New Research

The role of informal community resources in supporting independent housing for young people recovering from mental illness

30 January 2012This project looks at the housing issues facing young independant people with mental illness.

What are the benefits and risks of home ownership for low-moderate income households?

30 January 2012The study emanated from a concern that popular and political support for home ownership is such that critical questions about the degree to which all home owners realise the projected financial and non-financial benefits of home ownership are rarely asked.

Exploring the use of residual measures of housing affordability in Australia: methodologies and concepts

30 January 2012This essay argues that new approaches to measuring housing affordability are needed and are possible in Australia.

Caring for country: Australian natural and cultural resource management

30 January 2012This issue presents work and ideas from a diverse range of Indigenous and non-Indigenous practitioners, researchers and collaborators who work in central and northern Australia in a range of environments, from local to regional scales.

How do we regenerate middle suburban ‘greyfield’ areas?

30 January 2012This bulletin reveals areas of the country which require major regeneration of residential, energy, water and communications infastructure, better known as 'grey fields'.

Maintaining the common pool: voluntary water conservation in response to increasing scarcity

20 December 2011This paper studies the impact of changing storage levels on urban water usage in the context of a prolonged drought and an extensive public information campaign which emphasized communal responsibility for maintaining ‘dam levels’.

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Climate change

No quick fix for Australia’s future energy challenge

06 February 2012This report sets out the findings of the technology assessments and reviews the implications for government policy in terms of developing and deploying low emissions electricity technology.

Carbon policy assistance reviews: the Commission's tasks

24 January 2012This consultation paper sets out the nature of each of the tasks assigned to the Commission for the Government's Clean Energy Future Package.

Fossil fuel taxes

10 January 2012This paper identifies the fuels that are taxed, the forms that the taxes take and, where possible, quantifies the amounts collected.

Urban planning

Commentary

Big Australia: Governments need to decide if they want 'Green' Australia or 'White' Australia

10 June 2011writes Jo Coghlan.

Who should look after the cities?

06 June 2011The federal government is showing signs of getting back into the urban planning business, reports Margaret Simons in Inside Story

Capital city commuting: time for a review

31 May 2011Uneconomical choices and underperforming assets need a rethink, argues Frank Fisher

More...

Topic Guides

Climate change science 'top ten' sources to build your personal knowledge

  • Stefanie Pillora
  • Australian Centre of Excellence for Local Government

07 November 2011Acknowledging the importance of drawing from credible sources, this guide provides advice on ten reliable and easily accessible sources of research written for non-specialist readers.

The clean energy plan

  • Clean Energy Future

11 July 2011Prime Minister Julia Gillard, Deputy Prime Minister and Treasurer Wayne Swan, and Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency Greg Combet announced the Australian Government’s comprehensive plan for tackling climate change, ‘Securing a clean energy future’.

Guideline on the application of the premises standards - 2011

  • Australian Human Rights Commission

04 April 2011This guide has been issued to help designers, architects, builders and clients to better understand the Disability (Access to Premises - buildings) Standards 2010  which will commence on 1 May 2011.

Audio

Who counts? A history of the census

Listen to audio
04 August 2011Next week Australia holds its census, and so Rear Vision traces the recent history of this ancient institution, to make sense of who counts, and who does the counting.

Bigger cities, bigger slums

Listen to audio
21 July 2011Our increasing urbanisation means a significant growth in the size and number of the world's slums. So, without romanticising the slum, can we make them places fit for living? And do we have any choice?

Sustainability

Victorian Food and Fibre Export Performance: 2010-11 Financial Year

30 January 2012This report is prepared to provide information on the value of Victorian and Australian food and fibre exports.

Video

Seven billion: it's getting crowded in here!

Listen to audio
31 October 2011High density living is great for the environment, right? But what does it do to our heads and hearts? The Australian psyche was moulded by the myth of the ‘wide brown land’, so what might life packed like sardines look and feel like?

Arguing for art: Politics of the ACT government's Percent-For-Art scheme

Listen to audio
13 September 2010ACT Chief Minister and Minister for the Arts Jon Stanhope discusses the ACT Government's Percent-For-Art scheme at a public lecture at The Australian National University on 2 September 2010.

Housing

Websites

Datacite

15 September 2011 DataCite helps researchers to find, access, and reuse data

Census of Population and Housing

04 August 2011This is the official website for matters concerning the 9 August 2011 Census of Population and Housing in Australia.

Australian Social Policy Association (ASPA)

18 July 2011Established to promote debate and to increase understanding of social policy in Australia, the ASPA enables productive collaborations between those working and researching in social policy locally, across the Asia-Pacific region and internationally.

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Books

Cold light

Cold light

  • Frank Moorhouse
  • Random House Australia
Cold Light is about power, secrecy, the mortal struggle between capitalism and communism, – and urban planning. This compelling story is set in the still largely empty spaces of Canberra, a mere 23 years after its founding.
The rational optimist

The rational optimist

  • Matt Ridley
  • Fourth Estate
Predicting disaster has always sold well. But, over the last 10,000 years, things have usually turned out much better than expected.

Noticeboard

Topic Guides

Climate change science 'top ten' sources to build your personal knowledge

  • Stefanie Pillora
  • Australian Centre of Excellence for Local Government

07 November 2011Acknowledging the importance of drawing from credible sources, this guide provides advice on ten reliable and easily accessible sources of research written for non-specialist readers.

Topics

APO