Locating the Commonweal: Community, Environment and Local Governance Regimes in Reform Era Indonesia. The Indonesian government is currently implementing decentralisation legislation to address increasing regional discontent. In the context of political and economic crisis, these institutional reforms are intended to bring about greater popular participation in the political process and in resource management. This research will study several intersecting dimensions of reform in the local domai ....Locating the Commonweal: Community, Environment and Local Governance Regimes in Reform Era Indonesia. The Indonesian government is currently implementing decentralisation legislation to address increasing regional discontent. In the context of political and economic crisis, these institutional reforms are intended to bring about greater popular participation in the political process and in resource management. This research will study several intersecting dimensions of reform in the local domain: popular participation in decentralised governance; resource access and management by local communities; and the implications of reform for local sustainability and equity. The research will produce a comparative analysis of emerging governance patterns in the Reform Era based on locally grounded case studies spanning the Indonesian archipelago.Read moreRead less
Asia-Pacific Cosmopolitanisms: Managing Diversity and Identity Politics in a Changing Region. Why can people of diverse cultural and other backgrounds sometimes devise ways of living together while, at other times, they can be drawn into racism and violence? Are there ways of coping with, managing - even celebrating - human social, cultural, biological and sexual diversity that do not lead to conflict and exclusion? Are we seeing new cosmopolitanisms emerging? This research will investigate thes ....Asia-Pacific Cosmopolitanisms: Managing Diversity and Identity Politics in a Changing Region. Why can people of diverse cultural and other backgrounds sometimes devise ways of living together while, at other times, they can be drawn into racism and violence? Are there ways of coping with, managing - even celebrating - human social, cultural, biological and sexual diversity that do not lead to conflict and exclusion? Are we seeing new cosmopolitanisms emerging? This research will investigate these questions by focusing on the Asia-Pacific region. The research will result in several publications (monographs, articles, etc.), a website/discussion forum, research database/resources facilities, a conference, and the consolidation of long-term collaborative links with Asian intellectuals.Read moreRead less
Social Capital, Natural Resources and Local Governance in Indonesia. Australia's relationship with Indonesia is critical to our political and environmental security. This proposed research addresses the need for more effective development assistance policy, and will broaden public understanding of Indonesia's urgent social and environmental issues. International collaboration among an experienced team of field researchers, working with government agencies and NGOs, will enhance the capacity of I ....Social Capital, Natural Resources and Local Governance in Indonesia. Australia's relationship with Indonesia is critical to our political and environmental security. This proposed research addresses the need for more effective development assistance policy, and will broaden public understanding of Indonesia's urgent social and environmental issues. International collaboration among an experienced team of field researchers, working with government agencies and NGOs, will enhance the capacity of Indonesian communities to achieve more sustainable and equitable outcomes, contributing to regional security. Social capital questions concerning local capacity building and public engagement in decision-making also have comparative importance for the role of civil society and NGOs in Australian public policy.Read moreRead less
Communities Across Borders: The Transnational Dynamics of Emerging and Stateless Refugee Groups in Australia. Dealing with the pressing issue of the refugee experience, this project investigates the transnational dynamics of four emerging and relatively 'invisible' refugee groups in Australia who are stateless minorities in their homelands. Through ethnographic fieldwork among the Assyrians, Kurds, Southern Sudanese and Oromo in Sydney and Melbourne, the project will present a comprehensive pict ....Communities Across Borders: The Transnational Dynamics of Emerging and Stateless Refugee Groups in Australia. Dealing with the pressing issue of the refugee experience, this project investigates the transnational dynamics of four emerging and relatively 'invisible' refugee groups in Australia who are stateless minorities in their homelands. Through ethnographic fieldwork among the Assyrians, Kurds, Southern Sudanese and Oromo in Sydney and Melbourne, the project will present a comprehensive picture of the impact of transnationalism upon the settlement and citizenship of stateless refugees in multicultural Australia. The project will broaden the debate on the transnational cultural processes which operate across borders and challenge the ability of democratic nation-states to sustain the belonging and participation of citizens.Read moreRead less
Doing Social Sustainability: the utopian imagination of youth on the margins. Sustainability is an issue of global urgency, and is recognised as a national research priority in Australia. However, the 'social' is often underestimated or subsumed within economic or environmental discourses. The project will add significantly to Australian and international knowledge about sustainability, marginalized youth, and social inclusion policies. It will develop new conceptual tools, foster public debate, ....Doing Social Sustainability: the utopian imagination of youth on the margins. Sustainability is an issue of global urgency, and is recognised as a national research priority in Australia. However, the 'social' is often underestimated or subsumed within economic or environmental discourses. The project will add significantly to Australian and international knowledge about sustainability, marginalized youth, and social inclusion policies. It will develop new conceptual tools, foster public debate, and offer young people new possibilities for vocational outcomes that complement their desired futures.Read moreRead less
