The Australian Institute of Packaging (AIP) education director and president of the World Packaging Organisation (WPO), Pierre Pienaar, has been appointed as a professor at the Sichuan University in Chengdu, China.
Up till the appointment as professor, Pienaar was lecturing industrial design to the University’s students as part of its Immersion Program for about three years.
Sichuan University is one of the most prestigious national universities in education, research and social impact in China, and is engaged with 248 global academic universities and research institutes in 42 countries.
According to professor Pienaar, his focus within the Immersion Program has been around subjects that involve material science, packaging management, sustainability in packaging and packaging design.
“All of the units have assessment pieces at the end where [students] need to attain a minimum of 60 per cent,” he said.
But whilst his teaching focuses on these industrial design topics, professor Pienaar aims to extend the reach and educate other faculty students on these subjects.
“Whilst my teaching focuses on industrial design students, people from other courses and faculties, such as design, graphics, engineering, arts, sciences, often attend my classes,” he said.
“The number of students vary from year to year in the Immersion Program, but on average there would be 55 to 75 attending classes, which run from 8am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.”
Professor Pienaar acknowledged Sichuan University for providing students with the opportunity to learn more about the packaging industry and what it has to offer.
“I am certainly honoured to have this conferred on me from a prestigious university like Sichuan University. I am even more thrilled that leading universities, such as Sichuan University, acknowledges packaging and all that it is and means to society,” he said.
“Sichuan University acknowledges the principles of good academic practice and high ethical standards and they want to see innovative teaching that aims to educate students as critical and responsible members of society and provide them with advanced knowledge.”
Professor Pienaar has also been lecturing at a number of other Universities in China since 2014, including Beijing University and Jiangnan University in Wuxi.
