Farmers of the Future: the Challenges of Feminised Agriculture in India. Neoliberal economic policies are fundamentally transforming the social landscapes of rural India, causing a deep agrarian crisis. The agrarian changes accentuate the unequal consequences for poor women and men in relation to: production (labour, tenure); livelihood and food security; access to and ownership of assets such as land and water and access to agricultural innovations and institutions. This multiscalar project inv ....Farmers of the Future: the Challenges of Feminised Agriculture in India. Neoliberal economic policies are fundamentally transforming the social landscapes of rural India, causing a deep agrarian crisis. The agrarian changes accentuate the unequal consequences for poor women and men in relation to: production (labour, tenure); livelihood and food security; access to and ownership of assets such as land and water and access to agricultural innovations and institutions. This multiscalar project investigates the causes and consequences of feminisation of agriculture in India’s transitioning economy in order to understand how gender roles and relations are being re-shaped in communities and households in diverse socioeconomic and cultural contexts and agro-ecological areas.Read moreRead less
The Weight of Modernity: Mitigating Obesity. Health scientists have warned about the implications to the nation's health if the rise in obesity continues as is predicted and the National Obesity Taskforce puts the cost of obesity at $1.3 billion per year. The Taskforce recognises the need to "address the broader social and environmental determinants of poor nutrition and sedentary lifestyles". By analysing the multiple social trends contributing to the rise of obesity and another major disease o ....The Weight of Modernity: Mitigating Obesity. Health scientists have warned about the implications to the nation's health if the rise in obesity continues as is predicted and the National Obesity Taskforce puts the cost of obesity at $1.3 billion per year. The Taskforce recognises the need to "address the broader social and environmental determinants of poor nutrition and sedentary lifestyles". By analysing the multiple social trends contributing to the rise of obesity and another major disease of the twentieth century (CHD), we will highlight the barriers and opportunities that must be acknowledged in order to mitigate obesity, particularly in disadvantaged populations.Read moreRead less
Changing approaches to gender and development in rural China. Harmonious and cooperative relations with China are crucial to Australia's economic and cultural development and to security in the region. By contributing to Australian understanding of Chinese society, this project will enhance such relations. Knowledge gained through this project will also enhance Australian development projects in China, and more generally, contribute to development projects focusing on gender and development in A ....Changing approaches to gender and development in rural China. Harmonious and cooperative relations with China are crucial to Australia's economic and cultural development and to security in the region. By contributing to Australian understanding of Chinese society, this project will enhance such relations. Knowledge gained through this project will also enhance Australian development projects in China, and more generally, contribute to development projects focusing on gender and development in Asia and elsewhere. In addition, the contributions of the project to research and postgraduate training in Chinese studies, gender studies and development studies will benefit Australia by raising the international profile of Australian institutions within these disciplines.Read moreRead less
The Impact of the Mobile Phone on Work/Life Balance. The telecommuncations industry exemplifies the frontier technologies that are at the heart of Australia's successful knowledge economy. Mobile phones are developing innovative capacities far ahead of consumer needs and requirments. For example, third generation technologies are currently seeking to find the 'killer application' that will provide them with a mass market. A profound understanding of the social dimensions of existing mobile telec ....The Impact of the Mobile Phone on Work/Life Balance. The telecommuncations industry exemplifies the frontier technologies that are at the heart of Australia's successful knowledge economy. Mobile phones are developing innovative capacities far ahead of consumer needs and requirments. For example, third generation technologies are currently seeking to find the 'killer application' that will provide them with a mass market. A profound understanding of the social dimensions of existing mobile telecommunications will provide insights for the development of new technologies and new services. It will provide the industry with a competitive advantage in a fast developing sector.Read moreRead less
The sexual cultures of Thai men; implications for Australia's international HIV/AIDS strategy. This project contributes to safeguarding Australia's national interests by supporting the implementation of AusAID's international HIV/AIDS strategy laid out in the policy document 'Meeting the Challenge: Australia's International HIV/AIDS Strategy' (2004). This project directly addresses research priorities identified in the analytical report for the White Paper on Australia's AID program, 'HIV/AIDS i ....The sexual cultures of Thai men; implications for Australia's international HIV/AIDS strategy. This project contributes to safeguarding Australia's national interests by supporting the implementation of AusAID's international HIV/AIDS strategy laid out in the policy document 'Meeting the Challenge: Australia's International HIV/AIDS Strategy' (2004). This project directly addresses research priorities identified in the analytical report for the White Paper on Australia's AID program, 'HIV/AIDS in the Asia Pacific Region' (AusAID 2005): (1) the cultural, economic, and political dynamics driving the HIV epidemic in Asia; (2) the nexus between HIV/AIDS, economic activity, and development; and (3) the Asian experience of feminisation and gender impacts as factors in the epidemic HIV in the region.Read moreRead less
