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
How the digital remote working revolution is transforming Australian homes. This project aims to investigate how the recent rapid rise in digital remote working for many Australians is transforming homes by evaluating its diverse impacts on work practices, households and wider communities. Through world-first qualitative research, the goal of this project is to generate new knowledge of the social changes taking place using cutting-edge geographical theories of homemaking, mobilities and labour. ....How the digital remote working revolution is transforming Australian homes. This project aims to investigate how the recent rapid rise in digital remote working for many Australians is transforming homes by evaluating its diverse impacts on work practices, households and wider communities. Through world-first qualitative research, the goal of this project is to generate new knowledge of the social changes taking place using cutting-edge geographical theories of homemaking, mobilities and labour. Expected outcomes of this project include enhancing Australia’s capacity in home and mobilities research. The project should provide significant benefits to a range of stakeholders by identifying opportunities for socially-just interventions by local, state and federal governments, industry, and the community.Read moreRead less
Articulating value in housing cooperatives. Australia has a persistent shortage of affordable, quality housing. Housing cooperatives are member-based organisations providing rental and owner-occupied homes to members. They are associated with benefits for member-residents, including improved housing, improved senses of belonging and community, and employment and education outcomes. However, evidence for those benefits has gaps, so this study aims to develop a framework for assessing housing coop ....Articulating value in housing cooperatives. Australia has a persistent shortage of affordable, quality housing. Housing cooperatives are member-based organisations providing rental and owner-occupied homes to members. They are associated with benefits for member-residents, including improved housing, improved senses of belonging and community, and employment and education outcomes. However, evidence for those benefits has gaps, so this study aims to develop a framework for assessing housing cooperative benefits and to develop a typology to identify the factors shaping those benefits. The project outcome will be an evidence base of what works in cooperative housing, which can benefit the country by providing a rationale for growth of and policy support for socially beneficial housing.Read moreRead less
The changing geographies of power, knowledge and access in Australia's financial services sector: a regional development perspective. This project investigates one of the most pressing issues in the development of regional Australia: whether the modern financial services sector acts to reinforce or remediate existing patterns of uneven development. The research focuses on two key issues: 1) how the restructuring of the banking sector has affected the availability of financial services and ventur ....The changing geographies of power, knowledge and access in Australia's financial services sector: a regional development perspective. This project investigates one of the most pressing issues in the development of regional Australia: whether the modern financial services sector acts to reinforce or remediate existing patterns of uneven development. The research focuses on two key issues: 1) how the restructuring of the banking sector has affected the availability of financial services and venture capital in rural and urban Australia; and 2) the relationship between the changing geography of financial services and financial institutions' increasing reliance upon instrumental knowledge about their customers. The research will produce a model of the role of modern financial services provision and market knowledge in regional development.Read moreRead less
Developing the compact city. This project aims to investigate the operation of the higher density multi-unit residential development sector in Australia’s largest city. The project intends to draw on theoretical approaches to understanding the political economy of urban processes and innovative fine-grain analytical techniques. Expected outcomes include a novel analysis of the developers behind the higher density transformation of urban Australia and their relationship to the land use planning s ....Developing the compact city. This project aims to investigate the operation of the higher density multi-unit residential development sector in Australia’s largest city. The project intends to draw on theoretical approaches to understanding the political economy of urban processes and innovative fine-grain analytical techniques. Expected outcomes include a novel analysis of the developers behind the higher density transformation of urban Australia and their relationship to the land use planning system that facilitates this process via value uplift. The knowledge generated is intended to benefit planning policy makers and inform wider public debates on contemporary urban change by elucidating the rationale behind the key actors’ currently driving housing supply.Read moreRead less
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
Geographies of Global Resistance. This project explores recent responses to globalisation, often termed resistance, at global, national and local scales. Institutional and non-institutional responses are explored through contrasting case studies chosen from: first, the organised labour movement in Australia; second, from new social movements involving highly publicised anti-globalisation protests in particular places; and third, other spontaneous internet-based forms of resistance known as 'cult ....Geographies of Global Resistance. This project explores recent responses to globalisation, often termed resistance, at global, national and local scales. Institutional and non-institutional responses are explored through contrasting case studies chosen from: first, the organised labour movement in Australia; second, from new social movements involving highly publicised anti-globalisation protests in particular places; and third, other spontaneous internet-based forms of resistance known as 'culture jamming'. The research will contribute to better understanding the nature of globalisation, relationships between global and local change and strategies of resistance. The research is significant in bringing together insights from new approaches in both economic and cultural geography.Read moreRead less
Enabling inter-agency data sharing to support the spatial analysis of social vulnerability in a transforming region. This project's resolution of constraints to government agency data sharing will enable modernisation of public sector information management, creating a secure environment for joined-up use of agency data and enabling major resource savings. It will produce more geographically sensitive indicators of social vulnerability, marking a major advance in its understanding and assessment ....Enabling inter-agency data sharing to support the spatial analysis of social vulnerability in a transforming region. This project's resolution of constraints to government agency data sharing will enable modernisation of public sector information management, creating a secure environment for joined-up use of agency data and enabling major resource savings. It will produce more geographically sensitive indicators of social vulnerability, marking a major advance in its understanding and assessment. The project will significantly broaden agency's capability for research and analysis. It will generate major social benefits nationally, enabling the development of research-based policy enhancements that better align human service delivery with community needs. Lastly, it will contribute significantly to the strengthening Australia's social and economic fabric.Read moreRead less
Building technologies and engagement processes for using spatialised data to enhance family and community outcomes in a region experiencing major change. The NSW government's Families First Initiative (FFI) seeks delivery of more effective services to families with children. FFI agencies need information about children's life circumstances, risk of disadvantage, and the effectiveness of intervention programs. The project uses innovative techniques and processes to develop practitioner-friendly, ....Building technologies and engagement processes for using spatialised data to enhance family and community outcomes in a region experiencing major change. The NSW government's Families First Initiative (FFI) seeks delivery of more effective services to families with children. FFI agencies need information about children's life circumstances, risk of disadvantage, and the effectiveness of intervention programs. The project uses innovative techniques and processes to develop practitioner-friendly, finely-scaled indicators. The collaborators bring professional skills in service delivery to the project. The University researchers bring cross-disciplinary expertise in statistical/spatial modelling and policy analysis. Outcomes include PhD training, inter-agency engagement skills, new indicator techniques, high-impact contributions to literatures on quantification and state theory, and the development of an ongoing socio-spatial modelling facility.Read moreRead less
Perceived Density, Social Interaction and Morale in Australian Rural Communities. The social viability of rural communities rests, to a greater or lesser degree, upon the density of the local settlement network, and residents' perceptions of it. This project will create a measure of perceived density (i.e. people's subjective interpretations of measured density) and will establish how it influences Australian rural residents' social interaction patterns and morale. The project will produce a con ....Perceived Density, Social Interaction and Morale in Australian Rural Communities. The social viability of rural communities rests, to a greater or lesser degree, upon the density of the local settlement network, and residents' perceptions of it. This project will create a measure of perceived density (i.e. people's subjective interpretations of measured density) and will establish how it influences Australian rural residents' social interaction patterns and morale. The project will produce a conceptually rigorous and concrete understanding of the density-related factors influencing rural community social viability and morale, and will aid rural communities in identifying and overcoming local social interaction constraints.Read moreRead less