SPIRAL September - Newsletter # 10
*Systemic - Participatory - Inquiry - Research - Action - Learning*
SPIRAL — The Victorian Statewide Action Research Network
www.spiral-victoria.net
Early notice of next SPIRAL meeting:
5.30-7.00
Thursday 25 October
Borderlands Library
2 Minona Ave, Hawthorn
Discussion starter will be Susie Goff (current Prez of ALARA, formerly ALARPM)
who has just successfully completed a PhD using PAR
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Other info follows FYI…
1. The 2nd Annual John Byrne Memorial Dinner, Saturday 13 October 2007
2. Final call for special issue of journal ‘Action Research’, on theory in action research 30 September 2007
3. Call for papers Community Development and Ecology , Melbourne 26-28 March, 2008
4. CARN Conference, Umea Sweden, 9-11 November 2007
5. Global Institute for Learning Devt presents Kristine Quade , Queensland, September 2007
6. EASY-ECO Conference Governance by Evaluation: Institutional Capacities and Learning for Sustainable Development
Vienna, Austria 11-14 March 2008
7. Footprint Books announce publication of AR books
8. CALL FOR abstracts by Jethro Pettit on CITIZENS’ MEDIA AND COMMUNICATION for journal Development in Practice 1 Oct 2007
9. An interesting ARlistserv response re Master’s-level action-research projects
10. Narrative evaluation action research project (NEAR) has just won a national AES award
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1.
The 2nd Annual John Byrne Memorial Dinner will be held on Saturday 13 October 2007.
Please email aria.inc[at]gmail.com for the flyer (which features a beautiful photo of John)
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2.
A reminder from Bob Dick. September 30 is the closing date for 600-800 word proposals for the special issue of the journal Action Research, on theory in action research.
The previously issued call for papers said in part:
“The purpose of this special edition, therefore, is to tease out and clarify the differing assumptions built into the diverse
approaches that now constitute the action research landscape, and to explore the practices which result. It will therefore address
the place of theory in action research, exploring suitable topics that might include: the role of theory and understanding in action
research; the forms taken by theory in action research; practical processes for building theory and understanding; the relationship
between tacit understanding and explicit theory; ways of engaging participants in reaching collective understanding or explicit
theory; and the value of local theory and its generalisability or transferability.”
The guest editors are Chris Huxham (University of Strathclyde), Ernie Stringer (Curtin University) and Bob Dick (Southern Cross
University). The special issue is planned for Volume 7 No 1, final copydate October 2008 to be published in March 2009
The full call for papers can be found at
http://www.sagepub.co.uk/resources/ARJ_cfp_theory.pdf
Please read the criteria given there before submitting a proposal.
Proposals must reach Bob Dick, bd[at]uqconnect.net ,
by 30 September 2007.
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3.
Call for Papers (an International Eco Community Conference)
Community Development and Ecology
Engaging ecological sustainability
a three day conference to be held in Melbourne
26, 27, 28 March 2008
At a time when there is a growing concern about changing environmental conditions and the effect on communities, a conference of this nature is timely. Community Development can provide alternate pathways through new theoretical paradigms and creative responses about how we view our place on this fragile planet. By critiquing the government and mainstream inaction/denial we can lead the way towards solutions for preventing global warming.
there will be two streams to the conference, academic papers and community workshops & forums - these streams will run concurrently
Academic papers:
The academic section of the conference will explore the contemporary contexts of community development, including conceptual and theoretical advances and social, cultural, political and economic settings. Papers should canvass the need for radically shifting paradigms in the context of the tipping point of contemporary society. This includes theoretical, strategic and community approaches to climate change and other contemporary environmental issues.
We welcome submission of Abstracts (word length 200-300 words) focused on the conference topic Ecology and Community Development within the themes below, and submitted by 31 October 2007 to aok[at]deakin.edu.au (all academic abstracts and papers will be blind peer refereed for possible publication)
Workshops:
Workshops will provide an opportunity for exchange of theories, ideas and actions relating to the themes below.
If you wish to present at and/or facilitate a workshop, please email an expression of interest to aok[at]deakin.edu.au by 31 October 2007, stating your interest/workshop topic and a brief description.
Themes:
Community Development & Housing: cooperative, rural and metropolitan, community activism for energy efficiency, community gardens
Community Development & Urban Renewal: changing/greening cities, restoring neighborliness, green transport
Community Development & Food Sovereignty/Relocalisation: food and resource production (carbon neutral communities / restoring local/cooperative activities and local economies and water issues)
Community Development & Rural /Regional Issues: carbon offset actions/reafforestation, bioregional action, green corridors, forest action, land care, water action, critiques and efficiency
Community Development & Globalisation : developing countries and climate change issues; rapidly developing economies, energy demands and the impact of climate change upon the poorest countries; climate change refugees, water issues, fair (and green) trade issues
Community Development: Responding to disasters: effective community development responses to natural and socio/political disaster. Ensuring sustainable international aid programs. What can community development offer?
