Vale Brenda Aynsley

Brenda Aynsley,
OAM FACS CP

Brenda Aynsley OAM FACS CP, a Past President of the Australian Computer Society (ACS), has passed away. As reported by Jan Whitaker:

"It's with deep sadness that I let the Link community know that our dear colleague and friend of many years, Brenda Aynsley, passed away quietly this morning in Adelaide, after a long illness. Many here will know Brenda from different paths in the IT community, and those of us who were lucky enough as a true friend. I will miss her more than I can tell. There is to be no funeral, but if I get word of other wishes, I will pass them along."

From: Sad news - Vale Brenda, Jan Whitaker, Link list on Australian network policy and communications, 12 August 2018, 12:49:51

As Brenda wrote on her LinkedIn entry, she was:

 "... totally absorbed by and committed to the Internet and technology, not because of the nature of the toys and tools, but because both provide the means of facilitating effective communication between citizens of the world. ..."

Her work was global, but I knew Brenda as a fellow member of many ACS committees, and one of my successors as ACS President. Brenda changed the direction of my professional work, as one of the team training myself, and others, to teach computer professionals (Lindley, Aynsley, Driver, Godfrey, Hart, Heinrich, Unhelkar & Wilkinson, 2013).

Brenda was most recently Chair on the ACS South Australia Branch, a relatively recent appointment from January 2018. She was also Convenor of the ACS SA PC Recycling Group, a position she had held for eighteen years. I visited her at the PC Recycling group and included this in my ICT Sustainability course.

Brenda Aynsley was as the first female President of the ACS, in 2013.

In 2015 Brenda gave evidence to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security during an inquiry into metadata privacy 29 January 2015. She was also interviewed on the subject for the WSIS FORUM 2015.

Brenda was recognized for service to the information and communications technology sector in the 2014 Australia Day Honours list, with an Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM). She was a Flinders University alumnus, being awarded a BA in 1982 and DipSocSc in 1984. 

Brenda held so many positions in the computer profession in Australia and internationally, it would be difficult to list them all. Here are a few:

• Chair,  International Professional Practice Partnership (IP3), International Federation for Information Processing.
• National Vice-President, Australian Computer Society, 2002-2003 and 2010-2011; Honorary Life Member, 2008.
• Chair, ACS National Community Engagement Board, 2009-2010.
• Chair, Ageism Task Force, 2010.
• Lead Tutor and Academic Program Coordinator, ACS Professional Year Program.
• Founding Member, Electronic Frontiers Australia, 1994.
• Honorary Secretary, South Australian Branch, Australian Computer Society; Chairman, 1999-2001, 2004-2006 and 2018; ACS Member, since 1989; Founder and Manager, ACS PC Recycling Group, since 2000.
• Chair, SA Committee, The Pearcey Foundation, 2006-2012.
• Opened South Australia's first Internet Café, 1995.
  Founding Member, South Australian Internet Association, 1995.
• Fellow, South Australian Branch, Australian Computer Society, 2003.

One of her more recent articles was on "Creating a Culture of Professionalism – the Board’s Role" (February 14, 2018).

Reference

Lindley, D., Aynsley, B., Driver, M., Godfrey, R., Hart, R., Heinrich, G., ... & Wilkinson, K. (2013). 11. Educating for professionalism in ICT: Is learning ethics professional development?. Professionalism in the information and communication technology industry, 211. URL http://press-files.anu.edu.au/downloads/press/p223541/html/ch11.xhtml?referer=37