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Triple P International and the University of Queensland

The University of Queensland (UQ) is located in Australia and is ranked among the top one percent of universities worldwide. UQ is a member of Universitas 21 – a select international network of comprehensive, research-intensive universities committed to world-best quality and practice.

UQ is the owner of the copyright of the Triple P – Positive Parenting program® (Triple P), which has been developed over a number of decades by Professor Matthew Sanders and fellow researchers at the University's Parenting and Family Support Centre. In 2001, after many years attempting to disseminate Triple P, UQ's technology transfer arm, UniQuest, granted a worldwide licence (under strict quality assurance requirements) to Triple P International (TPI), a social enterprise created specifically for the purpose of disseminating Triple P.

TPI is a private company and its Managing Director is Mr Desmond McWilliam. UniQuest, UQ and its researchers have no shares in, or control of, TPI. Royalty payments from TPI's publishing and dissemination of Triple P are made to UniQuest, and are distributed to UQ and to contributory authors in accordance with the University's intellectual property rights policy. TPI engages the services of Professor Sanders to ensure the programme integrity is maintained.

The licence of Triple P to TPI has enabled the programme to be made available to millions of families around the world. TPI is responsible for conducting Triple P Provider Training Courses and to date has trained practitioners in more than 25 countries. TPI also publishes the range of Triple P resources used by parents and practitioners. TPI has devoted significant resources to creating materials to help destigmatise the concept of parenting support and to raise awareness of the benefits of an evidence-based parenting programme.

TPI's headquarters are in Brisbane, Australia. TPI has staff based in the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Chile and New Zealand. 

TPI’s Managing Director, Des McWilliam, has had a long involvement with Triple P. He and Triple P's founder, Professor Matt Sanders, initially devised a 13-part television series, Families, which was filmed over a six-month period in New Zealand. McWilliam's next venture with Triple P was to publish its unusual suite of resources, a commitment which had no appeal to mainstream publishers.

In December 2009, the Chancellor of The University of Queensland, in recognition of McWilliam's contribution to The University of Queensland, presented him with the award of Doctor of the University honoris causa bestowed by the Senate of The University of Queensland.

The citation said Mr McWilliam's relationship with Triple P created national and international media attention for the University and provided grant leveraging, both nationally and internationally, for ongoing research by the PFSC.