The First 'Liberals': Stoicism in the Enlightenment. This project will provide the first systematic study of the profound yet hitherto under-appreciated influence of classical Stoicism on the political thought of the European Enlightenment, particularly liberal thought. It will show that the Stoics provided the first properly developed theory of personal rights and were the first to successfully promulgate the values of universalism, impartiality, egalitarianism, tolerance and cosmopolitanism. I ....The First 'Liberals': Stoicism in the Enlightenment. This project will provide the first systematic study of the profound yet hitherto under-appreciated influence of classical Stoicism on the political thought of the European Enlightenment, particularly liberal thought. It will show that the Stoics provided the first properly developed theory of personal rights and were the first to successfully promulgate the values of universalism, impartiality, egalitarianism, tolerance and cosmopolitanism. It will then trace the transmission and interpretation of such values in early modern thought and demonstrate the manner in which Enlightenment figures like Locke, Smith, Wollstonecraft, Kant and Jefferson were directly influenced by the emancipatory political thought of the Stoics. Read moreRead less
A Colonial and Conceptual History of Asymmetric Warfare and Security. War and terrorism feature prominently in popular, political and scholarly perceptions of Australia's colonial past and its geopolitical future. Our understanding of what constitutes war and terrorism emerged from a long colonial and conceptual history of Western international and political thought. The national and community benefits of this program of research derive precisely from its ability to link the uniqueness of Austra ....A Colonial and Conceptual History of Asymmetric Warfare and Security. War and terrorism feature prominently in popular, political and scholarly perceptions of Australia's colonial past and its geopolitical future. Our understanding of what constitutes war and terrorism emerged from a long colonial and conceptual history of Western international and political thought. The national and community benefits of this program of research derive precisely from its ability to link the uniqueness of Australia's colonial history to its global context, and to use both to provide new insight into current debates on terrorism and security that are integral to Australia's capacity to interpret itself to the rest of the world.Read moreRead less
An Intellectual History of Political Corruption. The project will bring expert historical and conceptual knowledge to bear on the shortcomings of current policy debates, thereby suggesting new possibilities for re-defining and clarifying the problem of corruption and the meaning of good governance.
Understanding and Addressing Informal Voting in Victoria. Victoria's informal vote rate is high and rising. In order to combat the problem of hundreds of thousands of 'lost votes' at Victorian state and local government elections we must first understand it. This collaboration with the Victorian Electoral Commission addresses the problem at both state and local levels over 3 election periods using 4 distinct studies. We combine experimental data, aggregate-level data and individual-level data to ....Understanding and Addressing Informal Voting in Victoria. Victoria's informal vote rate is high and rising. In order to combat the problem of hundreds of thousands of 'lost votes' at Victorian state and local government elections we must first understand it. This collaboration with the Victorian Electoral Commission addresses the problem at both state and local levels over 3 election periods using 4 distinct studies. We combine experimental data, aggregate-level data and individual-level data to provide a thorough and multi-dimensional picture of informal voting. We will then propose remedies to be trialled and assessed. Taken together, our studies will represent the first multi-dimensional analysis of informality to be conducted in any Western democracy.
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Strengthening Australia's national integrity system. Strengthening Australia's national integrity system. This project aims to equip governments and civil society stakeholders with evidence-based options to improve the structure and operations of integrity institutions, by undertaking a second National Integrity System Assessment. Public integrity is vital to social and economic prosperity and the quality of democracy. This project intends to identify new, more effective strategies to prevent co ....Strengthening Australia's national integrity system. Strengthening Australia's national integrity system. This project aims to equip governments and civil society stakeholders with evidence-based options to improve the structure and operations of integrity institutions, by undertaking a second National Integrity System Assessment. Public integrity is vital to social and economic prosperity and the quality of democracy. This project intends to identify new, more effective strategies to prevent corruption and other integrity violations; coordinate the work of integrity institutions; ensure their accountability; and measure the effectiveness of integrity and anti-corruption policy settings. This research is expected to contribute to better evaluation of integrity policies worldwide.Read moreRead less
Realising socio-economic rights: law and the politics of access to public services in Indonesia. This project seeks to identify the conditions under which justiciable legal frameworks or socio-economic rights are effective in promoting realisation of these rights in developing countries. The empirical focus is on Indonesia during the post-Suharto era and rights related to free basic education, water, and free health care for the poor.
Building an Indian Ocean region. The Indian Ocean Region, of vital geopolitical importance to Australia, is the heart of the Third World - overwhelmed by chronic poverty, precarious political systems, and conflicting ethno-religious identities. This project will document attempts at constructing regional identities and institutions, and facilitate the process of 'building' a secure Region.
Expanding equality: A historical perspective on developments and dilemmas in contemporary Australian social democracy. This project will be the first to analyse how successive Labor governments’ policy perspectives on equality (including class, gender, race, sexuality, technological and regional inequality) have changed and expanded over time. It will throw new light on contemporary Australian Labor Party at a time when some critics accuse Labor of betraying its egalitarian traditions due to the ....Expanding equality: A historical perspective on developments and dilemmas in contemporary Australian social democracy. This project will be the first to analyse how successive Labor governments’ policy perspectives on equality (including class, gender, race, sexuality, technological and regional inequality) have changed and expanded over time. It will throw new light on contemporary Australian Labor Party at a time when some critics accuse Labor of betraying its egalitarian traditions due to the influence of neoliberal ideology, while others accuse Labor of neglecting workers by pursuing minority social issues. It will provide a distinctive Australian contribution to the international literatures on the crisis of social democracy (by exploring the role of equality policy developments in that crisis) and on how inequality is best conceived and addressed in policy.Read moreRead less
Pacific Partners? The Australia-New Zealand alliance in the Pacific Islands. This project aims to investigate how alliances operate and why they endure using an in-depth analysis of the Australia-New Zealand alliance in the Pacific Islands, the region where the alliance has focused and in which there is growing strategic and policy interest. It intends to build a micro-level analysis of the influence of the behaviors and beliefs of individuals onto existing conceptual accounts. Informed by exten ....Pacific Partners? The Australia-New Zealand alliance in the Pacific Islands. This project aims to investigate how alliances operate and why they endure using an in-depth analysis of the Australia-New Zealand alliance in the Pacific Islands, the region where the alliance has focused and in which there is growing strategic and policy interest. It intends to build a micro-level analysis of the influence of the behaviors and beliefs of individuals onto existing conceptual accounts. Informed by extensive interviews, it expects to advance understanding of how the two states negotiate differences in approaches and interests while working together to preserve their security. It anticipates pinpointing strengths and vulnerabilities in the alliance and contributing to a more informed policy debate about how it should operate.Read moreRead less
In the frame: Analysing Liberal and Labor government gender equality policy. This project aims to analyse how Australia’s major political parties have developed government gender equality policy since the early 1970s. The analysis will include a focus on how policies were framed and the outcomes associated with that framing. The project will contribute to an improved understanding of the development and outcomes of gender equality policies and make an original Australian contribution to the i ....In the frame: Analysing Liberal and Labor government gender equality policy. This project aims to analyse how Australia’s major political parties have developed government gender equality policy since the early 1970s. The analysis will include a focus on how policies were framed and the outcomes associated with that framing. The project will contribute to an improved understanding of the development and outcomes of gender equality policies and make an original Australian contribution to the international academic literature on issues ranging of gender equality policy and policy framing.Read moreRead less