Community Development and Building Social Movements: networking across differences, making local/global links eg zero emissions, aid development and carbon emissions, emerging climate change action groups
www.deakin.edu.au/arts/cchr/conferences_seminars.php <http://www.deakin.edu.au/arts/cchr/conferences_seminars.php> < http://www.deakin.edu.au/arts/cchr/conferences_seminars.php>
Enquiries
Ph: 03 5227 2113 03 9244 6274
email cchr[at]deakin.edu.au <mailto:cchr[at]deakin.edu.au>
Anne OKeefe, Centre for Citizenship and Human Rights
Faculty of Arts, Deakin University, Geelong Campus, Pigdons Road, Geelong, Victoria 3217 Australia.
Phone: 03 5227 2113 International: +61 3 5227 2113
Fax: 03 5227 2018 International: +61 3 5227 2018
Email: anne.okeefe[at]deakin.edu.au <mailto:anne.okeefe[at]deakin.edu.au>
Website: http://www.deakin.edu.au/cchr
<http://www.deakin.edu.au/cchr > Deakin University CRICOS Provider Code 00113B (Vic)
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4.
Umea, Sweden - CARN Conference 9-11 November 2007
Conference Theme: Action Research beyond Borders and Divides
Keynote speakers are:
Gaby Weiner (UK & Sweden) on Action research and PhD studies
Ken Zeichner (USA) on Action research and teacher education
Jane Springett (UK & Sweden) on Participatory Practice in a Non Participatory World.
Other highlights are:
Stephen Kemmis (Australia) at al on Pedagogy, Education, and Praxis
Staf Callewaert (Denmark) et al on Critical Practitioner Inquiry & Neo-liberalism
Maureen Robertsson (South Africa) on Teacher education curriculum transformation and critical thinking groups
Patricia Maguire (USA) et al Challenging the university through feminist participatory action research
There is still time to send in abstracts by using the website
http://www.umea-congress.se/carn.htm
Welcome to the CARN Conference in the northern part of Sweden.
Lars Dahlstrom
Associate Professor, Reader, PhD
Department of Education , Umea University
901 87 Umea, Sweden
email: lars.dahlstrom[at]pedag.umu.se
website Global South Network: http://alfa.ped.umu.se/projekt/globalsouthnetwork/
CARN Conference 9-11 November, 2007 website: http://www.umea-congress.se/carn.htm
Telephone: +46-90-786 6809
Fax: +46-90-786 6693
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5.
Event Notice: Global Institute for Learning Devt presents Kristine Quade
Leading Innovation in the 21st Century: 3 day intensive residential training program for leaders, change agents and facilitators — residential workshop to be held on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland in September 2007 with Kris Quade - a noted practitioner of Complexity Theory from Pepperdine University in America.
For more information, check out Human System Dynamics: www.hsdinstitute.org and Kris’ website www.quantumchange.us. There you will find programs for other similar workshops she has run in America, and more about Kris herself.
If you would like to register for this workshop, you can phone: 07 3856 0533.
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6.
EASY-ECO Vienna Conference 2008
Governance by Evaluation: Institutional Capacities and Learning for Sustainable Development
11-14 March 2008
Vienna, Austria
Please find the call for papers for the EASY-ECO Vienna Conference here:
http://www.sustainability.eu/easy/pdf/vienna/CfP_Vienna_070809.pdf
With the current call for papers we encourage researchers from all disciplines (including young researchers), professionals from related fields of work, commissioning agents, and evaluation users and other stakeholders to submit abstracts for presentations at the Vienna Conference. Submissions can address one or more of the following key topics in general terms or in the context of a case study:
* Institutional aspects of sustainable development evaluations
* Policy learning and sustainable development evaluations
* Methodological challenges and innovations with regard to sustainable development evaluations
The EASY-ECO Vienna Conference will be hosted by the Research Institute for Managing Sustainability (RIMAS) at the Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration. EU grants are available for young researchers (with less than ten years research experience) to cover all costs (travel expenses, participation fees, accommodation and living allowance).
The current call for papers, together with the application for EU grants, will be open until 10 October 2007.
Details can be found at the project website www.easy-eco.eu.
Best regards from the conference team!
Judith Galla - André Martinuzzi - Markus Hametner - Reinhard Steurer
For any enquiries please contact judith.galla[at]wu-wien.ac.at
DI Judith Galla
Research Institute for Managing Sustainability / Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration
Nordbergstrasse 15/Kern D/5. Stock, A-1090 Vienna
internet: www.sustainability.at email: judith.galla[at]wu-wien.ac.at
empowerment-evaluation97 mailing list
empowerment-evaluation97[at]lists.stanford.edu
https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/empowerment-evaluation 97
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7.
Footprint Books distributors advise on the following texts…
Contact: Kate O’Reilly < KateOR[at]footprint.com.au >
[Eds. –Anyone who can let us know the value of these on reading them - much appreciated.
