If you have an interest in this trip we encourge you to join the waitlist in case of cancellations. (There is no obligation on your part in joining the wait list.)

Murray River Cruise and Royal Geographical Society of SA
1-8 May 2026

Join us for a Geotour cruise on the Murray River and a hosted visit to our sister Society, the Royal Geographical Society of South Australia in Adelaide.

Twin Share from $4075.00 pp; Single rate from $5830.00 pp

* On receipt of an offer, an Initial deposit of $1,000pp (partly refundable) to secure cabins & flights.

Cost includes:

Itinerary includes:

This Geotour will include guided shore excursions covering geographical, ecological, historical, economic and cultural aspects of this part of the Murray River:

Enquiries:
RGSQ office +61 7 3368 2066 or email info@rgsq.org.au

Join the RGSQ community to clean up our local streets and parklands in Spring Hill

Everyone is welcome, the more the merrier. This is a great opportunity for us all to make new friends in our broader community and show some appreciation for our local places. 

We'll meet outside the RGSQ signboard at 28 Fortescue St, Spring Hill for an introduction, volunteer registration and safety briefing. The clean up will start in Fortescue St, working our way up the hill and surrounding streets towards the Spring Hill Common in Victoria Park/Barrambin. Once we've finished our clean-up we'll sort through and record the rubbish we've collected to provide records to the Clean Up Australia Day crew and enjoy a well earned Zooper Dooper and a chat in the park. Looking forward to seeing you there!

Location: Meet outside RGSQ at 28 Fortescue St, Spring Hill

Time: 9 - 11am, Sunday 1st March 2026

What to bring: enclosed footwear, gloves and protective clothing (e.g. hat, sunglasses, sunscreen and long sleeves), water bottle, whatever else you'd like. We'll provide the Clean Up Australia Day bags to collect rubbish in, spare gloves, hand sanitiser and the icy cold Zooper Doopers.

As an island continent, Australia is surrounded by oceans. We also have one of the largest marine jurisdictions in the world. In fact, it is approximately double the size of our land mass and 4 per cent of the world’s oceans. Understanding our ocean is essential to realising the economic, environmental, social and cultural benefits of this valuable natural resource. Accurate and reliable seabed maps are a vital input to any planning or decision-making in our marine region. From Geoscience Australia, Dr Jodie Smith will discuss with Fugro’s Paul Seaton Australia’s initiatives to collect, make sense of, and distribute vast troves of Australian seabed data.

Speakers

Dr Jodie Smith, Geoscience Australia is Head of the Oceans, Reefs, Coasts and the Antarctic Branch at Geoscience Australia. Jodie has 20 years’ experience leading coastal and blue-water marine research with multi-disciplinary teams across Australia’s tropical, temperate and Antarctic regions. Jodie is the executive champion for neurodiversity at Geoscience Australia and an advocate for women and girls in STEM.

Paul Seaton, Fugro is the Climate & Nature Director at Fugro (Asia Pacific). He studied economics at the University of Queensland, before completing a masters in International Relations at Macquarie University. In his role as director of climate and nature for APAC, Paul has led Fugro’s strategy to capture climate change related work in the Asia Pacific and secured landmark projects with the UNDP and Asia Development Bank.

Please post your questions on notice to: questionsonnotice@gmail.com

This is an online only event

Date: Tuesday, March 10, 2026

Time: 7:30 – 8:30 pm AEST

          8:30 – 9:30 pm AEDT

Delivery: ZOOM

MC for the event: Gavin Kennedy

Cost: $0.00 Members 

          $5.00 Non-Members 

          Free Students 

This event may be recorded. If you have any questions, please email us at info@rgsq.org.au.

Presenter: Keith Treschman, Map Group and RGSQ Member

It is impossible to transfer a spherical globe to a 2-dimensional surface without some distortion. The choice of a projection depends on what the map maker wants in terms of accuracy of area, shape, distance, or direction. Some major projections are covered along with their advantages and disadvantages.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

Keith has taught Science for over 40 years in Queensland secondary schools. He holds a PhD in Astronomy, an area in which he is passionate. He has lectured on this topic onboard Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth.

He has visited the 7 continents and enjoys geographical places, for example, Hawaii, Great Rift Valley of Africa, Galápagos Islands, Jordan River and Antarctica.

His previous presentations to the Map Group were: Mapping the Night Sky, Areography (Geography of Mars), Life on Europa? An Application of Geography, Struve Geodetic Arc, Plate Tectonics, Seabed 2030 and How the USA States Got Their Shapes.

Register and pay via the website.

Coordinator: Kay Rees

Photographs and videos may be taken during RGSQ events for use in promotional materials including, but not limited to, the RGSQ website, social media channels, newsletters and other publications. By attending an RGSQ event, you consent to the use of your likeness for these purposes, unless you inform the event organizer or photographer otherwise.

Springbrook Daytrip

To start RGSQ trips program for 2026, we have organised a daytrip to Springbrook on 20th March. Among other points of interest, we will visit Purling Brook Falls and Best-of-All Lookout.

