection dog and handler sculpture Elevation of the senses in the Memorial grounds on Thursday 8 October 2015. This unique sculpture was made possible through the generous financial support of Doug and Monique Thompson, and commemorates the role and contribution of these dogs and their handlers to Australia’s involvement in conflicts from the Vietnam War through to more recent conflicts in Afghanistan. The dedication ceremony included addresses by Mr Doug Thompson OAM, sculptor Mr Ewen Coates, and Dr Harry Cooper OAM, a poetry reading by Mr Nigel Allsop, and a musical performance by Ms Tania Kernaghan. A number of military dogs and their handlers were in attendance from the Royal Australian Air Force Explosive Detection Dogs and the Australian Army Explosive Detection Dog Section of the School of Military Engineering. Following the dedication, a special Last Post Ceremony was held to commemorate Sapper Darren Smith and his explosive detection dog Herbie who were killed in action together in Afghanistan in 2010.

Army indigenous soil return ceremony

On 23 July 2015, the Memorial hosted Indigenous members of the Australian Army together with representatives from the Indigenous community who conducted a ceremony in the grounds of the Memorial, during which soil was collected from the Lone Pine tree. This soil was taken to Gallipoli and combined with soil collected from the battlefields as part of the August commemorations to mark the 100th anniversary of Gallipoli. The soils were blessed and cleansed as part of a traditional ceremony at Lone Pine and the soil returned to Australia. On Thursday 26 November 2015, a ceremony was held signifying the return of the soil to the Lone Pine tree in honour of those Indigenous Australians who lost their lives on Gallipoli.

Flowers of war project

The Australian War Memorial is partnering with the Anzac Centenary Arts and Culture Fund, the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, and other Australian and international groups to support the Flowers of war project, directed by Mr Chris Latham, which produces a program of commemorative musical performances in Australia and Western Europe during the centenary. The music program comprises arrangements of original scores by composers who served in the Great War, many of whom lost their lives. As well as the performances, which will be recorded, the project will produce illustrative collateral drawn from the Memorial collections and other cultural institutions in Australia and Europe.

VIP visits

The Memorial conducted over 90 VIP visits in 2015–16 including the visit by Their Royal Highnesses the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, and one visit by a head of state or head of government, His Excellency Dr Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, President of the United Republic of Tanzania and Her Excellency Mama Salma Kikwete.

A complete list of VIP visits and ceremonies is provided at Appendix 4.

A range of ceremonies are held at the Memorial, including wreathlayings, plaque dedications, and memorial services honouring anniversaries and events.

OUTPUT 1.2 The National Memorial and Grounds

The Memorial building and grounds are conserved and developed as a national memorial to Australians who served and died in war.

Overview

The Memorial buildings and grounds, in addition to the Roll of Honour and Hall of Memory, are maintained as an important commemorative area.

The memorial to war correspondents has been installed within one of the identified locations in the Western Precinct, and the sculpture to commemorate the role of explosive detection dogs has been installed in the Eastern Precinct. The five-year cycle for an update of the Campbell Site Development Plan has commenced, with the Johnson Pilton Walker review to be completed in 2016.

Enhancements to the Roll of Honour, including re-waxing of panels and the addition of names previously not included or incorrectly spelt, have been implemented. Cleaning of the Memorial’s façade and conservation of sandstone within the Commemorative Area and the grounds were also completed. Work to improve way-finding and presentation of the Commemorative Roll has commenced and is expected to be completed in late 2016.

Heritage and aesthetic considerations of the Commemorative Area remain important, as they enhance the visitor experience. These considerations are carefully managed in alignment with the Memorial’s Heritage Management Plan.

The Commemorative Area is undergoing major refurbishment. The original stoneworks and sculptures have been badly weathered and are being replaced to preserve the appearance and heritage value of the site. The project to replace the gargoyles has been generously supported by the Department of Environment through a $1 million grant from the Protecting National Historic Sites program.

Deliverable 1

The Memorial heritage building, Commemorative Area, and surrounding grounds maintained and presented to the highest standard.

Result

High-quality building, garden, and grounds presentation remains a top priority for the Memorial. A maintenance program was continued to ensure that the grounds and buildings are presented to the highest possible standard. Replacement of trees and other plantings was undertaken as required, as was maintenance of all sculptures and memorials, buildings, and the Pool of Reflection.

As part of the Commemorative Area reconstruction project, new drainage and planter boxes have been installed on the western side. This will reduce the risk of damage to the building due to failing waterproofing and inadequate drainage. These modifications will be replicated on the eastern side once the carved sculpture commission is complete in late 2016.

Detailed garden maintenance of the Commemorative Area and the Memorial courtyard continues to be performed weekly to keep these high-profile formal gardens at their best. The maintenance regime for the Pool of Reflection in the Commemorative Area and for the National Service Memorial Fountain in the courtyard continues at a high standard and has reduced conservation requirements.

Deliverable 2

Access to the Memorial and visitor facilities of the highest standards.

Result

The implementation of the Campbell Site Development Plan continued. Various minor new site developments for visitor amenities were undertaken this year. Design work has commenced for legislative-compliant handrails and an access ramp in the Commemorative Area. This work has been designed in line with heritage and building code requirements.

Design and documentation has commenced on the southern commemorative area stairs to provide handrails and lighting for evening and night events.

The western lower gallery (Korea) emergency exit will be upgraded to provide code-compliant egress stairs. This work has been designed sympathetically with existing external stairs already installed on site and will be Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) compliant. The structure is currently being manufactured off site to be installed by September 2016 with minimal heritage impact.

Additional locations for 16 new light poles across the Campbell Site have been approved. These poles will provide seven new security camera points. These safety and security improvements are expected to be completed by November 2016.

Deliverable 3

Building works that comply with relevant standards, codes, and regulations.

Result

All building works at the Memorial are undertaken in accordance with relevant standards, codes, and regulations.

Deliverable 4

Management and conservation of heritage elements using the Australia ICOMOS Burra Charter.

Result

Heritage specialists have continued to provide advice as required for building works in heritage-sensitive areas.

A maintenance and conservation regime for the stonework in the Memorial building continues on a regular basis. Over the course of this year, this worked included the removal of algal deposits from the sandstone, and conservation and repair of chipped and damaged stone.

The Roll of Honour panel re-waxing program was completed in December 2015. The Second World War, Post-1945, and Operational Service panels were re-waxed in March 2015, and the First World War panels were completed in December 2015. In addition to improving the aesthetics of the panels, the reapplication of wax will protect them from corrosion.

A regular maintenance regime for the Lone Pine tree (Pinus halepensis) continues to assist with its longevity. A replacement Pinus halepensis, derived from a seed taken from the original Lone Pine, was planted by Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on Anzac Day 2014. It is anticipated that this tree will have grown to a suitable size when the original Lone Pine reaches senescence. The new pine remains in a very healthy state, assisted by the fence and bird netting.

Deliverable 5

Timely completion of works to minimise impact on visitors.

Result

All minor works at the Memorial, including regular maintenance, cleaning, and conservation of the main building, are scheduled out of hours where possible and in consideration of significant public events. Any major works that may be disruptive are scoped and planned to ensure that work on intrusive elements is scheduled at the most appropriate times, that alternative arrangements for visitors are made, and that the public is informed.

The two-year Commemorative Area Reconstruction Project is funded by a $1 million grant from the Department of the Environment’s Protecting National Historic Sites program. It aims to preserve the Commemorative Area’s historic, aesthetic, and social values by ensuring that its architectural form, fabric, and details remain as intact as possible.

The area’s significance and values have been preserved by removing deteriorating portions of sandstone, especially the string course and sculptural elements of the east and west walls, and reconstructing them with matching sandstone. Improving the cloisters’ and gardens’ drainage preserves their functionality and protects the reconstructed stonework and the Memorial’s lower galleries from water damage.

As of 30 June 2016, all stone for the string courses and 25 of 26 sculptural elements had been re-carved. The sculptures carving was captured on time-lapse film, and the stonemason’s traditional skills will be recorded when the 26th sculpture is carved. Removal and replacement of the string course and sculptures along the Commemorative Area’s western wall was completed in March 2016. Removal and replacement of the eastern wall’s string course is scheduled for January–March 2017.

The work of reconstructing the Commemorative Area’s western garden, including significant improvements to the garden’s drainage, water-tightness, and planters, was finished by mid-April 2016. Additional works to ensure the Commemorative Area’s water-tightness, including replacing deteriorated grout in the granite pavement and the Pool of Reflection, is scheduled for completion between December 2016 and April 2017. All works are scheduled for completion by 30 June 2017.

Attending the National Memorial is an explicit act of remembrance. Therefore, the KPI is the total attendance figure at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra.

Result

A total of 1,080,000 people visited the Australian War Memorial.

Other related activities

Plaque dedication program

Five commemorative plaques were installed during the year. To date, 212 commemorative plaques have been installed in the Memorial’s grounds. All commemorative plaque records were released to the Memorial’s website this year, with each record including a site map featuring a photograph and description of the plaque, along with its general location within the grounds.

Roll of Honour

The Memorial’s bronze Roll of Honour panels were updated for accuracy, with seven in situ amendments made to the panels. The Afghanistan panel was recast to include the name of Sapper D.M. Wood.

In addition to the re-waxing of the panels, three supplementary panels and two First World War panels were recast and installed.

OUTPUT 1.3 The National Collection

A national collection of historical material related to Australia’s military history that is developed, managed, preserved, and interpreted to make it accessible.

Planning for the new storage facility at the Treloar Resource Centre at Mitchell is well advanced, with construction planned to begin in the first half of 2017. The new facility will provide 5,000 square metres of new space for large technology objects (LTOs) and enable greater flexibility in the storage, movement, and conservation of the collection. With a major re-equipping of the Australian Defence Force’s air, land, and sea capability occurring during current operations around the world, several aircraft types and heavy and armoured fighting and infantry mobility vehicles are being retired over a short period. Acquisitions include an F/A-18 Classic Hornet, a Squirrel helicopter, Blackhawk and Seahawk helicopters, the forward section of a Lockheed C-130 Hercules, elements from the decommissioned HMAS Sydney IV and HMAS Tobruk, and armoured and infantry mobility vehicles.

The first of these major acquisitions arrived in 2016. The Boeing-Vertol CH-47D Chinook A15-202 had been identified in 2009 for eventual transfer to the Memorial. It had lengthy and distinguished service in peacekeeping and humanitarian operations and three deployments in Afghanistan where it sustained damage from enemy small-arms fire. During the transfer to the Memorial, which included a last lap of Canberra, supporting material, film, photographs, and interviews with crew members and others who have worked with the Chinook were collected. We are particularly grateful to the Department of Defence’s Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group (CASG) and serving personnel of the Australian Army’s 5th Aviation Regiment for their extraordinary support and capability in making the transfer possible.

Through the Collections Coordination Group (CCG) the Memorial maintains a close and effective liaison with the Australian Defence Force and its history and heritage units in identifying material from recent and current operations for the Memorial’s collection. This relationship includes the deployment of Memorial staff to operational areas – for example, conducting video and oral interviews in Adelaide with members of 7RAR as it prepared to deploy to the Middle East, to be followed up on 7RAR’s return and potentially in the field during deployment.

The procedures for donation of items to the Memorial were reviewed to provide a more efficient service to donors and better security for the collection. The review showed that more than half the material offered was returned because it did not fit the Memorial’s collection needs, duplicated examples already in the collection, represented risk because of condition, or was not original material. The new procedures enable online assessment which helps the potential donor describe the material and its context, as well as providing guidelines on what the Memorial collects and faster turnaround of the transfer of ownership documentation.

New art commissions made to enrich the contemporary interpretation of Australian service involved two new partnerships. A partnership with the 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art in Sydney commissioned the artist Dr Dacchi Dang to produce a major new body of work exploring Vietnamese–Australian experiences of the Vietnam War, and a partnership with the Istanbul-based organisation Protocinema commissioned renowned Turkish artist Köken Ergun to develop a film-based work exploring the shared Turkish–Australian legacy of Gallipoli.

In April 2016 the Anzac Centenary Print Portfolio was launched at Parliament House. Featuring work by five Australian and five New Zealand artists reflecting on the legacy of the First World War, the portfolio was one of the most ambitious commissioning projects in the Memorial’s history. Later this year it will be displayed at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.

David Jolly was commissioned to capture the 2015 centenary Dawn Service on Gallipoli in a series of six paintings on glass, as well as documenting his visit with photographs, drawings, film, and sound recordings as a comprehensive recording of the artist’s experience amongst thousands of Australians at this most significant of moments in the centenary.

Alex Seton’s commissioned work, As of today … , comprising carved marble folded flags in memory of each of the 42 Australians on the Afghanistan Roll of Honour is now on display.

Commissions to build a richer collection of works relating to the Indigenous Australian experience of war included working with remote art centres to commission artists, including Gabriel Nodea, Susan Wanji Wanji, Patrick Freddy Puruntatameri, Andrew Snelgar, Clair Bates, and Glenda Nicholls, as well as five printmakers from the Badu Art Centre.

Two major commissioned public sculptures have been delivered: the War correspondents memorial by Johnson Pilton Walker, and Elevation of the senses, a sculptural tribute to explosive detection dogs and their handlers by Ewen Coates. Three public sculptures are in planning for 2017 and 2018: one of General Sir John Monash, one recognising the contribution of families during wartime, and one recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander service.

A new online, interactive project to be launched in late-2016 will virtualise Charles Bean’s original, but unrealised, plans for the exhibition of First World War official war art, while mapping the journeys undertaken by each of the artists. The launch will coincide with the centenary of the Official War Art Scheme.

As well as providing curatorial and intellectual input into the range of public programs, exhibition developments, and commemorative events, National Collection staff facilitated the Big things in store open day at Mitchell in September.

Several new collaborations and partnerships have helped significantly in building the archival collections and the knowledge to interpret them more effectively. Stronger working relationships have been developed with the Department of Defence and the National Archives of Australia through working groups, including the Operational Records Working Group (ORWG) which began in November 2015. The ORWG is the principal liaison to manage the release of records from the Department of Defence to the Memorial. The releases are consistent with the Defence Records Authority, and are managed by the Memorial within the terms of its agreement with the National Archives of Australia (NAA). The group meets quarterly and consists of members of the Defence History units, Headquarters Joint Operations Command (HQJOC), members of Defence Information Access, Records Management Policy, Military Strategic Commitments, and the National Archives of Australia.

Through the Anzac connections project, the Memorial’s archival collection metadata is open and linkable to several centenary projects. The sharing of this data will expand the reach of the Memorial’s collections and facilitate broader commemoration and understanding of the First World War. An MOU with the University of New South Wales Canberra enables access to data from its AIF project database, the most authoritative resource in relation to AIF personnel. The Anzac connections project will provide a vital online capability in linking First World War collection records across the nation’s cultural institutions through a unique linkable identity for all Australians who served in the First World War. Anzac connections also involves the digitisation of historic First World War collections of letters and diaries which are brought online with contextual information.

Requests for stories, quotes and anecdotes that help relate the thoughts, activities, and responses of Australians during the First World War have increased significantly in the centenary, particularly relating to the Western Front. Together with the #DailyDigger Twitter project, Anzac connections provides relevant biographies, links to digitised letters and diaries, and a daily narrative of the First World War using personal quotes. Using digitised personal accounts and unit war diaries, the Research Centre published a day by day account of the activities of all battalions on the Gallipoli Peninsula during the evacuation operations in 1915.

The Memorial has a wonderful collection of sheet music, including original compositions and arrangements by Australians in war, popular songs sung by soldiers and their sometimes risqué reworkings of these songs to recount their experience. These collections are gradually being digitised with interpretive context, and selections are being recorded to give sound to what has been silent in our collection for so long.

The Memorial is in the second year of an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant with the Australian National University (ANU) researching Australians in Borneo during the Second World War. The project will produce new research perspectives on the activities of Australian special operations personnel operating behind the lines, prisoners of war, particularly at Sandakan, and the major campaigns in 1945.

A project to document official records relating to recent conflicts and the peacekeeping official histories is underway. Collections include United Nations-sponsored Australian missions to Namibia (Untag), the former Yugoslavia (Unprofor/SFOR), and Gulf War I (operations Damask, Habitat, Pollard, and Sandglass). These collections are now indexed to the item level and available for researchers on the RecordSearch database. Activities of the SAS and Navy Clearance Teams, Foreign Affairs, and the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) are recorded in this collection along with correspondence, interviews, and opinion polls from the period.

Records of Maritime Headquarters (MHQ) First Gulf War 1990–91 and Operation Damask moved into the open period and became publicly available in January 2016. This series has been documented to the item level and includes naval signals, situation reports, and intelligence reports, as well as personnel, medical matters, supply and logistics, and logs of diplomatic messages that were forwarded to Maritime Headquarters to keep them informed of the diplomatic situation in the Gulf. AWM175, another fully documented series on RecordSearch, covers Defence Foreign Affairs briefings and ministerial press releases from 1959 to 1980. Topics covered include commissioning and decommissioning ships, promotions and appointments, and reporting of the Vietnam War.

A team of over 100 volunteers has been assisting to index, transcribe, and check the information contained in the First World War nominal roll dating from 1919. Once completed, the data will be available on the Memorial’s website.

The Memorial’s film digitisation capability was improved with the acquisition of a new scanner which will enable high-resolution and preservation scanning of the film collection. The First World War collection and the narrow gauge Vietnam material will be high priorities for digitisation.

An internship arrangement with 1st Joint Public Affairs Unit (JPAU) and the Photo Film and Sound Section will help to build a shared capability in skills and awareness of collecting needs for personnel in the field which covers the activities of Australians on operations and the ADF’s activities around the world.

In collaboration with the Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation (AGO), the Australian War Memorial developed the Gallipoli, Afghanistan and the future: 100 years of mapping exhibition at Russell Offices, Canberra. The exhibition contrasted the techniques for mapping Gallipoli 100 years ago to those used in the war in Afghanistan. AGO donated several maps created for use by Australian personnel in Afghanistan and a detailed description of their development. The exhibition displayed a map annotated and signed by Daniel Keighran VC, and an oral history with him recounting the action that took place at Derapet on 24 August 2010 and for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross.

The restoration of the Second World War Lockheed Hudson bomber is well advanced and will be completed in September 2016. The project has involved the in-house fabrication of structural elements in the aircraft and its full re-assembly.

The textile collection has been treated to prevent moth damage following the discovery of clothes moth in the store. As well as developing new preventive procedures, the store has been refurbished and sealed, a new, more efficient compactus storage system installed, and the collection repacked.

All known radioactive items in the collection are being surveyed and new procedures implemented to ensure risk mitigation associated with the safe handling and storage of radioactive materials.

The preventive maintenance program for the large technology objects and vehicles has been remodelled to ensure the systematic maintenance of stored vehicles. The HMAS Australia gun and HMAS Brisbane bridge and turret were repainted, correcting uneven fading which occurred since the Brisbane was installed.

The damaged stone plinth surrounding the Australian serviceman sculpture and the water membrane have been replaced to ensure the long-term conservation of the sculpture.

The Evacuation series of nine small dioramas and the Gallipoli table removed from the old First World War galleries have been structurally stabilised for long-term storage.

Almost 4,000 photographic negatives were tested to identify film base in preparation for appropriate housing in the nitrate and acetate stores.

The Digital Assets Management System (DAMS) was enhanced in 2015–16 with improved digital capability including automatic indexing, transcription, and other web publishing features. There were 167,797 new digital assets ingested into the DAMS this year; 15,157 pages from the Research Centre collections were scanned for preservation; 1,612 additions and amendments were made to biographical roll records, including 427 consolidated profile records; 193 library items were rehoused for improved collection preservation; and 38.21 shelf metres of official records were rehoused.

Deliverable 1

The Australian War Memorial will deliver an outstanding National Collection of historical material with provenance that is related to Australia’s military history.

Result

The objects in the National Collection are the artefacts of more than a century of conflicts. Its range includes works of art, large technology objects, letters and diaries, uniforms and medals, photographs, film, and sound recordings.

The key focus for the Memorial is to acquire a collection that helps to tell the stories of Australian experiences in conflict. As well as continuing to collect material relating to historical conflicts, the Memorial collects artefacts of recent and current operations and conflicts to be able to tell the stories of those operations in the future.

A list of key acquisitions and disposals is in Appendix 5.

The existence of an outstanding National Collection provides the necessary foundation for other programs to be able to occur. The KPIs for the effectiveness of this program are:

KPI 1

The number of new items acquired, in accordance with the Collection Development Plan.

Result

Total number of acquisitions: 17,560. (This includes 15,014 items in the collection, 231 library books and 2,315 items added to RecordSearch.)

KPI 2

The number of items disposed of, in accordance with the Collection Development Plan.

Result

5,648 items were disposed of in accordance with the Collection Development Plan:

• one artwork that was deemed inconsistent with the Memorial’s objectives
• three private records collections were returned to the donor as they did not relate to wartime experiences and were placed with an educational institution
• five photographic exhibition prints were disposed of from the Icon and archive travelling exhibition
• 5,175 VHS copies were inferior duplicates that were replaced with high quality originals
• 464 sound copies were inferior duplicates that were replaced with high quality originals.

KPI 3

The number of items for which documentation has been enhanced or corrected.

Result

Documentation was enhanced or corrected for 390,248 items (463,517 last year).

380,801 enhancements or corrections were made to items in the collection, 361 amendments for library items, and 9,086 amendments to RecordSearch items.

KPI 4

At least 80 per cent of the collection in storage that meets conservation standards for environmental conditions.

Result

• Photographs, Film and Sound – 83.95 per cent
• Art – 99.90 per cent
• Military, Heraldry and Technology – 85.52 per cent
• Research Centre collections – 100.00 per cent.

KPI 5

Number of collection items that can be accessed through the Memorial’s online public databases.

Result

A total of 423,944 items in the National Collection meet Collection Access System (CAS) requirements for public access through online public databases.

OUTPUT 1.4 Exhibitions

Development and maintenance of the Memorial’s permanent and temporary exhibitions, and a program of touring exhibitions.

Overview

Permanent galleries

A wide range of small exhibitions and displays were completed in the Memorial’s permanent galleries during the year.

A display of photographs and the medal group of Captain Reginald Saunders was completed in November 2015 as part of the dedication of the Captain Reg Saunders Gallery and Courtyard (formerly the Western Courtyard and Gallery).

Following its display in the Special Exhibition Gallery alongside Ben Quilty: after Afghanistan (12 December 2014 to 17 June 2015), Alex Seton: as of today … was placed on permanent display in the Memorial’s main circulation corridor.

Six medal groups were added to the Hall of Valour as part of an initiative to display as many Australian Victoria Cross medal groups as possible during the centenary period. These were: Lieutenant Frederick Bell (South Africa), Lieutenant Colonel Harry Murray (First World War), Private Reginald Inwood (First World War), Private John Jackson (First World War), Private James (Heather) Gordon (Second World War), and Major Peter Badcoe (Vietnam).

Nine displays of artworks on paper were completed, featuring in each of the permanent galleries. Three displays were completed in the Research Centre Reading Room: two focusing on First World War soldiers, and one on the Australian Women’s Army Service. A series of photographs related to Iraq (2003–09) by official photographer David Dare Parker was installed in the Conflicts: 1945 to today galleries.

Two centenary-related art commissions were placed on display. The tapestry titled Avenue of Remembrance, commissioned by the Memorial in conjunction with the Australian Tapestry Workshop, was placed on display in the central stairs. Artworks by David Jolly produced for the Gallipoli Centenary Commission were placed on display in the Captain Reg Saunders Gallery.

A Bushmaster Protected Mobility Vehicle was acquired with the support from a generous sponsor of the Memorial, Thales, in December 2015. A permanent external display of the vehicle on the western side of Anzac Hall adjacent to the Centurion tank was completed in April 2016.

A minor renewal of the Memorial’s external way-finding signage was completed to ensure optimal site presentation for the centenary period. The renewal involved re-skinning of existing signage infrastructure and will extend the life of signage for a further three to five years.

A project to update the recent conflicts, exit corridor, and entry corridor areas of the Conflicts 1945 to today galleries commenced and is due for completion by September 2016. The recent conflicts area currently presents four themes with equally weighting: Iraq: the first Gulf War (1990–91), between the wars (Operation Habitat, late-1990s), Iraq: the Second Gulf War (2003–09), and Afghanistan (2001–present). The exit and entry corridors have traditionally been used for the display of contemporary art. The planned update will present conflicts in the Middle East Area of Operations (MEAO) holistically with a more accurate presentation of their comparative significance. The MEAO display will encompass the recent conflicts area and the exit and entry corridors, enabling greater space for this story.

A strong focus on maintaining the high standard of the Memorial’s 10,000 m2 of exhibition space was continued throughout the year. Major maintenance tasks included the rebuild of audio and intelligent lighting systems for major sound and light shows in Anzac Hall, progression of the systematic installation of highly efficient LED lighting throughout the permanent galleries, and the installation of a permanent glass and bronze balustrade on the north and south facades of the Ascot boat display in the Australia in the Great War exhibition – this followed a number of incidents involving visitors tripping and falling around the display.

Temporary exhibitions

The temporary First World War exhibition Mephisto: the Devil’s chariot opened in Anzac Hall on 27 July 2015. This exhibition features the A7V tank "Mephisto", the only German manufactured tank from the First World War still in existence. Mephisto is internationally significant both technically and historically. It was captured in 1918 near Villers-Bretonneux by the 26th Infantry Battalion AIF and returned to Australia in July 1919. To commemorate the centenary of the First World War, the Memorial collaborated with the Queensland Museum to display Mephisto outside Brisbane for the first time since it was transported from Europe at the end of the First World War. The exhibition will conclude in March 2017.

The Special Exhibition Gallery featured one temporary exhibition: Reality in flames: modern Australian art and the Second World War (3 July 2015 to 4 September 2016). This is the Memorial’s first exhibition dedicated exclusively to exploring how Australian modernist artists responded creatively to the Second World War. It features 90 works of art from important Australian artists including Albert Tucker, Frank Hinder, Joy Hester, Sali Herman, Donald Friend, and Colin Colahan. The Memorial’s Special Exhibition Gallery was the fourth venue for Reality in flames, which had previously travelled to three venues in New South Wales as part of the Memorial’s Travelling Exhibitions program. Development of two further exhibitions planned for display in the Special Exhibition Gallery commenced during the year. For Country: for Nation will focus on the wartime experience of Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders; and Special Forces (working title) will tell the history and role of Australian Special Forces from the Second World War to present day.

Touring exhibitions

Remember me: the lost diggers of Vignacourt toured to four Western Australia Museum (WAM) venues: WAM Perth, WAM Albany, WAM Kalgoorlie, and WAM Geraldton. The exhibition achieved total visitation of 63,571 while on display in Western Australia. In November 2015, the Memorial allocated funding to enable an 18-month, six-to-eight-venue extension of the tour.

Ben Quilty: after Afghanistan toured to three venues: Museum and Art Gallery Northern Territory; Perc Tucker Regional Gallery, Queensland; and Castlemaine Art Gallery and Historical Museum, Victoria. The exhibition achieved total visitation of 88,374.

As a joint initiative with the RSL and Services Clubs Association, the Memorial developed a touring First World War exhibition series titled Australians on the Western Front, 1916–1918. The series comprises three companion exhibitions – Australians in France 1916, To Flanders fields 1917, and Advancing to victory 1918 – which will tour to RSL clubs in NSW during 2016, 2017, and 2018. Two sets of the Anzacs in France 1916 exhibition commenced travelling to metropolitan and regional club venues in February 2016.

A small number of venues displayed the 2015 centenary exhibition A camera on Gallipoli: the photographs of Charles Ryan. One venue displayed the graphic version and five venues displayed the digital version.

Deliverable 1

Permanent exhibitions developed and maintained to the highest standard.

Result

During the past year, 27 exhibitions and smaller displays were developed and implemented in the Memorial’s permanent galleries. Key exhibitions included Mephisto: the devil’s chariot, Reality in flames: modern Australian art and the Second World War, and the external display of the Bushmaster Protected Mobility Vehicle.