Raising and Solving New Questions in China's Late-Imperial Demographic History, and their Economic and Environmental Implications. Examining China's premodern demographic history shows that age-specific rates of births and deaths are a crucial element usually missing in reconstructing the local histories needed to refine nationwide generalizations. They also raise unanticipated questions, relating for example to diet, stress, and disease . The extensive data on ?virtuous women? in local gazettee ....Raising and Solving New Questions in China's Late-Imperial Demographic History, and their Economic and Environmental Implications. Examining China's premodern demographic history shows that age-specific rates of births and deaths are a crucial element usually missing in reconstructing the local histories needed to refine nationwide generalizations. They also raise unanticipated questions, relating for example to diet, stress, and disease . The extensive data on ?virtuous women? in local gazetteers, never previously utilized, show wide local variations in expectancy of life. The project will determine parts of this spatial pattern, and that of fertility where information is systematic enough. These findings will be interpreted by integrating them with the local histories of women's experiences. Read moreRead less
Judith Anderson 1897-1992: Voice and Emotion in the Making of an International Star. Australian-born Dame Judith Anderson was considered one of the greatest actors of the twentieth century. Renowned for her thrilling voice and portrayal of deep emotion and illicit sexuality and power, she influenced how women looked, spoke, and felt from the early 1920s through her roles on Broadway and in Hollywood films. This biography will preserve and make accessible a valuable part of our cultural heritage ....Judith Anderson 1897-1992: Voice and Emotion in the Making of an International Star. Australian-born Dame Judith Anderson was considered one of the greatest actors of the twentieth century. Renowned for her thrilling voice and portrayal of deep emotion and illicit sexuality and power, she influenced how women looked, spoke, and felt from the early 1920s through her roles on Broadway and in Hollywood films. This biography will preserve and make accessible a valuable part of our cultural heritage. It will give Australians and Americans a better understanding of the two-way cultural relationship between their two countries. It will help place Australian scholarship at the cutting edge of historical research on twentieth century auditory culture.Read moreRead less
Reforming the Male: Masculinity, Medicalisation and Men's Health. Men's health is an issue of significant national importance and community concern. This project will contribute to knowledge of the social and cultural determinants of men's health and health practices in Australia. It is at the forefront of new approaches to men's health which emphasise the impact of norms and practices of masculinity on wellbeing. As well as providing specific insight into problems such as attention deficit di ....Reforming the Male: Masculinity, Medicalisation and Men's Health. Men's health is an issue of significant national importance and community concern. This project will contribute to knowledge of the social and cultural determinants of men's health and health practices in Australia. It is at the forefront of new approaches to men's health which emphasise the impact of norms and practices of masculinity on wellbeing. As well as providing specific insight into problems such as attention deficit disorder and depression in men, the project will also contribute to international debate about medicalisation, the rise of pharmacological treatments for problems of living and the existence of a crisis in masculinity.
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Gender, family conflict, and suicide in rural China. The principal outcome of this anthropological study is an understanding of the social and cultural causes of suicide in rural China, achieved through close collaboration with Chinese researchers. This will enhance cross-cultural awareness and build cooperative institutional ties with China, both of which are crucial to Australia's development and security in the region. The project will make a major contribution to a global re-conceptualisatio ....Gender, family conflict, and suicide in rural China. The principal outcome of this anthropological study is an understanding of the social and cultural causes of suicide in rural China, achieved through close collaboration with Chinese researchers. This will enhance cross-cultural awareness and build cooperative institutional ties with China, both of which are crucial to Australia's development and security in the region. The project will make a major contribution to a global re-conceptualisation of suicide as a social, as well as a mental health problem, and will raise the profile of Australian institutions in suicide studies, gender studies, anthropology, and Asian studies. Through postgraduate training, the project will also help build much-needed research capacity.Read moreRead less
'Trading' Women's Rights in Transitions: Designing Diplomatic Interventions in Afghanistan and Myanmar. This project aims to examine the link between diplomatic negotiations and their impact on the shifting status of women during times of deep political change. It will assess three key areas of international diplomatic negotiations around peace agreements, aid, and security sector reform and assess how these negotiations affected women's status on the ground. It will seek to design approaches to ....'Trading' Women's Rights in Transitions: Designing Diplomatic Interventions in Afghanistan and Myanmar. This project aims to examine the link between diplomatic negotiations and their impact on the shifting status of women during times of deep political change. It will assess three key areas of international diplomatic negotiations around peace agreements, aid, and security sector reform and assess how these negotiations affected women's status on the ground. It will seek to design approaches to diplomatic interventions that may be more cognisant of gendered impacts and aim to benefit women.Read moreRead less