Trans/national activism: Organizing for Domestic Worker Rights in Southeast Asia. This project will contribute to the identified national priority, Safeguarding Australia, by providing a better understanding of the issues surrounding labour migration, including the capacity of NGOs and state governments to address the needs and rights of labour migrants in Southeast Asia. By expanding our understanding of the possibilities for democratisation within the region and contributing to theoretical dev ....Trans/national activism: Organizing for Domestic Worker Rights in Southeast Asia. This project will contribute to the identified national priority, Safeguarding Australia, by providing a better understanding of the issues surrounding labour migration, including the capacity of NGOs and state governments to address the needs and rights of labour migrants in Southeast Asia. By expanding our understanding of the possibilities for democratisation within the region and contributing to theoretical developments on the relationship between state and civil society, this research will also contribute to the national interest in influencing institutional reform and democratic transition in Asia. Read moreRead less
Revitalisation Movements in Contemporary Indonesia: Nativist Reworkings of Custom and Religion in Reaction to Decentralisation, Islamisation and Globalisation. Australia needs to understand the ethno-cultural diversity of its neighbour Indonesia to appreciate the wider pluralist context in which political Islam, including the terrorist fringe (e.g. JI), operates. Understanding of emergent social movements among Indonesian minorities highlights the constraints upon political Islam and divergent p ....Revitalisation Movements in Contemporary Indonesia: Nativist Reworkings of Custom and Religion in Reaction to Decentralisation, Islamisation and Globalisation. Australia needs to understand the ethno-cultural diversity of its neighbour Indonesia to appreciate the wider pluralist context in which political Islam, including the terrorist fringe (e.g. JI), operates. Understanding of emergent social movements among Indonesian minorities highlights the constraints upon political Islam and divergent pressures upon Indonesian national integrity, crucial issues for formulating foreign policy. It also provides comparative understanding of Indonesian movements parallel to those harnessing Indigenous and migrant aspirations in Australia, which is central to domestic policies insuring minority rights in a multiculturalist framework.Read moreRead less
Maid in China: Gendered Mobilities, Internal Migration, and the Translocal Imagination. Internal migration always restructures the spatial imagination, and variably across different social groups. In China, gender, class and power relations are important determinants of both mobility and concepts of place. Studying the phenomenon of the migrant baomu (the domestic maid), this project hypothsises that the emerging translocal practices of rural-urban migrants have significantly reworked the spatia ....Maid in China: Gendered Mobilities, Internal Migration, and the Translocal Imagination. Internal migration always restructures the spatial imagination, and variably across different social groups. In China, gender, class and power relations are important determinants of both mobility and concepts of place. Studying the phenomenon of the migrant baomu (the domestic maid), this project hypothsises that the emerging translocal practices of rural-urban migrants have significantly reworked the spatial imagination of the Chinese people. This project will lead to a new conceptualisation of place and space, with the flow of people and the flow of media images brought into productive interface. It will also generate important cross-cultural perspectives on women, work and migration. Research findings will be communicated in a book, Maid in China.Read moreRead less
Contested Landscapes and Divided Communities. The Struggle for Place and Belonging in Papua New Guinea. PNG, as Australia's nearest neighbour and major recipient of Australian foreign aid, is facing major challenges including a weakening state capacity to govern, a breakdown in civil society and escalating law and order problems. These processes, which led to civil conflict in Fiji and Solomon Islands, for example, remain largely misunderstood. Nevertheless, such events have major implications f ....Contested Landscapes and Divided Communities. The Struggle for Place and Belonging in Papua New Guinea. PNG, as Australia's nearest neighbour and major recipient of Australian foreign aid, is facing major challenges including a weakening state capacity to govern, a breakdown in civil society and escalating law and order problems. These processes, which led to civil conflict in Fiji and Solomon Islands, for example, remain largely misunderstood. Nevertheless, such events have major implications for our region's political and economic security. By generating a greater understanding of the contexts and factors contributing to these tensions the project will contribute to better informed policy making by the Australian government, especially in the area of international assistance.Read moreRead less
Christianity, conflict, and culture: an anthropological investigation of the political role of churches in Solomon Islands. This project contributes to a better understanding of one of Australia's closest neighbours, Solomon Islands. This nation, the site of political turmoil in recent years, is now the focus of an Australian-led Regional Assistance Mission. Many scholars and policy makers have commented on the importance of Christian organizations during the crisis in Solomon Islands and the ne ....Christianity, conflict, and culture: an anthropological investigation of the political role of churches in Solomon Islands. This project contributes to a better understanding of one of Australia's closest neighbours, Solomon Islands. This nation, the site of political turmoil in recent years, is now the focus of an Australian-led Regional Assistance Mission. Many scholars and policy makers have commented on the importance of Christian organizations during the crisis in Solomon Islands and the need to incorporate them in current attempts to restore stability and prosperity. However, most discussions are not informed by an understanding indigenous Christian belief and practice, a lacuna that this project aims to fill by providing an ethnographic investigation of how church-linked groups engage with secular national and international organizations. Read moreRead less
Ambivalent Adolescents in Indonesia. Indonesia's stability and prosperity are matters of great significance for Australia. Adolescents have spearheaded political and social transformations in Indonesia, but face continuing economic and social difficulties. Our project will provide Australia with knowledge about Indonesian youth culture, Islam among youth and adolescent reproductive health, enhancing understanding of social change in Indonesia and thereby contributing to Australian security in th ....Ambivalent Adolescents in Indonesia. Indonesia's stability and prosperity are matters of great significance for Australia. Adolescents have spearheaded political and social transformations in Indonesia, but face continuing economic and social difficulties. Our project will provide Australia with knowledge about Indonesian youth culture, Islam among youth and adolescent reproductive health, enhancing understanding of social change in Indonesia and thereby contributing to Australian security in the region. Australia has been a world leader in expertise on Indonesia, but this expertise is dwindling. Our project puts together junior and established scholars, contributing to the sustainability of Australia's pre-eminent research position in Indonesian studies.Read moreRead less
Junction Zones: Practices of Coexistence in Australasia and the Pacific. "Junction Zones" addresses three key national concerns post-2001: regional relations, border protection and security. As Australia faces an increasingly complex geopolitical environment, new interpretive and policy directions are needed to provide more nuanced analyses of the region, taking sociocultural as well as political and economic factors into account and engaging multiple disciplinary areas. The project contributes ....Junction Zones: Practices of Coexistence in Australasia and the Pacific. "Junction Zones" addresses three key national concerns post-2001: regional relations, border protection and security. As Australia faces an increasingly complex geopolitical environment, new interpretive and policy directions are needed to provide more nuanced analyses of the region, taking sociocultural as well as political and economic factors into account and engaging multiple disciplinary areas. The project contributes to these ends by considering alternative understandings of place, conflict and displacement; examining how differences are negotiated; and identifying emergent political relations, social identities and cultural forms. It proposes fresh conceptual and analytical tools for understanding and responding to the region.Read moreRead less