Public Interest Advocacy in Australian Policymaking. The project aims to evaluate the impact and effectiveness of public interest advocacy, via the media, in elevating the responsiveness of elected political elites. The project expects to generate new knowledge about how the advocacy and media agendas are set, examine the way elected elites access and ingest news media, and conditions under which advocacy groups access to news changes political priorities. It is expected that the project will pr ....Public Interest Advocacy in Australian Policymaking. The project aims to evaluate the impact and effectiveness of public interest advocacy, via the media, in elevating the responsiveness of elected political elites. The project expects to generate new knowledge about how the advocacy and media agendas are set, examine the way elected elites access and ingest news media, and conditions under which advocacy groups access to news changes political priorities. It is expected that the project will provide an evidence base for citizens and policy makers to assess the effectiveness of public interest advocacy, and deliver benefits such as strengthening the quality of Australia’s representative democracy, and offer scholars new theories on the role of public interest advocacy on policy priorities.Read moreRead less
Populism’s Heartlands: Place, Identity, and Localism in Populist Politics. This project aims to investigate how populism intersects with localism through systematic, comparative, and in-depth empirical study of three populist parties inextricably associated with ‘heartlands’ in Australia, Germany and Spain. This project expects to generate new knowledge about how populists utilise the language of localism and how people’s attachment to place shapes their support for populists. Expected outcomes ....Populism’s Heartlands: Place, Identity, and Localism in Populist Politics. This project aims to investigate how populism intersects with localism through systematic, comparative, and in-depth empirical study of three populist parties inextricably associated with ‘heartlands’ in Australia, Germany and Spain. This project expects to generate new knowledge about how populists utilise the language of localism and how people’s attachment to place shapes their support for populists. Expected outcomes of the project include a new understanding of how populism and localism affect one another; and identification of how right and left populist support are differently affected by community engagement and participation. Benefits include the identification of local interventions to lessen the appeal of exclusionary populisms.Read moreRead less
Warfare and the Archaic State in Oceania. The project aim is to investigate warfare in the ancient Tongan state through a study of earthwork fortifications. The conflict record for an Archaic state in Oceania that survived for 650 years contributes a new perspective to global research on warfare in complex societies. The effect of conflict is a prominent issue for Australia and long-term records of warfare in our region will improve our understanding of it. Intra-state conflict is the most press ....Warfare and the Archaic State in Oceania. The project aim is to investigate warfare in the ancient Tongan state through a study of earthwork fortifications. The conflict record for an Archaic state in Oceania that survived for 650 years contributes a new perspective to global research on warfare in complex societies. The effect of conflict is a prominent issue for Australia and long-term records of warfare in our region will improve our understanding of it. Intra-state conflict is the most pressing threat to political stability in South-East Asia and the Pacific and the project would benefit Australia by showing how changes to political systems are associated with phases of conflict and peace.Read moreRead less
The organised interest system in Australian public policy: Size, focus, impact and transformation. Organised interest systems that seek to influence public policy-making are undergoing rapid transformation. Some researchers focus on the post-war professionalisation of advocacy; others suggest that the internet is positively (re)shaping the structure of such systems and their democratic capacities. This project adjudicates on such accounts through exploring the size and composition, through time, ....The organised interest system in Australian public policy: Size, focus, impact and transformation. Organised interest systems that seek to influence public policy-making are undergoing rapid transformation. Some researchers focus on the post-war professionalisation of advocacy; others suggest that the internet is positively (re)shaping the structure of such systems and their democratic capacities. This project adjudicates on such accounts through exploring the size and composition, through time, of the Australian system of organised interests. Using innovative methodologies, it assesses the presence and prominence of particular interests in legislative, administrative, print-media and ‘on-line’ arenas. Through a theoretically original, national case study, it will contribute to international scholarship in this important area. Read moreRead less
Political Representation in Indonesia. The project aims to understand political representation in Indonesia, asking how far politicians resemble voters in both their policy views and backgrounds (gender, religion, education etc.) It will generate new knowledge on a major potential source of fragility in the world’s third largest democracy, and pioneer a new multi-method approach for explaining how representation varies. Expected outcomes include a new framework that extends analysis of represent ....Political Representation in Indonesia. The project aims to understand political representation in Indonesia, asking how far politicians resemble voters in both their policy views and backgrounds (gender, religion, education etc.) It will generate new knowledge on a major potential source of fragility in the world’s third largest democracy, and pioneer a new multi-method approach for explaining how representation varies. Expected outcomes include a new framework that extends analysis of representation to illiberal democracies, and a tranche of public data on Indonesia for cross-national comparisons. Benefits will include a new set of analytical tools to help policy makers in Australia and the region assess sources of weakness in representative institutions in illiberal settings.Read moreRead less
Political normativity and the feasibility requirement. Commonsense says that claims about how social and political life ought to be arranged must not make infeasible demands. This project will investigate this piece of commonsense and explore its implications for a number of pressing issues, such as climate change, multiculturalism, political participation, inequality, historical justice, and the rules of war.
