The Macroderma initiative: conserving ghost bats and informing development. This project aims to improve methods for capturing biological information required for environmental assessments of highly mobile species and enable strategic environmental planning in Northern Australia. Using Australia’s iconic ghost bat as a focus, the project will test and apply emerging technologies to obtain key information on a species’ population status and its critical resources to inform assessments of ecologic ....The Macroderma initiative: conserving ghost bats and informing development. This project aims to improve methods for capturing biological information required for environmental assessments of highly mobile species and enable strategic environmental planning in Northern Australia. Using Australia’s iconic ghost bat as a focus, the project will test and apply emerging technologies to obtain key information on a species’ population status and its critical resources to inform assessments of ecological impacts of industry development. Important benefits of the project include information and tools for streamlining development approvals and accurately assessing risks to threatened species to improve outcomes for both our economy and our natural environment.Read moreRead less
Building An Indigenist Health Humanities Collective. This proposal aims to develop Indigenist Health Humanities as a new and innovative field of inquiry, building an intellectual collective capable of bridging the knowledge gap that hinders current efforts to close the gap in Indigenous health inequality. Bringing together health and the humanities through the particularity of Indigenous scholarship, a deeper understanding of the human experience of health will be developed alongside a greater u ....Building An Indigenist Health Humanities Collective. This proposal aims to develop Indigenist Health Humanities as a new and innovative field of inquiry, building an intellectual collective capable of bridging the knowledge gap that hinders current efforts to close the gap in Indigenous health inequality. Bringing together health and the humanities through the particularity of Indigenous scholarship, a deeper understanding of the human experience of health will be developed alongside a greater understanding of the enablers to building a transdisciplinary collective of Indigenous health researchers. The potential benefits include a more sustainable, relational and ethical approach to advancing new knowledge, advancing research careers and advancing health outcomes for Indigenous people. Read moreRead less
Incentivising On Country Aboriginal Employment: Anangu Futures. . This project aims to investigate the changing face of cultural tourism in central Australia and examine pathways towards sustainable aboriginal employment in and around Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. The project is significant because it brings together Aboriginal community members, industry and government stakeholders to identify micro-business opportunities, youth training initiatives, better relations across cultural divides, ....Incentivising On Country Aboriginal Employment: Anangu Futures. . This project aims to investigate the changing face of cultural tourism in central Australia and examine pathways towards sustainable aboriginal employment in and around Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. The project is significant because it brings together Aboriginal community members, industry and government stakeholders to identify micro-business opportunities, youth training initiatives, better relations across cultural divides, and the economic value of Aboriginal knowledge. Outcomes include a model for sustainable Aboriginal employment in remote and very remote contexts, and the development of culturally relevant and sustainable governing guidelines for regional investment. Benefits include more sustainable jobs for Aboriginal people.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR120100005
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$3,198,392.00
Summary
National Indigenous Research and Knowledges Network. The National Indigenous Research and Knowledges Network will capacity build and increase Indigenous higher degree, early and mid career researchers to develop new approaches to undertaking research and producing outcomes. NIRAKN's members include a number of universities, AIATSIS, and partner organisations.
Aboriginal place names and ethnobiology: enhancing interpretation of Indigenous culture and heritage. This project looks at how Indigenous people’s knowledge of place names and bush tucker can create opportunities for Indigenous communities in areas such as tourism. The project aims to do this by harnessing new advances in digital media which offer new ways of passing on this knowledge to both Indigenous and intercultural audiences.
Yarning with our mob about human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination uptake. This project aims to identify a range of modifiable factors that affect the participation of Indigenous adolescents in human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination school programs. The project expects to generate new knowledge by combining Indigenous methodologies and a socioecological model to explore policy, community, interpersonal and intrapersonal factors impacting HPV vaccination uptake for this population. Expected outcom ....Yarning with our mob about human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination uptake. This project aims to identify a range of modifiable factors that affect the participation of Indigenous adolescents in human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination school programs. The project expects to generate new knowledge by combining Indigenous methodologies and a socioecological model to explore policy, community, interpersonal and intrapersonal factors impacting HPV vaccination uptake for this population. Expected outcomes include a more comprehensive understanding of the factors behind the low rates of HPV vaccination among Indigenous adolescents. This information should provide significant benefits including the identification of modifiable factors to increase HPV vaccination rates for Indigenous adolescents.Read moreRead less
Where migrants go: A study of immigrants' post-arrival moves in Australia . The project aims to establish the geographical and occupational trajectories of different migrant groups after arrival in Australia. Migration within Australia is a key driver of economic, demographic and social change. Recognising the growing diversity of immigrants, including the rapid rise in temporary migration, the project examines post-arrival moves of immigrants by visa type, country of birth and year of arrival. ....Where migrants go: A study of immigrants' post-arrival moves in Australia . The project aims to establish the geographical and occupational trajectories of different migrant groups after arrival in Australia. Migration within Australia is a key driver of economic, demographic and social change. Recognising the growing diversity of immigrants, including the rapid rise in temporary migration, the project examines post-arrival moves of immigrants by visa type, country of birth and year of arrival. It seeks to improve understanding of the incidence, spatial patterns and drivers of migrants’ movement within Australia and the socio-demographic impact on regions and individuals. Such understanding is an essential first step to the formulation of effective immigration and settlement policies and programs.Read moreRead less
