Sea-level rise and everyday lives in small island states. This project aims to advance understanding of the impacts of sea-level rise and associated policy responses on the everyday lives of island communities. Focusing on village relocation in Fiji and fortification and land reclamation in the Maldives, the project will analyse people's changing everyday experiences and practices. The project seeks to enable international and interdisciplinary collaborations, and to produce new knowledge on the ....Sea-level rise and everyday lives in small island states. This project aims to advance understanding of the impacts of sea-level rise and associated policy responses on the everyday lives of island communities. Focusing on village relocation in Fiji and fortification and land reclamation in the Maldives, the project will analyse people's changing everyday experiences and practices. The project seeks to enable international and interdisciplinary collaborations, and to produce new knowledge on the opportunities and challenges of diverse policy responses to sea-level rise. The project’s findings will be beneficial for countries facing the threat of sea-level rise, as well as national governments and international agencies that support and fund climate adaptation.Read moreRead less
Assessing the Impact of Public Finances on the PNG-Australia Borderland. The project aims to address a vexed public policy problem of how to better manage the flow of public finances and people across our international borders. Torres Strait Islanders and Papua New Guinea (PNG) nationals living in the PNG–Australia borderland have relatively unrestricted access across the border for traditional activities, under the legal framework of the Torres Strait Treaty. The interplay of public finance exp ....Assessing the Impact of Public Finances on the PNG-Australia Borderland. The project aims to address a vexed public policy problem of how to better manage the flow of public finances and people across our international borders. Torres Strait Islanders and Papua New Guinea (PNG) nationals living in the PNG–Australia borderland have relatively unrestricted access across the border for traditional activities, under the legal framework of the Torres Strait Treaty. The interplay of public finance expenditure emanating from Australia strongly dominates the borderland economy, influencing cross-border mobility and attendant public health and security risks from disease transmission, quarantine and transnational crime. By problematising current policy framings and analysing the asymmetric socio-economic context of the region relative to other borderlands internationally, the project aims to propose alternative finance modalities that improve effectiveness across both sides of the border.Read moreRead less
Indigenous solutions to global challenges in the Pacific Islands. The global COVID 19 pandemic represents a unique opportunity to understand the nature and potential of Indigenous sustainable development in Pacific Island communities, where Indigenous practices have been central in responses to closed borders and industry downturns. This project proposes to analyse the efficacy and cultural value of new, pandemic-era Indigenous sustainable development initiatives in sustaining island communities ....Indigenous solutions to global challenges in the Pacific Islands. The global COVID 19 pandemic represents a unique opportunity to understand the nature and potential of Indigenous sustainable development in Pacific Island communities, where Indigenous practices have been central in responses to closed borders and industry downturns. This project proposes to analyse the efficacy and cultural value of new, pandemic-era Indigenous sustainable development initiatives in sustaining island communities. It aims to culminate in a novel geographic theory of Indigenous sustainable development, and to identify new opportunities to support the expansion of Indigenous sustainable development. This should better enable the Pacific Islands region to respond to climate change, pandemics and other global challenges.Read moreRead less
From Productivism to Multifunctionality? Agri-environmental Governance in Australia and the United Kingdom. This project is concerned with the policy debate surrounding the governance of farming and natural resource management. It addresses the question of whether Australia can combine a liberalised economy with a shift from highly intensive, 'productivist' agriculture towards more sustainable land management and viable rural communities. The research will contribute to an understanding of the c ....From Productivism to Multifunctionality? Agri-environmental Governance in Australia and the United Kingdom. This project is concerned with the policy debate surrounding the governance of farming and natural resource management. It addresses the question of whether Australia can combine a liberalised economy with a shift from highly intensive, 'productivist' agriculture towards more sustainable land management and viable rural communities. The research will contribute to an understanding of the concept of 'multifunctionality', which has policy implications for agriculture, trade and international relations.Read moreRead less
Regulation and Governance of Agricultural Biotechnology: GMOs in Australia and the United Kingdom. Agricultural biotechnology has won Australian government support for its economic development potential but has associated ethical, consumer and environmental risks. The proposed research will contribute to the important task of successfully negotiating agricultural biotechnology futures through a comprehensive analysis of policy and regulatory structures, and stakeholder perceptions of impacts on ....Regulation and Governance of Agricultural Biotechnology: GMOs in Australia and the United Kingdom. Agricultural biotechnology has won Australian government support for its economic development potential but has associated ethical, consumer and environmental risks. The proposed research will contribute to the important task of successfully negotiating agricultural biotechnology futures through a comprehensive analysis of policy and regulatory structures, and stakeholder perceptions of impacts on environmental and economic sustainability. A comparison with the UK provides a valuable point of reference in evaluating policy and regulatory responses. Since the UK is a significant market for Australian produce, the outlook of UK consumers and the regulatory response of the government are highly relevant to Australian policy decisions.Read moreRead less