Large screens and the transnational public sphere. With over 8 million annual visitors, Federation Square, Melbourne, is emblematic of the new public sphere emerging at the junction of physical space and media networks. Fed Square's large screen is integral to 70 large-scale cultural events hosted at the site each year attracting an average of 30,000 people. This project will establish a partnership between Fed Square, the Australia Council and Art Center Nabi in Seoul, pioneering the exchange o ....Large screens and the transnational public sphere. With over 8 million annual visitors, Federation Square, Melbourne, is emblematic of the new public sphere emerging at the junction of physical space and media networks. Fed Square's large screen is integral to 70 large-scale cultural events hosted at the site each year attracting an average of 30,000 people. This project will establish a partnership between Fed Square, the Australia Council and Art Center Nabi in Seoul, pioneering the exchange of technology and cultural content. The empirical research will generate fresh insights into public interactions with large screens, providing a prototype for future cross-cultural events and offering new theoretical perspectives on the use of public space.Read moreRead less
Education for a Tolerant and Multicultural Indonesia. The recent shift towards fundamentalist Islam and upsurge in religious and ethnic conflict in Indonesia are matters of great concern for Australia. This project will investigate how education can facilitate peaceful multiculturalism in Indonesia and explore the potential for the co-existence of Islamic and secular educational systems. This research will improve Australia's capacity to understand our region's 'languages, societies, politics an ....Education for a Tolerant and Multicultural Indonesia. The recent shift towards fundamentalist Islam and upsurge in religious and ethnic conflict in Indonesia are matters of great concern for Australia. This project will investigate how education can facilitate peaceful multiculturalism in Indonesia and explore the potential for the co-existence of Islamic and secular educational systems. This research will improve Australia's capacity to understand our region's 'languages, societies, politics and cultures' (National Research Priority 4). Australia has been a world leader in expertise on Indonesia; we need projects like this to train junior scholars and thus sustain Australia's international reputation for excellence in Indonesian Studies into the future. Read moreRead less
Economic and social rights of asylum seekers in Australia: Challenges for Community Associations. This project will investigate the contribution of a community association providing humanitarian assistance to newly-arrived refugees holding Temporary Protection Visas (TPV). The project will assess the capacity of non-government organizations (NGOs) in delivering basic social services and identifying areas of immediate concern. The anticipated outcomes of the project are: (a) the establishment of ....Economic and social rights of asylum seekers in Australia: Challenges for Community Associations. This project will investigate the contribution of a community association providing humanitarian assistance to newly-arrived refugees holding Temporary Protection Visas (TPV). The project will assess the capacity of non-government organizations (NGOs) in delivering basic social services and identifying areas of immediate concern. The anticipated outcomes of the project are: (a) the establishment of effective models of best practice in the delivery of social services by a NGO, (b) the potential for partnership between such an organization and the State in developing social policy, and (c) the contribution to theoretical examination of the role of civil society in the new Globalisation era.Read moreRead less
Sustaining Places: Public Space Design in a time of loss. Public space currently experiences various forms of loss: environmental, symbolic and spiritual. As it is an index of democratic health, this represents a diminished capacity to sustain ourselves politically and culturally. The project aims to reverse this decline through an innovative approach to public space design. It redefines public space to include ?soft-edge? environments. It identifies ephemeral and performative heritages that len ....Sustaining Places: Public Space Design in a time of loss. Public space currently experiences various forms of loss: environmental, symbolic and spiritual. As it is an index of democratic health, this represents a diminished capacity to sustain ourselves politically and culturally. The project aims to reverse this decline through an innovative approach to public space design. It redefines public space to include ?soft-edge? environments. It identifies ephemeral and performative heritages that lend places their sustaining character. Through global case studies, and an in-depth account of current Australian public space commissioning processes, it identifies obstacles to the creation of sustaining places, and defines an integrated theory and practice to produce them.
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Reading the Social Future of the Australian Red Cross Blood Service. This project investigates how and if the Australian Red Cross Blood Service (ARCBS) is building social capital. It does this by interrogating existing practices and operations at the ARCBS and by surveying donors and non-donors. This project aims to develop a Deleuzian critique of the notion of social capital.