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
Social geographies of youth action in India. This project aims to examine the nature and effectiveness of pre-figurative action among youth in north India. Over the past decade, social movements have risen in which young people try to prefigure their desired better society, while “being the change you want to see in the world” to try to alter social life is common. This project will examine how young people’s efforts to “be the change” in education, health, infrastructure and work might be chang ....Social geographies of youth action in India. This project aims to examine the nature and effectiveness of pre-figurative action among youth in north India. Over the past decade, social movements have risen in which young people try to prefigure their desired better society, while “being the change you want to see in the world” to try to alter social life is common. This project will examine how young people’s efforts to “be the change” in education, health, infrastructure and work might be changing the social landscape. It expects to contribute to scholarly and public understanding of youth and development in Australia and globally.Read moreRead less
Social, economic and health vulnerabilities in Indonesia. This project aims to study and provide ways to overcome vulnerability in Indonesia. Half the Indonesian population is still clustered around the poverty line, contributing to their vulnerability. This project will identify vulnerable groups and why they are vulnerable. Using a common framework of the life course in eight Indonesian field sites, this project will investigate whether social networks and welfare programs reduce vulnerability ....Social, economic and health vulnerabilities in Indonesia. This project aims to study and provide ways to overcome vulnerability in Indonesia. Half the Indonesian population is still clustered around the poverty line, contributing to their vulnerability. This project will identify vulnerable groups and why they are vulnerable. Using a common framework of the life course in eight Indonesian field sites, this project will investigate whether social networks and welfare programs reduce vulnerability, and pinpoint strategies for reducing vulnerabilities in the future. The project expects to show how vulnerable citizens in Indonesia can be made more secure, helping to build a more stable and prosperous region.Read moreRead less
The future of the Pacific: youth leadership and civic engagement. This project aims to investigate how youth in the Pacific develop and demonstrate the forms of leadership and civic engagement needed for positive outcomes for their countries. New knowledge is expected to be generated about what influences Pacific youth to engage with the profound challenges facing their region, through Pacific-wide research and three case studies using participatory and collaborative methodologies. Expected outc ....The future of the Pacific: youth leadership and civic engagement. This project aims to investigate how youth in the Pacific develop and demonstrate the forms of leadership and civic engagement needed for positive outcomes for their countries. New knowledge is expected to be generated about what influences Pacific youth to engage with the profound challenges facing their region, through Pacific-wide research and three case studies using participatory and collaborative methodologies. Expected outcomes include interdisciplinary contributions to Pacific and youth studies and applied outputs. This should provide significant benefits including enhanced capacity for governments, development agencies and donors to develop policy and programming measures to nurture the future leadership of the Pacific region. Read moreRead less
Food system resilience in Indonesia: A moral economy approach. This project aims to understand and enhance food security in Indonesia and beyond. It examines culture-specific moral concepts, embedded in food systems and daily practices, that affect food security. For 60 years, the dominant approach to food security has been to boost supply by industrialising agriculture and liberalising trade, but this market-based approach has failed. One billion people are food insecure. The project will condu ....Food system resilience in Indonesia: A moral economy approach. This project aims to understand and enhance food security in Indonesia and beyond. It examines culture-specific moral concepts, embedded in food systems and daily practices, that affect food security. For 60 years, the dominant approach to food security has been to boost supply by industrialising agriculture and liberalising trade, but this market-based approach has failed. One billion people are food insecure. The project will conduct case studies of three food systems to examine how moral economies ameliorate market failures locally and how different rural development programs disrupt or enhance their capacity to do so. The data produced could inform food security-friendly development of trade policies and provide the evidence base for UN efforts toward a global food solidarity pact.Read moreRead less
Authoritarian populism and livelihood change in the Philippines. This research aims to explore the impacts of authoritarian populism on development, governance, and livelihood change in the Philippines. The project will generate new knowledge on the consequences of the interrelated erosion of environmental protections, acceleration of development projects, and human rights violations for poor people in Southeast Asia. Expected outcomes of the project include new empirical insights into how poor, ....Authoritarian populism and livelihood change in the Philippines. This research aims to explore the impacts of authoritarian populism on development, governance, and livelihood change in the Philippines. The project will generate new knowledge on the consequences of the interrelated erosion of environmental protections, acceleration of development projects, and human rights violations for poor people in Southeast Asia. Expected outcomes of the project include new empirical insights into how poor, resource-reliant households respond to converging environmental and political pressures across rural and urban areas in the Philippines. Project outcomes will provide significant benefits for Australian responses to declining social and environmental safeguards occurring in the region.Read moreRead less
