Is Compulsory Voting Defensible? If it can be demonstrated that, under the right conditions, compulsory voting is an acceptable solution to the escalating problem of declining turnout in industrialised, voluntary-voting systems, then the Australian regime will provide the ideal starting point from which to produce guidelines for the successful adoption and management of compulsory voting. Since Australia has, arguably, the best managed and tolerated compulsory voting regime in the world, the pro ....Is Compulsory Voting Defensible? If it can be demonstrated that, under the right conditions, compulsory voting is an acceptable solution to the escalating problem of declining turnout in industrialised, voluntary-voting systems, then the Australian regime will provide the ideal starting point from which to produce guidelines for the successful adoption and management of compulsory voting. Since Australia has, arguably, the best managed and tolerated compulsory voting regime in the world, the project has potentially enormous national significance in terms of publicising, promoting and exporting our electoral expertise. The project will also position Australian scholarship at the forefront of rapidly expanding global interest in the practice.Read moreRead less
Discovering the fundamental metrics of political behaviour: African-Americans and their White Neighbours in an era of revolutionary change. Newly freed from slavery, African-Americans first voted in the 1870s; remarkably, their names and individual political choices still survive in the records of one American state. Using innovative software to track voters and map social networks, this project will reveal the dynamics of black and white voting in this era of revolutionary change.
Political Risk, Institutions and Regulatory Regimes: Business, Foreign Investment and Public Administration in Asia. Rating accurately the risk environment of emerging economies has always been problematic. Insufficiently developed methodological tools and the lack of institutional and regulatory data make the process imprecise. This project overcomes this problem, developing a new industry based risk assessment system for understanding political risk to commercial activities and foreign investo ....Political Risk, Institutions and Regulatory Regimes: Business, Foreign Investment and Public Administration in Asia. Rating accurately the risk environment of emerging economies has always been problematic. Insufficiently developed methodological tools and the lack of institutional and regulatory data make the process imprecise. This project overcomes this problem, developing a new industry based risk assessment system for understanding political risk to commercial activities and foreign investors in nine of Asia's most rapidly developing economies. The study, one of the first to correlate institutional and regulatory forms to the incidence, severity and recurrence of risk, will deepen our knowledge of political and regulatory institutions in Asia and provide investors with the ability to navigate those environments successfully. Read moreRead less
Safeguarding human rights in China: A study of the role of legal aid policy. While China is a well-known Australia n trading partner its efforts to safeguard human rights are not well known. China's legal aid, the focus of this study, promotes human rights in China by assisting women, children, the elderly and disabled with legal advice and education, and representation in court cases. This project describes the innovative Chinese policy, assesses its role in promoting human rights, and propose ....Safeguarding human rights in China: A study of the role of legal aid policy. While China is a well-known Australia n trading partner its efforts to safeguard human rights are not well known. China's legal aid, the focus of this study, promotes human rights in China by assisting women, children, the elderly and disabled with legal advice and education, and representation in court cases. This project describes the innovative Chinese policy, assesses its role in promoting human rights, and proposes practical reforms to further improve legal aid. By improving human rights and the legal system it will also promote the stable conditions in China needed for Sino/Australian trade.Read moreRead less
Courts, the Judiciary and Social Change. While few Australians have direct experience of courts, nearly all agree that courts are important to the community, though public confidence is low. Social changes and the ambiguous position of courts in relation to change are part of this tension. This project will undertake a concrete examination of one aspect of social change and the courts: the increasing number of women in the judiciary. The focus on how gender interacts with judicial work and th ....Courts, the Judiciary and Social Change. While few Australians have direct experience of courts, nearly all agree that courts are important to the community, though public confidence is low. Social changes and the ambiguous position of courts in relation to change are part of this tension. This project will undertake a concrete examination of one aspect of social change and the courts: the increasing number of women in the judiciary. The focus on how gender interacts with judicial work and the wider roles of courts will produce new and valuable understandings of gender and judging, gender and work, and courts and social change. Better knowledge about these complex relationships will strengthen Australian society and its legal integrity.Read moreRead less