Confronting the devolution paradox: constitutional values, federal political culture and governance reform. Australia, like many countries, depends in part on devolutionary reform if its federal system of government is to adapt effectively to change. This project confronts a key barrier to reform; the ‘devolution paradox’, in which popular demands for decentralisation and diversity are confounded by conflicting political pressures for national policy uniformity and control. By mapping and compar ....Confronting the devolution paradox: constitutional values, federal political culture and governance reform. Australia, like many countries, depends in part on devolutionary reform if its federal system of government is to adapt effectively to change. This project confronts a key barrier to reform; the ‘devolution paradox’, in which popular demands for decentralisation and diversity are confounded by conflicting political pressures for national policy uniformity and control. By mapping and comparing the constitutional values and federal political culture of Australian citizens, citizens in Canada, USA and UK, and Australian reform policymakers, in more detail than ever before, it will give insights into how this key paradox might be resolved, helping unlock reform potential and restore adaptive capacity to our political system.Read moreRead less
The law of deliberative democracy: theory and reform. Deliberation is essential to the health of electoral and representative democracy. This project will evaluate and recommend the reform of the law underpinning democratic politics in Australia, to enhance its deliberative quality.
Government Popularity, Political Responsiveness and Democracy in Australia. This project aims to understand what affects government popularity and how this shapes the health of democracy. What citizens are concerned about and how their concerns are satisfactorily addressed is central to an effective democracy and to responsible government. The project expects to generate new knowledge about the operation of democracy by identifying the factors that shape government popularity and how and in what ....Government Popularity, Political Responsiveness and Democracy in Australia. This project aims to understand what affects government popularity and how this shapes the health of democracy. What citizens are concerned about and how their concerns are satisfactorily addressed is central to an effective democracy and to responsible government. The project expects to generate new knowledge about the operation of democracy by identifying the factors that shape government popularity and how and in what ways governments respond to them. Expected outcomes include a comprehensive understanding of how democracy in Australia functions, which should provide the benefit of insight into how Australian democracy might be reformed to better meet the expectations of the public at a time of declining public trust in politics. Read moreRead less
Realising Democracy Amid Communicative Plenty: A Deliberative Approach. The ever-increasing volume of political communication (especially online) challenges democracy and effective policy making. The aim of this project is to examine whether, how, why, and to what effect discourse flows within and between different sites in the new politics of communicative plenty. This research applies the idea of deliberative democracy, which puts meaningful communication between citizens and policy makers at ....Realising Democracy Amid Communicative Plenty: A Deliberative Approach. The ever-increasing volume of political communication (especially online) challenges democracy and effective policy making. The aim of this project is to examine whether, how, why, and to what effect discourse flows within and between different sites in the new politics of communicative plenty. This research applies the idea of deliberative democracy, which puts meaningful communication between citizens and policy makers at the heart of effective governance. It develops a deliberative analysis of controversy surrounding coal seam gas in Australia, using qualitative and 'big data' techniques to collect information. The knowledge generated is expected to inform efforts to put deliberative democracy into practice, as well as more effective environmental governance.Read moreRead less