In addition to new exhibitions and displays, a strong focus on maintaining the high standard of presentation in the Memorial’s existing 10,000m2 exhibition space continued. Key achievements included a renewal of external way-finding signage, the rebuild of audio and intelligent lighting systems for major sound and light shows in Anzac Hall, and the progression of the systematic installation of highly efficient LED lighting throughout the galleries.

Satisfaction ratings for the Memorial’s permanent galleries which have included development or upgrade works were as follows:

• 99 per cent satisfied with Commemorative Area (82 per cent very satisfied)
• 99 per cent satisfied with First World War galleries (81 per cent very satisfied)
• 98 per cent satisfied with Anzac Hall (81 per cent very satisfied)
• 93 per cent satisfied with Reality in flames: modern Australia and the Second World War (69 per cent very satisfied)
• 97 per cent rated the Mephisto display as very good or good (63 per cent very good).

Deliverable 2

Travelling exhibitions exhibited at different venues across Australia

Result

During the past year, four touring exhibitions were exhibited at 21 host venues across Australia, reaching a total of 145,264. These exhibitions were:

• Ben Quilty: after Afghanistan
• Remember me: the lost diggers of Vignacourt
• A camera on Gallipoli: the photographs of Charles Ryan
• Australians on the Western Front: 1916–1918 series. Anzacs in France, 1916.

A complete list of exhibitions and associated host venues is provided in Appendix 6.

Attending a memorial exhibition is a deliberate act to find out more about the Australian experience of war. The KPIs for the effectiveness of this program are:

KPI 1

The total attendance figure at the Memorial exhibitions and travelling exhibitions.

Result

Over 1.2 million people have engaged with Memorial exhibitions. Just over one million have viewed the Memorials on-site exhibitions and almost 150,000 have attended Memorial touring exhibitions in cities and regional towns around Australia.

KPI 2

Qualitative or quantitative evidence about increases in visitors’ understanding.

Result

Audience research, including tracking, observations and interviews, was performed on Anzac Hall this year, with the results of the study indicating that this Hall is both impressive and educational for our visitors, with 33 per cent using positive adjectives ranging from excellent through to fantastic, another 31 per cent described it as amazing, awesome, impressive, or powerful. 28 per cent said it was educational, fascinating, informative or realistic while 13 per cent noted that they found it moving, emotional, reflective or sad.

Amazing. The scale of everything really helps to put war into perspective.

Realistic and effective, thought provoking, hauntingly real.

It is about the progression of war. From small planes to big the advancement of weapons.

Visitor comments, general visitor survey 2015–16

KPI 3

Qualitative or quantitative evidence of affective or attitudinal change.

Result

A dedicated survey reviewing the Mephisto tank showed that it was a drawcard for many visitors (36 per cent of those interviewed at the display said they came especially to see it) and held their attention. First impressions included excited adjectives such as "awesome" and "amazing", followed by those commenting on the unexpected size or scale of the tank. The third largest group of comments were adjectives relating to its intimidating or impressive presence.

The survey also provided the following results:

• 52 per cent of those interviewed said they looked closely at most to all of the display, followed by 37 per cent who had a closer look at some things
• 63 per cent said they read all of the interpretive text and 76 per cent looked at all of the technical diagrams
• 71 per cent agreed that the display gave them a better understanding of the Australian experience of war
• 95 per cent agreed that it demonstrated the dramatic impact of technology in land warfare
• 92 per cent agreed that the display improved their knowledge about the introduction and use of the A7V tank, in particular Mephisto
• 84 per cent agreed that it provided a realistic insight into Australian encounters with the Mephisto tank on the Western Front
• 95 per cent could recall at least one piece of information from the display. Aspects of crew and conditions were the most highly recalled, with age and rarity, insights into First World War technology and weaponry, and the story told by exterior etchings, wartime graffiti, and bullet strikes also proving memorable.

OUTPUT 1.5 Interpretive Services

Understanding of Australia’s experience of war is enhanced through provision of interactive interpretation, including school and public education programs and public events.

Overview

During 2015–16 more than 265,065 general visitors and students engaged in the Memorial’s interpretive programs and events. These activities highlighted the National Collection, and provided opportunities for audiences to participate in the operations and activities of the Memorial. The existing program of regular gallery and collection talks and behind the scenes curator tours has expanded and diversified in content, with increasing numbers of Memorial staff contributing and sharing their expertise with the public. Several external experts also delivered public lectures throughout the year.

The late-night openings of the Commemorative Area continued on selected evenings in January. Visitors were able to view the illuminated Hall of Memory, allowing them additional opportunities to pay respects to the fallen during the Centenary of Anzac.

Popular programs such as the weekly story-time for preschoolers, museum theatre performances during school holidays, and summer film screenings in January continued to attract strong audience numbers. Following a successful initial season of performances for school students in 2014, Starrs Productions returned in 2015 with a First World War-themed work, Fightin’ the Kaiser, performed by Brett Hunt.

130,689 students visited the Memorial in the reporting period, with 82 per cent undertaking facilitated education programs linked to the Australian curriculum.

The successful Soldiers in Residence program continued in 2015–16, providing the opportunity for current serving Afghanistan soldiers to learn about the back- and front-of-house operations of the Memorial. The soldiers also participated in the delivery of programs to visitors to the museum.

Deliverable 1

A range of public programs and events for visitors to the Memorial.

Result

In 2015–16, 529 public program activities in the galleries were delivered to 18,491 visitors. This year has seen a further increase in delivery by many sections across the Memorial. Programs included: Hands-on History, which allows visitors of all ages to handle artefacts and objects while discovering associated personal stories; collection-focused gallery talks; curator-led tours of the special exhibition; behind the scenes art, multimedia, and military heraldry and technology tours; school holiday craft workshops; professional museum theatre performances of Radio silence and Last letters during school holidays; guest lectures from notable historians; and summer film screenings, featuring a films selected according to the theme of women in war.

A select list of staff-presented public talks is provided in Appendix 7.

The ceremonial program of Australia’s Federation Guard, which incorporates the day-long mounting of a catafalque party around the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier and the posting of sentries outside the Hall of Memory, was conducted twice monthly and incorporated into the daily Last Post Ceremony.

Visitors regard the Memorial’s interpretive programs and events very highly:

We went on a conducted tour and really enjoyed the experience. It was good to look around with someone with so much knowledge. We were very impressed with the exhibits and had a particular interest in the Vietnam and Afghanistan exhibits as we had relatives who have served in those conflicts.

Visitor comments, general visitor survey 2015–16

I would like to take the opportunity to say how much we have enjoyed all the tours we have taken at the War Memorial. I would rate your talks and tours program very highly.

Jennifer W.

The Defence students thoroughly enjoyed their day at the Australian War Memorial and they mentioned that the tours were a definite highlight. It is so important to be able to pass on to the younger generations the Australian stories and oral history of the past and for visitors to see and learn something different each time they visit the Memorial.

Diana H.

Deliverable 2

A series of quality, engaging, curriculum-related school education programs for on-site education groups.

Result

Facilitated education programs at the Australian War Memorial are key educational activities for Australian schoolchildren, from preschool to Year 12. In total, 130,689 students visited the Memorial during the reporting period, of which 103,800 (79 per cent) participated in a facilitated program. The Memorial’s 12 facilitated education programs link to statements in the Australian curriculum for both History, and Civics and Citizenship, and are designed to assist students to remember, interpret, and understand the Australian experience of war and its enduring impact on Australian society. The centenary Commemorative Crosses project continues to be incorporated into the Anzac Legacy education program.

Thank you to all the staff that spoke to and took our girls around the War Memorial. The staff were just fantastic and our teachers were very impressed with their knowledge and the time they spent explaining things to our girls …

I also hear from the girls that they enjoyed their visit. One group especially spoke of a Vietnam veteran who took their group around and spoke of his experiences. They were very impressed, so thank you.

Libby B., Abbotsleigh, NSW

Just wanted to say a very big thank you for making our visit to the War Memorial today so wonderful. Your program that was adapted for our year level was excellent and certainly addressed everything that we have been investigating into. Kathleen was my guide and she was excellent with the children and very knowledgeable too.

So, thanks again.

Prudence A., ACT Education, ACT

Thank you for hosting our Year 6 Students from St. Andrew’s Anglican College. Our guide provided us with crosses so we could write messages of thanks to our Australian fallen and was very complimentary and supportive of the student’s messages … Can I just say that any time spent with your staff is so worthwhile as their knowledge and storytelling puts the memorabilia in context and makes them and the people they are related to come alive.

Conny B., St Andrew’s Anglican College, QLD

I would just like to give a thumbs up to Nicholas who took our young people on a tour today, our teens are often difficult to manage however it was great to have a guide that was knowledgeable and with great youth work skills.

James C., CALM ACT

Thank you for all of your help with our excursion. The children and the adults all thoroughly enjoyed it. I’ve received lots of comments about what wonderful storytellers the guides are and many of the children have said they can’t wait to go back again and look at more of the displays.

We are very lucky to have such an incredible place just down the road from us!

Remana D., North Ainslie Primary School, ACT

Deliverable 3

Memorial Boxes for schools in all Australian states and territories to borrow during the year.

Result

The Memorial Box program remains a consistently requested and highly regarded outreach resource. The redevelopment of Box 3: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander wartime service was completed in March 2016, with an additional six boxes created to meet the demand for material. A series of online resources and activities was developed to complement the physical content of these boxes.

The 97 themed boxes, administered by state agents, contain a variety of items, including case studies of personal stories and hands-on items such as uniforms, badges, and objects. In 2015–16, 453 schools and community organisations borrowed a Memorial Box, with approximately 54,400 users. Secondary schools make up around 50 per cent of all borrowers, with primary schools at 37 per cent, and community groups such as public libraries, aged care facilities, and after-school care groups making up the remainder.

Funding from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs has enabled the program to continue, with new Memorial Box agents established in Unley, Gawler, Port Augusta, and Broken Hill to meet demand in these areas.

A survey of all Memorial Box borrowers indicated high satisfaction with the program, with an average rating of 8.2 out of 10. Feedback is routinely sought from participants in the Memorial Box program:

Thanks for providing us these educational boxes which helps to make learning meaningful to students.

Northfield Public School, SA

Thanks for allowing students out west to experience hands-on resources.

Wentworth Public School, NSW

The students really connected with the Australian forces involved in the Vietnam War and totally engaged in their stories. Thank you for providing such amazing resources.

Cornerstone College, SA

Deliverable 4

An education-specific section of the Memorial’s website.

Result

Consolidation of the content on the Memorial’s education webpages continued in 2015–16, making the website better able to meet the needs of teachers and schools. Additions to the pages include learning resources on the Western Front campaign, and classroom showcases containing examples of student work. Learning activities were also developed to accompany the Spirit of Anzac Centenary Experience, featuring items on display in the touring exhibition. Online resources linked to the Memorial Box program remain popular, with the first of a planned suite of video clips now available.

Audiences continued to engage via social media, with over 3,300 users now "liking" the "Education at the Australian War Memorial" Facebook page. Posts sharing information on commemoration, the stories of women in war, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander wartime service have reached more than 70,000 people.

Fantastic resource – I particularly like the wonderful images.

What a courageous woman Dr Phoebe Chapple was a beautiful story. Thank you for sharing – lest we forget

Facebook comments

Attending a Memorial program or event is a deliberate act to find out more about the Australian experience of war. The KPIs for the effectiveness of this program are:

KPI 1

The total attendance figure at Memorial programs (not including commemorative ceremonies).

Result

Each day a minimum of 12 free highlight tours of the Memorial were conducted by voluntary guides. These attendance numbers are included within "Tours".

KPI 2

Qualitative or quantitative evidence about increases to participants’ understanding.

The Museum audience is diverse with equally differing needs and expectations for a memorable visit. Public programs help enliven exhibitions and provide a personal connection for those who prefer a more social and interactive learning experience.

Result

Satisfaction ratings for Memorial interpretive programs are attained through the general visitor survey. Talks and presentations, theatre performances and Guided tours received the highest satisfaction ratings this year:

• 93 per cent were satisfied with guided tours (69 per cent very satisfied)
• 96 per cent were satisfied with talks and presentations (69 per cent very satisfied)
• 85 per cent were satisfied with family programs and activities (55 per cent very satisfied)
• 88 per cent were satisfied with Hands-on History programs (56 per cent very satisfied)
• 95 per cent were satisfied with museum theatre performances (69 per cent very satisfied).

Just wanted to say thank you for such a positive experience at the AWM today!

Today was the first time I had visited with my four year old son … I have been many times before, but this was the first time as a Mum, and I was thoroughly impressed with the preschool aimed story time and all the crafts available today.

My son, who normally can’t sit still, was so engrossed with the stories. It was a pleasure to watch him listen to stories of war he could comprehend. We then went to the discovery space which I literally had to drag him out of! What a fantastic space for children to get hands on and explore our history in the way they learn best … by touching everything!!

Since having children I have enjoyed doing the public program rounds of our museums and galleries. Today has been the first time I have been blown away with the programs offered – perfectly hitting the target audience and making a content which could be very hard for young children to comprehend accessible, engaging and non-threatening. Thank you, we can’t wait to visit again.

Jessica C.

He does a wonderful job, bringing credibility, compassion and comprehensive knowledge to his presentation. 

I think the whole visitor experience … is greatly enhanced by volunteer guides.

Philip T.

KPI 3

Qualitative or quantitative evidence of affective or attitudinal change.

Result

The general visitor survey asks respondents to specify what they enjoyed most about their visit, to which a large range of responses are received, often relating to particular exhibits of interest, public programs, or overall experience.

Five per cent of responses to the open question referred to guided tours proving a memorable or popular feature of their visit. Responses typically cite the knowledgeable and personable qualities of the Memorial’s guides.

The guided tours by "Steve" was very informative and made the memorial to us immigrants more relevant.

Thoroughly enjoyable. Everything was well presented and informative. The volunteer tour guide, John, was excellent. This memorial is a national treasure.

A beautifully resourced site, very knowledge WW1 tour guide.

Well presented. Fantastic tours. Interactive & interesting.

Comprehensive coverage, clear displays excellent interactive information stations.

The volunteer guide made our time so very interesting.

Visitor comments, general visitor survey 2015–16

Other interpretive activities

Simpson Prize

In collaboration with the History Teachers’ Association of Australia and the Department of Education and Training, the Education team researched, developed, and hosted online the 2016 Simpson Prize question. This First World War–themed, national essay-writing competition is for secondary students. Links to relevant source material from the Memorial’s collection were provided to assist students with their research and writing.

Professional development

Education delivered four professional development sessions throughout the year to 75 school teachers, librarians, and pre-service teaching students. The aim of these programs is to equip teachers to better use the Memorial’s collection and historical content in the classroom.

Education also hosted familiarisation visits for 15 colleagues from other cultural institutions, along with 25 representatives from the tourism industry.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude for facilitating our visit last week. We all found the visit to be informative and I will be able to report back to our development team some key concepts and ideas from the AWM. The printed collateral will also be incredibly beneficial. I was particularly taken with the promotional AWM Education resource poster for schools, I hope in time we could do something similar.

Sophie L., Sydney Living Museums, NSW

I wanted to thank you for showing us around. It really was beneficial for us to hear how your programs run.

James, Powerhouse Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, NSW

Performances

In August 2015 the Education Section hosted a successful two-day performance season of Starrs Productions’ Fightin’ the Kaiser, performed in the BAE Systems Theatre by Brett Hunt. Some 600 students attended four shows.

Florance Foundation visit

The annual Florance Foundation visit of junior Legatees to the Memorial was hosted in April, this year facilitating 13 students on gallery tours and at the National Ceremony on Anzac Day. Following their visit, the students and their families rated their experiences at the Memorial very highly:

We are enormously grateful and proud that my son was able to honour his Dad, and other servicemen and women, through his involvement in the Anzac Day services. These opportunities and experiences are well beyond the realm of possibility for me to provide for him and I feel humble that Legacy act in this capacity for my family.

Legatee family feedback

OUTPUT 1.6 Promotions and Community Services

Promotion of the Memorial as an outstanding national institution, and assistance given to the community to understand the Memorial’s roles, activities, programs, relevance, and future

Overview

The Memorial continues to focus on the provision of innovative and integrated marketing campaigns to ensure it disseminates information to both traditional and new audiences.

During this reporting period, the Memorial increased the focus on the digital environment with the creation of a stand-alone Digital Experience Section. The mandate of this section is to build capability to deliver digital engagement and deepen the connection with audiences through purposed content and initiatives within growing digital channels.

Through this new digital focus, forming part of integrated social media, marketing and public relations activity, the Memorial endeavours to appeal to and capture the interest of all audience segments within the wider community, to help the Australian public understand the enduring impact of war on our society.

The key priority for the Digital Experience Section over the next reporting period will be to redevelop and relaunch the Memorial public website with an improved user experience focused on rich media and a streamlined search journey. The range and depth of web content and National Collection items will become more accessible and engaging for our online audience whilst interactive experiences such as the Last Post Ceremony will be featured more prominently on the site.

Deliverable 1

An engaging website with accurate information.

Result

There was a 48 per cent increase in visits to the website this year. April 2015, always our busiest month, saw a 108 per cent increase in traffic compared to April 2014. From 22 to 26 April 2015, including the 100th anniversary of the Anzac landings on Gallipoli, there were more than 883,000 sessions on the website, up 103 per cent for the same period in 2014.

There were less overall visits to the website than the previous reporting period (down 25.51 per cent). However this can be largely attributed to the 2015 Anzac Centenary commemorations, which accounted for larger than usual traffic volume across all channels.

The average user average session duration on the website of four minutes and 20 seconds demonstrates our users are spending a significant amount of time researching the content on the website. Our average session duration is 54 per cent higher than the industry average.

Anzac Day commemorations and events drove a high volume of traffic to the website with close to one million sessions over the month of April (966,587) which is a significant percentage of overall web traffic for the year.

Mobile and tablet access to the website increased over the period, accounting for 36.14 per cent of total users (an increase on last year’s total mobile and tablet users of 35.33 per cent). Desktop sessions as a percentage of overall visitors reduced from 64.67 per cent to 63.86 per cent. The increase of tablet and mobile device use is consistent with the global trend and provides important insights into designing any new digital initiatives with a mobile first approach.

On Anzac Day 2016, 55 per cent of users accessed the website from a mobile device (an increase of 17 per cent on the previous year).

A process of continual improvement is being conducted on the single search feature on the site, which allows users to search for information about people, places, objects, and events across all digitised material from a single location. This year has seen a 62 per cent increase in views of collection items, with 3.29 million visitors looking at this material compared to 2.09 million last year. There was a 31 per cent increase in visits to the biographical information on the website, with 12.9 million views compared to 9.87 million last year.

The Memorial’s social media presence continued to gain uptake and engagement. Facebook followers over the period grew by 15,432 (an average of 300 new followers a week). Facebook posts over the period reached an audience of 13,892,768, including an audience of 1,696,132 actively engaging with posts.

Deliverable 2

High-quality service to media to encourage suitable coverage in all forms of media.

Result

The Memorial has consistently provided high-quality service to media in day-to-day engagement and the delivery of major anniversaries, events, and visits, resulting in overwhelmingly positive media coverage.

The Memorial continues to build upon its strong existing relationship with print, online, television, and radio media, working proactively to inform media about events and exhibitions at the Memorial, and to create media stories and opportunities around significant anniversaries, visits, and new acquisitions.

The Memorial liaised closely with the media about significant events and dates in order to manage on-site activity smoothly, ensuring that media could report on events effectively and without disruption. This maximised the coverage for the Memorial, particularly in live television.

The launch of the Memorial’s summer campaign received significant media coverage which reached a cumulative audience of 28,235,312 and had an advertising space rate of $9,287,558.

Remembrance Day and Anzac Day statistics

An analysis of media coverage produced between 5 and 30 November 2015 found 1,322 media items.

The month of April saw a total of 1,260 media items, with a total of 939 media items recorded in the week leading up to and including Anzac Day (20–27 April).

The effect and reach of the Memorial’s media and marketing strategy can be demonstrated through the findings of the general visitor survey. More than half (52 per cent) of surveyed respondents recalled seeing or hearing something about the Memorial in the months preceding their visit. This demonstrates an eight per cent increase in media exposure compared to last year. Television was the most effective means of communication (58 per cent), followed by word of mouth (44 per cent), newspaper (29 per cent), the Memorial website (15 per cent), tourism brochures (14 per cent), and radio (14 per cent). (As respondents may nominate multiple forms of media in the survey, these figures do not add up to 100 per cent.)

Deliverable 3

High-quality marketing and promotional activities as appropriate.

Result

The Memorial has undertaken a number of extensive, integrated marketing campaigns this year, largely supported by the ACT Government’s major event funding program. This program was designed to drive visitation to the ACT based on an allocation of funds on a dollar-for-dollar marketing spend basis.

This additional funding allowed the Memorial to increase brand awareness, showcase a number of touring, temporary and permanent exhibitions, and promote existing public programs through commemorations, anniversaries, educational programs, tours, talks, launches and events.

Activities undertaken in support of exhibitions saw the on-site promotion of Ben Quilty: after Afghanistan, Reality in flames: modern Australian art and the Second World War, and the Western Australian touring exhibition Remember me: the lost diggers of Vignacourt which toured Perth and other regional centres within Western Australia.

Specific communications and marketing activity also supported two major commemorative ceremonies on the 2015–16 calendar: Remembrance Day 2015 and Anzac Day 2016.

Activities underpinning each of these commemorations included a broad public communications and promotional advertising strategy focusing on the local management, organisation, and logistics of each event. Media support for and coverage of Anzac Day 2016 was extensive, with this year also marking the centenary of the Returned and Services League of Australia.

Three major advertising campaigns supported the Memorial’s mission and purpose to remember, interpret, and understand the Australian experience of war.

The winter campaign featured Mephisto – rarest tank in the world, accompanied by extensive media and promotion of this and other items within the National Collection. Promotion of Mephisto was key to attracting visitors over the winter and school holiday period.

The Memorial’s summer campaign – Sights, sounds and stories – focused on a number of public and educational programs offered during the summer period, highlighting after-hours Commemorative Area visits, talks, tours, children’s activity groups and on-site film series.

The commencement of the third and final campaign, 1916 The Western Front, commenced in February 2016, and led to further marketing and promotional activity designed to relay the stories of those Australians who fought and died at the Western Front, particularly at Fromelles and Pozieres in 1916.

All three campaigns recognise and acknowledge ACT Government support, through the Special Event Fund, in driving interstate visitation of the Memorial.

Throughout the year, the Memorial has continued to play an active role in supporting industry and affiliated tourism partners VisitCanberra (leisure tourism) and Canberra Convention Bureau (business tourism). Familiarisation visits, which included inspections of function space and attendance of Last Post ceremonies, were conducted with domestic and international media and business event planner groups.

One of the more significant highlights of the end of the year was the Memorial being named Australia’s number one landmark in Australia and the South Pacific by TripAdvisor, ahead of the Sydney Opera House, in a ranking generated by reviews from visitors to the Memorial.

Effective promotion of the Memorial provides the necessary foundation for other programs to function effectively. The KPIs for the effectiveness of this program are:

KPI 1

Number of visits to the Memorial’s website.

Result

During the reporting period there were 5,495,313 visits to the Memorial website. 58.6 per cent of these visits were from new visitors.

KPI 2

Number of people to make their first visit to the Memorial.

Result

In the general visitor survey, 35 per cent of visitors stated that it was their first time at the Memorial. It is estimated that 340,000 people visited the Memorial for the first time during the financial year.

KPI 3

Number of positive media items, including television, radio, online, and print media.

Result

A total of 13,792 media items were recorded during the year, with 99.99 per cent of them positive.

Other promotion and community services activities

Friends of the Memorial

Friends of the Memorial is the Memorial’s membership program, which offers a range of benefits and member-only events. Memberships are available to individuals and families, as well as clubs and organisations. The program has approximately 1,800 active members.

The Friends of the Memorial program ran a variety of events during the year, the most popular being a tour of the Mitchell storage facility which was booked out. Other events included behind the scenes art tours and research workshops, with a talk on the Boer War collection receiving high attendance.

Friends also attend Remembrance Day and Anzac Day ceremonies. Over 500 Friends of the Memorial attended the National Ceremony on Anzac Day.

Memorial branding – Centenary of the First World War

The centenary brand has been widely used in support of many Memorial and community non-commercial initiatives across Australia. The brand adorns much of the Memorial’s marketing and media presence, enhancing the commemoration of significant anniversaries throughout the remaining years of the Centenary of Anzac.

Roll of Honour soundscapes

The Memorial continues to focus on the Roll of Honour Soundscape project through the Remember me smartphone application. Designed to engage primary school-aged children throughout the centenary period, this program aims to record primary school students speaking the names and ages of the more than 60,000 Australians who died during the First World War. These recordings are then played in the First World War section of the cloisters in the Commemorative Area of the Memorial. Further promotional activity of the project occurred this year to ensure continued public awareness and engagement.

Commemorative crosses

The Memorial’s Commemorative Crosses project provides primary school-aged children with an avenue to mark their respect for those Australians who died in active service. Students are provided blank crosses, on which they write individual reflections on those Australians who have sacrificed their lives in war and other conflicts. The crosses are then collected and reviewed prior to distribution to embassies and private individuals for use in commemorative activities in Australia and overseas.

This year a total of 2,874 inscribed crosses were sent to the embassies of the USA, Belgium, China, Egypt, Ghana, Greece, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Korea, Japan, Papua New Guinea, South Africa, the Netherlands, and Timor-Leste.

OUTPUT 1.7 Research, Information, and Dissemination

The conduct and stimulation of historical research and dissemination of knowledge and understanding of Australia’s military history.

A wide range of research and dissemination activities was undertaken during the year, including publication of military history books and articles, media broadcasts, individual research projects, family history workshops, website provision of digitised official and private records, and the provision of military history information and research assistance through the Research Centre enquiry service and the Military History Section.

The 2015 centenary of the Gallipoli landings generated unprecedented interest in the Memorial’s collections and stories which has flowed on into this year as the Memorial commemorates other major military events. The Memorial has assisted enquiries in record numbers, from people using the collections to trace their families’ military history through to those performing academic research, writing books, or producing documentaries.

Official history of Australian operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Australian peacekeeping operations in East Timor

In late 2015 the government approved the Official history of Australian operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Australian peacekeeping operations in East Timor project with a budget of $ 12.7 million. Following a national recruitment process, Professor Craig Stockings was formally appointed official historian by the prime minister and commenced the project in March 2016. The official historian is responsible for authoring the multi-volume history project by July 2022.

Six volumes are planned: one on Iraq, two on East Timor, and three on Afghanistan. Recruitment of the project team, consisting of five authors, six researchers, and a project support officer, has been completed. Professor Stockings will also author a volume. Work has commenced with some interviewing being conducted. The process by which the project will gain timely access to necessary Defence and other government department records will be governed by an inter-departmental Official History Records History Steering Group. The project team will be accommodated in secure facilities at the Memorial for the duration of the project.

Independent history of the medical legacies of Vietnam War

The Independent history of the medical legacies of the Vietnam War has been commissioned by the Memorial Council and is being led by Dr Peter Yule, a research fellow at the School of Historical and Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne. As part of this independent study, Dr Yule will document and examine the existing medical studies and research and undertake new oral history interviews to enable the authoring of a broad history on the medical legacies of the Vietnam war.

Anzac connections

Anzac connections is progressively delivering new collections to the website, improved search and discovery, and new and improved ways for people to interact with the collection. The project is delivering data in a more useful format, with new crowd-sourcing tools, including transcription.

Collections of First World War letters and diaries continue to be digitised and published on the website. Collections relating to musicians serving in the First World War and the musical experiences of service personnel formed part of this year’s selection, with sheet music being digitised and progressively released to the website.

The Anzac connections platform continues to be used for identifying and publishing linkages between the Memorial’s online collection data to improve context and access to the Memorial’s collections. Biographies of service personnel continue to be published online with a total of 60 completed this year, including all members of the 13th Battalion Band. The platform enables the Memorial to open its collection to the public and make it readily available for research and other public purposes.

