A study of the Australian thoroughbred and racing industry and the construction of 'nature'. The thoroughbred breeding and racing industry contributes significantly to national export income, regional development and national identity in Australia. Studying the physical and discursive construction and use of 'nature' (including, soil, grass, water, reproduction and the necessity of the unpredictability of nature) in different phases of breeding and racing improves understandings of technology ad ....A study of the Australian thoroughbred and racing industry and the construction of 'nature'. The thoroughbred breeding and racing industry contributes significantly to national export income, regional development and national identity in Australia. Studying the physical and discursive construction and use of 'nature' (including, soil, grass, water, reproduction and the necessity of the unpredictability of nature) in different phases of breeding and racing improves understandings of technology adoption, human-animal relations, sport and nature. Research outcomes will improve our understanding of this traditionally resilient but now vulnerable industry, thereby enhancing its capacity to adapt to change and remain internationally competitive.Read moreRead less
Beyond dualisms in the conceptualisation and management of Australian landscapes and species. It is increasingly recognised that the major barriers to the urgent challenges of environmental sustainability are social, cultural and organisational rather than scientific. This project will help Australia imagine and implement environmental strategies that come to terms with the reality of a peopled landscape and thus better manage landscapes and species. It will place Australia at the forefront of i ....Beyond dualisms in the conceptualisation and management of Australian landscapes and species. It is increasingly recognised that the major barriers to the urgent challenges of environmental sustainability are social, cultural and organisational rather than scientific. This project will help Australia imagine and implement environmental strategies that come to terms with the reality of a peopled landscape and thus better manage landscapes and species. It will place Australia at the forefront of international intellectual debates about relationships between the human and non-human worlds, and contribute to our continued international leadership in biodiversity conservation and heritage management. It will foster linkages with Sweden and build a node of innovative interdisciplinary postgraduate research training.Read moreRead less
Mapping the Political Ecology of the Edible Birds’ Nests Trade in Indonesia. This study examines the origins and impacts of the rapidly emerging edible birds’ nests (EBN) trade for rural livelihoods and ecologies in Southeast Asia. A high-value Chinese delicacy, the EBN trade has surged across rural Indonesia and beyond. In partnership with the WWF and Tropenbos, our pioneering study investigates how rural producers negotiate the uneven social, economic and environmental influences of the EBN co ....Mapping the Political Ecology of the Edible Birds’ Nests Trade in Indonesia. This study examines the origins and impacts of the rapidly emerging edible birds’ nests (EBN) trade for rural livelihoods and ecologies in Southeast Asia. A high-value Chinese delicacy, the EBN trade has surged across rural Indonesia and beyond. In partnership with the WWF and Tropenbos, our pioneering study investigates how rural producers negotiate the uneven social, economic and environmental influences of the EBN commodity chain in the threatened Heart of Borneo, Indonesia, and the major urban trading centres of Jakarta, Singapore, and Hong Kong. The project offers novel insights into the trade’s sustainability across rural and urban regions of Asia and informs policy for poverty reduction and environmental management in the region.Read moreRead less
Yolngu women keening of songspirals: nourishing and sharing people-as-place. This project aims to extend a close collaborative relationship with Yolngu researchers to nourish and, where appropriate, share Indigenous and Country-led understandings of women’s keening of songspirals. The project’s unique spiral-based framework intends to extend ideas of songlines to generate new knowledge that centres Yolngu women’s conceptions of place and time. Intended outcomes are Indigenous and non-Indigenous ....Yolngu women keening of songspirals: nourishing and sharing people-as-place. This project aims to extend a close collaborative relationship with Yolngu researchers to nourish and, where appropriate, share Indigenous and Country-led understandings of women’s keening of songspirals. The project’s unique spiral-based framework intends to extend ideas of songlines to generate new knowledge that centres Yolngu women’s conceptions of place and time. Intended outcomes are Indigenous and non-Indigenous intergenerational and intercultural applied learnings. This project should provide the benefit of ensuring keening of songspirals is not lost, helping to fulfil songspirals' potential to enrich and awaken Country, and support deep, healthy relationships between people and place in the context of disruptive environmental change.Read moreRead less
Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL0992397
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,467,253.00
Summary
Cultural environmental research: the missing link in multidisciplinary approaches to sustainability. Despite widespread calls for cultural change to enable Australia to craft an environmentally sustainable future, the nation lacks systematic investment in cultural environmental research. This proposal will establish a critical mass of internationally competitive researchers in the cultural dimensions of environmental sustainability and human-environment interactions, including climate change. Th ....Cultural environmental research: the missing link in multidisciplinary approaches to sustainability. Despite widespread calls for cultural change to enable Australia to craft an environmentally sustainable future, the nation lacks systematic investment in cultural environmental research. This proposal will establish a critical mass of internationally competitive researchers in the cultural dimensions of environmental sustainability and human-environment interactions, including climate change. This will facilitate more effective multidisciplinary research across the natural science/social science divide and improve the relevance of environmental policies. Our ethnographic and related research methods will strengthen community capacity to respond to and shape the complex interactions of environmental and social change ahead.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE200100712
