President's Message

There’s a lot to report in what has been a busy and exciting month.

The Academy hosted a terrific event on the 40^th anniversary of Medicare. An impressive group of researchers and policymakers discussed how social science research—especially using new and rich datasets—can strengthen Medicare and improve health outcomes in the future. The slides from the event are now available.

We also hosted the Open Research roundtable in Canberra to connect diverse stakeholders from across government, research funding bodies, peak bodies, the higher education sector and subject matter experts to consider ways to improve research impact and achieve better outcomes for all Australians.

Several of our Fellows received King’s birthday honours—a fitting recognition of their service and accomplishments.

Two of our Fellows received ARC 2024 Laureate Fellowships: Professor Chris Gibson FASSA to examine decarbonisation in regional Australia, and Professor Jacqueline Peel FASSA who received the Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellowship to work on the changes required in international law to support corporate climate accountability.

I was also delighted to see the announcement of the new ARC Board includes two Academy Fellows: Professor Peter Shergold AC FASSA FRSN (Chair) and Distinguished Professor Maggie Walter FASSA.

We have several other upcoming events as well: our AUKUS Symposium will take place 15-16 August in Canberra and further details including the full program are available. On 31 October we are co-hosting an exciting event (at least for the economists among our numbers) with the Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) on tax reform in Sydney. It will also serve as the 2024 Keith Hancock Lecture, to be delivered by Professor Bob Breunig—Australia’s foremost expert on taxation.

I am also pleased to announce that in addition to RMIT as Principal sponsor of Social Sciences Week 2024, they are now joined by UNSW School of Business and School of Humanities and Social Sciences as Gold sponsor, Australian Research Data Commons and the University of Sydney as Silver sponsors, and Western Sydney University, Deakin Business School and UTS School of Communication and School of International Studies and Education as Bronze sponsors. 

Richard Holden
President

Steps to reconciliation

Awards and grants

Paul Bourke Awards for Early Career Research

The Academy's Paul Bourke Awards recognise outstanding early career researchers in the social sciences. These awards honour individuals who have demonstrated excellence in their scholarly work. Applications are open until 31 July. This is an excellent opportunity for emerging researchers to gain recognition for their achievements and contributions to the field.

Workshops Program grants are now open

If you're a social science researcher in Australia, this is a great opportunity to advance your innovative ideas in research and social policy, build your capabilities and establish valuable networks across disciplines. The Academy's Workshops Program grants serve as a catalyst for the development of ideas and collaboration, bringing together established researchers, leaders in their fields and early to mid-career researchers. By fostering connections with practitioners from government, the private sector and the community, these workshops address issues of common concern and advance research and policy agendas.

Each year, up to eight workshops will be funded, providing grants of up to $9,000 AUD.

Applications are due by Friday 9 August 2024.

Academy policy roundtable making an impact

The Australian Government has announced the next phase of the Measuring What Matters statement in a decision that incorporates many of the suggestions put forward by Academy Fellows in a policy roundtable and subsequent submissions over the past year. Specifically, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) will maintain a dashboard of Measuring What Matters indicators and the government’s report will move from annual to triennial reporting to better reflect the irregular collection of many of the indicators. This move also aligns with recommendations from the book More Than Fiscal by Fellows Jane Hall and Andrew Podger with co-author Mike Woods. The ABS will also receive additional funding to re-establish the General Social Survey and to improve collection of other wellbeing indicators.

Events

Exploring AUKUS

Since its inception in 2022, AUKUS has received bipartisan political support, shaping crucial discussions on national security and international relations.

Join us in Canberra from 15-16 August with over 20+ experts as they explore and analyse AUKUS. 

Whether you are involved in policymaking, academic research, or civic engagement, this event promises valuable perspectives and critical analysis on this pivotal international alliance.

2024 Keith Hancock Lecture

Tax reform is a perennially challenging topic, with governments hesitant to make significant change, and experts involved in the discourse often at odds over the best approach to take.

CEDA and the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia invite you to join a discussion on 31 October in Sydney with leading experts as we delve into the historical backdrop that brought us to our current state, examine ways to participate in political dialogue to advance this issue and consider the societal agreement needed to effectively address real tax reform.

The Great Debate is back! 

After the success of the Academy's Social Sciences Week Great Debate in 2023, Does sport unite or divide us?, we will be back at the National Library of Australia on Tuesday 10 September 2024 to do it all again. 

Stay tuned in the coming weeks as we announce the academics and judges involved. There is an exclusive sponsorship opportunity available for this event, contact bonnie.johnson@socialsciences.org.au for more information. 

Our Fellows' achievements

Two of our Fellows have been awarded ARC 2024 Laureate Fellowships. Chris Gibson will focus on exploring decarbonisation in regional Australia, while Jacqueline Peel, as the recipient of the Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellowship, will work on the necessary changes in international law to enhance corporate climate accountability.

Fellows Heather Goodall, Ron Weber and Anne Kavanagh have been recognised for their contributions to academic leadership, the social sciences, research and education in the 2024 King’s Birthday Honours list.

We are delighted to see Academy Fellow Peter Shergold AC appointed as the Chair of the new Australian Research Council Board, with Fellow Maggie Walter also announced as a member of the board.

Congratulations also to Academy Fellow Frederik Anseel on being appointed Dean of UNSW Business School.

Read, listen and attend

Read

The Council of Deans of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities (DASSH) have released two new reports on the impacts and outcomes of Humanities, Arts and Social Science in Australia and in Aotearoa New Zealand. These reports are based on data gathered from a wide range of sources, including Quality Indicators for Learning and Teaching surveys, industry reports, graduate testimonials and national arts participation surveys and provide valuable new information on graduate career outcomes and other economic impacts.

In 2023, Fellow Mark Considine and co-convenors held an Academy-funded workshop that explored the transition to a 'digital first' welfare system in Australia. The discussions focused on the balance between automation and human judgment in welfare services, addressing efficiency, digital exclusion risks, and ethical transparency in algorithmic decision-making. The full report Digital Governance of Welfare-to-Work Services is now available.

Watch

Last month we hosted a collaborative webinar on Exploring Indigenous Research: Conducting ethical research and improving access of research outcomes to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples with AIATSIS. Watch the recording now.

Listen

Listen to Fellow Megan Davis on the Change Happens podcast as she explores what happens when change doesn’t occur and the lessons she has learned about engaging with the heart, and not just the head.

Hear Academy Fellow Andrew Podger give an about the operation of the public service, particularly in the wake of Robodebt in the most recent episode of The Westminster Tradition podcast.

Vale

The Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia.

We acknowledge and pay our respects to the traditional owners of the land on which our national office is located, the Ngunnawal and Ngambri peoples, and

to their elders past and present.