May 14, 2021 12477076-DL02-21
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Welcome to GenV By Luke Voogt An “Australia-first” infant study set to create 100 jobs and potentially attract 150,000 participants from across Victoria has begun at University Hospital Geelong. The Generation Victoria (GenV) project will become “one of the world’s largest-ever birth and parent cohort studies”, according to Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI). The institute and Barwon Health this week announced they had begun inviting Victorian parents and their newborns to take part in the project. Barwon Health research director Peter Vuillermin described GenV as a once-in-ageneration study. “[It] will create an internationally-unique resource for understanding the genetic and environmental factors that give kids a healthy start to life,” Professor Vuillermin said. MCRI plans to scale up GenV in mid-2021 to partner with all Victorian birthing hospitals. The project will give Victoria’s research community access to a more complete picture of the health and wellbeing of a generation, according to the institute. The opt-in project will follow babies and their parents to help solve problems such as asthma, food allergies, obesity and mental illness – mostly using data that is already routinely collected. GenV will create about 100 new jobs in clinical settings across the state over the life of the project, according to MCRI. GenV scientific director and paediatrician of 30 years, Melissa Wake, said the project aimed to create a healthier future for children and parents by 2035. “In addition, we are seeking to address the inequities that face so many children and families across Victoria,” Professor Wake said. “Over the next two years, around 150,000 children born in Victoria and their parents will have the opportunity to participate in the project. Put simply, by signing up to be a part of the GenV generation, parents will help to create a healthier future for all children and their families.” The project follows the Barwon Infant Study of more than 1000 babies and their families, which has been running in Geelong since 2010. Details: genv.org.au
Here’s cheers to beer week A Grovedale brewery will serve up pints and ping pong on Sunday – as Good Beer Week kicks off across Geelong and Victoria today. Awards are up for grabs for the fiercest local competitor with a paddle and the best-dressed in tennis whites, in one of several local events for the festival. “It’s something everyone can get around,” Blackman’s Brewery co-owner Renn Blackman said. “Pretty much everyone has played ping pong at some point – it doesn’t matter if they’re good or bad – it’s all a bit of fun. “There’ll be plenty of crew dressed up in their best whites and headbands.” Renn and wife Jess had initially planned to open their newest Grovedale brewery in late 2020. “Then COVID came along in March, so we pulled the pin – we didn’t know what was going to happen,” he said. After “breaking even” in 2020 with beer and food orders at their Torquay and Ocean Grove breweries, and JobKeeper, they were thrilled to finally open the Grovedale site this March. “It’s pretty exciting to get locals through the door for a beer,” Renn said. Good Beer Week runs until May 23 and, with more than 200 events across Victoria, Renn plans to take advantage of the first weekend “to get people down to the coast”. Blackman’s also has a ‘Euro Beer Trip’ and a beer cocktail event planned at the Torquay and Ocean Grove breweries tomorrow. “It’s all about celebrating good beer and being around people again,” Renn said. Details: goodbeerweek.com.au
Top to bottom: Ren Blackman, Waz Coleman and Lou Stuckenschimdt at Blackman’s Brewery in Grovedale. (Louisa Jones) 236233_28
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