A history of women as consumers, 1902-2010. This project aims to give women their own autonomous history as proactive consumers altering spaces outside the domestic sphere. Using a case study of Filipino elite and migrant women, and women’s magazines, ‘migrant archives’, interviews and ethnographic mapping, the project will write a history of the influence of women’s consumption practices on the economy, business and spaces of consumption in the twentieth century. The project aims to challenge t ....A history of women as consumers, 1902-2010. This project aims to give women their own autonomous history as proactive consumers altering spaces outside the domestic sphere. Using a case study of Filipino elite and migrant women, and women’s magazines, ‘migrant archives’, interviews and ethnographic mapping, the project will write a history of the influence of women’s consumption practices on the economy, business and spaces of consumption in the twentieth century. The project aims to challenge the view of women as peripheral to the Philippines’ economic history or having little influence on countries to which they migrated. This could enhance Australia’s reputation in the field of women in Asia and foster international collaboration.Read moreRead less
Confronting Historical Injustice in Indonesia: Memory and Transnational Human Rights Activism. Since the 1990s there has been a boom in memory and in human rights activism relating to historical injustice in Indonesia. Using an innovative framework of the concept of ‘regions of memory’ this project examines how human rights activists located within and outside Indonesia use memory for the purposes of achieving human rights outcomes. Through national and international collaborations this project ....Confronting Historical Injustice in Indonesia: Memory and Transnational Human Rights Activism. Since the 1990s there has been a boom in memory and in human rights activism relating to historical injustice in Indonesia. Using an innovative framework of the concept of ‘regions of memory’ this project examines how human rights activists located within and outside Indonesia use memory for the purposes of achieving human rights outcomes. Through national and international collaborations this project will analyse why transnational activism concerning crimes from the Japanese occupation (1942-45), the independence struggle (1945-1949) and the 1965 mass violence escalated at particular points in time and deepen our understanding of the relationship between memory and human rights.Read moreRead less
Beauty, Ugliness and China’s Changing Gender Norms. This project intends to explore the connections between political programs promoting social change and cultural and commercial activities in China since 1900. It intends to generate new knowledge about the factors that influence people’s perceptions of desirable male and female behaviours by examining the evolution of ideals of beauty and ugliness and how they are used by political, cultural or commercial actors. The expected outcomes include d ....Beauty, Ugliness and China’s Changing Gender Norms. This project intends to explore the connections between political programs promoting social change and cultural and commercial activities in China since 1900. It intends to generate new knowledge about the factors that influence people’s perceptions of desirable male and female behaviours by examining the evolution of ideals of beauty and ugliness and how they are used by political, cultural or commercial actors. The expected outcomes include deepening Australia’s knowledge of what constitutes a positive or negative attribute in the Chinese marketplace (both the commercial market of products and the political market of ideas) and enabling Australians to promote their products/ideas more effectively in the global powerhouse that is China.Read moreRead less
A history of Filipino migration and identity, 1906-2010. The purpose of the research is to write a history of Filipino migration over the long twentieth century from the perspective of the migrants themselves. The story that emerges will help us understand migrant activism and explain how migration has had an enormous impact on the host countries including Australia as well as the Philippines.
Pearls, People, and Power: the Transformation of the Indian Ocean World. This multidisciplinary project aims to be the first transoceanic investigation of pearling in the Indian Ocean World (IOW), focusing on the Red Sea, Persian Gulf, India/Sri Lanka, Sulu Sea and northern Australia. It will use commodity-based historical analyses and object-centred biographies to undertake comparative studies of labour systems, trade networks and the cultural value of pearls/pearl shell during an era marked by ....Pearls, People, and Power: the Transformation of the Indian Ocean World. This multidisciplinary project aims to be the first transoceanic investigation of pearling in the Indian Ocean World (IOW), focusing on the Red Sea, Persian Gulf, India/Sri Lanka, Sulu Sea and northern Australia. It will use commodity-based historical analyses and object-centred biographies to undertake comparative studies of labour systems, trade networks and the cultural value of pearls/pearl shell during an era marked by the spread of European imperialism and industrialisation. The project includes historical, ethnographic and film components and is expected to produce texts, films and museum displays. It is also designed to deliver a new understanding of the IOW past, and a new appreciation of Australia's place in IOW history.Read moreRead less
The peopling of East Asia and Australasia. This project aims to recover DNA sequences from ancient human remains from Australia and Asia some dating back 45,000 years. The project will use this information to identify the geographic origin of these people and to determine their genetic histories.