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$393,748.00
Summary
Governing transboundary small-scale fishing in the Asia-Pacific. This project aims to identify the drivers, character and effects of small-boat illegal fishing occurring internationally across maritime boundaries in Asia-Pacific. There is growing concern that this practice represents an acute security threat to countries in the region. This study will reveal the strategic governing responses of state and regional institutions as well as the motivating circumstances that push fishers to trespass. ....Governing transboundary small-scale fishing in the Asia-Pacific. This project aims to identify the drivers, character and effects of small-boat illegal fishing occurring internationally across maritime boundaries in Asia-Pacific. There is growing concern that this practice represents an acute security threat to countries in the region. This study will reveal the strategic governing responses of state and regional institutions as well as the motivating circumstances that push fishers to trespass. The research will offer vital new insights into the effectiveness of ongoing control measures, and the shaping of a governance regime that pivots on regional politics and cooperation. This knowledge will help inform research and policy frameworks, strengthening Australia’s capacity to secure its maritime domain.Read moreRead less
Enabling Indigenous and Country-led understandings of sovereignty. The project aims to transform understandings of sovereignty from a concept to a series of practices by which pluralistic authority is drawn from intimate human and non-human relationships. It will collaboratively facilitate and document ongoing relationships in which Indigenous peoples respond to the active agency of non-human elements. The project will support a series of on-Country workshops and co-author practical resources to ....Enabling Indigenous and Country-led understandings of sovereignty. The project aims to transform understandings of sovereignty from a concept to a series of practices by which pluralistic authority is drawn from intimate human and non-human relationships. It will collaboratively facilitate and document ongoing relationships in which Indigenous peoples respond to the active agency of non-human elements. The project will support a series of on-Country workshops and co-author practical resources to support community-led research. The anticipated goal is to mobilise Indigenous knowledges in Australia to nurture regenerative sovereignties - healing relationships between people and places - with significant implications for our collective response to social and environmental change.Read moreRead less
Foregrounding the suburban backyard: using hybrid spaces to develop new environmental theory for more effective management of human landscapes. Although human influences now pervade all Earth processes, environmental ideals of pristine past landscapes without people continue to dominate. The project addresses the challenge of managing environments for hybridity, change and human presence, rather than timeless purity. I will undertake the first in-depth ethnographic study of the suburban backya ....Foregrounding the suburban backyard: using hybrid spaces to develop new environmental theory for more effective management of human landscapes. Although human influences now pervade all Earth processes, environmental ideals of pristine past landscapes without people continue to dominate. The project addresses the challenge of managing environments for hybridity, change and human presence, rather than timeless purity. I will undertake the first in-depth ethnographic study of the suburban backyard, Australia's most hybrid ecosystem. I analyse how categories of environmental belonging - indigenous/introduced, wild/tame, hybrid/pure - are differentially applied to people, other species and landscapes, in policy and popular culture. This contributes to new theories of long term human-environment interactions and effective management of human landscapes. Outcomes will include books and museum exhibitions.Read moreRead less
Caring for thoroughbreds: addressing social, economic and welfare issues in international horse racing. Horse racing is an economically valuable industry but visible welfare issues are challenging its future. This study addresses perceptions and the economic worth of these issues internationally. Research findings about values, and alternatives to jump racing and whipping horses, will help change the conduct of horse racing around the world.
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE180100492
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$373,996.00
Summary
Geographies of transition in Australia’s auto repair and maintenance industry. This project aims to document structural change in the downstream auto industry and transitions in affected local workshops. The project design is informed by evolutionary and labour agency theories and employs comprehensive survey and ethnographic methods. The analysis will aim to identify new technical and competitive dynamics for local auto repair and maintenance firms, and examine changing skill requirements for w ....Geographies of transition in Australia’s auto repair and maintenance industry. This project aims to document structural change in the downstream auto industry and transitions in affected local workshops. The project design is informed by evolutionary and labour agency theories and employs comprehensive survey and ethnographic methods. The analysis will aim to identify new technical and competitive dynamics for local auto repair and maintenance firms, and examine changing skill requirements for workers. Such knowledge is crucial to protect jobs in repair and maintenance – the largest source of auto industry employment. Results will build new knowledge on industry transitions across geographical sites and scales.Read moreRead less