This year the Memorial participated in several data projects including providing its First World War dataset for WW1 Hack which, in association with GovHack2015, brought together a community of creators to engage with digitised World War I collections in order to create new ways of thinking about the war and its legacy. The Memorial also provided its First World War data to the South Australian RSL Virtual Memorial project and has commenced working with Sydney University on its ARC-funded project Expert nation: universities, war and the 1920s & 30s to provide the project with a thesaurus, data and the ability to link to permanent URLs for events, places, and Australian military units.

The provision of stories, quotes, and anecdotes that help relate the thoughts, activities, and responses of Australians during the First World War has continued, particularly in relation to the Australian experience on the Western Front. The Memorial’s Anzac connections project, together with the #DailyDigger Twitter project, provides relevant biographies, links to digitised letters and diaries, and a daily narrative of the First World War using personal quotes. The Research Centre also published an extensive day by day account of the activities of all battalions remaining on the Gallipoli Peninsula during the evacuation operations in 1915, using digitised personal accounts and unit war diaries.

A number of Roll of Honour and Commemorative Roll research projects were undertaken, including investigations into new cases for inclusion, many associated with First World War commemorative activities. Several panels of the Roll of Honour have been recast, and 31 names have been added. The name of Sapper David Michael Wood was added to the Roll of Honour in November 2015 under the Afghanistan conflict, and a new supplementary panel for the First World War listing 30 names has been erected. The Commemorative Roll area in the Cloisters was updated in June 2016. Administration of the rolls, policy development research, and work on improving existing data and data structures also continued throughout the year.

Fieldwork in Borneo and research into the Memorial’s collections continued in an ARC-funded project to understand the experiences of and relationship between Australians and the people of Borneo during the Second World War. This is part of a commitment to continue to engage in new research to better understand the international context of the Australian experience of war, especially in our region.

Research by staff to identify First World War soldiers on the Roll of Honour who were under 18 years of age at the time of their death is continuing. A list of identified boy soldiers is published on the website, with an additional 20 names added during 2015–16. Eight of these boy soldiers were identified as a result of information from the public in response to this list.

Other activities included participation by Memorial staff in the ADF’s involvement in Operation Render Safe in Bougainville, and humanitarian operations in the Philippines.

Deliverable 1

Support for research about Australian military history, including:

a. Official history of Australian peacekeeping, humanitarian and post–Cold War operations

b. the annual Summer Scholars program

c. a range of internal research projects.

Result

a. Official history of Australian peacekeeping, humanitarian and post–Cold War operations

The Memorial continues to deliver the six-volume Official history of Australian peacekeeping, humanitarian and post–Cold War operations, assisted by funding from the Department of Defence.

Three volumes have already been published by Cambridge University Press:

• Volume II Australia and the ‘new world order’: from peacekeeping to peace enforcement, 1988–1991, by David Horner, was published in 2011
• Volume III The good international citizen: Australian peacekeeping in Asia, Africa and Europe, 1991–1993, by David Horner and John Connor, was published in 2014
• Volume V The good neighbour: Australian peace support operations in the Pacific Islands 1980–2006, by Bob Breen, was published in 2016.

Three volumes are currently being finalised for publication as follows:

• Volume VI In their time of need: Australia’s overseas emergency relief operations 1918–2006, by Memorial historian Steven Bullard, has been cleared by government departments and submitted to the publisher for anticipated release in 2017
• Volume IV The limits of peacekeeping: Australian missions in Africa and the Americas, 1992–2006, by Jean Bou, Bob Breen, David Horner and Garth Pratten, will be submitted for clearance by government departments in August 2016 and, subject to clearance, is expected to be submitted to the publisher in early 2017
• Volume I The long search for peace: observer missions and beyond, by Peter Londey, is due for completion of the draft manuscript at the end of September 2016, with submission to government departments for clearance in early 2017.

b. The annual Summer Scholars program

Scholars are selected through a competitive, merit-based selection process that is open to university students at a late stage of their history degrees, customarily honours graduates. They are assigned individual research projects and are supervised and professionally guided by Memorial historians.

Three scholars successfully completed research projects related to the Memorial’s historical research, collections, exhibitions, and publications:

Xavier Fowler (University of Melbourne) – Eight days that shook the Empire: the battle for Singapore in 1942.

Nicola Ritchie (Monash University) – Anathema overturned: Australian perceptions of the tank during the First World War.

Anton Donohoe Marques (University of Melbourne) – The Australian victory contingent, 1946: Australia, Britain, and celebrating the end of the Second World War.

After editing, scholars’ research reports are published on the Memorial’s website. The scholars also delivered presentations on their findings at the conclusion of the program.

c. A range of internal research projects

These included:

• A major investigation into Australia’s involvement in post–Second World War Japanese war crimes trials, produced as a multi-volume law report series covering 310 trials, with a separate volume on their historical and legal significance (funded by an ARC grant in collaboration with the University of Melbourne). The volumes in the law report series are in production by the publisher, Martinus Nijhoff, in the Netherlands, and will be launched at the International Criminal Court in the Hague. The thematic volume will be released in September 2016.
• The Australian War Memorial is partnering with the Australian National University (ANU) in a major three-year ARC-funded research project researching Australians in Borneo during the Second World War.

  The project, titled Beyond Allied histories: Dayak memories of World War II in Borneo, involves the ANU and the Memorial providing new research into how different groups of people experienced the Second World War in Borneo. The research team combines anthropological expertise from Dr Christine Helliwell of the College of Arts and Social Sciences at ANU with curatorial expertise from Robyn van Dyk, Head of the Research Centre at the Memorial, in a collaborative project. As well as a scholarly book and articles, the project will generate an exhibition that will focus on Australians who served and their relationships with the people of Borneo. Stories will be based on the Memorial’s archive including original letters and diaries, and research developed from the ARC linkage project. There will be an accompanying digitisation/web program to promote the archival collections in the online environment.

Memorial staff disseminated military history in various ways during the year:

• delivered research papers and public talks on aspects of Australian military history at seminars and conferences, and in association with Memorial exhibitions and other public programs
• provided military history advice for a wide range of corporate needs, including in-house training, media requirements, major commemorative functions, and official government programs
• contributed to the development of Memorial permanent and touring exhibitions
• published scholarly and popular articles on a wide range of Australian military history subjects.

A select list of staff talks, lectures, and publications is included in Appendix 7.

Deliverable 2

A publishing program including:

a. curatorial monographs

b. military history publications

c. Wartime magazine

d. exhibition and education publications.

Result

a. Curatorial Monographs

No curatorial monographs were published this year. A number of proposals were considered but did not attract interest from publishers and have not proceeded. Other avenues to disseminate curatorial research are being pursued.

b. Military history publications

• Attack on the Somme: 1st ANZAC Corps and the battle of Pozières Ridge, 1916, by Military History Section historian Dr Meleah Hampton, published by Helion & Company in June 2016 and launched in July 2016
• Double diamonds: Australian commandos in the Pacific war, by Military History Section senior historian Dr Karl James, published by NewSouth Publishing in June 2016 and launched in August 2016
• Kokoda: beyond the legend, edited by Military History Section senior historian Dr Karl James, in production by Cambridge University Press for publication in early 2017
• Australia’s war crimes trials 1945–51, edited by Professor Tim McCormack and Narrelle Morris of University of Melbourne under ARC Linkage Grant with the Memorial, in production by Martinus Nijhoff, Netherlands,for publication in September 2016
• Charles Bean’s diaries from the Western Front, completed by Military History Section senior historian Peter Burness under Lambert Gallipoli Fellowship funding for publication by NewSouth Publishing in early 2018
• Korea: in from the cold, edited by Military History Section historian Michael Kelly, compiled and edited for publication in 2017
• For valour: Australians awarded the Victoria Cross, by Military History Section senior historian Aaron Pegram and Military Heraldry and Technology curator Craig Blanch, being researched and compiled for submission to publisher NewSouth Publishing in July 2017
• Official history of Australia in the war of 1914–1918, facsimile reprint of the 12-volume series by high-resolution scanning of presentation ‘rag paper’ editions, digitised editions to be published by Allen & Unwin during 2018 as e-books and as print-on-demand volumes.

c. Wartime magazine

Production of the Memorial’s popular military history magazine, Wartime, continued during 2015–16. Four issues (numbers 71–74) were published, featuring high-quality, popular, and engaging articles. A high proportion of articles in Wartime were once again written by Memorial historians and other staff. The magazine continued its popular themed focus, featuring collections of articles on: the end of the Second World War (issue 71, winter 2015); Korea (issue 72, spring 2015); military command (issue 73, summer 2016); and the Somme (issue 74, autumn 2016).

d. Exhibition and education publications

• The third publication in the Century of Service series, Ancestry: stories of multicultural Anzacs, developed by Robyn Siers and Carlie Walker of the Education section, published in collaboration with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, was shortlisted as a finalist for information book of the year in the 2016 Children’s Book Council of Australia’s Book of the Year Awards.
• The fourth book in the Century of Service series, which will focus on comradeship, will be published in the 2016-17 financial year.

Deliverable 3

Access to collection items and military history information, including:

a. Reading Room facilities

b. An authoritative research enquiry service

c. An annual conference

d. Online research facilities

e. A shop that provides quality military history books and exhibition publications.

Result

a. Reading Room facilities

The Memorial’s Research Centre continued to attract large numbers of visitors throughout the year. Approximately 32,769 people visited the Reading Room, with 18,833 requests made for collection items. Reference officers delivered a face-to-face reference service, similar to the service which is delivered to remote clients via email, telephone, and mail. The demand for the Research Centre’s facilitated visit service has risen 18 per cent over the last three years. This service enables clients to contact the Research Centre to organise record retrievals in advance of their visits and is heavily utilised by professional clients including writers, military historians, and academics. Many researchers also access digitised collections from the Reading Room. The availability of digitised records such as war diaries, Reports of Proceedings, and private records through Anzac connections has helped alleviate pressure on the retrieval of original First World War manuscripts which are in heavy demand over this centenary period.

b. An authoritative research enquiry service

Research Centre staff answered 14,841 enquiries made online or by telephone, email, or through the mail. In 2014–15 the Research Centre responded to 25,096 enquiries, a significantly higher than average number that was attributed to increased interest associated with the centenary of the start of the First World War and Gallipoli campaign. Telephone, email, and online enquiries vastly outnumber mail enquiries.

Military History Section staff answered more than 1,664 research enquiries during 2015-16. The enquiries include those made online, by telephone, and via mail from the public and the media, and through the minister’s and prime minister’s offices and other government agencies. Historians also answered a substantial number of mail and email enquiries sent to the editors of Wartime.

c. Annual conference

In 2015–16 planning was completed and all arrangements made for the Memorial’s annual history conference "1916: the cost of attrition" to be convened on 20-22 July 2016. Marking the centenary of major events of the First World War in 1916, the event will be framed by two major commemorations at the Memorial: the centenary of the battle of Fromelles on 19 July and the centenary of the battle of Pozières on 23 July.

d. Online research facilities

The provision of digitised collections and content are a high priority for the Memorial in facilitating broad access to its collections. Data clean-up has continued in 2015–16, creating cleaner and more accurate search results. Throughout this year the Memorial has invested in researching and understanding how people are searching and navigating the website. This research forms part of a web development project and provides an understanding of what people are looking for and how successful they are in finding relevant content.

The Memorial’s online encyclopedia and information sheets support independent research by the public and assist staff with answers to frequently asked questions. Five new encyclopedia articles and three new information sheets were published to the website, and 18 articles were enhanced and updated. Encyclopedia pages received over 880,800 views during 2015–16. The "Anzac biscuits" entry was viewed the most, with this page receiving 44,653 hits.

The Memorial’s library catalogue database, FIRST, has been integrated into the collection search capability of the website with researchers able to perform a single search across the Memorial’s collections. The FIRST database is in the process of being upgraded with testing of this function underway. This upgrade is required to assist with redeveloping integration and consistency of displaying search results across the Memorial’s collections. The upgrade is also required for the web development project which is researching improvements to the user experience of the Memorial’s website.

e. A shop that provides quality military history books and exhibition publications.

The Memorial Shop continues to stock a comprehensive range of military history publications and exhibition catalogues. The Online Shop also offers a range of titles.

Conducting research at the Memorial’s Research Centre, viewing digitised website resources, searching the Memorial’s online databases, making research enquiries, attending lectures and conferences, or reading material produced by the Memorial’s military historians are all deliberate actions to interpret and understand the Australian experience of war and its enduring impact on Australian society. The KPIs for the effectiveness of this program are:

KPI 1

Number of visits to the Research Centre Reading Room.

Result

Approximately 32,760 people visited the Reading Room in 2015–16. There has been a gradual decrease in visitor numbers since the Gallipoli anniversaries in 2015.

KPI 2

Number of collection items retrieved for and accessed by Reading Room clients.

Result

A total of 18,833 collection items were requested by Reading Room clients this year, and 18,374 items were retrieved and accessed. This is an increase from last year.

KPI 3

Viewing online research facilities.

Result

More than 28 million page views of the Memorial’s website were recorded.

KPI 4

Number of research enquiries answered by Memorial staff.

Result

Memorial staff answered 14,841 research enquiries in 2015–16.

KPI 5

Total attendance at Memorial conferences.

Result

No conference was held during this financial year.

KPI 6 & 7

Number of lectures and conference papers given by Memorial staff and number of books and articles written by Memorial staff.

Result

During 2015–16, Memorial staff presented 21 conference papers (20 last year); delivered 37 lectures or off-site talks (42 last year); and completed 49 interviews (56 last year).

Memorial staff wrote or edited three books (seven last year), 17 book chapters (nine last year), and 55 articles including book reviews (27 last year) during the year.

A select list of staff talks, lectures, and publications is included in Appendix 7

KPI 8

Sales figures for Wartime magazine and other publications produced by the Memorial in 2015–16.

Result

Wartime 23,231

Books 1,975

Exhibition catalogues 346

Souvenir publications 13,233

* Sales of books through the Memorial Shop and Online Shop only. Does not include sales through other book stores.

Left: The Friends of the Memorial end of year function was hosted by Memorial Director, Dr Brendan Nelson. Memorial curators were on hand to explain Christmas-themed items from the collection.

Above: Rear Admiral Ken Doolan AO RAN (Retd) speaks at the opening of the Captain Reg Saunders Gallery and Courtyard.

The opening of the Captain Reg Saunders Gallery, attended by members of his family.

Other research activities

Family history outreach

The Research Centre continues to offer an outreach training program for researching family history. Workshops focus on how visitors can use the collections and services of the Australian War Memorial (and other institutional collections that relate to Australian military service) to discover their families’ military service stories. This financial year has seen talks and workshops delivered to the Link-up Training Advisory Reference Group, Friends of the Memorial, and several visiting school and university groups.

Bryan Gandevia Prize for Military History

A generous bequest by the family and friends of the late Professor Bryan Gandevia in 2009 enabled the establishment of a prize to commemorate Professor Gandevia’s contribution to the development of Australian military and medical history, and the historical research and publication activities of the Australian War Memorial. The Bryan Gandevia Prize of $5,000 is one of the most generous awards for postgraduate studies in Australian history. It is awarded biennially to an outstanding honours, masters, or doctoral thesis on a significant subject within Australian military history, military-medical history, or military-social history.

Applications for the 2016 Brian Gandevia Prize for theses submitted, examined and passed since 1 July 2014, closed on 30 June 2016. The Military History Section will assess submissions in conjunction with external assessors and the winner will be announced and the prize awarded in the 2016–17 financial year.

Honour rolls

A number of Roll of Honour and Commemorative Roll research projects were undertaken, including investigations into new cases for inclusion, many of which were associated with First World War commemorative activities.

First World War panels 187 and 188 were recast to enable a change of order for the listed units and to remove former supplementary names. A new supplementary First World War panel listing 30 names was created and erected in the Cloisters. Second World War supplementary panels 12 and 13 were recast.

The name of Sapper David Michael Wood was added to the Roll of Honour in November 2015 under the Afghanistan conflict.

In June 2016, the Commemorative Roll area in the cloisters was updated. Two new Commemorative Roll books were installed along with a new commemorative plaque. Lighting and signage in the area has also been updated.

OUTPUT 1.8 Visitor Services

Visitors to the Memorial and its outreach programs are provided with a standard of service that enhances their experience and encourages them to return and promote others to visit.

Overview

The Australian War Memorial continues to provide a world-class visitor experience and was ranked Number One Landmark in Australia and the South Pacific in the 2016 TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice awards.

A dedicated team of paid and volunteer staff are committed to the provision and delivery of front-of-house services of the highest standard. Visitor appreciation of this standard of service is evident in the many posts to TripAdvisor or letters and emails of appreciation received by the Memorial. The following comment was posted to the TripAdvisor website in June 2016:

In a single word … Magnificent!

My sojourn to Canberra was absolutely and completely about a long held desire to visit our wonderful War Memorial.

I arrived just in time to join the excellent guided tour which was very informative and is a terrific introduction to any first time visitor. Our group guide was fantastic.

During my visit, particularly meandering through the comprehensive WW1 areas, I just found the exhibits to be so powerful and yet at the same time incredibly emotional.

Everyone involved with the AWM, The Director - Dr. Brendan Nelson & staff and the hundreds of volunteers must be congratulated. It was evident to me from just one visit that clearly everyone associated with the War Memorial shares the same passion to in some small way pay tribute and honour our Country’s service men and women.

A very very special place !!

TripAdvisor visitor comment

The commitment by front-of-house staff to maintain the highest levels of excellence in service ensures that the experience of visiting the Memorial is engaging and meaningful.

Deliverable 1

Front-of-house staff trained to deliver high-level customer service and voluntary guides trained to an introductory level of military history.

Result

To ensure a memorable experience for the many visitors to the Memorial, a high priority is placed on the standard of service delivery by paid and volunteer front-of-house staff. Regular training and learning and development sessions are delivered and made available to staff and volunteers across the course of the year.

Staff are provided regular opportunities to attend military history lectures or gallery talks to enhance their core knowledge. Staff members also undertake scheduled emergency procedure and first aid training.

To assist the Memorial’s voluntary guides to maintain a minimum level of proficiency and professionalism based on continuing professional development they undertake monthly "Continuing Training" and quarterly "Peer Group Training". Following from the success of the 2015 model, the Learning and Development program was re-introduced in February 2016. This financial year the Learning and Development program delivered over 21 sessions by experts from within the Memorial. This in-depth training covered Australia’s involvement in conflicts, spanning over a century, and provided an opportunity for participants to refresh guiding techniques and customer service skills.

Staff assistance has a high satisfaction rating from visitors completing the general visitor survey, with a satisfaction rating of 97 per cent (74 per cent very satisfied). This is an increase on the 85 per cent satisfaction rating received in 2014–15.

Deliverable 2

High-quality and suitable public facilities such as restrooms, cafés, and way-finding signage.

Result

The Memorial is safe and well-presented, with appropriate public facilities such as restrooms, a first aid room, and parents’ rooms. The majority of permanent front-of-house staff members are qualified in first aid. Further enhancements are planned for external signage to assist visitor with way-finding and outline conditions of entry.

• 88 per cent satisfied with way-finding signage (50 per cent very satisfied)
• 88 per cent satisfied with cloaking facilities (58 per cent very satisfied)
• 83 per cent satisfied with Poppy’s Café (50 per cent very satisfied)
• 82 per cent satisfied with (54 per cent very satisfied)

Deliverable 3

Opportunities for visitor feedback, such as service charter, visitors’ book, and evaluation services.

Result

The Memorial welcomes feedback of all forms from our many visitors. A visitors’ book is located in the Orientation Gallery and the Memorial Service Charter is available online.

In the 2015–16 reporting period 90 comments were added to the Memorial’s visitors’ book. The entries in the visitors’ book included 81 compliments and 18 complaints (with some cross-over occurring). There were 41 compliments about staff, and 32 about the Memorial’s exhibitions. Of the complaints, 14 were about the exhibitions, one about the mobility facilities provided, and one about staff. Written responses were provided to all entries as appropriate.

The Memorial maintained its evaluation and audience research oversight of the effectiveness of its programs through targeted reviews outlined in Output 1.10.

The provision of high-quality visitor services provides the necessary foundation for other programs to function effectively. The KPIs for the effectiveness of this program are:

KPI 1

At least 90 per cent of surveyed visitors believe that their visit had met or exceeded their expectations.

Result

This financial year 98 per cent of surveyed visitors stated that their visit to the Memorial had met or exceeded their expectations, with 62 per cent of these saying it had exceeded their expectations.

There was a higher result of women under 24 years of age and males 25–34 years of age finding the Memorial better than expected.

KPI 2

At least 80 per cent of surveyed visitors believe that the Memorial has maintained or improved its standard of service since their last visit.

Result

Of the surveyed visitors 82 per cent believed that the Memorial’s overall standard of service had improved since their last visit.

A further 17 per cent of visitors believed the Memorial had maintained its overall standard of service.

Other visitor services activities

Volunteer services

The Memorial’s volunteers continued to make a significant contribution, with more than 150 people offering up over 10,000 hours of their time, skills, and expertise to support front-of-house services and projects in curatorial and conservation areas. The volunteers’ level of service and dedication is gratefully acknowledged by the Memorial and is appreciated by the many visitors who have benefited from the time they so freely give.

2016 marked the 40th anniversary of the formation of the Voluntary Guides and the delivery of the first guided tour of the Memorial. This financial year voluntary guides delivered over 4,000 free daily tours to almost 60,000 general visitors. Voluntary guides also delivered VIP and after-hours Commemorative Area tours (provided as part of the January 2016 late-night opening program) across the reporting period.

Fittingly, on 9 May 2016, the Voluntary Guides were awarded the Team Award in the Education, Science and Technology category of the 2016 ACT Volunteer of the Year Awards.

The Memorial continued to provide regular information and development sessions together with structured training, such as the Voluntary Guide 2016 Training and Development program.

The Memorial’s volunteers also assisted the public to gain access to family history information and engaged with family and student visitors in the Discovery Zone.

Volunteer veterans participated in the Memorial’s school wreathlaying program, engaging with students about their service experiences. 2016 saw the introduction of three additional school wreathlaying ceremonies per week. This successful program enhanced understanding of commemoration for participating school groups.

INTERNAL OUTPUTS

Internal outputs contribute to the achievement of all Memorial external outputs.

OUTPUT 1.9 Corporate Governance

The Council of the Australian War Memorial provides a strategic framework of policy and direction that guides the achievement of the Memorial’s outcome

In accordance with its planned schedule, the full Council and the Finance, Audit, and Compliance Committee each met four times during the year. The Remuneration Committee met once.

The Chair of the Council and the Director of the Memorial provided a briefing to the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs after each meeting. The Memorial’s senior management team also met with senior representatives of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs to discuss matters of business relevant to both parties.

Through the process of Council and committee meetings detailed papers and recommendations were presented by the Memorial’s management. The major considerations and decisions undertaken by Council related to:

• implementation of a broader program of events related to the Centenary of the First World War
• progress in relation to the Official history of Australian peacekeeping, humanitarian, and post–Cold War operations, the Official history of Australian operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Australian peacekeeping operations in East Timor, and the Independent history of the medical legacies of the Vietnam War
• development of long-term National Collection storage solutions
• stakeholder consultation associated with the MV Krait
• planning for the Spirit of Anzac Centenary Experience.

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) continued as the Memorial’s internal auditor. Members of the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) and PWC attended each of the Finance, Audit, and Compliance Committee meetings. A program of audits was approved by Council for the 2015–16 financial year and the outcomes of reviews undertaken were presented at each meeting.

Council membership changes during the year included the completion of terms for Mr Graham Edwards and Ms Gabrielle Trainor, and the reappointment of Rear Admiral Ken Doolan (Retd). Mr James McMahon, Wing Commander Sharon Brown (Retd) and Mr Daniel Keighran VC were all appointed for three-year terms. Mr Kerry Stokes AC was appointed Chairman of the Council in November 2015, replacing Rear Admiral Ken Doolan (Retd).

Details of Council members are included in Appendices 1 and 2.

In accordance with its terms of reference, Council reviewed its performance in August 2016 via a survey completed by Council and the Memorial’s executive. Overall, the results of the review indicate that performance of Council during 2015–16 was highly satisfactory with 19 of the 20 criteria achieving a score of four or more out of five.

OUTPUT 1.10 Executive Strategic Management

Effective leadership and management of the Memorial in accordance with the requirements of the Australian War Memorial Act 1980

Executive leadership

The Memorial’s executive leadership and management framework includes a Corporate Management Group (CMG), consisting of the Director and three assistant directors, and a Senior Management Group (SMG) comprising all section heads and members of CMG.

During this past year, there were a number of important changes to CMG and SMG. After acting as director during January, Rhonda Adler commenced extended long service leave from February 2016. Leanne Patterson has been acting Assistant Director, Branch Head Corporate Services since 11 January 2016 while maintaining her responsibilities as Chief Finance Officer (CFO). Chris Wagner commenced as Head of Communications and Marketing in May 2016.

CMG meets weekly and considers a wide range of matters brought forward by its members or via papers from section heads. Quarterly reports are presented to monitor performance against the approved Business Plan and review management of identified business risks. The CFO presents a set of financial statements on a regular basis and is able to provide independent and direct advice to senior management. A corporate reserve was established to provide additional resources to deliver and support programs associated with the centenary period and other key commemorative activities. Funding from the general appropriation is being quarantined for this purpose. A number of temporary positions established in the 2015–16 financial year ceased at 30 June 2016 as planned.

The Priority Projects Steering Group continues to have strategic oversight of a range of corporate priorities and programs, monitoring resource management, and project delivery against the key indicators of scope, budget schedule, quality, and risk.

The Information Management Steering Group (IMSG) meets monthly and is key to determining the strategic direction of Information Management, information and communications technology (ICT), and web initiatives. This area of business continues to grow and underpins many of the Memorial’s corporate objectives. The prioritisation of available resources is a major focus of IMSG. The Enterprise Architecture Review commissioned during 2013–14 was finalised in 2015–16. It provides a clear understanding of the ICT requirements for the Memorial to meet its objectives and has identified priority areas for further ICT investment, subject to available resources.

The Assistant Director, National Collection, chairs the Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) Working Group which has produced the Memorial’s first Reflect RAP. The Reflect RAP is designed to identify and implement initiatives to help provide services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander stakeholders, visitors, and users of our services. It will provide a framework for further development of information resources and services, employment strategies, and engagement with the diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories, cultures, and military service.

A wide range of statistical information is collated and presented on a quarterly basis to access trends across business activities.

The Memorial continued its efforts to secure corporate sponsorship and support through grants. A number of corporate sector partnerships have been secured or are in the process of being negotiated, including significant long-term partnerships with existing supporters such as Boeing, BHP Billiton, Seven Group Holdings, Seven Network, Lambert De Largesse, BAE Systems, Lockheed Martin, Qantas, Thales, RSL and Services Clubs NSW, RSL Victoria, and RSL Queensland. These companies and organisations have partnered with the Memorial in delivering programs for Memorial visitors and students. Other individual supporters continue to provide financial support for the Memorial’s projects and public programs.

SMG meets weekly and is a forum for the exchange of information and discussion of corporate issues. Feedback from CMG and SMG meetings is provided to all staff through weekly section meetings.

In addition to weekly CMG meetings, a number of project control groups (PCG) met on a monthly basis to monitor the performance of major projects. The focus of PCGs is to ensure projects are delivered according to their objectives, timeframes, and budgets. Major projects during 2015–16 include the upgrade of the Commemorative Area, and the development of the Memorial masterplan and the large technology object storage building.

Strategic management

The Memorial’s strategic planning framework encourages participation by all staff, promoting the concept of one team working to achieve common goals and recognising the importance of communication and ownership of decisions. Annual business plans and accompanying budgets are developed to support Council directions and corporate plan priorities. Once developed, annual business plans influence day-to-day operations. Achievements are monitored and reported to CMG with quarterly reports submitted to Council.