Social implications of market-based policy instruments for carbon and water. This project aims to analyse socio-cultural benefits and risks in the two significant environmental markets of carbon and water across three sites in Australia and Timor-Leste. Research into market-based policies to manage significant environmental issues is yet to fully consider socio-cultural dimensions. This project intends to document local community producers, distant investor and consumer perspectives, and incorpo ....Social implications of market-based policy instruments for carbon and water. This project aims to analyse socio-cultural benefits and risks in the two significant environmental markets of carbon and water across three sites in Australia and Timor-Leste. Research into market-based policies to manage significant environmental issues is yet to fully consider socio-cultural dimensions. This project intends to document local community producers, distant investor and consumer perspectives, and incorporate these perspectives into methods for improving the operation and impact of these expanding markets. By undertaking the first systematic comparison across resources and sites, the project expects to fill a key gap in environmental scholarship and contribute to international strategies to improve social and environmental outcomes in market-based environmental policy.Read moreRead less
Transnational seafood commodity chains and the coastal poor in the maritime frontiers of the Asia-Pacific. This research aims to understand the social mechanisms by which access to the benefits of transnational seafood commodity chains in the Asia-Pacific are gained, maintained and controlled. This project will use a conceptual framework that focuses on key social relations of gender, class and ethnicity, and the key societal changes of land-use change, migration and conservation. This project o ....Transnational seafood commodity chains and the coastal poor in the maritime frontiers of the Asia-Pacific. This research aims to understand the social mechanisms by which access to the benefits of transnational seafood commodity chains in the Asia-Pacific are gained, maintained and controlled. This project will use a conceptual framework that focuses on key social relations of gender, class and ethnicity, and the key societal changes of land-use change, migration and conservation. This project offers a novel research framework for a pressing cluster of economic, environmental and social challenges in the Asia-Pacific, and will inform research and policy for poverty reduction, economic development, environmental management and food security. Read moreRead less
Barriers and Facilitators of Neighbourhood Networks and Cohesion. Neighbourhoods are critical contexts for health, safety and well-being. In the face of significant urban growth, understanding and enhancing neighbourhood networks and cohesion are high priorities in Australia and internationally. Drawing on longitudinal survey data from 148 Brisbane suburbs combined with census and spatial data, this project will be the first to examine how a neighbourhood's physical and socio-structural context ....Barriers and Facilitators of Neighbourhood Networks and Cohesion. Neighbourhoods are critical contexts for health, safety and well-being. In the face of significant urban growth, understanding and enhancing neighbourhood networks and cohesion are high priorities in Australia and internationally. Drawing on longitudinal survey data from 148 Brisbane suburbs combined with census and spatial data, this project will be the first to examine how a neighbourhood's physical and socio-structural context influences neighbourhood networks and cohesion over time and across the landscape of an entire city. The project aims to advance scientific understanding of neighbourhood networks and cohesion, provide unique insights into its underpinning drivers, and inform urban policy.Read moreRead less
Identifying and testing the decision-making factors related to 'smart industries' choice of location. Australia is moving towards becoming the smart country. As a result industry restructuring, realignment and relocation become central concerns. This research is directed towards industry relocation with a focus on the newly emerging 'smart industries' with a test case examination of the Brisbane City Council economic region. The research will investigate, identify and test the quantitative an ....Identifying and testing the decision-making factors related to 'smart industries' choice of location. Australia is moving towards becoming the smart country. As a result industry restructuring, realignment and relocation become central concerns. This research is directed towards industry relocation with a focus on the newly emerging 'smart industries' with a test case examination of the Brisbane City Council economic region. The research will investigate, identify and test the quantitative and qualitative criteria used by 'smart industry' companies in their location decision making. Outcomes will include a Masters of Philosophy thesis, a tested and validated test instrument for industry practitioners, three seminars, a conference paper and a number of international journal articles.Read moreRead less
In it to win it: an interdisciplinary investigation of sports betting. This project aims to better understand how young adults use, communicate about and experience mobile phone sports betting applications. Gambling generates significant health and social harms in Australia. Yet there is little research on the use of betting apps, even though sports betting is the fastest growing segment of the gambling market. This project intends to examine how use of sports betting apps is becoming establishe ....In it to win it: an interdisciplinary investigation of sports betting. This project aims to better understand how young adults use, communicate about and experience mobile phone sports betting applications. Gambling generates significant health and social harms in Australia. Yet there is little research on the use of betting apps, even though sports betting is the fastest growing segment of the gambling market. This project intends to examine how use of sports betting apps is becoming established as everyday social practice normalising problem gambling. The findings will enhance understanding of the social contexts of sports betting, and inform gambling policy and programs leading to better health and social outcomes.Read moreRead less