Shifting the foundations of Zoroastrian history: A fresh focus on Khorezm. This project aims to explore the importance for Zoroastrianism of images of Avestan gods in Uzbekistan. Zoroastrianism is an ancient religion, but little is known of its early development. Recent finds of massive six-metre-high murals of Avestan gods decorating the royal ceremonial centre of Akchakhan-kala in Khorezm provide evidence of early formal Zoroastrian practices, in a region not considered a centre of early relig ....Shifting the foundations of Zoroastrian history: A fresh focus on Khorezm. This project aims to explore the importance for Zoroastrianism of images of Avestan gods in Uzbekistan. Zoroastrianism is an ancient religion, but little is known of its early development. Recent finds of massive six-metre-high murals of Avestan gods decorating the royal ceremonial centre of Akchakhan-kala in Khorezm provide evidence of early formal Zoroastrian practices, in a region not considered a centre of early religious development. The project will study this data and its implications for later religious beliefs, drawing particularly on evidence for burial practices in the early Islamic period and indigenous tribal practices. The project aims to enhance understanding of one of the world’s significant religions.Read moreRead less
Bronzes of Xinjiang: technology, society and power on the road to China. This project aims to reveal the backstory to the remarkable development of bronze working in ancient China by studying complex pathways by which metallurgical knowledge spread there from Eurasia through the crossroads region of Xinjiang. It will generate new knowledge through the innovative use of mass elemental analysis of ancient metals from Xinjiang, providing important evidence for early metallurgical techniques. Expec ....Bronzes of Xinjiang: technology, society and power on the road to China. This project aims to reveal the backstory to the remarkable development of bronze working in ancient China by studying complex pathways by which metallurgical knowledge spread there from Eurasia through the crossroads region of Xinjiang. It will generate new knowledge through the innovative use of mass elemental analysis of ancient metals from Xinjiang, providing important evidence for early metallurgical techniques. Expected outcomes include enhanced understanding of the role of developing technology in the consolidation of regional power and its impact on social inequality. Partnerships between Australian, Chinese and UK institutions are expected to expand Australia’s research capability in archaeology, ancient mining and metallurgy. Read moreRead less
The Silk Roads in the Bronze Age: critical links between Eurasia and China. The early rise of China's great civilization owed its rapid momentum to important technological innovations that were brought in from the far distant Eurasian steppes, but almost nothing is known of how or why this process took place. The project aims to explore these questions through excavations at one of China's most important Bronze Age archaeological sites in western Xinjiang. The innovations include the cultivation ....The Silk Roads in the Bronze Age: critical links between Eurasia and China. The early rise of China's great civilization owed its rapid momentum to important technological innovations that were brought in from the far distant Eurasian steppes, but almost nothing is known of how or why this process took place. The project aims to explore these questions through excavations at one of China's most important Bronze Age archaeological sites in western Xinjiang. The innovations include the cultivation of wheat and barley, complex metallurgical techniques in bronze, silver and gold, the domesticated horse and the spoke-wheeled chariot, which became a universal weapon of war across the ancient world. The project aims to test theories of cultural transmission through interactive GIS modelling of environment and land use potential.Read moreRead less
Imagining India in white Australia: Inter-colonial relations and the empire, 1901-1950. This project will take a historical perspective on the Australia-India relationship within the broader context of the British Empire, focussing on important developments during a period, 1901-1950, that often falls outside the purview of International Relations studies, delivering a deeper understanding of past intercolonial relations.