Eternal Vigilance: A History of the Returned Serices League of Australia. The history will provide a better understanding of what has been, throughout most of the twentieth century, an extremely influential and powerful institution with close connections to government, an active and vociferous membership, and the ability to command considerable press attention. Its history, oddly, has been poorly understood. The work will also inform contemporary concerns with "exclusionary nationalism" and the ....Eternal Vigilance: A History of the Returned Serices League of Australia. The history will provide a better understanding of what has been, throughout most of the twentieth century, an extremely influential and powerful institution with close connections to government, an active and vociferous membership, and the ability to command considerable press attention. Its history, oddly, has been poorly understood. The work will also inform contemporary concerns with "exclusionary nationalism" and the treatment of minorities in wartime. In light of recent international conflict and the potential for internal social and ethnic conflict, analysis of the discourse and politics of "loyalism" and their potentially marginalising effects on dissident groups seems especially socially important and relevant.Read moreRead less
Gough Whitlam: People, Party, Politics. This project will be the first contemporary, definitive, biographical study of Gough Whitlam. The biography is part of a broader multimedia platform proposed by the project, enabling access to a range of archival materials on Whitlam, family and colleagues, drawing on its unprecedented access to manuscripts, archival material and the subject himself, together with the creation of an extensive Oral History collection. This project provides a unique opportu ....Gough Whitlam: People, Party, Politics. This project will be the first contemporary, definitive, biographical study of Gough Whitlam. The biography is part of a broader multimedia platform proposed by the project, enabling access to a range of archival materials on Whitlam, family and colleagues, drawing on its unprecedented access to manuscripts, archival material and the subject himself, together with the creation of an extensive Oral History collection. This project provides a unique opportunity to examine Australian political and cultural developments in the twentieth century through the life of one of its most significant public figures.Read moreRead less
Australia's post-Second World War reconstruction reassessed, 1941-1949. The project will provide a better understanding of a major phase of Australian history. While there is substantial awareness of the national effort in the Second World War, the magnitude of the commitment to apply the same spirit to secure peace and redeem sacrifice is less widely recognised. This project will assess the substantial innovation in national government to meet augmented expectations and explore the domestic and ....Australia's post-Second World War reconstruction reassessed, 1941-1949. The project will provide a better understanding of a major phase of Australian history. While there is substantial awareness of the national effort in the Second World War, the magnitude of the commitment to apply the same spirit to secure peace and redeem sacrifice is less widely recognised. This project will assess the substantial innovation in national government to meet augmented expectations and explore the domestic and international context of such actions. It will thus enhance awareness of mid-century social, political and cultural transitions, particularly as they relate to issues that continue to shape our national and international experience.Read moreRead less
A New History of 1968: Feminism and Student Revolt in the Colonels' Greece (1967-1974). The student revolts of 68 are usually associated with Paris, Berkeley, Turin, Chicago, Leeds. But student uprisings also occurred in the universities of Australia, when students mobilised most notably against the Vietnam War. But there is another dimension which makes this project an important one for Australia - namely, that many Greek citizens migrated to Australia both after the Civil War (1946-1949) and a ....A New History of 1968: Feminism and Student Revolt in the Colonels' Greece (1967-1974). The student revolts of 68 are usually associated with Paris, Berkeley, Turin, Chicago, Leeds. But student uprisings also occurred in the universities of Australia, when students mobilised most notably against the Vietnam War. But there is another dimension which makes this project an important one for Australia - namely, that many Greek citizens migrated to Australia both after the Civil War (1946-1949) and after the installation of the military junta in 1967. This project will be historicising an aspect of the Australian migration experience which has received little acknowledgement. Read moreRead less
A Land Fit for Heroes. A Social, Cultural and Environmental History of Soldier Settlement in New South Wales, 1916-1939. The digger has an iconographic status in Australian society; thousands of families have charted the service records of relatives who served in the first AIF. This project will recover the returned soldier as important an historical entity as the men (and women) who went to war. It will look at ways our society tried to recover from the trauma of war, examine our veterans' r ....A Land Fit for Heroes. A Social, Cultural and Environmental History of Soldier Settlement in New South Wales, 1916-1939. The digger has an iconographic status in Australian society; thousands of families have charted the service records of relatives who served in the first AIF. This project will recover the returned soldier as important an historical entity as the men (and women) who went to war. It will look at ways our society tried to recover from the trauma of war, examine our veterans' return to Australia and their difficult readjustment to civil society. Soldier settlers faced a new battle in opening up the land. Like many in regional NSW today, they struggled against isolation, drought and financial hardship. This project will evaluate the role soldier settlement played in populating remote districts and assess its long-term environmental costs.Read moreRead less
