In the aftermath of the attack in Christchurch, the behaviour of some political figures has been laudable while that of others has been appalling. In this post originally published on The Conversation, Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow at ANU, reminds us that for a society to stand together against hate, robust political leadership is required.
Read MoreSocial policy influences our perceptions of the world. It determines which and how we address human needs and challenges. With a Federal election around the corner in Australia, this post looks at Universal Basic Income – one of the three main policies of a U.S. 2020 Democratic Presidential candidate – and asks: could it be an opportunity to reconsider what work means to us? This post was written by UNSW Scientia PhD scholar and Power to Persuade moderator Axelle Marjolin.
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Throughout the month of February, Good Shepherd Australia New Zealand hosted Farwha Nielsen, a Danish cross-cultural dialogue and mediation specialist, in a series of events which explored an innovative model of family work to support individuals impacted by forced marriage. Here Laura Vidal (@lauraemilyvidal) of Good Shepherd Australia New Zealand discusses how the model could fill gaps in Australia’s current criminal response to forced marriage.
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Sharynne Hamilton, Deb Cleland and Valerie Braithwaite explain how their research shows that courtesy stigma against community workers who work with child protection officials may be a significant barrier to effectively helping children and families.
Read MoreProfessor Paul Smyth is one of our Social Policy Whisperers and in this post he addresses the rise and falls of the social inclusion agenda.
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Recently the Inquiry into The Practice of Dowry and the Incidence of Dowry Abuse in Australia published its final report. While forms of dowry are practiced in many countries and cultural contexts, it is unknown how wide-spread the practice is within Australia. Of particular concern is the ways that it can intersect with domestic and family violence, and with economic abuse in particular. In today’s post, Marie Segrave (@MSegrave) of Monash University and Laura Vidal (@LauraEmilyVidal) of Good Shepherd Australia New Zealand and Monash University provide context for an effective response.
Read MoreFeminism has developed strong concepts that can also help strengthen and improve policy implementation. Particularly around giving space to the diverse array of actors in the policy space, who bring with them different cultures, norms and voices. A post by Assoc. Prof Gemma Carey, Co-director of Research at the Centre for Social Impact, UNSW.
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In the wake of the conference Reimagining Public Administration: First Peoples, governance and new paradigms, ANZSOG has released an extensive set of free resources containing photos, videos and slides from their speakers.
Read MoreIn the wake of recent allegations of lack of accountability in the commissioning of mental health services by Primary Health Networks, Dr Karen Gardner from the Public Service Research Group at UNSW Canberra argues that PHNs are in the invidious position of having significant responsibility for health system improvement but few of the levers required to do it.
Read MoreDoes art have the power to persuade? You bet! In a slightly left-of-field blog entry for P2P, today’s post features a piece by Sasha Grishin, Adjunct Professor of Art History, Australian National University that originally appeared in the Conversation. In it, Sasha reviews an exhibition of work by prolific Australian artist Ben Quilty that invites important questions about the role of art in bringing compassion to the front of national debate.
Read MoreAfter a string of data breaches in 2018, privacy and protecting people’s information became a hot issue which shows no signs of abating. Digital privacy made a global 2019 top ten list of technology trends and GDPR was the data privacy acronym of the year.
In the second of a four-part series, The Mandarin explores the online privacy landscape and how building and maintaining trust means empowering consumers and citizens.
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December being a difficult month for many people who feel under pressure to socialise and be merry whilst feeling lonely, was an apt time to launch UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) cross-disciplinary Loneliness and Social Isolation Mental Health Network, of which the University of Birmingham is a part. Dr Sarah Carr explores the theme of loneliness and living with mental health problems in a re-posted blog originally hosted on the Institute for Mental Health website.
Read MoreInstagram is to ban graphic self-harm images following the suicide of UK teen Molly Russell. In this piece re-published from the Conversation, and picked up by UK news company The Sun, Dr Anna Lavis and Dr Rachel Winter discuss the complex relationship between self-harm and social media, and how a knee-jerk ban on content could actually harm young people.
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Imagine getting turned away for not having a broken-enough leg. There would be complete outrage, but yet for people with eating disorders this is happening on a day to day basis. People are turned away for not being “sick” enough. We know a healthy BMI is 18.5 or above but yet some places in the UK are turning people away if their BMI is about 14! In this post, Hope Virgo (the Author of Stand Tall Little Girl and Mental Health Campaigner) shares her experience and talks about her #DumpTheScales campaign.
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There has been a growing focus on mental health and wellbeing in the workplace in the UK. The role of employers in relation to mental health and wellbeing is becoming increasingly pronounced and the business sector is responding to shifts in both policy and public opinion. As 2019 gets underway, employers may be deciding to scale up their business model, or be making plans to remain agile in difficult and unpredictable markets. In this re-post from employee benefits, Dr Sarah-Jane Fenton and Professor Fiona Carmichael suggest that central to those strategic objectives, and not as an afterthought, needs to be a serious consideration about how to support employees’ mental health and social wellbeing.
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In the lead-up to International Women’s Day on March 8th, today’s post explores how both the rates and the impacts of family violence are unequally experienced due to the overlap of multiple oppressive structures, including race, immigration status, socio-economic status, experience of a disability, and homophobia/transphobia. Sophie Yates (@MsSophieRae) of the Public Service Research Group (@PSResearchG) at UNSW Canberra provides an overview of intersecting structures can have profound impacts on how violence is experienced, perpetrated, and responded to, and argues that such experiences must be acknowledged and understood by policymakers and support services in order to right these inequities.
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Earlier this month, the Senate Inquiry into ParentsNext, including its trial and subsequent national rollout published its first round of submissions. This follows months of public scrutiny after the program’s national rollout in July 2018. Monique Hurley (@monique_hurley) and Adrianne Walters (@AdrianneHRLC) summarise the joint submission of SNAICC – National Voice for our Children (@SNAICC), the National Family Violence Prevention Legal Services Forum (@NationalFVPLS) and the Human Rights Law Centre (@rightsagenda), to the Inquiry, which recommends that the program be scrapped. The full joint submission can be viewed here, while submissions made to the Senate Inquiry by other organisations can be viewed here.
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Effective climate change action needs a lot of money. However, in the Pacific it is not just about delivering dollars. Kirsty Anantharajah gives us three key problems with global climate financing approaches, and offers three possible pathways out.
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The NDIS has failed to live up to expectations in many areas, none more so than disability employment. In a blunt and honest piece, long-term disability employment advocate Jeff Thompson from LEAD tell us why jobs are so important, and three things that would lead to an employment friendly NDIS.
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Childcare policy is always fraught, because so many people want it to be better, but everyone has their own ideas about what is needed. Yarrow Andrew, who worked for 15 years in long day childcare as an educator, before beginning a research career investigating early childhood education gives us some ideas about how to reform the sector.
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