Crafting Authoritarian Politics. Although Russia is nominally a democracy, strong elements of authoritarianism remain dominant. This project examines how Russia has accommodated these authoritarian themes within a representative democracy and, more generally, seeks to shed new light on the process of democratization in postcommunist societies. Russia is the 8th largest country in the world by population and the 11th largest economy based on GDP; it also remains nuclear-armed. Understanding th ....Crafting Authoritarian Politics. Although Russia is nominally a democracy, strong elements of authoritarianism remain dominant. This project examines how Russia has accommodated these authoritarian themes within a representative democracy and, more generally, seeks to shed new light on the process of democratization in postcommunist societies. Russia is the 8th largest country in the world by population and the 11th largest economy based on GDP; it also remains nuclear-armed. Understanding the dynamics of democratization in Russia has implications for political stability across a large section of the world which is currently in transition from authoritarianism to democracy.Read moreRead less
International interventions: ethical, legal and political issues. The project is the first stage of a larger study in partnership with Canadian researchers. The pilot will develop case studies showing the political, ethical and legal issues currently influencing intervention within other States for peacekeeping, peacemaking or humanitarian reasons. There is currently no internationally agreed legal, ethical or political code underlying such decisions to intervene. Humanitarian disasters are like ....International interventions: ethical, legal and political issues. The project is the first stage of a larger study in partnership with Canadian researchers. The pilot will develop case studies showing the political, ethical and legal issues currently influencing intervention within other States for peacekeeping, peacemaking or humanitarian reasons. There is currently no internationally agreed legal, ethical or political code underlying such decisions to intervene. Humanitarian disasters are likely to increase with the proliferation of new states and re-emergence of ethnic and religious intolerance. Australia's defence policy recognises that peacekeeping is a significant function for our armed forces. Australia should influence thinking on when the international community should act.Read moreRead less
Comparative Border Studies. While borders are of increasing interest to Australian scholars and policy-makers, much existing research in Australia is focused on issues of border security or border integrity. There is an urgent need to supplement this work with theoretical and empirical insights drawn from the field of border studies. North America is a key site for international research in this field. Collaboration with North American scholars is thus an important step in developing and expandi ....Comparative Border Studies. While borders are of increasing interest to Australian scholars and policy-makers, much existing research in Australia is focused on issues of border security or border integrity. There is an urgent need to supplement this work with theoretical and empirical insights drawn from the field of border studies. North America is a key site for international research in this field. Collaboration with North American scholars is thus an important step in developing and expanding Australian expertise in border studies. This project will provide the intellectual environment and collaborative networks necessary to establish the first dedicated Centre for Border Studies in Australia.Read moreRead less
The differential impact of performance-based and size-based funding of university research in Australia and Germany. The project will significantly increase knowledge about organisational and individual responses to systems of financing university research. A comparison of University research in Australia to a 'ground state' of research that has not been affected by evaluation-based funding will assist Australian policy makers to better manage the use of tax payer dollars to fund research. The ....The differential impact of performance-based and size-based funding of university research in Australia and Germany. The project will significantly increase knowledge about organisational and individual responses to systems of financing university research. A comparison of University research in Australia to a 'ground state' of research that has not been affected by evaluation-based funding will assist Australian policy makers to better manage the use of tax payer dollars to fund research. The project will identify adaptive behaviour, and will thus support the discussion about possible consequences of the upcoming new Research Quality Framework in Australia. German science policy will benefit from insights into the long-term effects of formula-based funding that cannot as yet be observed in Germany.Read moreRead less
A comparative study on women's policy machinery in Korea and Australia. This project aims to contribute to the better understanding of women's policy machinery in Korea and Australia in order to develop more effective policymaking and implementation. This topic is theoretically and empirically under researched. The project, as a major comparative study on women's policies in two countries will make a significant contribution to the understanding of women's policy making process in a specific nat ....A comparative study on women's policy machinery in Korea and Australia. This project aims to contribute to the better understanding of women's policy machinery in Korea and Australia in order to develop more effective policymaking and implementation. This topic is theoretically and empirically under researched. The project, as a major comparative study on women's policies in two countries will make a significant contribution to the understanding of women's policy making process in a specific national context. This research will investigate the relevance of national machineries for the advancement of women. Appropriate mechanisms through which the mainstreaming of gender can take place are considered, and the levels of governance involved - the relationship between gender mainstreaming and state structures, and the effect of this relationship on policy implementation will be examined. Thus, this research will contribute to the better understanding of how and by what processes women's interests are represented to the state policy making structures.Read moreRead less
