The Australian National University has ruled out selling any parts of its priceless collection of art as it grapples with the financial crisis caused by the coronavirus.
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The university owns 2400 works, including a series of paintings by Sir Sidney Nolan which would likely fetch millions at auction.
The ANU describes its collection of paintings, sculptures and prints as "art of demonstrable excellence and significance".
The decision not to sell came in a document sent to staff outlining the university's response to suggestions as to where savings could be found.
In the document, the university said: "When ANU accepts significant gifts of property and art, the university takes on the role of trustee and custodian, safeguarding these gifts for the benefit of present and future generations.
"Often these gifts come with terms that bind the University to maintain the property, and not to sell it."
The university has also ruled out selling off property like its idyllic Kioloa campus on the South Coast, which it described as "nestled among the spotted gum forests of Murramarang National Park and the pristine beaches of southern NSW".
"Our campus is a great place to learn, teach, write and conduct research in a relaxed yet energizing environment away from busy campus life," it continued.
The university said that this land was donated on the condition that it couldn't be sold.
The ANU is finalising plans to deal with the $225 million financial hit from the pandemic. Vice-chancellor Brian Schmidt has said that it would earn $150 million less than expected and spend $75 million more than planned as a result of the health crisis.
It has just ended a period of wide consultation and published its initial response but a more detailed, exact plan is to be unveiled next week.
The federal budget this week allocated $1 billion to research across the country.
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The ANU will benefit from that, but its leaders don't think the extra federal money will address the long-term problem caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the collapse in the number of students coming from abroad.
Its financial position is much stronger than that of other universities (like the University of Canberra) because it gets national funding, but job losses remain a probability. It had been planning to cut 215 posts on top of the 250 staff who took voluntary redundancies.
The union says that the cuts are unnecessary because the ANU has a surplus of $250 million.
"We don't think they need to be as vicious as they are being," Dr Cathy Day of the National Tertiary Education Union ACT branch said.
The union also thinks decisions have already been made, despite the ANU's claim to be consulting.
"We want them to pause and take a deep breath and genuinely consult," Dr Day said.
The university said the consultation had been extensive and was ongoing.
"We consult with them frequently," a spokesman said.
"This is about making sure that the only national university comes out of this crisis and continues to fulfill its mission for decades to come."
Steve Evans
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