Risk management and business continuity planning

The Memorial’s risk management and fraud control plans for 2014–17 were implemented during the year. Identified risks were monitored across the organisation, and specific risk management plans were developed for all major events and activities. Planning for emergency evacuation continued, with trial evacuations completed in all buildings several times during the year. CMG and Council received quarterly reports against the risk register and the fraud control plan’s key performance indicators.

A review of the business continuity plan was conducted, and a desktop scenario undertaken by section heads in June 2016.

The Memorial participated in Comcover’s annual risk management benchmarking survey in 2016 and achieved a risk maturity level of "integrated", as the Memorial has developed and implemented a risk policy and comprehensive risk management framework that is embedded in the operations of the entity and is assessed and updated regularly. The Memorial has maintained this target level, but has introduced additional measure to improve performance against elements of the risk management framework.

The Memorial continued its active participation in the Corporate Management Forum Insurance and Risk Management Working Group, believing that this network provides valuable support and information sharing.

Evaluation and visitor research

Audience perspective is an important feedback tool for Memorial programs and events. Audience research and evaluation provides current information on the nature and diversity of the Memorial’s visitor profile and program delivery outcomes. This year research priorities were:

Exhibition studies

• Anzac Hall visitor profile
• First World War galleries audio-guide
• Afghanistan: the Australian story
• Temporary exhibition: Reality in flames: modern Australia and the Second World War
• Temporary display: Mephisto

Event evaluations

• Big things in store, Treloar Technology Centre, Mitchell
• Memorial conference: 1916: the cost of attrition
• Anzac Day ceremonies attendance count
• Remembrance Day Ceremony attendance count.

Performance review and indicators

• General visitor survey 2015–16
• Café catering performance survey.

The Memorial’s automated people counter system was expanded this year to include Anzac Hall. This system provides a consistent, timely, and accurate record of people movements into the Memorial, Research Centre, Afghanistan gallery, and temporary exhibition space. This data is essential for grant and donation applications and acquittals.

OUTPUT 1.11 Resource Management

Management of the Memorial’s buildings and grounds, and its financial, human, and general service resources to the best advantage of external outputs.

Buildings and services

Buildings

Energy management continues to be a priority for the Memorial, and technical initiatives have maintained efficient energy consumption on the site. The refinement of the strategy for building climate control continues, with an emphasis on managing temperature and humidity parameters to meet the needs of collection material and energy efficiency. The Memorial has engaged ACTEW to conduct a 12-month energy optimisation audit, which is expected to generate savings on electricity consumption at the Campbell Site.

Further upgrades have been completed to the hot water boilers in the C.E.W. Bean Building, with new burners installed on both units to provide improved operational efficiency. Replacement of fluorescent and conventional lighting to energy efficient bulbs and LED technologies was undertaken in the Campbell and Mitchell precincts, which is expected to produce additional savings for the Memorial.

The project control group has progressed the next Mitchell Site Development Plan cycle to determine long-term site development and corporate storage priorities for the Memorial’s future growth and acquisitions. The concept design for the first stage large technology object storage building is well underway. The Memorial’s Mitchell properties comprise ACT and Commonwealth land, and discussions are underway to resolve any potential title issues which may impact the long-term redevelopment plans of the site.

Major accommodation projects have been undertaken in Campbell and Mitchell. Reconfiguration of the textile store at Treloar A has been completed, resulting in three separate storage rooms being converted to an open plan layout, with significant work being undertaken to seal the space to reduce the possibility for pest incursion into the collection. Demolition and design of new secure office space to accommodate the official histories project has commenced at the Campbell site, requiring some collection and staff relocation to accommodate the new project team. The construction, commissioning and fit-out of the space is expected to be complete by November 2016.

Several other projects were completed, including modifications to the multimedia scanning room to support the installation of new digital film-scanning infrastructure, and installation of roof height safety systems at Poppy’s Café and the Treloar F site.

Grounds

Grounds maintenance contracts are managed to ensure outstanding grounds presentation at all times. Detailed grounds maintenance and horticulture contracts are managed separately to ensure professional services are delivered. A specialist gardener is contracted for garden maintenance of the Commemorative Area, Eastern Precinct, and memorials and sculptures throughout the Western Precinct to ensure these locations are presented at a high standard.

Additional underground electrical infrastructure for Anzac Day and Remembrance Day ceremonies was installed to improve the Memorial’s ability to support audio visual presentations and broadcast media involvement in events conducted at the Memorial. This work reduces the risk to staff and visitors from accidents due to cables across roads and pathways.

A regular maintenance regime for the Lone Pine tree (Pinus halepensis) continues to assist with its longevity. A replacement pine, grown from a seed taken from the original Lone Pine tree, was planted by Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on Anzac Day 2014. It is anticipated that this tree will have grown to a suitable size when the original Lone Pine reaches senescence. It is in a healthy state, and this is assisted by the fence and bird netting.

The official opening and dedication of the War correspondents memorial and Elevation of the senses sculptural tribute to explosive detection dogs and their handlers were held, with further planning and scheduling for future commemorative sculptures under development.

Several sections of cracked pedestrian footpath behind the Administration Building were replaced to eliminate trip hazards and pram/wheelchair access was installed in the gutter to improve access from the executive carpark to the Administration Building front entrance. An additional footpath behind Anzac Hall is planned to assist school group access, reduce trip hazards, and decrease red gravel wash-off onto roads and into drains during heavy rain.

Security (including emergency planning)

Compliance with the Protective Security Policy Framework (PSPF) continues to be a focus for the Memorial. Regular security risk reviews are undertaken to ensure a strengthened focus on Memorial security arrangements, taking into consideration the national threat level.

Liaison with the Australian Federal Police (AFP) occurs for all high-profile visits and events. There is a particularly positive relationship with AFP (ACT Policing) for liaison, coordination, and the AFP’s role in the Memorial’s high-profile events and ceremonies such as Anzac Day and Remembrance Day.

New baggage inspection and cloaking arrangements were introduced in May 2016. Inspections are conducted by security staff with a focus on the Main Building public entry points. Electronic security infrastructure is currently being upgraded to increase security CCTV coverage of the Memorial precinct and access control arrangements for all Memorial buildings.

The Emergency Planning Committee (EPC) met four times during 2015–16. Planning and conducting emergency evacuation drills for all Memorial buildings has continued, with improvements identified and implemented.

Workshop services

The Memorial’s workshop supports a wide range of Memorial activities. Work this year included trades support for the Reality in flames: modern Australian art and the Second World War exhibition. Works continued with the conservation of the Evacuation series dioramas that were removed from the First World War exhibit during its redevelopment, with workshop staff designing and manufacturing conservation-approved protective storage and travel crates. Workshop staff provided assistance with the preparation and installation of the Mephisto tank exhibition in Anzac Hall, fit-out of the new Memorial Boxes, preparation and installation of commemorative plaques and sculptures, bookshop storage room fit-out, refurbishment of the Captain Reg Saunders Gallery, a wide range of building works, preparations for ceremonies, gallery maintenance, furniture construction, and general building and grounds maintenance works.

Document control centre

Mail Room duties have continued in relation to records management, including retrieval and rehousing of physical paper files and scanning incoming mail to the electronic records management system (maintained in SharePoint since 2011).

In order to improve efficiencies on paper files retrieved from Mitchell, Treloar D Building, the 1988–89 paper files are now stored in the Research Centre with 1990 soon to be archived. Only limited paper files created in 1991–92 are still housed at Treloar D storage facility.

Mailroom and loading dock security and safety in relation to potential security threats that may arise from incoming deliveries and/or mail are an ongoing focus. Development and review of mailroom policies and procedures continues to ensure best practice mail tracking and receipt while addressing security requirements.

Finance

Financial planning and monitoring

The Memorial has a well-established internal budget development and management process which includes oversight of a number of components to ensure corporate priorities are funded to an appropriate level. Many new projects and activities related to the centenary of the First World War were funded from an internal reserve, with potential allocations forecast over several years to ensure adequate resourcing during the centenary period 2014–18.

Funding strategies were also developed for a range of capital projects planned over the next ten years, including National Collection storage, gallery refurbishments, building works, site development, software upgrades, and IT hardware replacement.

The Memorial continues to work closely with its on-site functions and catering contractor to maximise exposure and ensure the success of our popular visitor and corporate event facilities.

Regular financial reporting to senior management, Council, and the Department of Finance throughout the year included Memorial-wide financial results, budget review and analysis, cash balance reporting, capital management planning, and commercial operations.

The Memorial’s collection was formally revalued during 2015–16, resulting in a net increase in fair value of $34 million. The increase was largely due to movements in photography holdings within the collection.

Financial policy

The Head of Finance and Chief Finance Officer (CFO) continued to participate in the development of whole-of-government reforms through developing input to key discussion papers and consultation processes, including the implementation of the Public Management Reform Agenda Performance Framework.

The CFO was also involved in activities to ensure that funding strategies for major projects and programs are achieved, including resource analysis and forecasts for projects associated with the Centenary of the First World War exhibition redevelopment, and long-term accommodation and collection storage needs.

Support services and systems

The Finance Section provides a range of services to support Memorial activities, including accounts payable and receivable, domestic and overseas travel arrangements, budget management, procurement advice, assets management, Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT), contracts management advice, and investment management.

The section has a strong focus on the provision of high-quality procurement and contract advice, and several customised training sessions were delivered to inform staff of the key features of government policy.

Finance staff undertook training in a range of areas relating to financial management and procurement, and professional staff undertook the necessary training to maintain their Certified Practising Accountant/Chartered Accountant status.

Information Technology

Corporate systems

The Information Technology Section supports a broad range of IT-based systems underpinning operations, including administrative, collection management, public access, gallery information and experience, retail, and online services. There is an excellent record of systems availability, achieved through dedicated attention to systems monitoring and well-planned upgrades.

A new barcode-scanning solution for collection management was implemented and integrated with the MICA collection management system.

In-house developed applications for the upload of collection records and media content to the website were completely rewritten to improve functionality and automated resilience.

Database engines including Oracle and SQL Server which support core systems were upgraded and optimised to improve maintainability and performance.

The highly successful webcast of the Last Post Ceremony continued and the range of supported endpoint devices was increased.

The SharePoint-based electronic records management system continues to support corporate recordkeeping requirements. Its importance to business programs is reflected in the fact that system user activity generates an average of 12,000 page views per day. Interfaces such as OnePlaceMail were upgraded as part of the new Standard Operating Environment (SOE) rollout.

ICT infrastructure

The Information Technology Section develops and maintains a modern in-house IT platform which supports the systems referred to above.

A new hyper-converged server platform was implemented to support the IT server virtualisation environment. The environment delivers improved application performance, simpler administration, and faster and more transparent backup and recovery while eliminating the need for storage area network (SAN) administration to provision and reallocate space.

The firewall upgrade was completed, including implementation of intrusion prevention system (IPS) functionality, segregation of internal "untrusted" virtual local area networks (VLANs), and new virtual private network (VPN) infrastructure, improving network security and transparency, and providing increased resilience against cyber-threats.

The fleet of five-year-old desktop computers was replaced and included the rollout of a new Windows 10-based SOE. This delivered a welcome performance improvement and increased security via introduction of the new operating system and the latest software patches. Over 80 applications were upgraded and migrated to a new application delivery platform (SCCM 2012) allowing for improved application rollout and monitoring, and reducing user wait times for manual installations.

Work commenced to develop an additional SOE for laptop computers which will be deployed, on a needs basis, as desktop computer substitutes in the second half of 2016.

Internet connectivity bandwidth was upgraded from 1 to 10Gb/s as the service was moved to AARNet 4.

Strategic planning and governance

The Information Management Steering Group (IMSG) continued its oversight of information management and the application of technology-based systems. The review of enterprise architecture was completed. However, the ability to fully address some of the more complex issues will depend on the availability of resources.

Human resources

Strategic people management/workforce planning

The Memorial has identified the following strategic workforce priorities:

• alignment of people and our business through positive performance culture
• promoting organisational health and wellbeing
• building leadership and management capability
• attracting and retaining the right people
• encouraging innovation and agility.

Workforce planning will continue to evolve within the Memorial over the next few years to build and sustain a diverse workforce. This will deliver current and future business objectives and provide greater opportunity to attract, develop, and retain skilled, engaged, and committed employees. It will allow the identification of critical capability gaps and enable the development of tailored strategies to assist in mitigating future workforce risk. This will lead to greater linkages and alignment with business to achieve the Memorial’s strategic objectives.

Workforce development

The Memorial fosters a culture of professional development and continuous learning in building capability, capacity, and bench strength for the future.

Initiatives for 2016 included the implementation and rollout of:

• a Leadership Development Program for all leaders at the APS5–EL1 levels. The program provides leaders with a common language and understanding in fostering a culture of high performance and of staff being more fully engaged. The cohort structure of representatives from each business section supports networking and cross collaboration. This program will continue into the 2016–17 financial year
• Learnhub, the Memorial’s online space where all staff can participate in a diverse range of training by participating in e-learning programs or register to attend in-house face-to-face training.

In addition:

• specialist training programs, conferences and seminars continue to be a hallmark of the annual Learning and Development Plan in supporting the development of the range of expertise required within the Memorial
• accreditations provide currency in licensing and skills required for the job
• the Memorial’s Studies Assistance Scheme continues to provide support to staff enabling them to undertake formal qualifications relevant to their expertise and career progression.

People management and services

Annual performance assessments continue to be an important foundation for the Memorial to manage and enhance the performance of our employees. Increased reporting of the annual assessment process is now being provided at the most senior levels of the organisation.

The Workplace Relations Committee met regularly throughout the year and continues to be an important forum for staff consultation, including policy development.

Enterprise bargaining towards the Memorial’s new Teamwork Agreement continued involving extensive staff consultation and changes to the original proposal. Management continues to bargain in good faith to ensure the best outcome for the Memorial and its workforce into the future.

OUTPUT 1.12 Revenue Generation

Generation of revenue in support of the Memorial’s mission and purpose.

Memorial Shop

Memorial Shop revenue was $2,166,805 in 2015–16 against a target of $2,360,000. Net profit was $454,265, compared to last year’s $435,681, before notional overhead costs.

Wage to sales, a key metric of retail performance, finished at 31 per cent, compared to 29 per cent in the previous year. Cost of goods was down seven per cent. Combined transactional activity for the shop and Orientation Gallery totalled 119,208, with the shop’s average sale decreasing $1.63 to $21.53, an indication of the sale of lower-priced items. Net operating profit percentage finished at 21 per cent, compared to 19 per cent in the previous year. This was achieved by benchmarking the shop’s operations to external retailers, training staff in retail metrics, and changing supply chain to more economical suppliers.

The majority of sales were merchandise developed by the Memorial and items produced under license with other suppliers, including the Royal Australian Mint and Australia Post. The centenary range included:

• 100th Anniversary of Battle of Lone Pine range featuring timber from the Memorial’s Lone Pine tree that was damaged during a storm. The range included a trinket box, pen in box, two-up set, letter opener, small gift box and pins
• 2016 Gallipoli medallion featuring a most prominent image of the troops on the Western Front
• circulating and non-circulating coins commemorating key events in Australian military history
• apparel and souvenir products featuring the centenary logo.

The Memorial expanded on its core range of products around the military services, poppy range, and educational items for school groups.

The Memorial launched a number of publications, including The Changi book by Dr Lachlan Grant, Antony Beevor’s Ardennnes 1944, and The Promise: three mates, two wars by Jamie Zimmerman. Memorial souvenir publications sold through the Orientation Gallery and Memorial Shop, including A place to remember, Hall of Memory, and an updated Australian War Memorial guide book, all sold well.

e-Business

The Memorial’s e-business revenue for 2015–16 was $897,327 (including the value of waivers and stock received free of charge) against a target of $1,190,000. Revenue is generated from:

• costs associated with reproductions from the National Collection
• user fees associated with commercial use of the material
• the value of fees waived for use of materials for educational, private, or commemorative purposes
• Memorial Shop products sold online.

Online Shop sales declined 12 per cent over the previous year, which is an indication of the significance of the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli landing last year.

OUTPUT 1.13 Team Management

Sections/teams are managed and administered to achieve Memorial outputs and foster equity, teamwork, and open communication.

This is a common output across the Memorial that recognises the promotion of teamwork to achieve corporate priorities. The Performance Assessment Framework is a key strategy for ensuring individual work plans are aligned with Business Plan activities.

Weekly senior management and section meetings continue to provide vehicles for effective communication across the Memorial. All-staff meetings are held periodically to provide updates from senior management on key strategic issues and major project developments. More specialist committees such as Workplace Relations, Work Health and Safety, Exhibition Planning, Emergency Planning and Evacuation, Public Engagement and Publications, Environment and Energy, and Information Management are essential forums for addressing cross-branch matters of importance.

Staff and management contributed and/or participated in community programs through fundraising activities such as the sale of Legacy badges. Legacy was also invited to sell badges on the steps of the main Memorial building during Legacy week, 30 August to 5 September 2015.

The Memorial’s Employee Assistance Program, which provides counselling and support to staff and immediate family members, was accessed by a small number of staff. The majority of matters referred to this service continue to be of a non-work related nature.

An indicator of the effectiveness of teamwork at the Memorial is the willingness of staff to contribute to major events such as Anzac Day and Remembrance Day. The contribution made by staff is fundamental to the success of those events. This cross-organisational contribution is good for building teamwork across all areas of the Memorial.

The dedication of staff and their commitment to achieving corporate priorities as approved in the Business Plan is very much appreciated by senior management and Council.

A wide range of heads of state, political leaders and visiting dignitaries visit the Memorial, attend wreathlaying and Last Post ceremonies, and view the galleries.

Legislation, Functions, and Powers

Enabling legislation

The Australian War Memorial is established as a corporation by the Australian War Memorial Act 1980 (the Act). The functions of the Memorial and the powers of the Memorial, the Minister, the Council, the Chair, and the Director are outlined in the Act.

Functions of the Memorial

The functions of the Memorial are detailed in subsection 5(1) of the Act. They are:

(a) to maintain and develop the national memorial referred to in subsection 6(1) of the Australian War Memorial Act 1980 as a national memorial to Australians who have died:

(i) on or as a result of active service; or

(ii) as a result of any war or warlike operations in which Australians have been on active service;

(b) to develop and maintain, as an integral part of the national memorial referred to in paragraph (a), a National Collection of historical material;

(c) to exhibit, or to make available for exhibition by others, historical material from the memorial collection or historical material that is otherwise in the possession of the Memorial;

(d) to conduct, arrange for, and assist research into matters pertaining to Australian military history; and

(e) to disseminate information relating to:

(i) Australian military history;

(ii) the national memorial referred to in paragraph (a);

(iii) the memorial collection; and

(iv) the Memorial and its functions.

Powers of the Memorial

The powers of the Memorial are detailed in section 6 of the Act. They are:

to do all things necessary or convenient to be done for or in connection with the performance of its functions, including the power:

(a) to purchase, take on hire, accept as a gift, or take on deposit or loan historical material;

(b) to lend or hire out or otherwise deal with (other than by way of disposal) historical material;

(c) to accept gifts, devises, bequests, or assignments made to the Memorial, whether on trust or otherwise, and whether unconditionally or subject to a condition, to act as a trustee or to comply with the condition, as the case may be;

(d) to collect and make available (whether in writing or in any other form and whether by sale or otherwise) information relating to Australian military history;

(e) to make available (whether by sale or otherwise) reproductions, replicas, or other representations (whether in writing or in any other form) of historical material;

(f) to make available (whether in writing or in any other form and whether by sale or otherwise) information relating to the Memorial and its functions;

(g) to provide facilities to stimulate interest in Australian military history;

(h) to assist educational institutions in matters relating to Australian military history;

(j) to train members of the staff of the Memorial, and other such persons as the Council approves, in developing, caring for, and undertaking research in relation to the Memorial collection;

(k) to assist, on request, in the creation and maintenance of military museums in Defence Force establishments;

(m) to occupy, use, and control any land or building owned or held under lease by the Commonwealth and made available to the Memorial under section 7;

(n) to erect buildings;

(o) to purchase or take on hire, or to accept as a gift or on deposit or loan, and to dispose of or otherwise deal with furnishing, equipment, and other goods;

(p) to act as trustee of monies or other property vested in the Memorial on trust; and

(q) to act on behalf of the Commonwealth or of an authority of the Commonwealth in the administration of a trust relating to historical material or related matters.

Responsible Minister

The Minister for Veterans’ Affairs has portfolio responsibility for the Memorial. The Honourable Michael Ronaldson (until 21 September 2015), the Honourable Stuart Robert (until 12 February 2016) and the Honourable Dan Tehan (after 12 February 2016) were the ministers responsible for the Memorial for 2015–16.

Powers of the Minister

The Minister has the following powers under the Act:

(a) to make available to the Memorial for the purposes of the Memorial land owned or held under lease by the Commonwealth, and any building, structure or other improvements on that land [subsection 7(1)];

(b) on behalf of the Commonwealth, to make arrangements, in writing, with the Memorial for:

(i) the transfer of the ownership of historical material from the Commonwealth to the Memorial for the purpose of inclusion of the material in the Memorial’s collection;

(ii) the deposit in the custody of the Memorial of historical material owned by the Commonwealth; and

(iii) the transfer to the Memorial of the ownership of, or the deposit in the custody of the Memorial of, such other goods or equipment owned by the Commonwealth as he or she considers to be of use to the Memorial, upon such terms and conditions as are specified in the arrangement [subsection 7(2)].

(c) to approve the disposal of historical material if the value of that material exceeds $5,000 [subsection 8(4)];

(d) to approve the appointment of a deputy to a member of Council [subsection 12(1)];

(e) to convene a meeting of Council at any time [subsection 17(2)];

(f) to grant leave of absence to the Director [section 23];

(g) to appoint a person to act in place of the Director, determine terms and conditions of the appointment, and terminate such an appointment [section 26];

(h) to approve contracts under which the Memorial is to pay or receive:

(i) in the case of historical material, an amount exceeding $250,000*; or

(ii) in any other case an amount exceeding $150,000* [section 35]; and

(i) to delegate his or her powers under the Act [section 39].

* Note: the financial limits in this clause were amended by a Regulation to $1,000,000 for both historical material and any other case.

Internal and External Audits

Internal audit

The Memorial’s internal audit services are outsourced to PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC). The Internal Audit Plan 2015–16 was approved by Council in May 2015 and work was completed as follows:

• Review of collection management in the Research Centre
• Review of collection management – stocktake framework
• Review and update of the Fraud Risk Assessment and Fraud Control Plan
• Review of inventory management
• Review of systems, controls, and procedures to manage staff entitlements (leave, flex, and time off in lieu)
• Review of IT security

No major concerns or weaknesses were identified. Minor recommended actions have been addressed or incorporated into the 2016–17 Business Plan.

External audit

The audit of the 2015–16 financial statements was undertaken by Ernst & Young on behalf of the ANAO and resulted in a favourable report and unqualified audit opinion. The ANAO audit opinion for the Memorial’s 2015–16 financial statements is at page 76.

Fraud Control

As required by the Commonwealth Fraud Framework, the Memorial implements practices and procedures for effective fraud control. During 2015–16 the Memorial implemented the prevention, detection, and reporting procedures and processes as outlined in the Memorial’s Fraud Control Plan 2014–17, based on the Fraud Risk Assessment undertaken in December 2010 and formally reviewed and updated in March 2016. All reasonable measures were taken to minimise the incidence of fraud at the Memorial.

An enterprise-wide Fraud Risk Assessment was undertaken in January 2016. The Memorial has identified 16 fraud risks, with no extreme to significant fraud risks identified. Risks rated moderate to very low are managed with existing resources and are monitored and reported as part of the Memorial’s existing risk management framework.

There were no fraud incidents reported during 2015–16.

Effects of Ministerial Directions

Government policy order under section 22 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013

Under section 22 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 Council must ensure that the Memorial complies with the Government Policy Order to the extent that the Order applies to the authority. There are no General Policy Orders currently in effect.

Indemnities and Insurance Premiums

The property insurance premium for 2015–16 was $321,809 (excluding GST), which increased from the 2014–15 premium of $302,805 – an increase of $19,004 or approximately 6.27 per cent, mainly due to increased cover over property and the National Collection. The policy provided comprehensive cover for the National Collection and property, and general liability (including professional indemnity), with the premiums being $174,292 and $147,515 respectively. Council members are provided with indemnity insurance through directors’ and officers’ liability cover.

Legal Actions

There were no legal actions taken against the Memorial during 2015–16.

Ombudsman

No issues were raised with the Commonwealth Ombudsman during 2015–16.

Social Justice and Equity

The Memorial is committed to social justice and equity, and aims to provide a high level of public access to its physical grounds, commemorative ceremonies, and public programs. The Memorial undertakes regular research to ensure it is informed of the changing needs of its diverse national and international audience.

The Memorial identifies audience groups and specific needs through varied and dedicated visitor research and evaluation. The Memorial regularly surveys its visitors to identify and monitor how well needs are being met. Results for 2015–16 indicate:

• About 3.6 per cent of the Memorial’s general visitors have a disability
• Among the visitors who used facilities and services for people with disabilities, the following proportions gave a rating of satisfied or very satisfied:
  • 96 per cent – mobility-impaired access into the building
  • 96 per cent – mobility-impaired access within galleries and between floors
  • 87 per cent – accessible toilets
  • 88 per cent – free wheelchairs and walkers
  • 88 per cent – mobility-impaired parking
• The sample size for those stating that they have a disability was 35. While there were some small fluctuations in percentages the sample is considered too small for definitive comparisons
• The percentage of Australian visitors identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people (three per cent of the Australian population) remained at 1.5 per cent. Indigenous Australians were just as satisfied, if not more satisfied (99 per cent positive satisfaction rating) by their visit to the Memorial as non–Indigenous Australians (92.3 per cent positive satisfaction rating). Note that the sample size for Indigenous Australians is 15, which is considered too small for definitive comparisons
• About 34 per cent of Australian visitors were born overseas – an increase on the 28 per cent of last year – which represents a slightly higher proportion than that found in the Australian population (26 per cent). As in previous years, satisfaction levels remained equal for Australian visitors regardless of their country of birth

About 20 per cent of Australian visitors speak a language other than English at home (up from 17 per cent), a higher percentage than that found in the Australian population (19 per cent). Those Australians who spoke solely English at home were more likely to be very satisfied (87 per cent) with their visit than those visitors who spoke another language at home (70 per cent).

Advertising and market research expenditure

In accordance with section 311A of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918, the following is a summary of amounts paid by the Memorial to advertising agencies, market research organisations, and media advertising organisations. As required, particulars of payments of less than $12,700 have not been included. The Memorial did not pay for the services of any polling or direct mail organisations. Freedom of Information Act 1982

The Memorial publishes a broad range of information on its website in compliance with the Information Publication Scheme (IPS), which was established under Part 2 of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act) and commenced on 1 May 2011. The Memorial’s IPS entry can be accessed at: /about/information-publication-scheme.

As part of its IPS entry, the Memorial publishes an Agency Plan on its website, available at: /sites/default/files/IPS%20Agency%20Plan.pdf

The purpose of the Memorial’s Agency Plan is to show what information the Memorial proposes to publish, how and to whom the information will be made available, and how the Memorial will otherwise comply with the IPS requirements.

Categories of documents

The Memorial has custody of four categories of documents which are treated differently for the purposes of the FOI Act.

The four categories are:

(a) administrative files and papers relating to all aspects of the Memorial’s functions. These are subject to the FOI Act, and charges relating to the provision of these are applied and calculated in accordance with the nature and extent of the request

(b) items in the Memorial collection within the meaning of the Australian War Memorial Act 1980, other than documents placed in the Memorial collection by any agency. By virtue of subsection 13(1) of the FOI Act, these are not deemed to be documents of an agency, and therefore are not subject to the provisions of the FOI Act. They are, however, made available to the public as part of the Memorial’s public reference facility

(c) items in the Memorial collection, within the meaning of the Australian War Memorial Act 1980, that have been placed in the collection by or on behalf of an agency. By virtue of subsection 13(2) of the FOI Act these are deemed for the purposes of the FOI Act to be in the possession of the agency that placed them in the Memorial collection. Access to these documents under the FOI Act is through the controlling agency

(d) Commonwealth records owned by other agencies but in the custody of the Memorial. These are documents of the controlling agency and access to them under the FOI Act is through that agency.

