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Will social impact bonds change the world?
The concept has spread like wildfire but the results, here and overseas, are mixed, reports Mike Steketee NSW PREMIER Mike Baird says they have the “potential to change the world.” When he was still social services minister, Scott Morrison said he was “very keen” to explore them further. According to an OECD study, “few social...
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Money, schools and politics: some FAQs
Federal minister Simon Birmingham has fired the first shots in the latest battle of the school funding wars. Here’s Inside Story’s short guide to the terrain
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Institutionalised inequality
With education ministers meeting this week to discuss school funding, a close look at the figures reveals large differences between states and sectors
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A Hope-led Recovery
Aboriginal suicide is different: that’s one of the key messages that came out of the inaugural Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention conference in May this year. Other messages follow from that one: local communities know best how to understand causes and build solutions; and supporting and strengthening Aboriginal culture is a big part...
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The plebiscite problem
Like much else in the forty-fifth parliament’s infancy, the same-sex marriage plebiscite has become hostage to the dynamics of contemporary politics: a weakened prime minister, a ferociously oppositional federal opposition led by a man also less than secure in his job, and a large, attention-craving Senate crossbench. As with last week’s big topic, political finance...