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60 seconds with … Professor Simon Adams

1 October 2008

Name: Professor Simon Adams
Org Unit: Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (International) and Faculty of Arts
Title: Deputy Pro Vice-Chancellor (International) and Head, School of Arts Monash South Africa

How long have you been with Monash University?

I started at Clayton in January 2008 and then moved to the South African campus in February.

Prior to working at Monash, where were you located and what was your role?

I was the Executive Dean of Arts and Sciences at the University of Notre Dame in Fremantle, Western Australia. I was actually Acting Dean of Business, leading a restructure of the faculty, before I came to Monash.

What exciting challenges are ahead in your current role?

Building our South African campus and strengthening our relationships with governments, non-government organisations and universities on the continent. I think my biggest challenge is to find ways in which Monash can be more meaningfully engaged with African debates around issues of poverty, conflict, social justice and AIDS.

What is it about your job that holds your interest or is particularly satisfying?

Africa is never boring. Even at its most 'challenging' there is still something magical about this continent. I'm always amazed and gratified by how little an individual needs to do in order to have such a positive impact on someone's life here. I enjoy the excitement of working somewhere where the stakes are so high.

Of all the places in the world you would like to visit/re-visit, where is your favourite destination and why?

New York City. For all the reasons that people have loved and hated the city for the last four hundred years -- culture, architecture, history -- and because of the grand social experiment it represents. There is something special about any city that can be the progenitor of both novelist Henry James and rapper Tupac Shakur.

What is the best piece of advice you have received?

My old boss taught me to always be mindful of "the Karrakatta principle". Karrakatta is a cemetery in Perth. Like all cemeteries, it's full of irreplaceable people.

What is something about yourself that most of your colleagues wouldn't know?

I knew Sarah Jessica Parker before she was famous. I take no responsibility for her career choices since 'Sex and the City'.

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