Opinion Pieces | Page 6 | Australian Policy and History Network

Looking Back, Looking Forward: The Importance of the History of the Left in the Present Day

By Jon Piccini, Evan Smith and Matthew Worley* One of the outcomes of the populist shift to the right in many areas of the West has been a corresponding shift to the left. Since the 2008 global financial crisis, many traditional social democratic and labour parties have suffered from what has been described as ‘Pasokification’: […]

Political Campaigning: Less Has Changed Than You Might Think

By Chris Monnox* Australian election campaigns are highly disciplined affairs. They mobilise large numbers of people, but there is little that is unruly about them. Gaffes and slip-ups prove newsworthy precisely because they are unusual. It is true that campaign organisers increasingly speak the language of grassroots empowerment, but as election scholar Stephen Mills observes, […]

Senator Fulbright, We Need You Now

By Professor Joan Dassin* International students offer a glimmer of hope in the current Trumpian, post-Brexit era. Despite the rise of anti-immigrant rhetoric and newly restrictive visa policies in some Western countries, the demand for international higher education remains strong. In 2015 4.6 million globally mobile students were studying abroad, a nearly five-fold increase from the […]

Australia’s Long-Held Stake in Timor-Leste’s Oil

Few political matters could claim to be more incendiary than Australia’s actions in the Timor Sea over recent decades. The media emphasis on the maritime boundary dispute over access to oil and gas reserves in the Timor Sea has led to a commonly held view that Australian oil interests began there during the first sea […]

Humanitarian Emergency Aid: Lessons from the Indian Ocean Tsunami

*By Professor Matthew Clarke Over the last decade, 400 natural and human-caused disasters have killed more than 100,000 people and affected a further 120 million annually. Many of these events are natural disasters ranging from volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and cyclones to flooding and droughts. The international community provides significant resources to assist local communities impacted […]

Decisive New South Wales government action solved the electricity crisis, but that was in 1950

By Dr Ken Thornton* In Australia in 2018, barring the consequences of extreme weather events or equipment malfunctions, the light always comes on when you flick the switch. As a residential consumer, your PC or Mac fires up when you want to check your emails or do some writing. Electricity is always there when you […]

Multiple Choice: Complementary Medicine in Contemporary Australia

By Dr Richard Trembath* Federation University I was once told never start an article with an anecdote, but, as this is an opinion piece, I shall ignore that advice. In the mid-1990s, when working at RMIT, I was asked to liaise with a leading Melbourne naturopath to establish a TAFE level course in naturopathy at […]

Cozying up to the Bomb

Nuclear Glam - David Lowe examines the growing commodification of the Cold War

Anzac: Who’s In, Who’s Out?

By Dr Richard Trembath Almost four decades ago, when Malcom Fraser was riding high as Prime Minister, my wife shared an office with a young woman, a strong feminist. This young woman was one of those who protested on 25th April 1981 against the omission from the Anzac story of the sexual violence committed […]

Vanuatu in Australian Consciousness: A History of Close Ties and Forgotten Links

Associate Professor Helen Gardner, Deakin University Today the island nations of Melanesia rarely figure in Australia’s consciousness. Despite our geographical proximity they seem distant places in terms of relevance or significance. The islands are only news when viewed through our global strategic interests or when natural disasters strike. So the suggestion that the Chinese might seek […]

The little people of NSW’s Firearms Act 1936

by Emily Gallagher

Australia’s Scholarships to Indonesia – Value and Values

by Anna Kent