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Dear Fellows and friends,
Congratulations to the four outstanding social science researchers who were awarded Paul Bourke Awards for Early Career Research during the Academy’s Social Sciences Week celebrations last month. You can read more about recipients Dr Luke Ney (Psychology, Queensland University of Technology) , Dr Sarah Lawless (Ocean Governance, James Cook University), Dr Christopher Hoy (Economics, University of Melbourne) and Dr Jessica O’Leary (History, Monash University) here.
We extend our thanks to everyone who helped make this year's Social Sciences Week program such a success. More than 60 events were delivered across the country by 26 organisations, bringing researchers, practitioners, policymakers and communities together to explore the ideas shaping our future. The Academy funded seven innovative events through the Social Sciences Week Spark Grants program, assisting fresh voices and conversations to flourish.
Thank you to our valued sponsors, RMIT University, the University of Sydney, Macquarie University and Western Sydney University whose support helped make Social Sciences Week so expansive. RMIT University partnered with the Academy and The Australasian Council of Deans of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities (DASSH) to host a Social Sciences Week launch event The First Inventors: How People Shaped a Content featuring Professor Larissa Behrendt AO FASSA. With an audience of nearly 200 attendees at the National Library of Australia, the Great Debate yet again proved to be a highlight of the Social Sciences Week program. Experts debated the topic Australian Politics is Alive and Well. Read more here.
I was also delighted to present on the Academy’s Social Sciences for Australia's Future Report at the DASSH Annual Conference during the week, highlighting the Academy's work in promoting social sciences across the school, VET, Higher Education and Research sectors.
Thanks and congratulations to Professor Rae Cooper AO FASSA who presented the 2026 Keith Hancock Lecture at the Conservatorium of Music in Sydney last week. A video recording of Professor Cooper's lecture, Let's talk about flex: How 'Good Flex' builds sustainable careers and better workplaces, will be published on the Academy's YouTube channel next week.
Finally, a reminder to book now for the Academy’s Welcome to New Fellows and Annual Dinner, both being held on 11 November at the State Library of Victoria. Scroll down for more information and registration links. |
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Professor Robert (Bob) Wood FASSA has been awarded a Leverhulme Trust Visiting Professorship for six months at University of St Andrews, Scotland. During his visit, Professor Wood will deliver a series of workshops on social cognitive theory for research students and early career academics at St Andrews and other universities in the surrounding area.
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Professor Robert Breunig FASSA has been appointed the 2027 Visiting Professor of Australian Studies at Seoul National University’s Graduate School of International Studies, announced by the Hon Senator Penny Wong on 2 September.
The Visiting Professor of Australian Studies was established through a partnership between Seoul National University, the Australia–Korea Foundation, and Woodside Energy. It is a flagship initiative designed to deepen academic and cultural connections between Australia and the Republic of Korea.
Read more here.
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Professor Jane McAdam AO FASSA has been awarded the 2026 Gerda Henkel Prize, one of the world's most prestigious awards in the humanities and social sciences. The award recognises Jane's ground-breaking scholarship on displacement, including in the context of climate change and disasters, and its impact has had on law, policy and practice globally, including through leadership in founding the Kaldor Centre. Professor McAdam AO will receive the Prize at a ceremony in Düsseldorf on 23 November 2026, where she will also deliver an oration.
Read more here.
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Fay Gale Lecture
Representational Harm: Advertising and the Gendered Drivers of Violence Against Women
Thursday 29 October
4.00pm - 6.00pm
Adelaide University
Associate Professor Lauren Gurrieri proposes representational harm as a way of understanding how advertising, as an institution, comes to constitute harmful gender norms and shift the threshold of what counts as acceptable – and how it does so out of the very objections raised against it.
Register to attend the Fay Gale Lecture
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Rethinking Working Time
Productivity, Fairness and Wellbeing Conference
Thursday 12 November
9.00am - 4.00pm
University of Melbourne
Bringing together experts across economics, history, industrial relations, sociology and law, the event will create space for timely and practical conversations between research, policy and industry on the future of work. Across a full day of discussions, speakers will explore how working time has evolved, and where it is heading in an era shaped by productivity pressures, care demands and rapid technological change.
Register to attend Rethinking Working Time.
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Borrie Lecture
The Missing Demographic Revolution: Gender Equality and Australia's Future
Thursday 19 November
5.15pm - 7.00pm
Shine Dome, Canberra
Drawing on longitudinal research on parental leave, workplace flexibility, gender attitudes and the division of unpaid labour, Professor Janeen Baxter FASSA will show that family-friendly policies help families manage competing demands but do not fundamentally redistribute care responsibilities between women and men. Professor Baxter argues that future reforms should move beyond family-friendly policies towards gender-equality policies.
Register to attend the Borrie Lecture. |
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September Policy activities
Following an initial roundtable in April, the Academy convened a second policy roundtable on Tuesday 22 September to support the development of the Department of Education’s First Nations Education Policy. The online event brought together leading Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander scholars and practitioners to provide feedback on the draft policy and its implementation.
To support the Department of Industry, Science and Resources’ consultation on Horizon Europe implementation, the Academy held a Fellows consultation on 7 September. The discussion explored ways to maximise Australia’s participation, including the design and functions of the National Contact Point network and a potential role for the Academy. Feedback from the session informed the President’s contribution to a Learned Academies roundtable and the Academy’s written advice to the department. |
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The Academy made a submission to the Australian Tertiary Education Commission’s Review of Research Requirements: ‘Australian University Category’ Consultation Paper in September.
View the full submission here. |
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Building a Social Science Agenda for Challenge-Led Science, Research and Innovation Policy in Australia is a new report led by Professor Rob Raven FASSA and bringing together insights from researchers, policymakers and practitioners across Australia and internationally.
This workshop received funding from the Academy's Workshops Program Grant
View the report here. |
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Open Science at the ABS Program
Applications close: 31 October 2026
Applications are now open for the Open Science at the ABS Program, a new initiative to expand access to integrated data research infrastructure, build researcher capability and strengthen open science collaboration across Australia.
Delivered through a co-investment partnership between the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC), the initiative aims to create a more connected, capable and sustainable integrated data research ecosystem. Researchers will have the opportunity to develop their skills and confidence in working with integrated data, collaborate with peers across institutions, and contribute resources that support future research.
Further information is available on the Open Science at the ABS webpage.
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Handbook on Corruption, Ethics and Integrity in Public Administration (Second edition)
Professor Adam Graycar FASSA (Editor and contributor)
This thoroughly updated and revised second edition Handbook examines how corruption shapes and challenges public administration around the world. Providing fresh insights into the exploration of corruption, global contributors discuss what it looks like, why it persists and how it can be addressed.
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Have news to share?
Reminder to all Fellows: do you have information about events, publications and news articles you would like to share with the social sciences community? If we know about it, we can share it! Email info@socialsciences.org.au with subject line: Information for Academy Newsletter. |
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