Travel by comfortable coach for a tour of these locations. Pick up will be at Eagle Junction and Coopers Plains.

The geology of the plateaus of Springbrook, Lamington and Mt Tamborine is formed from lava flows emanating from Wollumbin (Mt Warning), now a volcanic plug in the Tweed Valley which we will see from Best-of-All Lookout.

Significant as a UNESCO World Heritage Area, the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia comprise the major remaining areas of sub-tropical rainforest in southeast Queensland and northeast New South Wales. The Springbrook National Park is part of the World Heritage Area in Queensland.

The coach will leave Eagle Junction (Bus Stop 27, Park Av, between Sydney St and Junction Rd) at 7.30 am, with a second pick-up at Coopers Plains (Brittain Park, Troughton Rd, opposite Sherrington St) at 8.00 am. Parking is available at both locations, either on-street or off-street (Brittain Park). The first pick-up is close to Eagle Junction rail station.

After the second pick-up, the coach will go directly to Springbrook (Purling Brook Falls) and then to other points of interest.

The return journey will drop off at both pick-up locations. Expect to return to Eagle Junction by mid-afternoon.

There will be stops at picnic areas for BYO morning tea and lunch, so remember to bring your own! Also, bring a water bottle, hat, camera, sunglasses, sunscreen and wind jacket.

Numbers: The trip is limited to 20 people.

Cost: $60 per person (members), $70 per person (non-members)

Registration: When registering, please indicate whether you want to be picked up at Eagle Junction or Coopers Plains.

Enquiries contact the RSGQ office +61 7 3368 2066 or email info@rgsq.org.au

Mt Coot-tha Botanic Gardens – African plant safari

9.30-10.30 Introductory presentation and BYO morning tea
10.30am - 12.30 pm guided walk.

Join us for an “African Plant Safari” at the Brisbane Botanic Gardens, Mt Coot-tha, one of the best collections of African plants in Australia. The walk will be initially downhill from the lookout, zigzag through the African zone, proceed via the Tropical Dome and finish in the Arid Zone and Cactus House. The visit will mostly be devoted to plants from southern Africa, together with a few species from Namibia, East & West Africa, the horn of Africa, Egypt and one offshore island, depending on time constraints. The visit will be guided by RGSQ member Charles Naylor, a trained volunteer guide at the Gardens, who has been leading this walk since 2022, based on his experiences while a lecturer at the University of Zimbabwe in 1983-85 and a member of the Tree Society of Zimbabwe.

$5.00 members; $15.00 non-members
Max 20 persons

• Meet by 9.30am at the large picnic shelter Lookout located on the ring road within the Gardens (see map attached),
• Wear sunhats and stout walking shoes and bring walking sticks or poles if desired.

Over morning tea there will be:

• an introductory presentation covering a brief history and layout of the Mt Coot-tha Gardens,
• a small display of African wooden and other artefacts,
• an overview of the African collections at Mt Coot-tha – and a little botany!

Parking: The 3-hour visit involves self-drive to the Brisbane Botanic Gardens at Mt Coot-tha. On weekdays the Gardens are less crowded and participants can drive onto the ring road within the Gardens to park in one of the two areas adjacent to the Lookout, or near the National Freedom Wall (see map attached – the Freedom Wall is a 5-minute walk from the Lookout).

Walk rating: The walk is along sealed paths. Distances up to 2 km, gentle slopes, some stairs, some uneven surfaces and 5-minute standing periods for guide explanations.

Enquiries contact the RSGQ office +61 7 3368 2066 or email info@rgsq.org.au

The Royal Geographical Society of Queensland and the University of Queensland School of the Environment have organised a public forum with an excellent panel of speakers to present some critical perspectives on Immigration in Australia. We hope you can join us for this important event.

Friday 28 August, 2026
1:45-5pm; please arrive by 1.30pm
followed by St Lucy’s café for social drinks 5-7pm

VENUE: The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, room TBA

CHAIRS: Dr Iraphne Childs, RGSQ; Assoc. Prof. Thomas Sigler, UQ-SENV

KEYNOTE ADDRESS: Associate Prof. Elin Charles-Edwards UQ SENV
Australian Immigration Trends: Composition, Sources and Prospects

SPEAKERS:
Assoc. Prof. Aude Bernard UQ-SENV
Migration and Population Ageing: Evaluating Policy Trade-offs

Assoc. Prof. Thomas Sigler UQ-SENV
Four Brisbanes, Three Melbournes: Exploring Clustering in International Migration Populations

Dr. Rennie Lee UQ-ISSR
Longitudinal Pathways of Student Visa Holders

ATTENDANCE COST (includes afternoon tea)
General public $20, $10 Zoom
RGSQ $5, $5 zoom
UQ Staff free
Students free

MORE INFORMATION
w www.rgsq.org.au
e info@rgsq.org.au
p (07) 3368 2066

Photographs and videos may be taken during RGSQ events for use in promotional materials including, but not limited to, the RGSQ website, social media channels, newsletters and other publications. By attending an RGSQ event, you consent to the use of your likeness for these purposes, unless you inform the event organizer or photographer otherwise.