Temporary Migration To and From Australia: Changing Patterns, Causes and Implications. As is the case in other traditional migration countries, Australian international migration is undergoing a paradigmatic shift whereby temporary migrations are assuming unprecedented scale and diversity. However the bulk of immigration research in Australia remains locked in to an earlier paradigm in which permanent settlement was dominant. This study analyses the nature of the temporary flows and the forces ....Temporary Migration To and From Australia: Changing Patterns, Causes and Implications. As is the case in other traditional migration countries, Australian international migration is undergoing a paradigmatic shift whereby temporary migrations are assuming unprecedented scale and diversity. However the bulk of immigration research in Australia remains locked in to an earlier paradigm in which permanent settlement was dominant. This study analyses the nature of the temporary flows and the forces driving them with a view to developing more contemporarily relevant theory to explain them. It assesses the demographic, social and economic impacts of temporary migration and draws out the policy implications in the Australian context.Read moreRead less
Circular Migration in Asia, the Pacific and Australia: Empirical, Theoretical and Policy Dimensions. Few issues have been more significant in contemporary Australia than international migration. It is of fundamental importance to Australia's future as it faces the global economic downturn, ageing, climate change and an ever-changing relationship with its Asia-Pacific neighbours. In the past Australia's migration relationship with its region has been almost totally seen as a source of skilled s ....Circular Migration in Asia, the Pacific and Australia: Empirical, Theoretical and Policy Dimensions. Few issues have been more significant in contemporary Australia than international migration. It is of fundamental importance to Australia's future as it faces the global economic downturn, ageing, climate change and an ever-changing relationship with its Asia-Pacific neighbours. In the past Australia's migration relationship with its region has been almost totally seen as a source of skilled settlers. However this relationship is increasingly a more complex one. Migration will continue to be fundamental to the nation's economy, society and security and this study seeks to provide an evidence base for better policy and practice in immigration and development.Read moreRead less
Linkages Between Temporary and Permanent Migration in Australia. Australia's economy and society has benefited from immigration more than any OECD country during the postwar era. Moreover it will continue to be of great significance to national prosperity, productivity and sustainability. However paradigmatic changes are occurring in global international migration systems and if Australia is to continue to maximise benefits from immigration it must continually modify its policies to accommodat ....Linkages Between Temporary and Permanent Migration in Australia. Australia's economy and society has benefited from immigration more than any OECD country during the postwar era. Moreover it will continue to be of great significance to national prosperity, productivity and sustainability. However paradigmatic changes are occurring in global international migration systems and if Australia is to continue to maximise benefits from immigration it must continually modify its policies to accommodate those changes. The present project seeks to contribute to this effort by providing a better understanding of the contemporary migration system. Such understanding is a necessary pre-requisite for the timely formulation of effective immigration and settlement policies and programs.Read moreRead less
The Australian Judiciary: A National Socio-Legal Analysis. Courts and judges constitute a key social and legal institution, with a distinctive obligation to maintain the rule of law. The knowledge produced by this research will benefit the judiciary, the courts, government and the public they serve. Research findings will be used by courts and government to shape policy in recruitment, selection and professional development. It will assist individual judicial officers to manage their workload ....The Australian Judiciary: A National Socio-Legal Analysis. Courts and judges constitute a key social and legal institution, with a distinctive obligation to maintain the rule of law. The knowledge produced by this research will benefit the judiciary, the courts, government and the public they serve. Research findings will be used by courts and government to shape policy in recruitment, selection and professional development. It will assist individual judicial officers to manage their workloads and provide valuable information for courts in managing independent professionals. This research will improve public and scholarly understanding of Australia's courts and will help sustain an institution essential for safeguarding Australia.
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Regulatory Federalism and Public Policy: The Transformation of Australian Intergovernmental Relations. Intergovernmental relations impinge upon most aspects of Australia's public sector, from public finance to policy development, from economic investment to public service delivery. They shape the capacity of government to produce good policies and services- from childcare to aged care, from schools to power stations, from business regulation to environmental management, from workplace safety to ....Regulatory Federalism and Public Policy: The Transformation of Australian Intergovernmental Relations. Intergovernmental relations impinge upon most aspects of Australia's public sector, from public finance to policy development, from economic investment to public service delivery. They shape the capacity of government to produce good policies and services- from childcare to aged care, from schools to power stations, from business regulation to environmental management, from workplace safety to highway maintenance. A better understanding of the changing federal system is essential for improving the benefits - better policies, more efficient programs and more responsive decisions - that Australians expect from their governments.Read moreRead less