Facilities for access

The Memorial caters for public access to its collections, with reading rooms and staff available to assist with reference inquiries. The Memorial’s Research Centre specialises in the provision of public reference services. The facilities are available to any member of the public who has gained approval for access to documents under the FOI Act. The access point at which members of the public may make inquiries on freedom of information matters, submit formal requests for access to documents, or inspect documents to which access has been granted, is given below. The access point is open for business from 8.30 am to 4.50 pm, Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays). Information about access for people with disabilities can be obtained by contacting the FOI officer at the access point given below.

FOI procedures and initial contact points

Enquiries may be made by email at foi@awm.gov.au, in writing, by telephone, or in person at the official FOI access point. It is suggested that enquirers give a telephone number.

Reception Desk

Australian War Memorial
Anzac Parade
CAMPBELL ACT 2612

or

GPO Box 345
CANBERRA ACT 2601
Tel: (02) 6243 4290

If difficulty arises within the Memorial in identifying a document or providing access in the form requested, an officer of the Memorial will contact the applicant with a view to resolving the difficulty. In consultation with applicants, documents will be made available as follows:

(a) by mail to an address specified by the applicant;

(b) at the official FOI access point; or

(c) at the information access office located within the regional office of the National Archives of Australia nearest to the applicant’s normal place of residence.

Officers authorised to make decisions under the Freedom of Information Act 1982

The classification and designation of officers authorised to approve and deny access to documents, to impose charges, and to remit charges and application fees under the FOI Act and FOI (Charges) Regulations are set out below:

Assistant Director and Branch Head
National Collection
Senior Executive Band 1

Assistant Director and Branch Head
Public Programs
Senior Executive Band 1

Assistant Director and Branch Head
Corporate Services
Senior Executive Band 1

Executive Officer
Corporate Services
Australian Public Service Class 6

Executive Officer
National Collection
Australian Public Service Class 6

Executive Officer
Public Programs
Australian Public Service Class 6

The classification and designation of officers authorised to conduct an internal review under section 54 of the FOI Act are set out below:

Assistant Director and Branch Head
National Collection
Senior Executive Band 1

Assistant Director and Branch Head
Public Programs
Senior Executive Band 1

Assistant Director and Branch Head
Corporate Services
Senior Executive Band 1

Freedom of Information Act 1982, statistics 2015–16

In 2015–16 the Memorial received seven requests for access to documents under the FOI Act. One request was a partial request originating from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs and was granted in part, with all charges waived; one was referred to another agency as the Memorial does not hold the requested records; one was partially granted as some documents have a caveat until 2021; no documents were found for one request; one was granted in part; and two
were granted in full.

FOI Statistics Summary 2015–16

Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act 1999, Section 516A Statement

In accordance with section 516A of the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act 1999 (the EPBC Act), Australian government agencies are required to include in their annual reports information detailing the environmental performance of the organisation and the organisation’s contribution to ecologically sustainable development. This remains a key objective for the Memorial and is being applied to the development of plans for the enhancement and maintenance of the Memorial’s buildings and operations. The Memorial does not administer any legislation nor have any appropriation directly related to the principles of environmental sustainability and development. Accordingly, the Memorial’s involvement relates to environmental practices within the Memorial. Social and equitable practices are included in the Memorial’s Teamwork Agreement 2011–14 and will be included in the next Teamwork Agreement which is currently being negotiated.

Energy consumption and environmental management

Consumption of electricity, gas, and water continues to be monitored closely and is a priority for the Memorial, with gas and electricity consumption remaining close to trend. The refinement of the control strategy for building climate control continues, with emphasis still on managing temperature and humidity parameters to efficiently achieve both material conservation and energy efficiency needs.

Consumption of electricity, gas, and water continues to be monitored closely and is a priority for the Memorial, with gas and electricity consumption remaining close to trend. The refinement of the control strategy for building climate control continues, with emphasis on managing temperature and humidity parameters to efficiently achieve both material conservation and energy efficiency needs.

The Memorial has partnered with ACTEW to conduct monitoring of the Building Management Systems at Campbell, with monthly reports on performance provided to focus maintenance and repair work on critical systems that are not performing as efficiently as their design and specifications allow. This project is expected to provide the Memorial with significant energy savings. The recycling of small cell batteries has been introduced at Memorial sites in Campbell and Mitchell, further extending the Memorial’s commitment to being an environmentally responsible agency.

Building refurbishments conducted in 2016 have included the installation of LED light technologies which provide electricity and maintenance savings to the Memorial. Monitoring of the energy usage and waste produced by the Memorial is conducted by Building and Services and reported quarterly to the Energy and Environment Committee.

Heritage management

The Memorial’s endorsed Heritage Management Plan (HMP) continues to guide management of the Memorial’s heritage precinct and, when required, heritage specialists continue to provide advice in regard to proposed building works in heritage-sensitive areas.

Bird-deterrent installations used around the Main Building continue to be refined.

Maintenance of the Memorial building fabric continues, including minor repairs to the stonework and the implementation of a stonework-cleaning regime. 

Other general heritage conservation activities undertaken include regular conservation and cleaning of key sculptural elements. Before Anzac Day a major clean of sculptures and plinths was undertaken, in addition to a clean of the stonework in the Commemorative Area and the Main Building tower, general cleaning of the stone façade of the Memorial’s Main Building, and the risers to the steps at the Parade Ground.

Work to improve the way-finding and presentation of the Commemorative Roll has commenced and is expected to
be completed late 2016.

In order to assist with its longevity, regular maintenance
of the Lone Pine tree (Pinus halepensis) continues.
The new Lone Pine tree, planted by Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on Anzac Day 2014, remains in a healthy state, assisted by the fence and bird netting. It is anticipated that this tree will have developed significantly when the original tree reaches senescence.

Work Health and Safety

Executive commitment

The Memorial is committed to safeguarding the health
and safety of its employees, workers, and visitors by providing and maintaining a safe working environment.
The Memorial aims to eliminate all preventable work-related injuries and illnesses through systematic management.
The Memorial is also committed to supporting and promoting the holistic wellbeing of its employees. During 2015–16, the Memorial continued implementation of a Work Health and Safety Improvement Plan with improvements focusing on induction, contractor management, and hazardous materials management.

Comcare conducted a Rehabilitation Management System Audit in June 2016, the outcomes of which will inform the Early Intervention, Rehabilitation and Workers Compensation Improvement Plan for 2016–17. The Senior Management Group attended a Comcare briefing on the Memorial’s 2016–17 premium performance and trends.

Work Health and Safety Committee

The Work Health and Safety Committee meet four times per year and assist the Memorial in developing, implementing, and reviewing measures designed to protect the health and safety of workers and visitors. The committee is made up of worker and management representatives, and provides a key consultation mechanism in accordance with relevant legislation.

The Memorial’s work health and safety function is managed through Human Resources, with assistance from professional experts, who provide advice to the committee, assist with hazard and incident investigations and case management, and provide relevant training as required.

Health and wellbeing program

The Memorial promotes health awareness among its employees by delivering an annual health and wellbeing program focused on health and lifestyle initiatives to create positive health changes for workers. Employee consultation is a key element of the program and staff participated in a health and wellbeing survey in June 2015 to assist with development of the 2015–16 program. This year staff workshops included briefings on the employee assistance program and manager assist hotline, breast cancer awareness, hearing loss, and a flu vaccination program. Other programs included mental health awareness for managers and supervisors, and mental health first aid for security and front-of-house staff.

Ongoing initiatives

In 2016 the Memorial implemented a program of staff training workshops on asbestos management within the National Collection. This program was part of the Work Health and Safety Improvement Plan’s focus on hazardous materials management.

First aid officers are located throughout the Memorial buildings to ensure immediate assistance is available when required. Emergency response support has been enhanced with additional cardiac defibrillators purchased for the Campbell and Mitchell sites.

The Memorial has a zero tolerance approach to bullying and harassment, and has a number of contacts available should an employee or manager require advice regarding an instance of bullying or harassment, including harassment contact officers across all business areas, and the Employee Assistance Program. The Memorial addresses formal and informal allegations of bullying or harassment promptly and sensitively.

Outcome measures

The Memorial has maintained a focus on prompt reporting and management of accidents and incidents. Implementation of the early intervention program has delivered increased support for employees and has shown improved injury recovery rates. Implementation of enhanced early intervention, hazard identification, and risk assessment processes is under way and aims to recognise cost benefits
in the future.

No directions or notices under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 were issued to the Memorial.

Tapestry produced in conjunction with the Australian Tapestry Workshop, based on Imants Tillers's Avenue of Remembrance (detail) AWM2016.8.34.5.

Australian War Memorial Annual Report 2015–2016

REPORT BY THE AUDITOR-GENERAL AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

APPENDICES

APPENDIX 1

Council membership

Chair

Rear Admiral K.A. Doolan AO RAN (Retd) – stood down as
Chairman 11 November 2015

Mr K.M. Stokes AC – appointed 12 November 2015

Members

Vice Admiral T. Barrett AO CSC RAN – appointed 1 July 2014

Wing Commander S. Bown (Retd) – appointed 3 June 2016

Lieutenant General A. Campbell DSC AM – appointed
16 May 2015

Mr L. Carlyon AC – appointed 12 June 2014

Brigadier A. Creagh CSC – appointed 26 March 2015

Air Marshal L. Davies AO CSC – appointed 4 July 2015

Rear Admiral K.A. Doolan AO RAN (Retd) – reappointed
26 November 2015

Mr D. Keighran VC – appointed 30 June 2016

Mr J. McMahon DSC DSM – appointed 29 October 2015

Major General A. Melick AO RFD FANZCN SC – appointed 26 March 2015

Ms J. Segal AM – appointed 19 June 2014

Mrs J. Stone AM – appointed 26 February 2015

Outgoing members in 2015–16

Air Marshal G.C. Brown AO – term concluded 3 July 2015

The Honourable G.J. Edwards AM – term concluded
2 June 2016

Ms G. Trainor – term concluded 29 June 2016

Profiles of Council Members can be found in Appendix 2.

Australian War Memorial Annual Report 2015–2016

Council Committee membership

Note: The Chief of Navy, the Chief of Army, and the Chief of Air Force (ex officio members of Council) are usually not formally Committee members, but are invited to attend all Standing Committee meetings other than Remuneration.

Finance, Audit, and Compliance Committee

Ms J. Segal AM – Chairman

Major General A. Melick AO RFD FANZCN SC

The Honourable G.J. Edwards AM

Ms G. Trainor

Mr Matthew Broadfoot – Independent Member

In attendance:

Director, Australian War Memorial

Assistant Director, Corporate Services

Chief Finance Officer

Invited members for relevant portions of the meeting:

Representatives from Australian National Audit Office

Representatives from Internal Audit (PricewaterhouseCoopers)

Terms of Reference

Objective

The Finance, Audit, and Compliance Committee is established as an advisory committee to provide independent assurance and advice to Council on the Memorial’s risk, control and compliance framework, financial statement responsibilities, legislative and policy compliance, and internal and external audit activities.

Subcommittees

To assist the Committee in meeting its responsibilities, the following sub-committees are established:

Audit and risk

The responsibilities of the Audit and Risk Subcommittee are:

• approval of internal annual and strategic audit plans
• review of all audit reports and advice to the Director on action to be taken on any matters of concern raised in a report of the internal or external auditors
• recommendation on certification of the annual financial statements
• assurance, through the audit function, that a suitable risk management and internal control framework is developed and implemented by Memorial management
• assurance, through the audit function, that the Memorial management activity is fully compliant with relevant laws and regulations.

Finance and budget

The responsibilities of the Finance and Budget Subcommittee are:

• scrutiny and monitoring of the management and reporting of financial performance
• review of and advice to the Director on the development
  of budgets and financial estimates
• endorsement of long-term capital funding and investment strategies.

Membership of the Committee

Membership of the Committee will comprise no less than three members (excluding the Chairman of Council), all of whom shall be independent of management. The Chairman of Council, the Director, the Assistant Director and Branch Head Corporate Services, and the Chief Finance Officer may also attend the Committee meetings. Invited Members for the Audit and Risk Sub-Committee will comprise representatives from the Australian National Audit Office and the Australian War Memorial Internal Audit Team. If required, an independent expert, external to Council, may be appointed as a member of the Committee.

Members will be appointed by Council for an initial term of two to three years. An extension of the term will be subject to review of the Member’s performance and contribution to the Committee. The Committee will elect a Chair from amongst its members. The Chair should be elected for a minimum period of one year and preferably have served as a member of the Committee before becoming Chair. An alternative Chair will be appointed at any meeting where the Chair is unable to attend.

Responsibilities of Committee members

Members of the Committee are expected to understand and observe the legal requirements of the Australian War Memorial Act 1980 and other relevant legislative instruments. Members are also expected to:

• act in the interests of the Memorial
• apply good analytical skills, objectivity and good judgement
• express opinions constructively and openly, raise issues that relate to the Committee’s responsibilities, and pursue independent lines of enquiry.

Skills, experience, and qualities of Committee members

To be fully effective in supporting the Council, the Committee must be independent of management; understand the accountability relationships and their impact on financial performance, risk, and controls; and maintain a good relationship with management and internal and external auditors.

Members must have an understanding of the business of the Memorial and the ability to ask relevant questions of management and internal and external auditors. Members should have sufficient understanding of the Memorial’s financial reports and audit requirements and some broad business and/or financial management experience. At least one member of the Committee should have accounting or related financial management experience and/or qualifications and an understanding of accounting and auditing standards. If necessary, the Committee will seek external financial advice.

The Chair of the Committee should have the qualities and abilities to lead discussions, encourage openness and transparency in discussions, facilitate the participation of other members, and conduct meetings in a manner that establishes effective communications with all stakeholders for continuous improvement.

Frequency of meetings, quorum, and operation of the committee

The Committee will meet at least quarterly, prior to Council meetings, and at other times, as necessary. A quorum will be deemed to exist when a majority of members are present.

Members, through the Chair, will have direct access to the Director; to the Assistant Director, Branch Head Corporate Services; to the Chief Finance Officer; and to external and internal auditors, as necessary, on matters relating to the Committee’s function.

Minutes of Committee meetings will be provided to Council for each quarterly meeting, based on the agenda of the Committee meeting and its principal responsibilities. Copies of the minutes will be made available, as necessary, to ANAO or its subcontractor, as part of the annual audit process. A summary report of matters dealt with will be issued to Council by the Committee after each meeting.

The Committee will review the performance of internal audit with Memorial management annually, and formally evaluate its own performance against its charter with input sought from management, Director, Council, and internal and external audit.

Conflicts of Interest

Once each year, members of the Committee will provide written declarations declaring any potential or actual conflicts of interest they may have in relation to their responsibilities.

At the beginning of each Committee meeting, members are required to declare any potential or actual conflicts of interest that may apply to specific matters on the meeting agenda. Where required by the Chair, the member will be excused from the meeting or from the Committee’s consideration of the relevant agenda item(s). Details of potential or actual conflicts of interest declared by members and action taken will be appropriately minuted.

Induction

New members will receive relevant information and briefings on their appointment to assist them to meet their Committee responsibilities.

Assessment arrangements

The Chair of the Committee, in consultation with the Chair of Council, will initiate an annual review of the performance of the Committee. The review will be conducted on a self-assessment basis with appropriate input sought from Council members, Committee members, senior management, internal and external auditors, and other relevant stakeholders as determined by the Chair of Council.

The Chair will provide advice to Council on a member’s performance where an extension of the member’s tenure is being considered.

Review of Terms of Reference

The Committee will review its terms of reference every two years, in consultation with Council. Any substantive changes will be recommended by the Committee and formally endorsed by Council.

Remuneration Committee

Rear Admiral K.A. Doolan AO RAN (Retd) – Chair

The Honourable G. Edwards AM

Ms G. Trainor

Terms of reference

• On Council’s behalf, agree annually the basis for his/her performance appraisal with the Director of the Australian War Memorial,
• on Council’s behalf, conduct the performance appraisal of the Director of the Australian War Memorial in accordance with the agreed Performance Appraisal and the Remuneration Guidelines laid down by the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs
• communicate, as necessary, with the Remuneration Tribunal in relation to remuneration arrangements for the Director of the Australian War Memorial.
• consider and pursue other matters that may be referred by Council concerning the Director or other senior management of the Australian War Memorial in relation
  to remuneration and conditions of service.

Council Membership Committee

Ms G. Trainor – Chair from 20 May 2015

Mr L. Carlyon AC – from 20 May 2015

Brigadier A Creagh CSC – from 20 May 2015

Terms of reference

To provide advice to the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs through the Chair.

Council Members’ Attendance

APPENDIX 2

Council profiles

Chair

Mr Kerry Stokes AC was appointed to Council in August 2007 and again in April 2011. Mr Stokes is Chairman of Seven Group Holdings and Seven West Media. Seven Group Holdings – through WesTrac, one of the five biggest Caterpillar dealerships in the world – has a market-leading presence in media in Australia and the resources services sector in Australia and China. The company also has a significant investment in media with major shareholdings in Seven West Media and Consolidated Media. Seven West Media brings together a market-leading presence in broadcast television through the Seven Network, magazines and newspaper publishing through Pacific Magazines and West Australian Newspapers, and online through Yahoo7 and other expanding new communications platforms. Through his private holdings, Australian Capital Equity, Mr Stokes has broad business interests and investments in a range of major business sectors: property, construction, mining resources, and oil and gas exploration. Mr Stokes was the recipient of Australia’s highest honour, the Companion in the General Division in the Order of Australia (AC) in 2008, having earlier been awarded the Officer in the General Division of the Order of Australia (AO) in 1995. He holds a Centenary Medal for Corporate Governance, and presented the Boyer Lectures in 1994 and the Andrew Olle Lecture in 2001. Mr Stokes holds a Life Membership of the Returned and Services League of Australia and is a recipient of the Rotary Paul Harris Fellow Award. He is also a former Chairman of the National Gallery of Australia. He was reappointed to Council for a third time
in August 2014 and commenced as Chair on 12 November 2015. On 11 November 2015, he was inducted as a Fellow of
the Australian War Memorial.

Council Members

Vice Admiral Tim Barrett AO CSC RAN joined Council in July 2014 when he assumed command of the Royal Australian Navy. He began his career in the Royal Australian Navy in 1976 as a seaman officer and later specialised in aviation. A dual-qualified officer, Vice Admiral Barrett served in Her Majesty’s Australian (HMA) Ships Melbourne, Perth, and Brisbane and HMS Orkney as a seaman officer and then as flight commander in HMA Ships Stalwart, Adelaide, and Canberra. His staff appointments include Deputy Director Air Warfare Development, Director Naval Officer’s Postings, and Director General of Defence Force Recruiting. He has served as Commanding Officer 817 Squadron, Commanding Officer HMAS Albatross, Commander Australian Navy Aviation Group, Commander Border Protection Command, and most recently as Commander Australian Fleet. Receiving a Conspicuous Service Cross in 2006 for his achievements in naval aviation, Vice Admiral Barrett became a Member of the Order of Australia in 2009 for his service as Director Naval Officers’ Postings and Commander Navy Aviation Group. He was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2014 for his leadership of Border Protection Command and the Australian Fleet. Vice Admiral Barrett holds a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and History, and a Masters of Defence Studies, both from the University of New South Wales. He recently completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.

Wing Commander Sharon Bown (Retd) was appointed to Council in June 2016 for a three-year term. Wing Commander Bown has had a distinguished 16-year career with the Royal Australian Air Force, commencing as a Nursing Officer in 1999. She has held command appointments in operational and garrison settings, including as Officer-in-Charge of the Australian Medical Task Force in Tarin Kowt, Afghanistan. Wing Commander Bown has also served in Bali, Papua New Guinea, and East Timor. Wing Commander Bown has worked at Commonwealth government level within the Department of Defence, serving as Aide-de-Camp to the Minister for Defence in 2006, and as a Military Support Officer with the Defence Community Organisation in 2007. Both roles provided her with a more global experience of Defence capability, and the welfare concerns and challenges of Defence personnel and families. Wing Commander Bown is a passionate advocate within the field of military and veteran’s health and demonstrates a unique insight into the welfare and healthcare needs of those adversely affected by their service. With a Bachelor of Nursing and postgraduate diplomas in Peri-operative Nursing, and Family and Child Health, Wing Commander Bown is currently undertaking a Bachelor of Psychology, pursuing her interest in enhancing the resilience of those who continue to serve. Wing Commander Bown is an ambassador for the Women Veterans Network Australia and the author of One woman’s war and peace: a nurse’s journey in the Royal Australian Air Force.

Lieutenant General Angus Campbell DSC AM was appointed to Council in May 2015. He joined the Australian Army in 1981, graduating from the Royal Military College – Duntroon in 1984. He was assigned to the Royal Australian Infantry Corps and initially served as a platoon commander in the 3rd Battalion (Parachute), The Royal Australian Regiment (3RAR).He then served in troop and squadron command appointments within the Special Air Service Regiment. In 2001 he was appointed the Commanding Officer of the 2nd Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment (2RAR). While in command, the battalion group deployed to East Timor as a component of the United Nations Transitional Administration East Timor. Lieutenant General Campbell has also served in a range of staff appointments, including as Aide-de-Camp to the Chief of Army, as a strategic policy officer in Army Headquarters, an instructor at the Australian Command and Staff College, and as Chief of Staff to the Chief of the Defence Force. In late 2005, he joined the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet as a First Assistant Secretary to head the Office of National Security. He was subsequently promoted to Deputy Secretary and appointed to the position of Deputy National Security Adviser. In these roles he was responsible for the preparation of advice to the prime minister on national security matters and coordinating the development of whole-of-government national security policy. Upon his return to the Australian Defence Force in early 2010 he was appointed to the rank of major general and led the Military Strategic Commitments staff in Defence Headquarters until January 2011, when he assumed command of Australian forces deployed in the Middle East Area of Operations. He subsequently served as Deputy Chief of Army from February 2012 to September 2013, when he was promoted to his current rank to command the Joint Agency Task Force responsible for the implementation of Operation Sovereign Borders. Lieutenant General Campbell was appointed Chief of the Australian Army on 16 May 2015. He holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours) from the University of New South Wales, a Master of Philosophy in International Relations from Cambridge University, and is a graduate of the Australian Army Command and Staff College.

Mr Les Carlyon AC was appointed to Council in June 2014 for a three-year term. He has previously served three-year terms on Council from May 2006 and April 2009. He has been editor of the Age, editor-in-chief of the Herald and Weekly Times group, and visiting lecturer in journalism at RMIT. He has received the Walkley Award (1971 and 2004) and the Graham Perkin Journalist of the Year Award (1993). He is the author of Gallipoli, a bestseller in Australia, New Zealand, and Britain, and winner of the Queensland Premier’s History Prize. His The Great War, published in 2006, was the joint winner of the Prime Minister’s Prize for Australian History and was voted book of the year at the Australian Publishers’ Book Industry Awards. Mr Carlyon holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Melbourne.

Brigadier Alison Creagh CSC was appointed to Council in March 2015 for a three-year term. Brigadier Creagh is a Non-Executive Director of the Hospital Research Foundation and the Repat Foundation – the Road Home, a member of the Board of Governors for the Repat Foundation, and a committee member of the Australian Peacekeeping Memorial Project. Brigadier Creagh retired from the Australian Regular Army in March 2015 after a 30-year career and continues to serve in the Army Reserve. In the private sector she has been the Executive Director of the Spirit of Anzac Centenary Experience, a joint venture between the Australian Government, Telstra, and the Commonwealth Bank. Brigadier Creagh joined the army in 1985 and graduated from the Officer Cadet School, Portsea to the Royal Australian Corps of Signals. She served on operations in Cambodia (United Nations Transitional Authority Cambodia) in 1993, East Timor (International Force East Timor) in 1999–2000, Iraq in 2006, and Afghanistan (Headquarters International Security Assistance Force) in 2008–09. Her senior military appointments included Director-General Public Affairs, Director-General Strategic Communication, and Director-General ADF Theatre Project (The Long Way Home). Brigadier Creagh was awarded the Conspicuous Service Cross in 1994 for her work in Cambodia and the NATO Meritorious Service Medal in 2008 for her work in Afghanistan. She holds a Master of Management Studies, a Master of Defence Studies, a Graduate Diploma in Strategic Studies, and a Graduate Diploma in Communications and Information Systems Management, and was awarded a scholarship to attend the Women’s Leadership Forum at Harvard Business School in 2014.

Air Marshal Leo Davies AO CSC joined the Royal Australian Air Force as a cadet Navigator in 1979 and graduated to fly P-3B and P-3C Orion aircraft with Number 11 Squadron at Edinburgh in South Australia. Air Marshal Davies completed pilot training in 1987 and after completing F-111 conversion course was posted to Number 1 Squadron at RAAF Base Amberley in 1988. In 1990, Air Marshal Davies was posted to Cannon Air Force Base, New Mexico, to fly F-111D aircraft on exchange with the United States Air Force. On return to Australia in 1993, Air Marshal Davies was posted to Number 1 Squadron as the Operations Flight Commander, followed by a year as Operations Officer at Headquarters Number 82 Wing during 1996. After a posting in 1997–98 as the Executive Officer at Number 1 Squadron, Air Marshal Davies completed RAAF Command and Staff Course. In 2000, he commenced two years in Capability Systems within Defence Headquarters. In 2002 and 2003, Air Marshal Davies’ long association with Number 1 Squadron was again rekindled when he returned as Commanding Officer and achieved 2,000 hours flying the F-111. He was the Staff Officer to the Chief of Air Force during 2004, before taking up the post of Officer Commanding Number 82 Wing at RAAF Base Amberley, where he was awarded a Conspicuous Service Cross for outstanding achievement. Air Marshal Davies worked as Director Combat Capability within Air Force Headquarters in 2006 and 2007, during which time he was deployed to the Middle East to work in the Combined Air Operations Centre. Between 2008 and 2010, Air Marshal Davies was the Director General Capability Planning within Air Force Headquarters. He was then posted to Washington as the Air Attaché, where he was awarded the United Stated Legion of Merit – Officer. Air Marshal Davies returned from Washington in January 2012 to take up his appointment as Deputy Chief of Air Force. Air Marshal Davies was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2014 for distinguished service to the Australian Defence Force in senior command and staff appointments. He was promoted to Air Marshal and appointed Chief of Air Force on 4 July 2015.

Rear Admiral Ken Doolan AO RAN (Retd) was appointed to the Council on 11 November 2009 for a three-year term and reappointed for a further three-year term on 11 November 2012. He was elected Chairman of Council on 6 March 2012, serving in that position until 11 November 2015. On 26 November 2015 he was appointed for another three-year term as a member of Council. Admiral Doolan joined the Royal Australian Navy as a 13-year-old cadet midshipman in January 1953 and completed full-time service in December 1993 in the rank of rear admiral. He served in the destroyer HMAS Vampire during Confrontation with Indonesia in 1966 and in the guided missile destroyer HMAS Perth during the Vietnam War. He was the first commanding officer of the amphibious heavy lift ship HMAS Tobruk and later commanded the guided missile destroyer HMAS Brisbane. During the Gulf Crisis and Gulf War of 1990-91 Admiral Doolan was Maritime Commander, Australia and, as such, was appointed Operational Commander of all Australian combatant forces deployed to that conflict (Operation Damask). He was appointed an Officer in the Military Division of the Order of Australia in January 1991. Since ceasing full-time naval service Admiral Doolan has held several remunerated and honorary positions including membership of the Defence Force Remuneration Tribunal, National Secretary of the Order of Australia Association, National President of the Australian Institute of Navigation, Chairman of the Forces Entertainment Board, Member of the Board of the Hoc Mai Foundation, member of the National Commission for the Centenary of Anzac, and member of the Defence Reserve Support Council. He has written several books and in 2006 established a publishing company. After serving for many years as a member of the National Defence Committee of the Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL) he was elected RSL National President in September 2009, a position he held until June 2016.

