Uni leaders look to the future
 Conferences
The 2006 Association of Commonwealth Universities Conference of Executive Heads hosted by the University of Adelaide has been hailed a success. Nearly 300 university leaders from 30 countries attended the four-day conference, which had the theme of University Futures. University of Adelaide Vice-Chancellor Professor James McWha said he was delighted with the outcomes of the conference, which he described as "perhaps the single most important conference ever hosted by this University". "Certainly the feedback I received from the delegates indicated that they felt issues of importance to their own universities and communities were addressed in a meaningful way," he said. "There was universal agreement that education is the most important means by which we ensure equality of opportunity within our communities. What we've seen at this conference is a real willingness and desire to work together to take these issues forward. "The aim was to address a broad agenda of issues, with global as well as local and national implications, around the role universities play in our society and the future direction of this role, and I believe the conference achieved that. "Delegates also seemed impressed with what they saw of the University of Adelaide, and the overall organisation and running of the conference." Topics covered by the conference included the responsibilities of universities in sustainable development, HIV/AIDS, and social disadvantage, while speakers included Australian Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs Amanda Vanstone, the New Zealand Minister of Education and of Research, Science and Technology Steve Maharey, and South African Education Minister Naledi Pandor. The conference was organised under the auspices of the Association of Commonwealth Universities, the Australian Vice-Chancellors' Committee and the New Zealand Vice-Chancellors' Committee. It was sponsored by Academic Search International, Deloitte, Oracle and The Times Higher Education Supplement.
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