The culture of war: private life and sentiment in Australia 1914-18. This study has the potential to place Australia at the forefront of a new theoretical approach to civilian agency in total war, and enhance the national reputation for important scholarship in a field dominated by international scholars. Also, while war has been central to Australian notions of identity, our sense of 'war' is intimately connected to the front-line, and not to the homefront. This study will help reorient academi ....The culture of war: private life and sentiment in Australia 1914-18. This study has the potential to place Australia at the forefront of a new theoretical approach to civilian agency in total war, and enhance the national reputation for important scholarship in a field dominated by international scholars. Also, while war has been central to Australian notions of identity, our sense of 'war' is intimately connected to the front-line, and not to the homefront. This study will help reorient academic and popular attention back to the importance of the homefront in Australia's experience of 1914-18. At a time when Australians are increasingly interested in family links with the war, this project will provide a greater appreciation of the war's effects on Australia nationally and on the most personal levels.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
Australian Public Policy Responses to Refugees and Asylum Seekers: Comparativist and Historical Perspectives. Furnishing the first comprehensive history of Australia's response to refugees and asylum seekers, the project will enhance our understanding of the genealogy of current Australian policy and inform debate in an area of intense concern to policy makers and the general public. The project will put the Australian response into context by comparing it with that of New Zealand and by analysi ....Australian Public Policy Responses to Refugees and Asylum Seekers: Comparativist and Historical Perspectives. Furnishing the first comprehensive history of Australia's response to refugees and asylum seekers, the project will enhance our understanding of the genealogy of current Australian policy and inform debate in an area of intense concern to policy makers and the general public. The project will put the Australian response into context by comparing it with that of New Zealand and by analysing it against the backdrop of the evolution of the international refugee regime.Read moreRead less
The pivot of government? Understanding the Australian prime minister: The office and its holders. This study offers the most comprehensive study of Australia's prime ministership to date and will greatly augment our understanding of the conduct of the office over time. Ideally, it will promote a more informed understanding of the exercise of leadership, feeding directly into public education about this key aspect of our political system (through the Prime Ministers' Centre/proposed Museum of Dem ....The pivot of government? Understanding the Australian prime minister: The office and its holders. This study offers the most comprehensive study of Australia's prime ministership to date and will greatly augment our understanding of the conduct of the office over time. Ideally, it will promote a more informed understanding of the exercise of leadership, feeding directly into public education about this key aspect of our political system (through the Prime Ministers' Centre/proposed Museum of Democracy in Canberra), leading to better citizen appreciation of the role, possibly to better leadership practices and, if our research shows it to be necessary, providing an evidence base for consideration as to whether there is a need for institutional reform.Read moreRead less
The impact of migrants on Australian public law: An historical and cultural study. Many leading cases in constitutional and administrative law since 1901 have involved migrants and non-citizens. This project explores their role in the development of public law in Australia. Selected cases will be interpreted from historical, cultural, political and legal doctrinal perspectives, to understand how migrants have shaped the public discourse on judicial review, power of the Executive and human righ ....The impact of migrants on Australian public law: An historical and cultural study. Many leading cases in constitutional and administrative law since 1901 have involved migrants and non-citizens. This project explores their role in the development of public law in Australia. Selected cases will be interpreted from historical, cultural, political and legal doctrinal perspectives, to understand how migrants have shaped the public discourse on judicial review, power of the Executive and human rights. In mapping the impact of migrants on Australian law and society (and, ultimately, national identity), it will contribute to current debates about public law, and assist understanding of citizenship, immigration, sovereignty, and the proper scope of judicial review.
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