Understanding and Costing Offending Trajectories: Creating an Evidence-Base for Targeting Crime Prevention. The research will provide an evidence-base for targeting diversionary and crime prevention programs and for assessing their cost-effectiveness. Many of these programs have resulted in a range of beneficial outcomes and they are receiving increased government funding. By providing a better understanding of offending pathways, the research will enable programs to be targeted towards particul ....Understanding and Costing Offending Trajectories: Creating an Evidence-Base for Targeting Crime Prevention. The research will provide an evidence-base for targeting diversionary and crime prevention programs and for assessing their cost-effectiveness. Many of these programs have resulted in a range of beneficial outcomes and they are receiving increased government funding. By providing a better understanding of offending pathways, the research will enable programs to be targeted towards particular at-risk groups at crucial developmental phases. The innovative longitudinal costing method that will be developed and applied in the Queensland context will enable an assessment of the cost-effectiveness of diversionary and crime prevention programs. This will provide a sound empirical basis for directing scarce government resources.Read moreRead less
Whistling While They Work: Enhancing the Theory and Practice of Internal Witness Management in Public Sector Organisations. The protection of whistleblowers and other internal witnesses to corruption, misconduct and maladministration is a great unsolved problem in public sector governance. Involving 11 integrity institutions, this first national study of internal witness management will describe and compare organisational experience under varying public interest disclosure regimes across the Au ....Whistling While They Work: Enhancing the Theory and Practice of Internal Witness Management in Public Sector Organisations. The protection of whistleblowers and other internal witnesses to corruption, misconduct and maladministration is a great unsolved problem in public sector governance. Involving 11 integrity institutions, this first national study of internal witness management will describe and compare organisational experience under varying public interest disclosure regimes across the Australian public sector. By identifying and promoting current best practice in workplace responses to public interest whistleblowing, the project will use the experience and perceptions of internal witnesses and first- and second-level managers to identify more routine strategies for preventing, reducing and addressing reprisals and other whistleblowing-related conflicts.Read moreRead less
Crime and CCTV in Australia: Understanding the Relationship. Crime costs Australia $32 billion annually (Mayhew, 2003). Increased criminal and terrorist activities, internationally and nationally have caused major breaches of security in public places, resulting in heightened investment in crime prevention strategies including Closed Circuit Television (CCTV). However, rigorous research into CCTV's effectiveness on crimes in public places has not been undertaken. This innovative project will ide ....Crime and CCTV in Australia: Understanding the Relationship. Crime costs Australia $32 billion annually (Mayhew, 2003). Increased criminal and terrorist activities, internationally and nationally have caused major breaches of security in public places, resulting in heightened investment in crime prevention strategies including Closed Circuit Television (CCTV). However, rigorous research into CCTV's effectiveness on crimes in public places has not been undertaken. This innovative project will identify CCTV's impact on crime and key socio-legal issues of security of public places. The outcomes will contribute to an important decision-making model for local, state, and federal departments, and private sector organisations responsible for CCTV and related crime prevention technologies. Read moreRead less
A Prospective Longitudinal Study of Child-Sex Offender Recidivism. The project has important implications for the prevention, prediction and treatment of sexual offences against children. New prevention strategies may be devised through the identification of individual, interpersonal and situational factors involved in sexual offence onset and recidivism. Better prediction models may be used to inform risk assessments for individuals applying to work with children, sentencing decisions involving ....A Prospective Longitudinal Study of Child-Sex Offender Recidivism. The project has important implications for the prevention, prediction and treatment of sexual offences against children. New prevention strategies may be devised through the identification of individual, interpersonal and situational factors involved in sexual offence onset and recidivism. Better prediction models may be used to inform risk assessments for individuals applying to work with children, sentencing decisions involving child-sex offenders, and decisions about the suitability for release of child-sex offenders from prison. Finally, more effective approaches to treatment may be developed from a better understanding of risk factors involved in recidivism.Read moreRead less
Patterns of connectivity and hot-spots of recruitment: a basis for prioritising high value coastal rivers. Provision of water for agricultural, industrial and residential use is becoming increasingly difficult in Australia. By determining the need for important migratory fish species to have access to marine conditions, this project aims to assist managers to identify river systems where changing flow patterns will be particularly detrimental. The project will provide information about the ne ....Patterns of connectivity and hot-spots of recruitment: a basis for prioritising high value coastal rivers. Provision of water for agricultural, industrial and residential use is becoming increasingly difficult in Australia. By determining the need for important migratory fish species to have access to marine conditions, this project aims to assist managers to identify river systems where changing flow patterns will be particularly detrimental. The project will provide information about the need for artificial opening of estuary mouths, fish ladders and other practical means to ensure the continued survival of these species. Read moreRead less
