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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">Dear ASA Members,</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">At the 2020 Annual General Meeting, the ASA announced the creation of a “COVID-fund” to provide financial support for research-enabling
activities to members-in-need, and asked for input from the membership about the scope of such a fund. The ASA’s finances are in a healthy situation, with funds otherwise pegged for supporting students to attend HWSA and APRIM, and international student travel
support, remaining unspent. This money will be re-directed for this fund.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">Thank-you to those who provided input. The ASA Council has collated the suggestions, and the Treasurer Yeshe Fenner has formed
a base model.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000; font-weight:700">Scope of support</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">The fund supports “research-enabling” activity within the current COVID-affected environment. In all cases, priority is for
members for whom their institution does not provide such funding, and justification of all requests is required. We want to ensure that the funds genuinely go to those with the highest needs.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">Funds are available for the following (not-exhaustive) list of costs:</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span>Payment of online conference fees</span></p>
</li><li dir="ltr" style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span>Childcare-associated, or daycare, costs while attending conferences and meetings</span></p>
</li><li dir="ltr" style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span>Support for professional and career development activities – especially if it is diversifying skills beyond research/astronomy</span></p>
</li><li dir="ltr" style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span>Other expenditure, demonstrated to be enabling research (justification required).</span></p>
</li></ul>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000; font-weight:700">Prioritisation of individuals</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">Students and ECRs (within five years FTE of PhD) will be strongly prioritised. More senior members with a very compelling
case may also be considered.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000; font-weight:700">Deadline and cycle</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">Initial deadline:
</span><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000; font-weight:700">Friday August 14, 2020</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">The first call will be followed by a rolling call for funding support,
</span><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000; font-style:italic">until the fund is exhausted.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000; font-weight:700">Funding level</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">Individual payments,
</span><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000; font-weight:700">up to $1,500</span><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">, with the expectation that most requests would be substantially less than this amount.
Members can apply in more than one funding round, if funds are available, but the total integrated funding per individual is capped at $1,500.
</span><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000; font-style:italic">Expenses are those incurred from July 1, 2020 onwards, to allow for reimbursement of recent activities within this financial year.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000; font-weight:700">Accessing funds</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">Please fill the online form at
</span><a href="https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/slmuCr81nyt9ZoRWI736T_?domain=forms.gle"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#1155cc; text-decoration:underline; text-decoration-skip-ink:none">https://forms.gle/2YaP4d4hY13R5oE1A</span></a></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">Regards,</span></p>
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt; font-family:Arial; color:#000000">Cathryn</span></p>
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<div style="font-family:Tahoma; font-size:13px">_______________________________________________________<br>
Cathryn Trott<br>
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Associate Professor</div>
<div style="font-family:Tahoma; font-size:13px">ARC Future Fellow</div>
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<div style="font-family:Tahoma; font-size:13px">President, Astronomical Society of Australia<br>
<span><br>
ARC Centre of Excellence for All Sky Astrophysics in 3D (ASTRO 3D)</span><br>
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International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research<br>
Curtin University<br>
Bentley WA, Australia<br>
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cathryn.trott@curtin.edu.au<br>
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