Strengthening Parliamentary Institutions: Australia in Comparative Perspective. Australia has a valuable international record as a parliamentary democracy, with much to teach, as well as much to learn from, the international community about effective parliamentary institutions. This joint ANU-Commonwealth Parliament project will be based at the ANU's new Parliamentary Studies Centre and managed by that Centre's inaugural director, Professor John Uhr. The project will greatly strengthen the intel ....Strengthening Parliamentary Institutions: Australia in Comparative Perspective. Australia has a valuable international record as a parliamentary democracy, with much to teach, as well as much to learn from, the international community about effective parliamentary institutions. This joint ANU-Commonwealth Parliament project will be based at the ANU's new Parliamentary Studies Centre and managed by that Centre's inaugural director, Professor John Uhr. The project will greatly strengthen the intellectual and policy framework of Australia's democracy assistance in the Asia Pacific region.Read moreRead less
Community consultation and the hard to reach. Local government, social profiling and civic infrastructure. This study offers conceptual insights into reasons for non-participation in local government consultation, drawing on critical policy analysis and debates on governance and democratic capacity. The collaboration of 7 local councils and the VLGA enable the development of a transferable, generally viable framework linking: (i) sophisticated demographic profiles (ii) types of communication me ....Community consultation and the hard to reach. Local government, social profiling and civic infrastructure. This study offers conceptual insights into reasons for non-participation in local government consultation, drawing on critical policy analysis and debates on governance and democratic capacity. The collaboration of 7 local councils and the VLGA enable the development of a transferable, generally viable framework linking: (i) sophisticated demographic profiles (ii) types of communication media on a continuum of intensity (face to face, telephone/mail survey, email/Internet); (iii) issues on which residents wish to be consulted; and (iv) implications for civic infrastructure. Outcomes will benefit councils and Victorian citizens by providing an innovative, practically applicable framework for policy implementation using consultative processes.Read moreRead less
Assessing the Role of Political and Regulatory Risks for Foreign Investors: A Multi-Country Study of Four Industry Sectors. This project will benefit Australian enterprise engaged in investment activities in Asia by providing them with the necessary methodological and analytical systems to identify, measure and assess political and regulatory risks to their investment interests. By doing so, the project will increase the investment transparency of Asia's emerging economies and thus the ability ....Assessing the Role of Political and Regulatory Risks for Foreign Investors: A Multi-Country Study of Four Industry Sectors. This project will benefit Australian enterprise engaged in investment activities in Asia by providing them with the necessary methodological and analytical systems to identify, measure and assess political and regulatory risks to their investment interests. By doing so, the project will increase the investment transparency of Asia's emerging economies and thus the ability of Australian enterprise to operate efficiently in institutionally complex and competitive offshore environments. This will benefit Australia's economy by strengthening Australia's national economic security and the safety of Australia's national savings invested in the region.Read moreRead less
Cooperation, competition or control? Public policy and the use of tied grants in Australian federalism. Tied grants account for $26 billion worth of Commonwealth expenditure and cover everything from child care to aged care, environmental programs to road building. They crucially affect the capacity of Australian governments to make policy and deliver services. A better understanding of how they work in practice will be a great benefit in improving our capability to meet pressing social, econo ....Cooperation, competition or control? Public policy and the use of tied grants in Australian federalism. Tied grants account for $26 billion worth of Commonwealth expenditure and cover everything from child care to aged care, environmental programs to road building. They crucially affect the capacity of Australian governments to make policy and deliver services. A better understanding of how they work in practice will be a great benefit in improving our capability to meet pressing social, economic, environmental and regional development challenges.Read moreRead less
Retrieving the Record: the White Australia policy, citizenship education and new applications for archival research. This project will develop models for making more effective use of the resources of the National Archives of Australia within civics and citizenship education. Using the resources of the Archives, the team will produce a new history of the White Australia policy, which will be developed into a public display and forum, showing how archival materials can illuminate the complexities ....Retrieving the Record: the White Australia policy, citizenship education and new applications for archival research. This project will develop models for making more effective use of the resources of the National Archives of Australia within civics and citizenship education. Using the resources of the Archives, the team will produce a new history of the White Australia policy, which will be developed into a public display and forum, showing how archival materials can illuminate the complexities of the democratic process. Supplementary research will investigate prospects for making stronger institutional connections between the Archives, citizenship education and teachers' professional formation. Benefits include increased understanding of immigration, Australian political history, educational strategies and the Archives' role and resources. Read moreRead less