Navigating the Carceral Interface. This project acknowledges the overrepresentation of young Indigenous people in child protection and incarceration rates. It aims to address the gap in knowledge of how young Indigenous people experience the carceral system and document how Indigenous community organisations support and provide vital contributions to building safer more supportive communities, which is one of the targets of the Closing the Gap policy framework. This project will develop a theore ....Navigating the Carceral Interface. This project acknowledges the overrepresentation of young Indigenous people in child protection and incarceration rates. It aims to address the gap in knowledge of how young Indigenous people experience the carceral system and document how Indigenous community organisations support and provide vital contributions to building safer more supportive communities, which is one of the targets of the Closing the Gap policy framework. This project will develop a theoretical model of a trauma- and culturally-informed response to improving experiences of young Indigenous people between the ages of 10–24 who come into contact with the carceral system, transferring the knowledge gained from the research back to Indigenous communities.Read moreRead less
Australia and Brazil in the Asian Century. This project aims to update a theory of trust that accounts for the growing international influence of the Chinese state. As the mining boom subsides, Australia and Brazil must expand their agriculture exports, especially to China, their leading trade partner. The Chinese government has proposed large-scale investments in both countries’ agriculture sectors, but allegations of tax evasion, hidden subsidies and neo-colonialism have fuelled distrust of Ch ....Australia and Brazil in the Asian Century. This project aims to update a theory of trust that accounts for the growing international influence of the Chinese state. As the mining boom subsides, Australia and Brazil must expand their agriculture exports, especially to China, their leading trade partner. The Chinese government has proposed large-scale investments in both countries’ agriculture sectors, but allegations of tax evasion, hidden subsidies and neo-colonialism have fuelled distrust of Chinese investors. This project hypothesises that these tensions stem from diverging approaches to building trust. This could inform academic and policy publications and lead to more informed and productive relations with Chinese partners.Read moreRead less
Women, politics and democracy: political labour in India and Indonesia . This project aims to advance understandings of Asia's two largest democracies through an examination of the pathways and dead-ends to political power for women in India and Indonesia. Research of women's everyday political labour will examine their contributions to generating different forms of power, and their adverse incorporation into political structures. The comparative ethnographic approach will lead to the developme ....Women, politics and democracy: political labour in India and Indonesia . This project aims to advance understandings of Asia's two largest democracies through an examination of the pathways and dead-ends to political power for women in India and Indonesia. Research of women's everyday political labour will examine their contributions to generating different forms of power, and their adverse incorporation into political structures. The comparative ethnographic approach will lead to the development of analytical and conceptual tools to understand democracy across different socio-historical contexts. The project aims to produce policy and practice relevant knowledge to increase the meaningful participation of women in politics in India and Indonesia, with comparative lessons for other countries Read moreRead less
Liberalism, Youth, and the Practice of Politics in India. This project investigates the role of youth in India in challenging or defending notions of equality and freedom. The project will generate new knowledge on liberalism, youth, and political practice using an innovative approach to data collection termed project ethnography and deploying interdisciplinary methods. Expected outcomes of the project include enhanced capacity in Indian studies in Australia, new interdisciplinary collaborations ....Liberalism, Youth, and the Practice of Politics in India. This project investigates the role of youth in India in challenging or defending notions of equality and freedom. The project will generate new knowledge on liberalism, youth, and political practice using an innovative approach to data collection termed project ethnography and deploying interdisciplinary methods. Expected outcomes of the project include enhanced capacity in Indian studies in Australia, new interdisciplinary collaborations around the topic of youth agency, the development of theory related to liberalism and youth, and a refined set of methods applicable to youth research. Benefits would include greater India literacy in Australia, better knowledge of youth action globally, and an enhanced knowledge base for policymakers.Read moreRead less