China and Latin America: New Challenges and Opportunities for Australia. This project examines the growing international influence and strength of one of Australia's most strategically important neighbours, the People's Republic of China. Emerging commercial and diplomatic alliances between China and Latin America pose economic and political challenges for Australia and other resource exporters. This research consolidates Australia's reputation as a leader in the field of China Studies by clarif ....China and Latin America: New Challenges and Opportunities for Australia. This project examines the growing international influence and strength of one of Australia's most strategically important neighbours, the People's Republic of China. Emerging commercial and diplomatic alliances between China and Latin America pose economic and political challenges for Australia and other resource exporters. This research consolidates Australia's reputation as a leader in the field of China Studies by clarifying the nature of these challenges over the next five to ten years. The project will produce academic seminars in Sydney, Guadalajara, and Monterrey; the exchange of Australian and Mexican scholars, and joint publications in a field of study that bears direct relevance to the national interests of both countries.Read moreRead less
Melpa Kang Rom: A chanted narrative genre from Highland New Guinea and its role in contemporary electoral politics. Across a large region of Highland PNG there are flourishing traditions of chanted tales. These are the subject of a current ARC Discovery project based at ANU, which focuses on both the poetic features of these genres and on their political uses. We seek to augment this project through the participation of Dr. Joseph Ketan, an anthropologist with unique qualifications in that he co ....Melpa Kang Rom: A chanted narrative genre from Highland New Guinea and its role in contemporary electoral politics. Across a large region of Highland PNG there are flourishing traditions of chanted tales. These are the subject of a current ARC Discovery project based at ANU, which focuses on both the poetic features of these genres and on their political uses. We seek to augment this project through the participation of Dr. Joseph Ketan, an anthropologist with unique qualifications in that he comes from the project area, with an insider's knowledge of a local genre of chanted tales and its contexts of use in electoral campaigns, and with extensive previous research in relevant areas of political anthropology. The project will contribute to the cross-cultural study of verbal art, and to and the understanding of contemporary electoral politics in PNG.Read moreRead less
Echoes of the earliest Homo sapiens movement out of Africa. The "Out of Africa" and "Multiregional Evolution" theories have proposed sharply different accounts for the origins of our species Homo sapiens. These have converged on opposite readings of the Australian human fossil record. Recent perspectives resulting from research on Pleistocene Australian mitochondrial DNA, and by osteologists on early Homo sapiens remains in Africa and Israel, hint at a chapter, as yet unwritten, in our species' ....Echoes of the earliest Homo sapiens movement out of Africa. The "Out of Africa" and "Multiregional Evolution" theories have proposed sharply different accounts for the origins of our species Homo sapiens. These have converged on opposite readings of the Australian human fossil record. Recent perspectives resulting from research on Pleistocene Australian mitochondrial DNA, and by osteologists on early Homo sapiens remains in Africa and Israel, hint at a chapter, as yet unwritten, in our species' Late Pleistocene dispersal from Africa. This project's collaborative research on fossils from Sri Lanka and Australasia will explore and test the implications for the colonisation history of the Indian Ocean region.Read moreRead less
The Future of Oceans Governance in Polar Areas. Australia has a compelling national interest in maintaining its sovereignty and security in the Antarctic. Australian government goals include maintaining the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS); enhancing Australia's influence within the system; protecting the Antarctic environment; understanding the role of Antarctica in the global climate system; and undertaking scientific work of practical, economic and national significance. This project directly ad ....The Future of Oceans Governance in Polar Areas. Australia has a compelling national interest in maintaining its sovereignty and security in the Antarctic. Australian government goals include maintaining the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS); enhancing Australia's influence within the system; protecting the Antarctic environment; understanding the role of Antarctica in the global climate system; and undertaking scientific work of practical, economic and national significance. This project directly addresses national research priorities through analysis of oceans governance issues that centre on Australian interests. This project will also contribute to national benefit by focusing on issues central to the International Polar Year.Read moreRead less
User-Driven Composition of Web Services. Web service composition technology promises to revolutionise the way in which organisations interact over the Web. However existing environments for the composition of Web services are too complex to use and are usually intended for experienced application developers as they rely either on scripting languages, or on a process-modelling notations intended to be used by IT experts. However, the need for customised composition of Web services is likely to em ....User-Driven Composition of Web Services. Web service composition technology promises to revolutionise the way in which organisations interact over the Web. However existing environments for the composition of Web services are too complex to use and are usually intended for experienced application developers as they rely either on scripting languages, or on a process-modelling notations intended to be used by IT experts. However, the need for customised composition of Web services is likely to emanate from non IT-experts.
The project aims at designing, implementing, and evaluating an environment for the specification and execution of composite Web services by non-expert.Read moreRead less