Social Safety Nets in India: Effectiveness, Nutritional Impact and Political Economy. India is, potentially, one of Australia's most significant trading and strategic partners. As India, a democratic country with low per capita income deepens its economic reforms programs, their success depends critically upon domestic political support which would require that the policies adopted make a significant dent on poverty. The proposed research will examine the impact of two of the most significant p ....Social Safety Nets in India: Effectiveness, Nutritional Impact and Political Economy. India is, potentially, one of Australia's most significant trading and strategic partners. As India, a democratic country with low per capita income deepens its economic reforms programs, their success depends critically upon domestic political support which would require that the policies adopted make a significant dent on poverty. The proposed research will examine the impact of two of the most significant policy initiatives for poverty alleviation and thus provide critical analyses of how a democratic polity should address poverty. The project's results will also have significant implications for the design of AusAID's recommended anti-poverty interventions in other developing countries. Read moreRead less
The history of advocacy and guardianship for people with disabilities in Victoria, 1986 - 2006. The history and analysis of the Victorian Office of the Public Advocate will benefit the national community by providing a fuller understanding of guardianship and advocacy in daily action, and of the interaction between people with disabilities and the state. It will make an important contribution to understanding the changing ways that governments act and deliver services. The project will also deep ....The history of advocacy and guardianship for people with disabilities in Victoria, 1986 - 2006. The history and analysis of the Victorian Office of the Public Advocate will benefit the national community by providing a fuller understanding of guardianship and advocacy in daily action, and of the interaction between people with disabilities and the state. It will make an important contribution to understanding the changing ways that governments act and deliver services. The project will also deepen understanding of volunteering, in particular of the role ordinary citizens can play in guarding the rights of their fellow citizens. Read moreRead less
Protecting economic, social and cultural Rights in the ACT: models, methods and impact. This project will generate new thinking on the protection of economic, social and cultural rights. It will develop impact assessment frameworks and protocols for the assessment of compliance with these rights. The project will benefit not only the ACT by informing consideration of the inclusion of economic, social and cultural rights in the ACT Human Rights Act, but also other Australian jurisdictions' deli ....Protecting economic, social and cultural Rights in the ACT: models, methods and impact. This project will generate new thinking on the protection of economic, social and cultural rights. It will develop impact assessment frameworks and protocols for the assessment of compliance with these rights. The project will benefit not only the ACT by informing consideration of the inclusion of economic, social and cultural rights in the ACT Human Rights Act, but also other Australian jurisdictions' deliberations over bills of rights, including consideration of a national bill. Other benefits include training students and informing Australia's engagement with the UN on an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.Read moreRead less
INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY GOVERNANCE: UNDERSTANDING, BUILDING AND SUSTAINING EFFECTIVE GOVERNANCE IN RURAL, REMOTE AND URBAN INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITIES. This project investigates Indigenous community governance - its structures, processes, institutions, leadership, powers and capacities - across rural, remote and urban settings. It will longitudinally assess the effectiveness of different forms of governance, and their consequences for socioeconomic development. It applies an innovative, multi ....INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY GOVERNANCE: UNDERSTANDING, BUILDING AND SUSTAINING EFFECTIVE GOVERNANCE IN RURAL, REMOTE AND URBAN INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITIES. This project investigates Indigenous community governance - its structures, processes, institutions, leadership, powers and capacities - across rural, remote and urban settings. It will longitudinally assess the effectiveness of different forms of governance, and their consequences for socioeconomic development. It applies an innovative, multi-disciplinary focus on community governing bodies, mapping their cultural, local and regional governance environments, and analysing the role of State and national-level policy networks and objectives. The project will refine theoretical models of Indigenous governance; develop recommendations for improving governance capacity; and design options for sustainable arrangements that address inter-cultural matters of scale, autonomy, representation, and accountability.Read moreRead less
Improving effectiveness of Australian aid to the island-Pacific. Improving the effectiveness of aid to the island Pacific so as to secure peace and prosperity within our immediate neighbourhood is in Australia's own national interest. This research investigates issues of state functioning and state failure with a view to improving the effectiveness of external interventions and of bolstering state capacity in the South Pacific. It is now widely acknowledged that ?failed states? can generate ref ....Improving effectiveness of Australian aid to the island-Pacific. Improving the effectiveness of aid to the island Pacific so as to secure peace and prosperity within our immediate neighbourhood is in Australia's own national interest. This research investigates issues of state functioning and state failure with a view to improving the effectiveness of external interventions and of bolstering state capacity in the South Pacific. It is now widely acknowledged that ?failed states? can generate refugee flows and create havens for organised crime or terrorist groups, thus becoming a threat to neighbouring states. Such cross-border spillovers have major implications for Australia's national security and have been the primary rationale for the recent interventions into Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands.Read moreRead less