The Honourable Graham Edwards AM was appointed to Council in June 2010 for a three-year term and in 2013 for a further three years. He is a Vietnam veteran and former MP. He attended Christian Brothers’ College, Perth and Leederville Technical College. Following school Mr Edwards was employed by WA Government Railways, and served in the regular army for three years (1968–71) seeing active service in Vietnam with the 7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment in 1970. Mr Edwards was wounded twice in Vietnam, the second time losing his legs to a "jumping jack" anti-personnel land mine. After discharging from the army and a period of rehabilitation he spent ten years with the Commonwealth Public Service in Defence, Veterans’ Affairs, and the Vietnam Veterans’ Counselling Service. Mr Edwards was elected as a Councillor with the City of Stirling in 1980, and in 1983 was elected to the Parliament of Western Australia where he served for 14 years, including for seven years as a minister. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1998 and retired in 2007. He was recognised by the RSL with the Anzac of the Year award in 1991 for service to the veteran community and has been recognised as the Rotary Paul Harris Fellow and the Lions Melvin Jones Fellow. He is a life member of the Vietnam Veterans Association. Mr Edwards was recently made a Freeman of the City of Wanneroo in WA, and is a member of the Prime Minister’s Advisory Council on Veterans. Mr Edwards was appointed as a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2012 Queen’s Birthday Honours List for service to parliament and the community through contributions to veterans and disabled welfare.

Mr Daniel Keighran VC was appointed to Council in June 2016 for a three-year term. Mr Keighran enlisted in the Australian Army at 17 and served his country as part of the 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (6RAR), discharging from full-time service in 2011. He deployed to Rifle Company Butterworth, Malaysia, in 2001 and 2004; Timor-Leste (East Timor) in 2003–04; Iraq in 2006; and Afghanistan in 2007 and 2010. Mr Keighran is the only Victoria Cross recipient from the Royal Australian Regiment in its proud 67-year history, with his citation reading: "For the most conspicuous acts of gallantry and extreme devotion to duty in action in circumstances of great peril at Derapet, Uruzgan province, Afghanistan, as part of the Mentoring Task Force One on Operation SLIPPER". Since completing his full-time service Mr Keighran has held various private sector roles including his current role as a brand ambassador to Australian Defence Apparel (ADA), working on military and tactical apparel and load carriage with the Research, Development and Innovations Team. Mr Keighran continues to serve his country as an active reservist with the Australian army and donates his time as an ambassador to Mates4Mates.

Mr James McMahon DSC DSM was appointed to Council in October 2015 and is currently the Commissioner of the Department of Corrective Services in Western Australia. He commenced this appointment in November 2013 and is leading the corrections reform agenda. Commissioner McMahon led leadership and risk management disciplines to enable substantial growth in deal volume and value as Chief Operating Officer of Azure Capital – a corporate advisory firm specialising in mergers and acquisitions, equity capital raising, and financing. Subsequently, as the Managing Director of Chauvel Group, a management consultancy, Commissioner McMahon advised companies, government, and for-purpose organisations in strategy, governance, operations, risk, and people performance. This was preceded by a 24-year career in the Australian Army which included leading deployments in Iraq, Afghanistan and Timor-Leste as Commanding Officer of the Special Air Service Regiment (SAS). While an SAS Squadron Commander, the squadron was awarded the Meritorious Unit Citation for exemplary performance. During his time as SAS Commanding Officer, the unit was awarded the Meritorious Unit Citation and the Unit Citation for Gallantry. Mr McMahon was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) and the Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) for command and leadership in action in Timor-Leste, Afghanistan, and Iraq. He also served in South East Asia, Europe, Solomon Islands, and Bougainville. His board memberships include the West Coast Eagles Football Club 2007–15, where he also served as Deputy Chairman, and the SAS Resources Trust Board since 2008. His education qualifications include a Masters in Management and a Masters in Business Administration.

Major General Greg Melick AO RFD FANZCN SC was appointed to Council in March 2015. He is a Hobart-based Senior Counsel who has been a member of the ADF Reserves since 1966. He commanded at all levels from section to brigade before becoming Australia’s most senior reserve officer responsible for cadets in 2007 and later head of the ADF’s Centenary of Anzac Planning Team in 2011. Units in which he served include 2RNSWR, I Cdo Coy, 12/40 RTR, and 8 Bde. He has been a Principal Crown Counsel in the Tasmanian Crown Law Office, a Statutory Member of the National Crime Authority and the NSW Casino Control Authority, was appointed a part-time Deputy President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal in September 2014 and was appointed Chief of the Tasmanian Integrity Commission in August 2105. He is Cricket Australia’s anti-corruption special investigator and has conducted several investigations, including one into the Beaconsfield Mine collapse. He is a member and former chairman of the board of St John Ambulance (Tasmania). 

Ms Jillian Segal AM was appointed to Council in June 2014 for a three-year term. Ms Segal is a Non-Executive Director of the National Australia Bank and the Garvan Institute of Medical Research. She is Deputy Chancellor of UNSW Australia, and Chairman of the General Sir John Monash Foundation, a national scholarship organisation, and the Australian-Israel Chamber of Commerce. She is a Trustee of the Sydney Opera House Trust. She has held a range of other corporate and government board positions, including membership of the Commonwealth Government’s Remuneration Tribunal, Chairman of Administration Review Council, and Chairman of the Banking Industry Ombudsman Board (now Financial Ombudsman Service). From October 1997 to June 2002, Ms Segal was a Commissioner and then Deputy Chair of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. Prior to this, Ms Segal was a partner at Allen Allen & Hemsley (now Allens Linklaters). Ms Segal has a Bachelor of Laws from UNSW and a Masters of Laws from Harvard Law School.

Mrs Josephine Stone AM was appointed to Council on 26 February 2015 for a three-year term. Mrs Stone is a graduate of the Melbourne Law School, the first in her family of post-Second World War migrants to complete a university degree. Mrs Stone has worked in private practice and public institutions in the Northern Territory, including the Legal Aid Commission where she managed the distribution of funds in the civil and family law jurisdictions. During her time at the Law Society she was instrumental in developing the ethical and professional standards and guidelines in the Northern Territory, as well as the introduction of the reformed Legal Profession Act, the largest piece of legislation in the Territory’s history. She has held various positions in a number of charitable organisations in Alice Springs and Darwin, and at the age of 25 was the youngest person to be chairman of the Zonta Club. Her later roles on the Chief Minister’s Womens’ Advisory Council and the Darwin Private Hospital Advisory Board saw the introduction of several new initiatives. In 1998 she chaired the Red Cross (Katherine Flood) Appeal which raised substantial funds for that flood-ravaged community and its surrounds. Mrs Stone has played an active role in various schools in the Northern Territory and Queensland. In 2006 she published a 100-year history of St Mary’s Primary School and inaugurated its alumni. Mrs Stone was subsequently recognised with the award of Member of the Order of Australia for her contribution to the legal profession and the community for a variety of charitable activities over 25 years.

Ms Gabrielle Trainor was appointed to Council in June 2013. Her chair and director roles span public, private, not-for-profit, and government organisations in industries including tourism, urban development, transport, education, the arts, and sport. Ms Trainor was a founding partner and co-owner of John Connolly & Partners, a communications and public affairs firm. Her present appointments include Chair of the National Film and Sound Archive, member of the Advisory Board of Leighton Contractors, Director of Cape York Group, and member of the Board of Trustees of the University of Western Sydney. She co-chaired the 2012 Commonwealth Government review of the Australia Council for the Arts. Ms Trainor holds a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Melbourne is presently studying for a Masters in Cultural and Creative Practice. She is an Honorary Associate in the Graduate School of Government at Sydney University, and a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

APPENDIX 3

Senior Staff Profiles

Director

Dr Brendan Nelson AO commenced as Director of the Australian War Memorial on 17 December 2012. Prior to this, he was the Australian Ambassador to Belgium, Luxembourg, the European Union, and NATO (2009–12). Apart from overseeing a major transformation in Australia’s relationships with the European Union and NATO, Dr Nelson forged deep links with the communities of Flanders, where almost 13,000 Australians lost their lives during the First World War.

Dr Nelson studied at Flinders University, South Australia, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery. He worked as a medical practitioner in Hobart from 1985 to 1995. In 1993 he was elected unopposed as National President of the Australian Medical Association (AMA).

In 1996 Dr Nelson was elected to the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia. After the 2001 election, he was promoted from his role as Parliamentary Secretary for Defence to Cabinet in the senior portfolio of Minister for Education, Science and Training, driving major reforms to universities and a focus on school standards and reporting. In 2006 he became Minister for Defence when troops were deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan, East Timor, and Solomon Islands. He oversaw major new investments in defence, including the decision to purchase 24 FA-18F Super Hornets, three air warfare destroyers, two Landing Helicopter Docks (LHDs), two additional battalions for the Australian Army, and a multi-billion dollar recruitment and retention package. In November 2007 Dr Nelson was elected leader of the Liberal Party of Australia, serving as Leader of the Opposition until September 2008. The following year he retired from federal politics before taking up his ambassadorial appointment.

Senior Staff

Rhonda Adler was appointed to the position of Assistant Director, Branch Head Corporate Services in December 2007. Before taking up this role, she held the position of Chief Finance Officer and Head of the Finance Section. She has a Bachelor of Economics from the Australian National University, majoring in accounting. Since joining the Memorial in 1981 she has held a number of different positions across all branches within the Memorial, project-managed a number of initiatives, and sponsored the implementation of e-Business. She has instigated many accounting reforms within the Memorial and has been recognised for her contribution to whole-of-government initiatives. She participates actively in external forums, especially to represent cultural agencies, and is Chair of the Cultural Institutions Corporate Management Forum. Rhonda attended the 2003 Museum Leadership Program (MLP) at the University of Melbourne Business School and has since participated in the MLP Alumi Masterclass program. She holds the position of Company Secretary for the Australian War Memorial Anzac Foundation.

Anne Bennie was appointed Assistant Director, Branch Head Public Programs in January 2015 and has continued to coordinate many of the Centenary of First World War projects. Anne joined the Memorial in 2003 as e-Business Manager and in 2004 was appointed Head, Retail and Online Sales, bringing together the e-Business Unit and Memorial Shop. Anne’s background is in private enterprise, where she held numerous analytical roles with Nielsen market research, followed by senior account management roles in advertising agencies. She delivered strategy across a number of websites and e-commerce initiatives with a strong focus on web integration, usability, and business outcomes. In 2012 Anne took up the role of Centenary of First World War coordinator to assist in managing the demand for Memorial services and projects in the lead-up to 2015. She completed the Cultural Management Development Program in 2005 and a Graduate Certificate in Public Sector Management in 2009.

Mark Campbell was appointed Head, Retail and Online Sales in November 2014. He has over 16 years’ experience in retail, specifically in product development, buying, and retail operations. He was responsible for running multi-million retail operations consisting of 20 shops across numerous locations, and before joining the Memorial was responsible for developing the full retail operation for the then new Wet’n’Wild theme park in Sydney. Mark won a number of Worldwide Industry Awards for products he developed and is currently completing his MBA through Southern Cross University.

Chris Chapman was the acting Head of Finance at various times during 2015–16. He joined the Memorial in December 2008 as Manager, Budgets and Financial Policy. Prior to working at the Memorial, Chris gained financial and management accounting expertise across a range of private enterprises and state-owned corporations. He has a Bachelor of Business (Accounting), and is a member of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand. He completed the Cultural Management Development program in 2011.

Brian Dawson was appointed to the position of Anzac Centenary Touring Exhibition Executive Manager on 11 December 2013. Prior to taking up this role, he was a member of a consultant project team that developed a proposal for the NSW Department of Transport regarding the implementation of a grain harvest management scheme (May to October 2013). In April 2013 he retired from the Australian Regular Army at the rank of Major General, having completed 40 years’ service. Senior appointments held during his time in the army included: Australia’s first military representative to NATO and the European Union (2010–13); Head of the Australian Department of Defence Public Affairs (2008–10); Deputy Commander of the Australian Joint Task Force in Iraq based in Baghdad (2007–08); Commandant of the Australian Defence Force Academy (2006–07); and Chief of Staff Land Headquarters (2002–05). He was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 2000 for his work in Defence logistics and awarded the Conspicuous Service Cross (CSC) for service in Somalia in 1995.

Ashley Ekins has worked as a military historian at the Memorial since 1990 and has been Head of the Military History Section since 2007. A graduate of the University of Adelaide, he specialises in the history of the First World War and the Vietnam War. He has published widely, presented his research at international conferences, and led the Memorial’s battlefield tours to Gallipoli. His publications on the First World War include: 1918 year of victory: the end of the Great War and the shaping of history (2010, shortlisted for the Templer Medal); War wounds: medicine and the trauma of conflict (with Elizabeth Stewart, 2011); Gallipoli: a ridge too far (2013, second revised edition 2015); and he compiled and wrote the introduction to a special third edition of The Anzac Book, the classic anthology of soldiers’ writings and art from Gallipoli (2010). In his other major research area, the Vietnam War, he researched and wrote two volumes of theOfficial history of Australian involvement in Southeast Asian conflicts 1948–1975: Volume VIII, covering Australian ground operations in Vietnam, On the offensive: the Australian Army in the Vietnam War, 1967–1968, with the late Dr Ian McNeill (2003); and Volume IX Fighting to the finish: the Australian Army and the Vietnam War 1968–1975 (2012).

David Fitzgerald joined the Memorial in 2006 as Manager, Buildings in the Corporate Services Branch, became acting Head of Buildings and Services in January 2013, and was promoted to this position in February 2015. David came to the Memorial from private enterprise and has substantial facilities management experience. He has trade certificates for electrical and refrigeration services and has completed various facilities and business management courses. He was previously employed as building manager on Canberra Total Asset Management contracts, including the Foreign Affairs and Immigration buildings. David completed the Cultural Management Development Program in 2008.

Nick Fletcher began working at the Memorial in 1995, and was appointed Head of Military Heraldry and Technology in 2009. In March 2011, he was temporarily transferred to the Exhibitions Section as Concept Leader for the redevelopment of the First World War galleries, a task which was completed with the official opening of the new galleries in February 2015. He has a Bachelor of Arts (Graphic Design) and completed the Cultural Management Development Program in 2006. Nick became the first Memorial staff member to visit Afghanistan as an official curator in 2009, making further visits in 2011 and 2015. He was also a regular leader of Australian War Memorial battlefield tours to Gallipoli and the Western Front.

Frances Henderson had been acting Head of Human Resources since April 2014. She was formally appointed to the role in August 2015. She joined the Memorial in May 2013 as the Manager of Performance and Employee Relations. Frances has held senior HR roles within the public and private sectors, including ten years with the US Department of State providing regional HR expertise throughout the South Pacific region. Frances has a business degree from Monash University and is a Certified Professional of the Australian Human Resources Institute.

Sarah Hitchcock first joined the Memorial’s Education and Visitor Services Section in August 2008 after 12 years with Australian Capital Tourism, her final year as General Manager. From 2010 to 2012, she returned to the ACT Government and held the position of Director of the Centenary of Canberra. Working with Creative Director Robyn Archer AO, Sarah led the formation and establishment of the Centenary of Canberra team, governance arrangements, and prepared the program of events and activities scheduled for the centenary. Sarah rejoined the Memorial in September 2012 as Head of the Commemoration and Visitor Engagement Section and has overseen the development and delivery of the Memorial’s centenary commemorative program. Sarah is currently studying Psychology and is an active member of the Board
of Management of the Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve.

Ryan Johnston was appointed Head of Art in October 2012. Before joining the Memorial he was Acting Director of the Shepparton Art Museum, where he oversaw a major redevelopment of the Museum and its subsequent re-launch. Ryan has also worked as a lecturer in the School of Creative Arts at the University of Melbourne. He is currently finalising his PhD on Scottish artist Eduardo Paolozzi, also at the University of Melbourne. His research has been published in local and international journals including the Australian and New Zealand journal of art, the Journal of surrealism and the Americas, and Broadsheet. He has been recognised with several awards, including a Yale University Fellowship. Ryan was a founding editor of emaj, Australia’s first online refereed journal of art history. He is a member of the boards of Canberra Contemporary Art Space and Canberra Youth Theatre.

Brie Lloyd was appointed as Head of Digital Experience in April 2016. Brie has over ten years’ experience in digital marketing, including both agency side and marketing side roles. She has worked for one of the biggest global communications agencies, Publicis Groupe, and developed a digital offering to key multinational clients. Most recently Brie was responsible for the strategic development and rollout of major B2C, B2B and e-commerce digital solutions for Sanofi, a multinational company in the pharmaceutical industry.

Katherine McMahon was appointed Head of Exhibitions in 2006 and has played an instrumental role in developing the strategic direction of the Memorial’s exhibitions program. She has overseen $70 million of major gallery redevelopment projects and delivered permanent exhibitions on the First World War, Second World War, Korea, Vietnam, Peacekeeping, First Gulf War, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Katherine most recently oversaw the $32 million redevelopment of the Memorial’s historic and heritage-listed First World War galleries. This project was a key part of the package of commemorative events and initiatives of the Australian Government’s Anzac Centenary Program 2014–18. She has a Bachelor of Arts (Art History and Curatorship) from the Australian National University.

Leanne Patterson has been Chief Finance Officer (CFO) and Head of Finance since December 2007 and has been acting Assistant Director, Corporate Services since January 2016. She joined the Memorial in December 1999 as Manager, Financial Reporting and Analysis, and was primarily focused on developing the framework to support the funding, valuation, and depreciation of the Memorial’s billion-dollar collection of heritage and cultural assets. As CFO, Leanne has successfully influenced the outcome of government-wide financial and budget reforms as they relate to the Memorial, through regular participation in formal working groups, inquiries, and other consultative processes. She is a Fellow of CPA and has a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting) from James Cook University. Leanne is an active member of the ACT CPA Public Sector Accountants Committee.

Hans Reppin has been the Head of Photographs, Film, Sound and Multimedia Services since March 2014, and manages the Multimedia and Digital Asset Management System. His background includes a diverse range of managerial positions and technical responsibilities. Hans’s specialised professional background encompasses digital preservation management, Prolab experience within the television industry (motion picture, news, traditional film base processing, exhibition and commercial print outputs), and press and production photography experience garnered over 20 years. He is applying his expertise to digital content management and preservation within a museum environment as a digital advocate and innovator.

Tim Sullivan was appointed Assistant Director Branch Head National Collection in May 2013. He graduated from the University of Sydney where he studied history, English literature, and education. Tim has qualifications in earth sciences and a Masters in Management with a focus on museum development from the University of Technology, Sydney. His career has encompassed technical and managerial roles in the Geological Survey of NSW, the NSW Department of Mineral Resources, the Australian Museum, and the Sovereign Hill Museums Association, Ballarat. In 1999–2000, he was a Visiting Fellow with the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington DC. He has served on the Museums Board of Victoria and is a member of the National Cultural Heritage Committee. He has served on a diverse range of committees promoting regional research and development, heritage management, commemorative projects, and museum development. He has contributed to national and international forums on museum practice and development, and has written widely on the role of museums in promoting learning and regional heritage strategies.

Robyn van Dyk is Head of the Australian War Memorial’s Research Centre. Her work involves leading the Research Centre team to develop, manage, preserve, and provide access to the Memorial’s archival and published collections. Robyn has curated a variety of exhibitions, including co-curating the MAGNA award-winning Anzac voices (2014) and a joint exhibition with Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation, Gallipoli to Afghanistan and the future: 100 years of mapping (2015). She is the concept leader for Anzac connections, the Memorial’s major centenary web project to enhance availability and access to digital content. Robyn has produced museum-related publications and delivered papers at national conferences. In October 2012, she travelled to Afghanistan as the Memorial’s official curator, and spent several weeks observing conditions and collecting records and objects. Robyn has recently partnered with the Australian National University in an ARC-funded project researching Australians in Borneo during the Second World War.

Chris Wagner was appointed as the Head of Communications and Marketing at the Australian War Memorial in May 2016. Chris and his team are responsible for the media, public relations, marketing, publications, the Friends of the Memorial, and the broader sponsorship program of the Memorial. He has over 15 years’ experience in the communication sector, working in ministerial offices, government departments, and for a number of not-for-profit and corporate organisations. A former journalist, Chris has a background in matters of mental health, suicide, criminal and civil justice, national security, emergency management, and grassroots community liaison. He has a First Class Honours Degree in Journalism and is a White Ribbon Ambassador.

Daryl Winterbottom joined the Memorial in 1989 to direct implementation of the Collection Management System and established the Information Technology Section in 1992. Previously his career involved electronics and computer technology, and included: the development of astronomy instrumentation at Mount Stromlo; the establishment of electronics support sections at the Royal Military College – Duntroon; and implementation of computer networks at the Australian Defence Force Academy, the University of New South Wales. He holds a Diploma of Applied Science from the University of Canberra. He has managed the establishment, maintenance, and development of the Memorial’s information technology infrastructure and business critical applications. He is an active member of IMSG, which sets and monitors strategic directions for information technology and management. He initiated and manages the Memorial’s Enterprise Content Management project and represents the Memorial as the Chief Information Officer in government forums.

APPENDIX 4

Selected VIP visits, events and ceremonies

VIP visits

8 July 2015 Professor Takashi Shiraishi, Japan

9 July 2015 Mr Masanori Nishi, Administrative Vice-Minister of Defence, Japan

11 July 2015 His Excellency Mr Ziad Chebib, Governor of Beirut, Lebanon

15 July 2015 Foreign Defence Attaché Corps

21 July 2015 General Sommai Kaotira, Chief of Joint Staff, Royal Thai Armed Forces

21 July 2015 Major General Gourlez de la Motte, Commander, Army Aviation, France

27 July 2015 His Excellency Dr Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, President of the United Republic of Tanzania
and Her Excellency Mama Salma Kikwete

4 August 2015 Brigadier General Mervyn Tan, Director of Military Intelligence, Singapore

11 August 2015 Australian Political Council Exchange, Republic of Korea

11 August 2015 Major General Iftikhar Ahmed Wyne, Director General Foreign Mutual Cooperation, Pakistan

12 August 2015 Senator John Cornyn, United States of America

20 August 2015 Major General Graham Binns, United Kingdom

21 August 2015 Sir Richard Billing Dearlove KCMG OBE, former Head of the British Secret Intelligence Service,
United Kingdom

24 August 2015 Major General John Crackett, Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff (Reserves and Cadets),
United Kingdom

26 August 2015 Major General Roland De Vries SD SM MMM (Retd), South Africa

1 September 2015 Brigadier Lord Fielakepa, Chief of Defense Staff, Tonga

3 September 2015 Lieutenant General Benedikt Zimmer, Director-General of Equipment, Information Technology
and In-Service Support, Germany

3 September 2015 General David Petraeus AO (Retd), United States of America

8 September 2015 Senator Jean-Claude Lenoir, President of the Committee on Economic Affairs, France

11 September 2015 Australian Political Exchange Council, Vietnam

15 September 2015 Lieutenant General Yoshizo Ono, Commandant, Air Staff College, Japan

2 October 2015 The Honourable Karingozhakkal Mani Mani, Finance Minister and Chairman,
Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers, India

2 October 2015 Vice Admiral Andreas Krause, Chief of Navy, Germany

8 October 2015 Tourism Australia

8 October 2015 General Gregory S. Martin (Retd), Former Commander of the Air Force Material Command,
United States Air Force

14 October 2015 Mr John Haslem, Former Member for Canberra, Australia

15 October 2015 Lieutenant General Guy Thibault CMM MSC CD, Vice Chief of Defence Staff, Canada

19 October 2015 Mr John Brennan, United States of America

20 October 2015 The Honourable Andrew Yang, Minister of National Defence, Taiwan

20 October 2015 Mrs Tracy Chamoun, Lebanon

21 October 2015 Lieutenant General Shir Aziz Kamawal, General Director of Security of the National Assembly, Afghanistan

21 October 2015 Dr Patrick Simon AO, Mayor, Villers-Bretonneux, France

22 October 2015 Professor Dr Maria Böhmer, Minister of State at the Federal Office, Federal Republic of Germany

23 October 2015 Joint Warfare Conference

26 October 2015 Brigadier Laurent Kolodziej, General Officer in charge of International Affairs and Exports, France

27 October 2015 Ms Lim Soo Hoon, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Singapore

1 November 2015 Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach, Vice Chief of Defence Staff, United Kingdom

4 November 2015 General Jean-Louis Georgelin, Grand Chancellor of the Legion of Honour, France

5 November 2015 The Honourable Amy Adams MP and the Honourable Michael Woodhouse MP, New Zealand

10 November 2015 Major General Mark Westergren, Deputy Commander, Joint Functional Component Command for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance, United States Strategic Command, United States
of America

10 November 2015 Mr Marc Daunis, Member of the Senate, France

11 November 2015 Mr Didier Pontzeele, Head of the War Graves Service, Belgium

14 November 2015 Lieutenant General Lawrence Nicholson, Commander of Marine Forces Japan and III Marine Expeditionary Force, United States of America

17 November 2015 Brigadier General Gregory Guillot, Director of Strategic Plans, Requirements, and Programs, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, United States of America

23 November 2015 Rear Admiral Frank Trojahn, Chief of Naval Staff, Denmark

23 November 2015 Brigadier Muhammad Aamer Najam, Deputy Commandant, Command and Staff College, Quetta, Pakistan

24 November 2015 Honourable Domenico Rossi, Deputy Minister of Defence, Italy

25 November 2015 Australian Political Exchange Council

26 November 2015 Attorney Pio Lorenzo Batino, Undersecretary for Defense Policy, Philippines

1 December 2015 Baroness Emma Nicholson of Winterbourne, United Kingdom

2 December 2015 Air Chief Marshal Agus Supriatna, Chief of Air Force, Indonesia

5 December 2015 Ms Kelly Magsamen, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific
Security Affairs, United States of America

9 December 2015 Mr Raphael Morav, Director of the Pacific Affairs Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Israel

10 December 2015 Mr Yoshiya Muto, Deputy Director-General, Defence Intelligence Headquarters, Ministry of
Defence, Japan

11 December 2015 Australian Club Members

27 January 2016 Ms Sarah Saldaña, Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, United States of America

7 February 2016 Rear Admiral Simon Ancona, Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff (Defence Engagement),
United Kingdom

8 February 2016 Ambassador Benny Dagan, Deputy Director General and Head of the Center for Policy Research for the Foreign Ministry of Israel

9 February 2016 Mr Axel Voss, Acting Chairman for the Relations with Australia and New Zealand of the
European Parliament

9 February 2016 Air Vice Marshal Sean Corbett, Deputy Director for Commonwealth Integration, Defence Intelligence Agency, United States of America

9 February 2016 Delegation of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, Germany

9 February 2016 Defence Delegation, United States of America

11 February 2016 General Mulyono, Chief of Staff, National Army, Indonesia

11 February 2016 General Elrick Irastorza, Chairman of the First World War Centenary Partnership Program, France

16 February 2016 Brigadier General Robert Marion, United States of America

17 February 2016 Air Vice Marshal Gary Waterfall, Air Officer Commanding, No. 1 Group, United Kingdom

17 February 2016 Rear Admiral William Merz, Commander Submarine Group Seven, Task Force 74/54,
United States of America

19 February 2016 The Honourable Dan Tehan MP, Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, Australia

22 February 2016 Major General Gregg Potter, Director, Signals Intelligence Directorate, United States of America

23 February 2016 Lieutenant General Christine Whitecross OMM MSM CD, Chief of Military Personnel,
Armed Forces, Canada

29 February 2016 The Government Administration Committee, New Zealand Parliament

29 February 2016 Mr Jean-Yves Le Drian, Minister for Defence, France and His Excellency Mr Christophe Lecourtier, French Ambassador to Australia

