About APO

APO. It's good policy.

APO is an open access evidence platform – making public policy research and resources accessible and useable. As a unique public good with a trusted reputation, we champion open access and evidence-informed decision-making.

We believe that the best way to improve outcomes is for the best available research evidence to be integrated into decision-making. And the best way to achieve evidence-informed decision-making is to make research and policy freely available through open access.

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We collect, connect, and collaborate

APO is a not-for-profit public good and we have been providing a free service to the public since 2002.

Collect: APO’s searchable digital repository is a rich collection of material published by organisations (also known as grey literature) on any public policy issue – covering Australia, New Zealand and beyond. Our resources are sourced from a wide range of organisations involved in policy such as government, agencies, universities, research institutes, not-for-profits, and think tanks. Find out how to add a resource to the APO repository.

Connect: APO is an essential resource for anyone engaged in policy work. We keep our policy community informed and connected to the latest in policy and practice through our free newsletter service.

Collaborate: Working together is at the heart of what we do. As a not-for-profit collaborative knowledge infrastructure, we work with partners and contributors from government, universities and other organisations to increase influence and impact by collecting, curating and communicating the latest policy resources. Learn more about our services and sponsoring APO.

Our story

Founded in 2002 as 'Australian Policy Online' and hosted by Swinburne University of Technology for 21 years, APO began as an online database for academic research. Initially, the aim was to collate and disseminate research reports and other grey literature that was proliferating online with the arrival of the digital age.

With over 800,000 website users each year and 15,000 newsletter subscribers, APO grew to become a leading public policy repository in Australasia and the world. On 21 December 2023, APO partnered with the Susan McKinnon Foundation to continue to provide open access to policy and research published by organisations.

APO covers the gamut of public policy – from science and technology, the natural and built environment, to health, education and social issues. This essential service provides a bridge between researchers and policymakers in government, not-for-profits and industry.

Milestones and achievements

2002: APO is started by researchers at Swinburne University of Technology, led by Professor Julian Thomas, and now-editor of Inside Story, Peter Browne.
2006: Amanda Lawrence commences as APO Director.
2014: Awarded ‘Best Information Website’ at the 2014 Australia & New Zealand Internet Awards.
2017: We change our name from Australian Policy Online to Analysis & Policy Observatory (APO).
2017: Awarded a $2m grant from the Australian Research Council Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) program to fund the Linked Semantic Platforms project.
2018: Named a ‘Change Maker’ by Swinburne University for success in demonstrating real-world impact on society and industry.
2019: Informit launches the Policy database in partnership with APO.
2019: Associate Professor Brigid van Wanrooy is appointed APO Director.
2020: My APO+ membership service is launched.
2022: We celebrated APO's 20th Anniversary, with an event Democratising the policy process with research evidence and lived experience.
2023: After 21 years at Swinburne University of Technology, we announced our new partnership with the Susan McKinnon Foundation. For more information, please review our FAQ.

What our users say

'Both as a senior public servant, and in the years since, I have found the APO of remarkable value in helping me stay abreast of the wide variety of reports that address public policy issues in Australia. It has been my go-to source for keeping up to date. It has often alerted me to resources that I would not otherwise have discovered for many months.'
Professor Peter Shergold AC, Chancellor, Western Sydney University

'APO just saves me tons of time. It's a really convenient, fantastic way to find out what's going on. It's all about making research more visible and more usable. The difference is that you find much more current work and you find a wider range of diverse research resources.'
Professor Julian Thomas, RMIT

'I use APO to find the evidence base for issues that I'm interested in knowing about. Every week, every month it's becoming more and more authoritative in the number of articles, and research pieces, and white papers and grey papers they pull together from across Australia from thousands of sources.'
Karen Mahlab AM, Pro Bono Australia

‘Thank you for providing such an unbiased and informative service. In a world of social media, clickbait, fake news, deepfakes, corporate owned news giants and decline of expertise, APO is a light at the end of the tunnel for me.’
Subscriber Survey respondent, October 2019

Read more feedback from our 2021 Newsletter Subscriber Survey.

Major partners and governance

APO is a collaborative not-for-profit public good that receives funding from a variety of sources.

Partner

In 2023, APO partnered with the Susan McKinnon Foundation to ensure this vital public resource could continue operating.

Founder

APO was founded in 2002 – and supported until 2023 – by Swinburne University of Technology.

APO Advisory Board

The APO Advisory Board provides stewardship and oversight of our strategic direction and supports us to continue to be an essential resource for public policy. The APO Advisory Board brings together experienced leaders in public policy and research from across the government, education and not-for-profit sectors.

Professor Jane Farmer, Chair
Foundation Director, Social Innovation Research Institute, Swinburne University of Technology

For policymakers, APO is a unique resource giving easy access to key collections of research and evaluation. For researchers, it’s a brilliant tool to make direct connection with policymakers by publishing their research reports.

Monica Pfeffer
Consultant and PhD candidate at The Australian National University

I couldn’t have lived a day without APO when I was running a social policy shop in government and I was delighted to renew a close relationship via ANZSOG. We have very complementary goals and audiences, disseminating and curating knowledge, evidence and ideas in useable ways to achieve better policy and better outcomes.

Dr Dave Trudinger
Director, Behavioural Insights Unit, Department of Customer Service (NSW)

I am keen to help APO rise to the challenge of carving out a sustainable future. Great government service delivery and good policy needs responsive resources like APO.

Eliza Strapp
First Assistant Secretary, Residential and Flexible Aged Care Division, Department of Health

I lead a lot of projects that involve examining the available research and evidence. Policymakers need evidence that is timely, accessible, gets to the crux of the issue and cuts through. Government-funded organisations also need to be equipped with evidence for practice.

Dr Martin McNamara
Deputy CEO, Sax Institute

The aims of Sax Institute and APO are closely aligned. We are both trying to make evidence more available and accessible, and there is a lot we can learn from each other.

APO team

Associate Professor Brigid van Wanrooy, Director

Working across both government and academia, Brigid has always been passionate about maximising the impact of research and generating evidence-informed policy and practice. Before becoming the Director of APO in July 2019, Brigid worked with the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services, delivering projects and strategies to embed the use of evidence to improve policy and practice. Her previous research centred on employment relations, with roles at The University of Melbourne, Acas (UK) and The University of Sydney. Brigid holds a PhD in social research methods and public policy from the Australian National University. Contact Brigid directly at bvanwanrooy@apo.org.au.

Camilo Jorquera, Web & Information Manager
Camilo has built and maintained APO’s web and information systems since 2012. He has worked with open source technologies for over a decade in educational and library environments.

Tim McCarthy, Editor, Content and Newsletters
Tim has served as an archivist and librarian for the Victorian Parliamentary Library and the Royal Commission into Family Violence, and has over 15 years’ experience in the commercial radio industry.

Penelope Aitken, Collections Editor
Penelope is APO’s institutional memory, having joined in 2007, and is responsible for all curated collections. Penelope holds a Masters of Fine Art, a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Education from The University of Melbourne.