Bulk Mg based hydrogen storage alloys with faster activation. Bulk Mg based hydrogen storage alloys with faster activation. This project aims to improve the performance and efficiency of manufacture of magnesium-based hydrogen storage alloys, making them more cost competitive and widely useable. A hydrogen economy will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality in urban areas. The expected outcomes are an understanding of the mechanisms governing the activation process, a necessary ....Bulk Mg based hydrogen storage alloys with faster activation. Bulk Mg based hydrogen storage alloys with faster activation. This project aims to improve the performance and efficiency of manufacture of magnesium-based hydrogen storage alloys, making them more cost competitive and widely useable. A hydrogen economy will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality in urban areas. The expected outcomes are an understanding of the mechanisms governing the activation process, a necessary step in manufacture, and techniques to exploit these mechanisms to minimise the activation time. This is expected to develop competitive, bulk magnesium-based hydrogen storage alloys for effective and safe hydrogen storage systems.Read moreRead less
Connectivity and movements of large pelagic species of ecotourism value. The project aims to answer key questions about the biology, ecology and sustainability of the world’s manta ray species to provide the information and tools for management and conservation of these charismatic and valuable species. In particular, the project aims to determine the likely impact of climate variability and fisheries that operate to Australia’s north on manta-based ecotourism in the Indo-Pacific region, as clim ....Connectivity and movements of large pelagic species of ecotourism value. The project aims to answer key questions about the biology, ecology and sustainability of the world’s manta ray species to provide the information and tools for management and conservation of these charismatic and valuable species. In particular, the project aims to determine the likely impact of climate variability and fisheries that operate to Australia’s north on manta-based ecotourism in the Indo-Pacific region, as climate change and active low-value fisheries may both jeopardise a high-value ecotourism industry. The project seeks to explore geographic distributions, local and large-scale movements, population sizes, structure, and inter-connectivity in the region to assess the effect of climate and fisheries on manta ray populations.Read moreRead less
A screening human health risk assessment for developing coal seam gas water resources in Queensland, Australia. Due to its rich coal seam deposits, Queensland is projected to become Australia's leading coal seam gas (CSG) producer, contributing significantly to the State's economy and national "clean" energy targets. Over a 30 year period, it is estimated that Queensland's CSG industry could also create by-product water of sufficient volume to beneficially augment the State's future water supply ....A screening human health risk assessment for developing coal seam gas water resources in Queensland, Australia. Due to its rich coal seam deposits, Queensland is projected to become Australia's leading coal seam gas (CSG) producer, contributing significantly to the State's economy and national "clean" energy targets. Over a 30 year period, it is estimated that Queensland's CSG industry could also create by-product water of sufficient volume to beneficially augment the State's future water supply demands. The proposed screening Health Risk Assessment will evaluate the relative risks associated with human exposure to raw and treated CSG by-product water contaminants, informing public debate on this matter, and guide policy development within the complex multi-sector regulatory framework in place for CSG water resource development in Queensland.Read moreRead less
Genomic tools for the emerging tropical rock lobster aquaculture industry. Australia has just developed the skills to farm tropical rock lobsters, a popular celebratory dish in Asia. Our project will boost this industry by developing genetic markers, which later can be used to choose the best stud lobsters for breeding.
An Integrated Large Scale Urban Model and Spatial Decision Support System Simulating Growth and Evaluating Sustainability Outcomes for Southeast Queensland. A large scale urban model and spatial decision support system will be built for the South East Queensland region, Australia's third largest metropolis. GIS and visualisation are used to integrate diverse datasets to simulate real time growth and development patterns over the next 20 years. Population, housing, economic development and jobs g ....An Integrated Large Scale Urban Model and Spatial Decision Support System Simulating Growth and Evaluating Sustainability Outcomes for Southeast Queensland. A large scale urban model and spatial decision support system will be built for the South East Queensland region, Australia's third largest metropolis. GIS and visualisation are used to integrate diverse datasets to simulate real time growth and development patterns over the next 20 years. Population, housing, economic development and jobs growth forecasting models are integrated with a jobs-housing-balance and urban form model to simulate growth and development scenarios that meet multi-criteria sustainability and urban planning objectives. The internet accessible decision support system provides an improved evidence base for developing SEQ to enhance the Smart State Strategy.Read moreRead less