1 March 2016 Dr Apichart Chinwanno, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Thailand

2 March 2016 Rear Admiral Yoshihisa Inui, Joint Chief of Logistics, Self Defence Force, Japan

2 March 2016 Minister Khanlav Fatiyev MP, Azerbaijani Parliament and Chairman of the Azerbaijan–Australia Interparliamentary Friendship Group and His Excellency Mr Rovshan Jamshidov, Azerbaijani Ambassador to Australia

3 March 2016 Brigadier General Stahl, Division Head Military Police and Operation, Ministry of Defence, Germany

4 March 2016 Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Singapore

9 March 2016 Major General David Robinson, United States Air Force

10 March 2016 Dr Ralf Brauksiepe, Parliamentary State Secretary, Ministry of Defence, Germany

11 March 2016 Rear Admiral Vincent Atkins, Coast Guard, United States of America

14 March 2016 Air Vice-Marshal Malcolm Brecht, Chief of Staff Capability, Air Command Headquarters,
United Kingdom

16 March 2016 Mr Ross Boyd AM, Assistant Secretary, Defence Intelligence Organisation

16 March 2016 General Teerachai Nakwanich, Commander-in-Chief, Royal Thai Army

28 March 2016 The Honourable Harjit Singh Sajjan, Minister of National Defence, Canada

30–31 March 2016 Congressional Delegation, United States of America

6 April 2016 Major General Jalander Shah Bahnam, Commander of the Marshal Fahim National Defence University, Afghanistan

11 April 2016 Major General Agung Risdhianto, Assistant to the Commander in Chief of Operations, Indonesia

11 April 2016 Major General Dato´ Suhaimi bin HJ Mohd Zuki, Assistant Chief of Staff Human Resources, Malaysia

14 April 2016 Lieutenant General Konstantinos Gkatzogiannis, Chief of Staff, Hellenic National Defence General Staff

14 April 2016 Defense Intelligence Agency Delegation, United States of America

22 April 2016 Major General Abdullah Baysar, Division Commander, Turkey

12 May 2016 Admiral Bernard Rogel, Chief of Navy, France

17 May 2016 Mr Chan Yeng Kit, Permanent Secretary (Defence), Singapore

2 June 2016 His Honour the Honourable John Hardy OAM, Administrator of the Northern Territory, Australia

17 June 2016 Major General Peter Kelly MNZM, Chief of Army, New Zealand

27 June 2016 Congresswoman Terri Sewell, United States of America

30 June 2016 Mr Ian Irving, Chief Executive and Mr Dave Perry, Chief Global Business Development Officer, Northrop Grumman

Events and ceremonies

1 July 2015 Centenary of the Royal Australian Survey Corps Wreathlaying Ceremony

3 July 2015 Exhibition launch – Reality in flames: modern Australian art and the Second World War

8 July 2015 Defence Indigenous Wreathlaying Ceremony

23 July 2015 Army Indigenous Lone Pine Soil Collection Ceremony

24 July 2015 2nd Division Centenary Parade

29 July 2015 Australian Army Training Team Vietnam Wreathlaying Ceremony

15 August 2015 Victory in the Pacific Day Wreathlaying Ceremony

20 August 2015 27th Australian Infantry Battalion (South Australian Scottish Regiment) Plaque Dedication Ceremony

2 September 2015 Battle for Australia Wreathlaying Ceremony

3 September 2015 Australian National Flag Day Ceremony

5 September 2015 Big things in store open day

9 September 2015 National Servicemen’s Association of Australia Wreathlaying Ceremony

10 September 2015 Air Force Band Jazz Group performance

14 September 2015 Australian Federation of Totally and Permanently Incapacitated Ex-Servicemen and Women Annual Congress Wreathlaying Ceremony

15 September 2015 Battle of Britain Wreathlaying Ceremony

16 September 2015 Commemorating Chinese–Australian Military History

18 September 2015 National Student Leadership Forum Wreathlaying Ceremony

23 September 2015 War Correspondents Memorial Dedication Ceremony

8 October 2015 Explosive Detection Dog and Handler Sculpture Dedication

11 October 2015 ACT Pipes and Drums Championship Competition

13 October 2015 Far East Strategic Reserve Navy Association Plaque Dedication Ceremony

16 October 2015 Balibo Five 40th Anniversary Wreathlaying Ceremony

19 October 2015 HMAS Brisbane Plaque Dedication Ceremony

4 November 2015 Campbell High School Wreathlaying Ceremony

10 November 2015 Roll of Honour Ceremony

11 November 2015 Remembrance Day National Ceremony

11 November 2015 Captain Reg Saunders Courtyard and Gallery Launch

26 November 2015 Army Lone Pine Indigenous Soil Return Ceremony

1 February 2016 Parliamentary Opening Last Post Ceremony

23 February 2016 Napier Waller Reflection Ceremony

1 March 2016 Army Birthday Wreathlaying Ceremony

19 March 2016 National Day of Prayer for Defence Wreathlaying Ceremony

2 April 2016 Royal Australian Corps of Military Police Centenary Parade

6 April 2016 Anzac Day Aged Care Wreathlaying Ceremony

25 April 2016 Anzac Day Dawn Service

25 April 2016 Anzac Day National Ceremony

29 April 2016 No. 37 Squadron Plaque Dedication Ceremony

10 May 2016 Nurses and Midwives Wreathlaying Ceremony

20 May 2016 Royal Australian Army Pay Corps Plaque Dedication Ceremony

27 May 2016 National Sandakan Remembrance Day Wreathlaying Ceremony

5 June 2016 Annual Bomber Command Commemorative Ceremony

10 June 2016 ACT RSL Congress Wreathlaying Ceremony

21 June 2016 Lightning Bolt on-site display

29 June 2016 Portsea Graduate Class of 1966 Wreathlaying Ceremony

Commemorative anniversary Last Post ceremonies

19 July 2015 Battle of Cape Spada

24 July 2015 2nd Division Birthday

4 August 2015 115th Anniversary Battle of Elands River

6 August 2015 Centenary Battle of Lone Pine

7 August 2015 Centenary Battle of the Nek

8 August 2015 Centenary August Offensive

13 August 2015 75th Anniversary Canberra Air Disaster

15 August 2015 70th Anniversary end of Second World War Victory in the Pacific Day

18 August 2015 Vietnam Veterans Day

8 September 2015 Centenary Suvla Bay RAN Bridging Train

19 September 2015 Centenary Kangaroo March

16 October 2015 105th Field Battery Association

29 October 2015 Annual Defence Widows Support Group

4 November 2015 Australian Italian Service

7 November 2015 Annual Royal Australian Signals Association

11 November 2015 Remembrance Day

7 December 2015 Royal Military College Graduating Class 1960 and 1975 Vietnam

3 January 2016 75th Anniversary Battle of Bardia

1 February 2016 Parliamentary

12 February 2016 75th Anniversary Womens’ Royal Australian Army Corps

13 February 2016 National Servicemen Association (ACT branch)

25 February 2016 75th Anniversary Womens’ Australian Air Force

28 February 2016 HMAS Perth Annual Ceremony and 25th Anniversary of the end of the Gulf War

28 March 2016 75th Anniversary Battle of Cape Matapan

31 March 2016 95th Anniversary RAAF Birthday

1 April 2016 Centenary Royal Australian Corp of Military Police

6 April 2016 75th Anniversary German invasion of mainland Greece

10 April 2016 75th Anniversary Siege of Tobruk

23 April 2016 65th Anniversary Battle of Kapyong

25 April 2016 101st Anniversary Anzac Day

4 May 2016 St Florian’s Day

5 May 2016 Centenary of first Australian action on the Western Front

8 May 2016 71st Anniversary Victory in Europe

14 May 2016 73rd Anniversary HMAS Centaur

20 May 2016 75th Anniversary German invasion of Crete

27 May 2016 Sandakan

31 May 2016 Centenary of the Battle of Jutland

1 June 2016 Reconciliation Week

4 June 2016 Bomber Command

8 June 2016 Start of the Syrian Campaign

17 June 2016 Centenary of the first AIF Casualties in Belgium during the First World War

25 June 2016 Reserved Forces

APPENDIX 5

Key Acquisitions and Disposals

Acquisitions

Art

1. Shirley Macnamara, Memoir, 2015 (spinifex, emu feathers, bullock bone, horse hair, wax thread, ochre and fixative).

Produced from organic materials found near the artist’s home in far west Queensland and taking crucifix form, Memoir was inspired by the commemorative events held to mark the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign. It commemorates the service of Indigenous soldiers who fought overseas and were never recognised or remembered.

2. Theo Scharf, Europa, 1922 (print portfolio, 14 offset lithographs, printed in black ink on cream wove paper, 41.3 x 49.4 (sheet), signed and dated, published by Georg Muller Verlag, Munich).

Europa was produced by Scharf, an Australian artist based in Germany, in the period immediately following the signing of the Treaty of Versailles. The prints provide a vision of the impact of the First World War on Europe.

3. Yhonnie Scarce, Blue Danube, 2015 (blown glass).

This hand-blown glass bomb represents the "Blue Danube", Britain’s first operational atomic bomb. It contains a collection of hand-blown glass bush yams, alluding to the impact of the atomic testing program at Maralinga on the local Indigenous population.

4. Bernard Slawik, multiple works and archival materials.

A major donation by the family of the artist included artwork and documents relating to his time in a Nazi concentration camp, his escape and subsequent journey to Australia via Scandanavia and the US.

5. Khaled Sabsabi, Guerilla 2007–2014, 2014 (33 acrylic, watercolour, gouache and lacquer paintings on photographs) and Guerilla, 2007 (single channel video).

These 33 paintings on photographs provide a rare perspective on the 33 Day War from the perspective of a Lebanese–Australian who experienced it first-hand. The video work, donated by the artist, complements the graphic work by providing contextual interviews and footage of the war and its aftermath.

Military, Heraldry and Technology

1. Victoria Crosses – the following VC medal groups have arrived at the Memorial over the past year:

• Harry Murray (long-term loan)

• Peter Badcoe (shared display arrangement with SA History Trust)

• Roy Inwood (short-term loan)

• James Gordon (long-term loan).

2. The clothing and personal equipment worn by Corporal Cameron Baird VC MG on the day he was killed in action was donated by the ADF (through 2 Commando Regiment).

3. Other significant medal group acquisitions during the year were:

• Lieutenant Colonel Vivian Bullwinkel, Australian Army Nursing Corps

• Wing Commander Bobby Gibbes DSO DFC, RAAF

• Able Seaman Geoffrey Rosevear DSM (HMAS Sydney (II))

• Captain Edward Howells MC, 1 Fld Sqn Engineers, Desert Mounted Corps.

4. CH-47D Chinook A15-202 Centaur was transferred from the ADF to the Australian War Memorial in April. This is the first of a series of major aircraft acquisitions anticipated over the next four to five years, and is an important new collection item with significant combat history in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

5. Other important vehicle and technology acquisitions include:

• Ford CMP Cab 12 Field Artillery Tractor (Second World War)

• M577A1 Armoured Command Vehicle (veteran of Vietnam and Timor-Leste)

• Polaris Sportsman All-Terrain Vehicle (SOTG Afghanistan)

• AN/TPQ 36 Firefinder Weapon Locating Radar (used in Iraq).

6. A curatorial visit to the Middle East in August and September resulted in a large number of historic items being returned to Australia, particularly from Camp Baker, the ADF Base at Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan.

Photographs, Film and Sound

1. P12453.001: Photograph Album Der Kampf im Westen: Die Soldaten des Fuhrers im Felde II. Ban (The battle in the West:
The soldiers of the new guidebook in the Field. II Band). This volume, written in German, is an important example of propaganda used to portray the war in the west to the German people. In addition to over 70 pages of text and some colour plates, it is equipped with pockets containing over 100 images for viewing through a stereoscope viewer, which is included within the book cover. Authored by Hasso von Wedel and Henrich Hansen and published by Raumbil-Verlag Otto Schonstein, Munich, 1940.

2. F11851: Sententia: inside Afghanistan. This two-hour director’s cut of the documentary film Sententia contains content which is still classified, however a release version is accessible commercially on DVD and is available in the Memorial’s shop.

3. The Memorial received a collection of photographs relating to Private Harry Victor Leckie, a photographer who worked with the Australian Flying Corps in Palestine and Egypt during the First World War. During his service Private Leckie made a significant contribution to surveillance operations in the desert campaign and extensively documented the work of the photographic team, taking informal photographs on the ground and from the air, and later preparing a manuscript titled History of the first use of aerial military photography by Australia, 1914–1918 (official records number 3DRL/4180). The acquisition includes an album of photographs taken by Private Leckie and several prints he produced, offering an insight into his photographic processes and methods. These photographs complement previous donations made by Private Leckie’s descendants, and will enhance other formed collections such as the official B series, where the work of individual AFC photographers remains largely uncredited.

4. Donated by Dennis Cowdroy (on behalf of the Martin Estate) a collection of 206 glass stereo transparencies, original wooden Verascope case, and folding stereo viewer from the First World War relates to the work of Staff Sergeant Robert William Martin of the Australian War Records Section (AWRS). This collection is an excellent example of stereo photography. The transparencies are images of AIF wounded/hospitals, Australian scenery, UK countryside, Cairo and Aden.

5. Photographs, Film and Sound staff spent a week with 7RAR in Adelaide in February, conducting video oral histories with regiment members preparing to deploy to either Iraq, for Operation Taji, or Afghanistan, for Operation Highroad. Over 20 hours of recordings were made for the National Collection. The same regiment members are to be re-interviewed on their return from deployment in order to create a package of interviews documenting the deployment experience during current operations.

6. Photographs, Film and Sound staff spent several days recording video interviews and capturing high-quality imagery of members of 5 Aviation Regiment involved in the history of the A15-202 Chinook which is now part of the Memorial’s collection. The team accompanied the aircraft on its last journey and conducted in-depth interviews with key pilots and
crew members in Canberra.

7. Second World War Bomber Command veteran Leonard Bence was interviewed about his experiences as a Lancaster pilot in an oral history for the National Collection. Mr Bence, who resides in South Australia and was recently widowed, made this special trip to Canberra to view the aircraft "G for George" and make a personal commemoration. His visit was extensively covered in the media.

8. The Memorial acquired Avenue of Honour 2014 (printed 2016), 22 digital pigment prints. This work forms a significant response to the commemoration of the centenary of the First World War by Trent Parke, a leading contemporary photographer and the first and only Australian to be accredited as a full member of the prestigious Magnum Photography Agency.

Research Centre

1. Diary written by Flying Officer John Reginald Dodds DFC in 27 descriptive instalments, each sent home to his parents in Australia. Dodds served as a Wireless Operator with 460 and 156 Squadron RAAF during the Second World War. Some of the diary instalments are sewn together to form a booklet. The diary covers his embarkation from Sydney in November 1941, sightseeing and training in England, and several bombing raids over Germany during 1943 and 1944. The last diary entry was made on 27 April 1944, the day of his final mission over Friedrichshafen where his plane was shot down with the loss of all crew. Dodds was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

2. Collection of 160 letters written by Colonel Charles Herbert Davis between 1915 and 1919. Davis was first commissioned in the 4th Battalion of Infantry, Victoria Defence Forces in 1896. At the outbreak of the First World War he was appointed as a censor, and then in 1915 as commanding officer of 17th Infantry Brigade. In February 1916 he joined the AIF and was appointed Commanding Officer of the 38th Battalion, which experienced their first action in Armentieres in France in December. In recognition of his command of large raiding parties, including the most important ever undertaken by Australians on the Western Front – at Houplines on 27 February 1917 – he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order.
His battalion also saw service at Ploegsteert Wood, Messines, Ypres, and Passchendaele, with subsequent holding of the line at the Douve River, Amiens, and the Ancre River. In 1918 he transferred as colonel to take charge of the Australian General Base Depot, assisting with the repatriation of Australian troops. He was appointed CBE in June 1919.

3. Diaries, letters and documents relating to Sophia LeFaucheur (née van As) and her experience as a Dutch civilian prisoner of war in the Netherlands East Indies. Sophia (or "Fiep") worked for General Motors in Bandoeng and, with her friend Netty, soon joined a group of civilian women who entertained and nursed imprisoned Allied troops. The collection contains correspondence from POWs SX8406 Private Hubert John (2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion) and English soldier Charles H. Raley to Fiep thanking her for her friendship during their internment. Fiep and the female members of her family were soon interned in civilian camps such as Tjideng and Kampong Makassar. Her father and brothers were interned in three separate camps. The family was unable to correspond and did not hear news of their well-being until after liberation in 1945, when they were re-united. Her diaries (written in Dutch with English translations) discuss the overcrowded and harsh conditions endured by female civilians in the internment camps, including conditions under Captain Kenichi Sonei, from 1943 to 1945.

4. A collection assembled by Dr Bob Breen, author of the Official history of peacekeeping, humanitarian and post–Cold War operations:Volume V The Good Neighbour: Australian Peace Support Operations in the Pacific Islands, 1980-2006 was acquired as AWM388. Dr Breen was an army operations analyst on East Timor, Bougainville and Solomon Islands. The material was accumulated as part of Operation Bel Isi and the activities of the Peace Monitoring Group.

5. The Reports of Proceedings (ROP) from the RAN Clearance Diving Team 3 (CDT3) was acquired from Sea Power Centre (Australia) as AWM78 3392/4. It documents Australia’s naval involvement in the First Gulf War. The item was a large photo album with standard pages for the ROP, photocopied news reports, photographs and captions. The item was scanned for access online and the physical record will be displayed in the gallery.

6. Unit Commanders’ diaries and Medical Officers’ diaries for each of Unamir missions undertaken by the Australian Contingents to Rwanda, 1994–95 (AWM323). These official diaries will enter the open access period under the
Archives Act 1983 on 1 January 2018.

7. German U-boat manual taken from a submarine by Chief Engineer William Kempees of the Royal Netherlands Navy. This is volume seven of a larger set of manuals and provides illustrations of the compressed air system. The submarine was a Type XB submarine of Nazi Germany’s Kriegsmarine during the Second War World. The submarine was commissioned with the designation U-219 in December 1942 but taken over as I 505 by the Imperial Japanese Navy following Germany’s surrender in May 1945. Annotations on the cover and inside of the manual reflect this history.

Disposals

Art

1. James Dodd, Saddam, Johnny, Osama, 2013 (stencils on lithographic paper on marine ply). ART94984.

This artwork was deemed inconsistent with the Memorial’s objectives because of its portrayal of Australia’s then Prime Minister John Howard in company with Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden.

Military, Heraldry and Technology

No disposals this year.

Photographs, Film and Sound

1. 5,175 VHS copies – Inferior duplicate replaced with high quality original.

2. 464 Sound copies – Inferior duplicate replaced with high quality original.

3. Five PROP photographic prints from Icon and archive travelling exhibition that are no longer used: PROP03235, PROP04816, PROP04869, PROP04889, PROP04890.

Research Centre

1. Three private records collections were returned to the donor as they did not relate to wartime experiences and were placed with an educational institution – PR05612.DEA1, PR05614.DEA1, PR05891.DEA1.

APPENDIX 6

Touring Exhibitions

Total Touring Exhibitions visitation: 1/7/2015 to 30/06/2016

APPENDIX 7

Staff publications, lectures and talks

Claire Baddeley

"WEP: artist and war correspondent", talk, Australian War Memorial, 3 July 2016

"James F Scott: the forgotten war artist", talk, Australian War Memorial, 28 August 2015

"Food will win the war: food production, thrift and savings programs during WWI and WWII", talk, Australian War Memorial,
9 September 2016

"Death, disease and desire: First and Second World War disease, health and hygiene posters", talk, Australian War Memorial,
7 and 10 October 2016

"No fresh water and no bridge", article, Wartime, Issue 71, Winter 2015

Craig Blanch

"The moment of freedom: Captain Stahl’s flag", chapter in Lachlan Grant (ed.), The Changi book, NewSouth Publishing, 2015

"The Victoria Cross", talk, Australian War Memorial, 29 April 2016

"The Hall of Valour", talk, Australian War Memorial, 10 May 2016

"A bush hospital in the heart of England", article, /blog/2016/06/07/bush-hospital-heart-england/,
7 June 2016

"Fromelles", talk, Australian War Memorial, 7 September 2016

"Enigma at war", talk, Australian War Memorial, 21 September 2016

Stephanie Boyle

"Small screens and true: home movies and helmet-cam footage", conference paper, Film and History Association
of Australia and New Zealand Conference 2015, Queensland University of Technology, Queensland, 3 July 2016

"Inked: tattoos and the military", talk, Australian War Memorial, 13 August 2015, 11 February, and 31 March 2016

"Introduction: film screenings for Vietnam Veterans Day", talk, Australian War Memorial, 18 August 2015

"Barons, boots and beer: the First World War oral history collection", talk, Australian War Memorial, 20 August 2015

"Is a black hole as bad as a dark age?: the challenge of digital collections of amateur film", talk, UNESCO World Audiovisual Day/Directions Forum, National Film and Sound Archive, 27 October 2015

"Beyond the wire, behind the garage: the Australian War Memorial’s portrait commission", talk, 2015 Conference of the Australasian Sound Recording Association, State Library of New South Wales, 21 November 2015

"Cats of war", article, https://www.flickr.com/photos/australian-war-memorial/sets/72157663104562229, 21 January 2016

Rebecca Britt

Special Christmas gallery tour, talk, Australian War Memorial, 11 December 2015

White gloves presentation, talk, Australian War Memorial, 11 December 2015

Peter Burness

"Chauvel in Palestine", article, Wartime, Issue 73, Summer 2016

"Australians in France", talk, Alliance Française, Turner, ACT, 18 March 2016

Melissa Cadden

"Spirit of the squadron: Sqn Ldr John Francis Jackson" article, Wartime, Issue 73, Summer 2016

"Pioneers of colour: First World War colour photography", talk, Australian War Memorial, 28 January 2016

Emma Campbell

"Australian Women War Reporters by Jeannine Baker", book review, Wartime, Issue 72, Spring 2015

"Women’s work: Dame Alice Chisholm and the women who supported the First World War", talk, Australian War Memorial,
16 November 2015

Eric Carpenter

Introductory talk for senior history students from the Australian National University, talk, Australian War Memorial,
10 August 2015

Catherine Challenor

"The conservation of the regimental colour of the Richmond Volunteer Rifle Company", talk, 26th International
Congress of Vexillology, Sydney, NSW, 2 September 2015

Theresa Cronk

"Digitisation projects: a case study in the value of digital preservation", conference paper, The information explosion
era and digital preservation in the Australian public sector, Canberra ACT, 1 March 2016

Andrew Currey

"Mephisto", talk, Australian War Memorial, 16 June 2016

Daniel Eisenberg

"A most miserable hotch-potch: Charles Bean and the First World War film collection", conference paper, Film and History Association of Australia and New Zealand Conference 2015, Brisbane, QLD, 3 July 2015

"A most miserable hotch-potch: Charles Bean and the First World War film collection", talk, Australian War Memorial,
16 July 2015

"Moving battle lines: animation and war", talk, Australian War Memorial, 30 July 2015 and 14 January 2016

Introduction to film screening Father Christmas goes to war, talk, Australian War Memorial, 17 December 2015

Ashley Ekins

"The significance of the centenary of the battle of Lone Pine"’, talk, recorded by Australian Institute of International Affairs (AIIA) and posted on website of AIIA journal, Australian Outlook: http://www.internationalaffairs.org.au/australian_outlook/the-brutality-of-the-battle-of-lone-pine/, 4 August 2015

"Lessons from counter-mine and improvised explosive device warfare in the Vietnam War", talk, Interpol Counter Improvised Explosive Device-Counter Terrorism (CIED-CT) Leaders’ Forum, Australian War Memorial, 3 September 2015

"The battle of Long Tan", Defence Honours and Awards Appeals Tribunal panel, Lecture, Australian War Memorial,
12 November 2015

"Gallipoli’s successful end", article, The Australian, 8 December 2015

"Vietnam: a winnable war?", chapter in Daniel Marston and Tamara Leahy (eds), War, strategy and history: essays in honour of Professor Robert O’Neill, ANU Press, the Australian National University, June 2016

Mike Etzel

Public Tour Treloar B and C, talk, Australian War Memorial, 21 August 2015

"Australian issued rifles and bayonets of the First World War", article, /blog/2015/09/23/australian-issued-rifles-and-bayonets-first-world-war/, 23 September 2015

"First World War Western Front – Christmas", talk, Australian War Memorial, 11 December 2015

James Fenn

‘How DAM enabled engaging customer experience’, talk, HP Engage User Group, San Diego USA, 9 November 2015

Nick Fletcher

"In all aspects ready: Australia’s Navy in World War One", book review, Wartime, Issue 71, July 2015

"The Mighty ATOM: The ‘Conduct of Anti-Terrorist Operations in Malaya’ handbook", article, Wartime, Issue 72, October 2015

"Curating the Australian War Memorial’s new First World War galleries", talk, Campbell Park Offices, Canberra, ACT,
10 November 2015

Special Christmas gallery tour, talk, Australian War Memorial, 11 December 2015

"The aircraft collection of the Australian War Memorial", talk, Australian War Memorial, 24 February 2016

David Gist

"Selling the good fight?: the Directorate of Public Relations in Vietnam", conference paper, Film and History Association of Australian and New Zealand Conference 2015, Brisbane, QLD, 3 July 2015

"Offerings: managing personal commemoration at the Australian War Memorial", conference paper, Museums Australasia, Auckland, New Zealand, 17 May 2016

Chris Goddard

"Untac: United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia", article, Australian peacekeeper magazine, Summer 2015,
December 2015

Lachlan Grant

"The Changi complex", article, Wartime, Issue 71, July 2015

"The Changi book", book, NewSouth Publishing, 1 August 2015

"Rediscovering Changi: highlights from the Australian War Memorial’s collection", conference paper,
Victory in the Pacific: war and art, Australian War Memorial, 15 August 2015

"Producing The Changi book: seventy years on", talk, Australian War Memorial, 26 August 2016

"Enduring myth of Changi as ‘POW hell’ overshadows stories of survival", article, The Age, http://www.theage.com.au/comment/enduring-myth-of-changi-as-pow-hell-overshadows-stories-of-survival-20150903-gjemq1.html, 5 September 2015

"Recovering prisoner of war memories: seventy years on", talk, Sir Albert Coates Oration, Ballarat VIC, 22 October 2015

"The experiences of Australian POWs in the Second World War", talk, Australian War Memorial, 17 November 2015

"The Fifth Column in World War II: suspected subversives in the Pacific War and Australia", book review, Wartime, Issue 74, April 2016

"The Oxford Illustrated History of the First World", book review, Wartime, Issue 74, April 2016

"The Oxford Illustrated History of World War II", book review, Wartime, Issue 74, April 2016

"One job left to do: Australian military forces policing of Netherlands East Indies, August 1945–February 1946", conference paper, Asia–Pacific War, 1931–1945: international conference, the Australian National University, 9–11 July 2015

Anthea Gunn

"Australian artists in the Pacific", talk, Australian War Memorial, 14 August 2015

"Art of the First World War", talk, Australian War Memorial, 23 September 2015 and 24 February 2016

"Postera Crescam Laude: Brook Andrew’s ‘Sanctuary: tombs of the outcasts’", article, Eyeline, No. 84, January 2016

"Gallipoli centenary commission: David Jolly", talk, Australian War Memorial, 20 April 2016 and 15 June 2016

"Career pathways outside academia", talk, ANU Early Career Academic Network retreat, National Museum of Australia,
8 June 2016

Meleah Hampton

"First World War commemorations", talk, Keeping history alive and relevant seminar, Belgian Embassy, 23 July 2015

"Reasons for Allied victory in the First World War", talk, NSW History Teachers’ Association regional seminar, the Australian National University, 27 July 2015

"A question of contribution: Australia and the war on the Western Front", article, Teaching history, Vol. 49, No. 3,
September 2015

"A tale of two tanks", talk, Australian War Memorial, 17 September 2015

"The rise and fall and rise of Douglas Haig", article, Wartime, Issue 74, April 2016

"The battle that never was: Mouquet Farm 1916", lecture, Strategic Defence Studies Centre, the Australian National University,
12 April 2016

"A company at Pozières", article, Wartime, Issue 74, April 2016

"Hasn’t that been done?: the future of the operational history of the First World War", conference paper, New directions in war and history: debating military history, the Australian National University, 4 February 2016

"Attack on the Somme: 1st Anzac Corps and the Battle of Pozières Ridge", book, Helion and Company, Solihull, UK,
28 June 2016

"From the Somme to the Salient: the AIF and its battles, 1916–1917", chapter in J. Bou (ed) The AIF in battle: how the Australian Imperial Force fought, Melbourne University Press, 20 June 2016

"The Battle of the Somme: an Australian perspective", talk, Australian War Memorial, 1 June 2016

David Heness

"Voices from the front", talk, Australian War Memorial, every Tuesday July 2015 to May 2016

Warwick Heywood

"Reality in flames: victory in the Pacific – war and art", talk, Australian War Memorial, 15 August 2015

Ben Quilty curator talk, talk, Townsville Gallery, 29 November 2015

Reality in flames: curator talk, talk, Australian War Memorial, 17 January, 10 February, 8 March 2016

Reality in flames: exhibition talk, talk, Australian War Memorial, 27 April, 4 May, 1 June 2016

Holocaust talk, talk, Australian War Memorial, 18 May 2016

"Contemporary art commissions at the Australian War Memorial", talk, Asialink Leaders Program, Australian War Memorial,
31 May 2016

Eleni Holloway

"Pattern 1908 web equipment", article, /blog/2015/07/14/pattern-1908-web-equipment/, 14 July 2015

"’God bless and protect’: Jim Blondahl’s pottery", chapter in Lachlan Grant (ed.), The Changi book, NewSouth Publishing,
1 August 2015

"Clothing the colonials", talk, Australian War Memorial, 16 November 2015

Stephanie Hume

"Iraqi’s most wanted playing cards", talk, Australian War Memorial, 20 January 2016

"Changi concert party programs", talk, Australian War Memorial, 24 February 2016

"A mouthful of whisky", article, The Last Post magazine, 14 April 2016

"Charles George Sickling", article, The Last Post magazine, 14 April 2016

Karl James

"More than mopping up: Bougainville", chapter in Peter J. Dean (ed.) Australia 1944–45: victory in the Pacific, Cambridge University Press, Port Melbourne, 7 July 2015

"‘Black Jack’ Galleghan: hero of Changi", chapter in L. Grant (ed.) The Changi book, NewSouth Publishing, 1 August 2015

"Victory in the Pacific", talk, Australian War Memorial, 5 August 2015

"World War II generation fading quietly away", article, Sydney Morning Herald, http://www.smh.com.au/comment/world-war-ii-generation-fading-quietly-away-20150814-giz0nx.html, 14 August 2015

"The war that shaped Australia", conference paper, Victory in the Pacific: war and art, Australian War Memorial, 15 August 2015

"A great generation might quietly pass without notice", article, The Canberra Times, 15 August 2015

"Curtin + MacArthur + Blamey", article, Wartime, Issue 73, January 2016

"The war in North Africa: prisoners during the siege of Tobruk", talk, Australian War Memorial, 2 March 2016

"No parade-ground soldiers: Australian commandos in the Pacific war, 1941–45", conference paper,
Asia-Pacific War, 1931–1945: international conference, the Australian National University, 911 July 2015

"Australia and the Second World War", article, Wartime, Issue 71, Winter 2015

"Lauded legacy", article, Portrait: magazine of Australian and New Zealand portraiture, No. 50, Spring 2015

Ryan Johnston

"From competitive memory to comparative commemoration", chapter in M. Walsh and A Varnava (eds), Australia
and the Great War: identity, memory and mythology, Melbourne University Press, 1 January 2016.