Estimating The Burden Of Group A Streptococcal Diseases In Victoria
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$386,760.00
Summary
Despite the considerable advances in the diagnosis and treatment of group A streptococcal (GAS) diseases made during the last century, the impressive spectrum of infections caused by this organism continues to have a significant impact in developed countries. This spectrum includes diseases that are mild but common (e.g. sore throat, skin sores), rare but very severe (e.g. bloodstream infections, flesh-eating bacteria) and those that are more common in developing countries and the Aboriginal pop ....Despite the considerable advances in the diagnosis and treatment of group A streptococcal (GAS) diseases made during the last century, the impressive spectrum of infections caused by this organism continues to have a significant impact in developed countries. This spectrum includes diseases that are mild but common (e.g. sore throat, skin sores), rare but very severe (e.g. bloodstream infections, flesh-eating bacteria) and those that are more common in developing countries and the Aboriginal population (e.g. rheumatic fever, kidney disease). Streptococcal sore throat remains one of the most common childhood infections, and severe group A streptococcal diseases are thought to be increasing in incidence in Australia. Yet, there are no accurate data on the incidence and costs of these or other GAS diseases in non-Aboriginal Australians, or in most other populations around the world. It is becoming more urgent to collect this data as numerous vaccine candidates are entering human trials, new approaches to the treatment of sore throat are emerging, and new strategies to treat and control the spread of severe disease are being developed. We propose a comprehensive strategy to measure the incidence, prevalence and costs of each group of GAS diseases. We will follow a group of families for 12 months to detect cases of GAS sore throat and skin sores and measure the impact on the family. We will survey children in schools to estimate the prevalence of skin sores. We will check hospital records to calculate the number of cases of rheumatic fever and kidney disease. And we will maintain surveillance for severe diseases by checking hospital and laboratory records. We will also check to see if family members of people with severe disease have the GAS bacterium in their throats. We will then compile these data into a comprehensive estimate of the burden of disease in Victoria, and estimate the cost-effectiveness of different treatment and prevention strategies.Read moreRead less
Immunising Aboriginal Mothers With Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine To Prevent Infant Ear Disease And Carriage
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,131,530.00
Summary
Aboriginal children experience the highest rates of acute and chronic ear infections in the world, with resultant permanent ear damage, hearing loss and educational disadvantage. These infections are mainly bacterial, and Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) is the predominant pathogen. Pneumococcal colonisation and infection begins within days of birth, many months before any potential immunological protection from infant pneumococcal conjugate vaccine may be expected. New strategies are nee ....Aboriginal children experience the highest rates of acute and chronic ear infections in the world, with resultant permanent ear damage, hearing loss and educational disadvantage. These infections are mainly bacterial, and Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) is the predominant pathogen. Pneumococcal colonisation and infection begins within days of birth, many months before any potential immunological protection from infant pneumococcal conjugate vaccine may be expected. New strategies are needed to eliminate, or at least delay, this early-onset pneumococcal colonisation. One such strategy is the administration to the mother of pneumococcal vaccine, which may protect the newborn infant by leading to higher titres of transplacental or breast milk pneumococcal antibodies and-or by reducing carriage (and transmission to the infant) of maternal pneumococci. Previous small studies using this strategy have been encouraging, but there have been no studies properly evaluating carriage or disease endpoints in infants. The polysaccharide pneumococcal vaccine is currently recommended for all Aboriginal and Torres Islander persons aged 15 years or more in the Northern Territory but uptake of the vaccine has been poor. We propose to conduct a pilot study to determine if maternal immunisation with this vaccine, either in the third trimester of pregancy of immediately following delivery, can reduce pneumococcal carriage and the prevalence of middle ear disease among Aboriginal infants at seven months of age. We aim to recruit 210 Aboriginal women who have uncomplicated pregnancies from Darwin and remote communities in the Top End of the Northern Territory. Each subject and their infant offspring will be followed-up after vaccination and at birth, one , two and seven months after birth.Read moreRead less
ARC Research Network for Understanding and Managing Australian Biodiversity. Biodiversity research is strong in Australia but is highly uncoordinated and, along with recent major breakthroughs in both theory and techniques, has highlighted the need for a Network to properly integrate research and focus it on the most appropriate scale. This Network aims to bring together a diverse spectrum of highly experienced and early career researchers to pool their ideas and expertise to allow them to deter ....ARC Research Network for Understanding and Managing Australian Biodiversity. Biodiversity research is strong in Australia but is highly uncoordinated and, along with recent major breakthroughs in both theory and techniques, has highlighted the need for a Network to properly integrate research and focus it on the most appropriate scale. This Network aims to bring together a diverse spectrum of highly experienced and early career researchers to pool their ideas and expertise to allow them to determine how best to describe Australia's current biodiversity and the biological and environmental history leading up to the present. A major outcome will be the ability to predict the impacts of environmental change on biodiversity to assist management decisions across Australia, with lessons of global importance.Read moreRead less