Ben Quilty: after Afghanistan opening speech, talk, Castlemaine Art Gallery, 15 January 2016

"The Official War Art Scheme", lecture, Asialink Leaders Program, Australian War Memorial, 31 May 2016

Introduction to the Memorial’s art collection, talk, Australian War Memorial, 31 May 2016

"The Gallipoli Letter 100 Years On: Imants Tillers, Nat Williams and Ryan Johnston in conversation", talk, National Library
of Australia, 14 October 2015

Magda Keaney and Joanne Smedley

"Photographic prints in the Australian War Memorial collection", talk, Australian War Memorial, 2 June 2016

Michael Kelly

"Korea, Malaya and the Indonesian Confrontation", talk, Australian War Memorial, 7 July 2016 and 19 April 2016

"Hard road to Pakchon: in their first duty, the Australians of 3RAR proved their mettle alongside their British counterparts", article, Wartime, Issue 72, October 2015

"The Last Post: Wing Commander Luis Thomas Spence DFC and Bar", article, Wartime, Issue 72, October 2015

"The battle which ended the war: Samichon River and the hook 24–27 July 1953", talk, Camberwell RSL, Camberwell,
VIC, 21 November 2015

Memorial tour, focus on Afghanistan and modern operations, talk, Australian War Memorial, 5 December 2015

"Kapyong: an epic battle in a forgotten war, 23–25 April 1951", article, The Age, The Canberra Times and
The Sydney Morning Herald, 21 April 2016

Bridie Macgillicuddy

"Girl operatives: women’s war work", talk, Australian War Memorial, 23 July 2015

"Artistic impressions: the aftermath of Hiroshima", talk, Australian War Memorial, 6 August 2015

Kate Morschel

"Faces of war", talk, Australian War Memorial, 11, 18 and 25 January 2016

"Faces of war", conference paper, Museums Australasia conference, Auckland, New Zealand, 17–18 May 2016

"Great battles, great gains", conference paper, Museums Australasia conference, Auckland New Zealand, 17 May 2016

"Reflections and predictions: closing plenary for the Museums Australasia Conference", conference paper, Museums
Australasia conference, Auckland, New Zealand, 18 May 2016

"Faces of war" (International Women’s Day), talk, Australian War Memorial, 8 March 2016

"Anzac from the air", talk, Australian War Memorial, 2 July 2016

Kate Morschel and Luke Diggins

"’‘Anzac from the air’: re-imagining the Australian War Memorial’s Gallipoli aerial collection", chapter in B. Stichelbaut
and D. Cowley (eds), Conflict landscapes and archaeology from above, Ashgate, England, 1 February 2016

Kerry Neale

"Private Gleeson’s artificial leg: a pioneering medical innovation", chapter in Lachlan Grant (ed.), The Changi book,
NewSouth Publishing, 1 August 2015

"The remembering of facial disfigurement", talk, War and emotions symposium, Museum Victoria, 18 September 2015

"On the disfigured", conference paper, Rethinking resilience: medicine and WWI, Royal Dutch Military Academy (via video),
23 September 2015

"Bullencourt tank", talk, Australian War Memorial, 19 October 2015

"Healing a nation: wounded veterans and family caregiving after the First World War", talk, Inverell RSM Club, 9 January 2016

"Caterpillars, goldfish and guinea pigs: badges of the (un)lucky clubs of the Second World War", article, /blog/2016/01/18/caterpillars-goldfish-and-guinea-pigs-badges-unlucky-clubs-second-world-war/, 18 January 2016

"Memorial, museums and memory: the next 100 years for the Australian War Memorial", conference paper, New directions
in war and history: debating military history conference, the Australian National University, Canberra, 4 February 2016

"A ‘fine body of men’: the Kurrajongs recruitment march", January 1916, article, /blog/2016/01/21/fine-body-men-kurrajongs-recruitment-march-january-1916/, 21 February 2016

"Memories, memorials and museums: are we already done with the Great War centenary?", conference paper, Museums Australasia conference, Auckland, New Zealand, 18 May 2016

"A hundred years of the RSL: a history in badges", article, /blog/2016/06/16/100-years-rsl-history-badges/, 16 June 2016

Suzy Nunes and Shelley Blakely

"Australian Women’s Army Service: doing their bit", talk, Rotary Club, Raiders Club, Canberra ACT 19 April 2016

"Australian Women’s Army Service: doing their bit", talk, Australian War Memorial, 3 May 2016

Garth O’Connell

"Diggers and doughboys at Hamel", talk, Australian War Memorial, 6 July 2015

"’The devil’s chariot’: A7V Mephisto", talk, Australian War Memorial, 12 October 2015

"Diggers and doughboys: the 98th anniversary", talk, Australian War Memorial, 4 July 2015

Garth O’Connell and Amanda Rebbeck

"‘One Fitty’: the Australian War Memorial’s Long Range Patrol Vehicle", talk, Australian War Memorial, 4 February,
2 and 8 June 2016

Aaron Pegram

"Prisoners of war (Australia)", article, http://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/article/prisoners_of_war_australia, 15 July 2016

"Bold bids for freedom: escape and Australian prisoners of war in Germany, 1916–1918", talk, Australian War Memorial, 15 July 2015

"Australia in the Great War", talk, Australian War Memorial, 18, 19, 25 August, 3 and 8 September, 3 October 2015

"Lest we forget: history, memory and commemorating the First World War in Australia", conference paper, War, military, society and the politics of naming in the Twentieth Century, German Defence Force Centre for Military History and Social Sciences, Potsdam, Germany, 2 December 2015

"Escaping the great escape: rethinking captivity in Germany in the Great War", lecture, Research colloquium in modern
history, Friedrich-Meinecke-Intitute, Freie Universität, Berlin, Germany, 8 December 2015

"The missing mortars of Bridoux", article, Wartime, Issue 74, April 2016

"The carnage of the Somme", article, The Melbourne Age and The Canberra Times, 24 April 2016

"‘The nature of gross slackness’: I ANZAC, the Nursery and the Bridoux Salient trench raid", 5 May 1916, talk,
Australian War Memorial, 1 May 2016

"Nightly suicide operations", chapter in J. Bou (ed.) The AIF in battle: how the Australian Imperial Force fought,
Melbourne University Press, 20 June 2016

Amanda Rebbeck

"Military helmets: an introduction", article, /blog/2015/07/27/introduction-military-helmets/,
27 July 2015

"Capturing the albatross", talk, Australian War Memorial, 21 December 2015

"Capturing the albatross", article, /blog/2015/12/22/capturing-albatros/, 23 December 2015

Barbara Reeve

"ASY 583 / RAAF Mission 3614 and courier: transport War Memorial objects around the world", talk, Yarralumla, Canberra ACT,
29 July 2015

"A case study in EPBC Act compliance: reconstructing elements of the Australian War Memorial’s Commemorative Area",
talk, Environment Institute of Australia and New Zealand, Canberra ACT, 8 March 2016

"Reconstructing heritage elements in the Australian War Memorial’s Commemorative Area", talk, Australia ICOMOS Canberra Talk Series, Canberra ACT, 24 March 2016

"The identification, management and display of radioactive items at the Australian War Memorial", article, in M. Wetzenkicher and V.L. Tobisch (eds), Gefahrstoffe in Museumsobjekten – Erhaltung oder Entsorgung?, Technisches Museum Wien, 1 June 2016

Jane Robertson and Stephanie Hume

"Research Centre collections and services: peacekeeping and recent conflicts", talk, Australian War Memorial, 23 September 2015

Ally Roche

"Two wheels to the front line: Australian Corps Cycling battalions", talk, Australian War Memorial, 30 June, 30 July,
and 10 September 2015

Cameron Ross

"General Piet Cronje’s rifle", talk, Australian War Memorial, 2 November 2015

"British concentration camps", talk, Australian War Memorial, 1 February 2016

"Trooper Francis Arthur Groom DCM", article, /blog/2016/04/20/trooper-francis-arthur-groom-dcm/, 20 April 2016

"Losing mortars", talk, Australian War Memorial, 9 May 2016

"Behind the Memorial’s Boer War collection", talk, Australian War Memorial, 14 May 2016

Dianne Rutherford

"Forced marches", article, Wartime, Issue 71, July 2015

"The mysterious case of the Emden Bell", talk, Australian War Memorial, 15 July 2015

"Understanding Australian identity discs part 3: Second World War, army", article,
/blog/2015/08/20/identity-discs-australian-army/, 20 August 2015

"The German aviator’s leg", article, /blog/2015/10/26/german-aviators-leg/, 26 October 2015

"Sabotage!", article, /blog/2015/11/05/sabotage/, 5 November 2015

"Some songs and two cans of beer in Dili", article, Australian Peacekeeper Magazine, 1 December 2015

"The German officer’s corset", article, /blog/2016/01/04/german-officers-corset/ , 4 January 2016

"The German officer’s corset", talk, Australian War Memorial, 4 January 2016

"‘Gott Strafe England!’: Walter Koch in Holsworthy Camp 1918", article, /blog/2016/02/09/gott-strafe-england-walter-koch-holsworthy-camp-1918/, 9 February, 2016

"Perham Downs and the Aussies’ concert parties", talk, Australian War Memorial, 29 February 2016

"Welcoming home HMAS Sydney from the Gulf War, 1991", article, /blog/2016/02/26/hmas-sydney-gulf-war-1991/, 26 February 2016

"The adventurous Maud Butler", article, /blog/2016/03/07/adventurous-maud-butler/, 7 March 2016

"The famous military costume comedy company, the AUSSIES!", article, /blog/2016/03/15/the-aussies/, 15 March 2016

"Rothberg the spy: rumours in the 24th Battalion, 1916", article, /blog/2016/06/30/rothberg-the-spy-1916/, 30 June 2016

Jennifer Selby and Lenny Preston

"To my dear mother: the story of the Lanser disc", talk, Australian War Memorial, 5 November 2016

"To my dear mother: the story of the Lanser disc", conference paper, Play it forward: sustainability in a time of rapid change, Australasian Sound Recording Association (ASRA) conference, 19 November 2015

Robyn Siers

"Stories of Indigenous service", talk, ACT College teachers, University of Canberra ACT, 28 January 2016

"Life-long learning: story-telling tips", talk, Australian War Memorial, 14 June 2016

Joanne Smedley

"Cirkut panorama photographs from the First World War", talk, Australian War Memorial, 27 August 2015

"Reverse painted glass framed photographs: First World War portraits with decorative surrounds", talk, Australian War Memorial, 1 October 2015

"Algernon Darge’s 19,000 Soldiers: photographs of the First World War", talk, Australian War Memorial, 25 February,
25 and 26 March 2015

Tim Sullivan

"Rosie Ware commission", talk, Australian War Memorial, 23 October 2015

Alex Torrens

"NAIDOC Week Indigenous experience of war: Jack Dale and David Paul", talk, Australian War Memorial, 9 July 2015

"NAIDOC Week: art by Indigenous artists", talk, Australian War Memorial, 10 July 2015

"Art of the Korean War", talk, Australian War Memorial, 18 July 2015

"The Torres Strait Islands at war", talk, Australian War Memorial, 23 October 2015

"Germania furiosa: the cartoons of Stanislaw Toegel", talk, Australian War Memorial, 18 November 2015

"Indigenous art from the collection", talk, Australian War Memorial, 23 November 2015

"Korean and Vietnam War official art scheme", talk, Australian War Memorial, 31 May 2016

"Introduction to the art collection", talk, Australian War Memorial, 6 June 2016

"Art of the First World War", talk, Australian War Memorial, 6 June 2016

"Ivor Hele in Korea", talk, Australian War Memorial, 29 June 2016

Alex Torrens and Dianne Rutherford

"3 Squadron", talk, Australian War Memorial, 10 February 2016

Alana Treasure

"First World War diorama conservation project", talk, ACT Scale Modellers Society, Woden ACT, 8 July 2015

"Behind, over and under the scenes: the conservation of the First World War dioramas at the Australian War Memorial", conference paper, Australian Institute for the Conservation of Cultural Material (AICCM) 2015 National Conference, Hobart,
TAS, 5 November 2015

"Behind, over and under the scenes: the conservation of the First World War dioramas at the Australian War Memorial", talk, Australian War Memorial, 21 January 2016

Robyn Van Dyk

"100 years of Australian military mapping: centenary for the Australian Army Survey Corps", talk, Australian War Memorial,
1 July 2015

"Anzac connections and the First World War centenary", talk, Australian War Memorial, 5 July 2015

"Anzac connections: delivering new collections outline and linked open data", conference paper, Forum 2015 Conference
of Records and Information Management Professionals Australasia, Melbourne, VIC, 1 September 2015

"Australian Women’s Land Army: serving on the home front", talk, Australian Women’s Day conference, Boorowa, NSW,
13 March 2016

"Private memories connecting the war of yesterday to today’s digital reality: the experience of the Anzac connections project", conference paper, Revealing the conflict/representing the war: war, curatorship and museum experience, IoDeposito NGO, Giavera del Montello, Italy, 12 March 2016

Carlie Walker

"Ancestry: stories of multicultural Anzacs", talk, Melbourne, VIC, 29 September 2015

Laura Webster

"Dioramas at the Australian War Memorial", talk, Australian War Memorial, 24 May 2016

"Contemporary art commissions at the Australian War Memorial", talk, Australian War Memorial, 31 May 2016

Laura Webster and Emma Kindred with Shaune Lakin

Anzac Centenary Print Portfolio, book, Australian War Memorial, 1 March 2016

Peter Yule

"The medical legacies of the Vietnam War: an Australian perspective", conference paper, Symposium: a medical history
of the Vietnam War, Texas Tech University, USA, 12 March 2016

APPENDIX 8

Staffing overview as at 30 June 2016

The staff of the Memorial are appointed or employed under the Public Service Act 1999.

Ongoing and non-ongoing staff by gender (excludes Statutory Officer)

Senior executive staff by gender

Staff by classification and gender

Representation of equal employment opportunity groups as a percentage of staff by occupational groups

ATSI = Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander; BO = born overseas; BO+ENFL = born overseas and did not speak English as a first language; PWD = people with a disability

APPENDIX 9

Major Sponsors

The Australian War Memorial gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the following individuals and organisations.

Benefactors

Benefactors are those who have contributed over $250,000

Companions

Companions are those who have contributed over $50,000

Patrons

Patrons are those who have contributed over $20,000

Glossary

AC Companion of the Order of Australia

ADF Australian Defence Force

AFP Australian Federal Police

AGO Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation

AIF Australian Imperial Force

AM Member of the Order of Australia

ANAO Australian National Audit Office

ANU Australian National University

Anzac Australian and New Zealand Army Corps

AO Officer of the Order of Australia

APS Australian Public Service

AWM Australian War Memorial

CAS Collection Access System

CASG Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group

CCG Collections Coordination Group

CEO Chief Executive Officer

CFO Chief Finance Officer

CMG Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George

CMG Corporate Management Group

Comcare Commonwealth agency responsible for workplace safety, rehabilitation and compensation

Comcover Commonwealth general insurance fund

CPA Certified Practising Accountant

CSC Conspicuous Service Cross

DAMS Digital Assets Management System

DBE Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire

DDA Disability Discrimination Act

DFC Distinguished Flying Cross

DSC Distinguished Service Cross

DSM Distinguished Service Medal

DVA Department of Veterans’ Affairs

EPBC Act Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

FBT Fringe Benefits Tax

FOI Act Freedom of Information Act 1982

GST Goods and Services Tax

HMAS His/Her Majesty’s Australian Ship

HMP Heritage Management Plan

HQJOC Headquarters Joint Operations Command

HR Human Resources

ICT Information and Communications Technology

IMSG Information Management Steering Group

IPS Information Publication Scheme

IT Information Technology

JPAU Joint Public Affairs Unit

KCMG Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George

KPI Key Performance Indicator

LTO Large Technology Object

MBE Member of the Order of the British Empire

MC Military Cross

MEAO Middle East Area of Operations

MG Medal for Gallantry

MHQ Maritime Headquarters

MICA Memorial Integrated Collection Access System

MP Member of Parliament

OAM Medal of the Order of Australia

PCG Project Control Group

PGPA Act Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013

PM&C the Prime Minister and the Cabinet

PSPF Protective Security Policy Framework

PwC Pricewaterhouse Coopers

RAAF Royal Australian Air Force

RAN Royal Australian Navy

RAP Reconciliation Action Plan

RAR Royal Australian Regiment

Retd Retired

RFD Reserve Force Decoration

RSL Returned and Services League of Australia

SC Senior Counsel

SMG Senior Management Group

SOE Standard Operating Environment

VC Victoria Cross

VIP Very Important Person

WAM Western Australia Museum

Compliance index

The table below shows compliance with Section 17BE of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Rule 2014.

index

A camera on Gallipoli 6, 34, 132

Afghanistan: the Australian Story 5, 60

ANAO see Australian National Audit Office

Anzac Day Dawn Service viii, 1, 6, 7, 14, 16, 19, 27, 32, 127

Anzac Day National Ceremony viii, ix, 7, 14, 16, 19, 21, 41, 44, 113, 127

Australia in the Great War 1914–1918 33, 138

Australia’s Federation Guard 20, 36, 113

Australian Defence Force 8, 11, 12, 20, 26, 28, 47, 117, 118, 121, 123, 129

Australian Federal Police 61

Australian National Audit Office 3, 58, 69, 114, 115

Australian War Memorial Act 1980 3, 10, 59, 67, 70, 84, 95, 103, 114

BAE Systems 2, 7, 41, 59, 144

Bean, C.E.W. 8, 14, 20, 21, 27, 52, 60, 134

Ben Quilty: after Afghanistan 6, 33, 34, 43, 132, 137

BHP Billiton Sustainable Communities 7, 144

Boeing Australia 2, 7, 59, 63, 144

Book Council of Australia 52

Bryan Gandevia Prize for Military History 55

Cambridge, Their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of 25, 61, 72

CCG see Collections Coordination Group

CFO see Chief Finance Officer

Chair/Chairman of Council iii, iv, v, viii, ix, 1, 2, 4, 7, 10, 18, 21, 58, 58, 59, 67, 113, 114, 115, 116, 118

Chief Finance Officer 10, 59, 62, 114, 115, 120, 122

Chinook 5, 9, 26, 41, 129, 130

CMG see Corporate Management Group

Collections Coordination Group 11, 26

Commemorative Area 3, 6, 8, 11, 12, 14, 16, 24, 25, 34, 36, 44, 45, 58, 59, 61, 72, 138, 139

Commemorative Crosses 7, 37, 45

Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 70

Cornwall, Her Royal Highness the Duchess of ix, 7, 14, 16, 18, 23

Corporate Management Group 8, 10, 59, 60

Corporate Services v, 8, 8, 10, 11, 59, 71, 114, 115, 120, 121, 122

Cosgrove AK MC, Governor-General Sir Peter ix, 7, 18

Council 1, 2, 3, 4, 4, 10, 58, 59, 60, 62, 67, 68, 69, 103, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, 119, 120

De Lambert Largesse Foundation 2, 7

Department of Veterans’ Affairs iii, viii, 7, 10, 19, 23, 38, 52, 58, 71, 89, 118

Director, Australian War Memorial iii, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 10, 12, 16, 47, 56, 58, 59, 66, 67, 68, 102, 114, 115, 120

Discovery Zone 21, 58

Doolan AO RAN (Retd), Rear Admiral Ken ix, 2, 3, 4, 7, 16, 18, 41, 47, 51, 58, 58, 113, 115, 116, 118

DVA see Department of Veterans’ Affairs

e-business 11, 64, 120, 121

explosive detection dog 6, 21, 24, 27, 61, 127

external audit 3, 69, 114, 115

Facebook viii, 38, 42

Financial statements v, 69, 75

First World War Galleries 2, 5, 14, 28, 34, 60, 121, 122, 134

First World War 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 13, 15, 16, 18, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 30, 33, 34, 35, 36, 40, 44, 45, 46, 53, 55, 58, 120, 121, 122, 128, 129, 130, 133, 134, 135, 138, 140

Flickr viii

fraud control 10, 11, 60, 69

Freedom of Information Act 1982 70, 71

Gallipoli 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 16, 17, 21, 27, 28, 32, 33, 34, 42, 46, 49, 52, 53, 54, 64, 129, 132, 134, 135, 137

general visitor survey 14, 15, 35, 36, 39, 40, 43, 44, 56, 60

Hall of Memory 6, 19, 24, 36, 64

heritage management 24, 72, 122

insurance 11, 60, 69

internal audit 11, 58, 68, 114, 115

Jolly, David 6, 27, 32, 33, 135

Keighran VC, Daniel 2, 28, 58, 113, 116, 119

Kingold 2, 7, 66, 144

Last Post Ceremony viii, ix, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 12, 14, 16, 19, 20, 20, 21, 36, 42, 44, 62, 66, 127, 128

legal actions 69

Lockheed Martin 2, 7, 59, 144

Lone Pine 2, 5, 7, 21, 25, 61, 64, 72, 126, 127, 134

Memorial Boxes viii, 37, 38, 38, 39, 61

Memorial Shop 11, 54, 55, 64, 120

Mephisto 5, 15, 30, 33, 34, 35, 43, 60, 61, 134, 138

Minister for Veterans’ Affairs iii, ix, 3, 7, 53, 58, 68, 69, 115, 125

Mitchell viii, 5, 7, 10, 15, 26, 27, 39, 44, 60, 61, 72, 73

National Collection viii, 5, 8, 8, 11, 13, 27, 29, 30, 30, 36, 41, 42, 43, 58, 59, 62, 64. 67, 69, 71, 73, 92, 95, 98, 122, 130

Nelson AO, Brendan 1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 10, 16, 41, 47, 51, 56, 63, 66, 120

Official History of Australian peacekeeping, humanitarian and post-Cold War operations 2, 6, 11, 27, 46, 48, 58, 131

Official War Art Scheme 6, 27, 137

Ombudsman 69, 119

operational service 7, 9, 11, 25

organisation chart 10

Parliament House 1, 27, 32

performance statements iv, v, 13, 19

plaque dedication 14, 19, 23, 26, 74, 112, 126, 127

Poppy’s café 57, 61

Pricewaterhouse Coopers 58, 68, 114, 145

prime minister iii, ix, 6, 7, 16, 21, 28, 46, 131

Protective Security Policy Framework 61

Public Governance Performance and Accountability Act 2013 iii, iv, v, 3, 10, 69, 84

Public Management Reform Agenda 62

Public Programs viii, 8 8, 10, 11, 36, 39, 40, 43, 49, 59, 66, 69, 71, 121

Qantas 2, 7, 59, 144

Reading Room viii, 33, 53, 54, 70

Remember me: the lost diggers of Vignacourt 6, 34, 43, 132

Remembrance Day viii, ix, 2, 3, 6, 7, 11, 14, 16, 18, 19, 20, 20, 21, 43, 44, 60, 61, 64, 67, 113, 127, 128

Returned and Services League of Australia 2, 6, 16, 34, 46, 59, 116, 118, 127, 138, 144

risk management 11, 60, 69, 114, 119

Roberts-Smith VC MG, Corporal Ben 16, 20

Roll of Honour Soundscape 6, 45

Roll of Honour 6, 11, 12, 20, 21, 24, 25, 26, 27, 45, 46, 47, 55, 127

Ronaldson, Senator the Honourable Michael 7, 68

school wreathlaying viii, 14, 19, 21, 45, 58, 127

Senior Management Group 59

service charter 57

Seven Group Holdings 7, 116, 144

Seven Network 7, 116, 144

SMG see senior management group Social Justice and Equity 69

Soldiers in Residence 36

Spirit of Anzac Centenary Experience 3, 6, 29, 33, 38, 58, 83, 117, 131

Stokes AC, Kerry ii, iv, 1, 4, 7, 10, 21, 41¸58, 113, 116, 144

Summer Scholars 49

Tehan MP, The Honourable Dan ii, ix, 7, 68, 125

Thales Australia 2, 6, 7, 33, 59, 144

Treloar 26, 60, 61, 134

TripAdvisor 8, 14, 44, 56

Turnbull MP, The Honourable Malcolm ix, 6, 7, 16, 21

Unknown Australian Soldier 7, 8, 19, 36, 45

Wales, His Royal Highness the Prince of ix, 7, 14, 16, 18, 23

Wartime 52, 53, 55, 133, 134, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139

website v, viii, 2, 11, 15, 26, 28, 38, 42, 43, 44, 46, 49, 53, 54, 62, 70

Work Health and Safety 64, 72, 73

workforce planning 63

Yule, Peter 6, 46, 141