Note in particular the Corbin and Strauss ‘qualitative’ research text that’s morphed to include an AR methodology as its presentational form - that of dialogue!]
SAGE PUBLICATIONS LTD UK
A Very Short, Fairly Interesting and Reasonably Cheap Book about Qualitative Research
David Silverman
This is the book which everybody doing a research project has been waiting for. Writing in an informal and accessible style, David Silverman offers the reader an entry into the broader issues of qualitative research that many textbooks gloss over - the underlying arguments of qualitative research and the key debates about its future direction.
Pbk 168pp 9781412945967 $43.95 2007.07 more detail
SAGE PUBLICATIONS LTD UK
Doing Practitioner Research: In Your Own Organization
Mark Fox et al
Doing Practitioner Research focuses on helping practitioners conduct research in their own organisations, and attention is given to the best methods for doing this effectively and sensitively. The authors also attend to the theoretical, political and organisational context of doing research, as well as addressing the ethical and practical issues of undertaking research.
Pbk 208pp 9781412912341 $67 2007.02 more detail
SAGE PUBLICATIONS INC USA
Basics of Qualitative Research : Techniques an Procedures for Developing Grounded Theory 3ed
Juliet Corbin and Anselm Strauss
Significantly revised, the Third Edition of this bestseller takes the form of an informal dialogue, akin to students and teachers working together in a classroom. It shows the evolution of grounded theory method over time and the influence of constructionists and post-modern trends upon the author without losing its foundations in the grounding of data and the building theory.
Pbk 350pp 9781412906449 $84 2007.1 more detail
SAGE PUBLICATIONS INC USA
Feminist Research Practice : A Primer
Sharlene Hesse-Biber
This book provides a unique “hands-on” approach to research by providing exercises and “behind the scenes” glimpses of feminist researchers at work. The in-depth examples cover the range of research questions that feminists engage with, including issues of gender inequality, violence against women, body image issues, and the discrimination of “other/ed” marginalized groups. Pbk
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8.
CALL FOR PAPERS ON CITIZENS’ MEDIA AND COMMUNICATION
Contributions are invited for a special double issue of Development in Practice on Citizens’ media and communication: new expressions of power and voice. This volume will also form the basis of a Development in Practice Reader to be published by Rawat Publications.
GUEST EDITORS: Jethro Pettit (Institute of Development Studies), Juan Salazar (University of Western Sydney) and Alfonso Gumucio-Dagron (Communication for Social Change Consortium)
While there is a vibrant and growing network of community media initiatives and practitioners worldwide, the role and potential of this movement within processes of social change and development is not very well recognised or understood outside the media community. Wider debates, policies and practices in the development sphere have tended to marginalise the area of communication either as a technical field, or as a means of ‘delivering messages’ and driving ‘behaviour change’, usually from more powerful to less powerful actors.
Yet these assumptions are increasingly questioned, as media and communication tools become more accessible to marginalised people, and as civil society groups, community-based organisations (CBOs), and social movements demonstrate the power of bottom-up forms of communication. Examples can be found in uses of participatory video, community radio, multi-media centres, theatre-for-development, music, storytelling, ICTs, the Internet, community television, and mobile phones. Media and communication are no longer reserved as tools of the powerful - they can also be potent weapons of the weak.
Yet the sharing of practices, experiences, and debates about citizen-led media and communication still occurs largely within a world of ‘communication’ and ‘media’ expertise and activism. There have been rather few encounters between the world of citizen and community-led media and the growing interest (in international development circles) in emerging expressions of citizenship, political empowerment, rights-based development, and citizen participation in budgeting, governance, and accountability. Even where grassroots media plays a vital role within social and democratic movements, civil society initiatives, and rights struggles, this contribution has not been very well understood by non-media practitioners, policy makers, and aid donors - who unfortunately often see communication as a technical ‘add-on’ or as a delivery vehicle within other processes and interventions.
This special issue of Development in Practice aims to bridge this gap with a cutting-edge collection of case studies and critical analyses of citizen- and community-led media and communication within processes of social and political empowerment. The volume will explore the links between experiences and understandings of participation and citizenship with recent innovations in alternative media and communication.
Contributions are invited which explore the uses of media not only to enhance direct influence and participation, but also indirect forms aimed at either affirming or re-shaping social and cultural norms which underpin relations of knowledge, power, and marginalisation. Papers should document and critically assess innovative citizens’ media and communication efforts within contexts of social, cultural, and political empowerment. This collection seeks to reach an audience beyond those publications produced and read by media and communication activists and academics - aiming instead to give media actors a greater voice within debates on citizen participation and development. Participants at the OurMedia 6th International Conference (OM6) in (9-13 April 2007) are particularly encouraged to contribute.
Please contact Jethro Pettit at the Institute of Development Studies (UK) for further details: J.Pettit[at]ids.ac.uk
SUBMISSION PROCEDURES
ABSTRACTS: 1 October 2007
FIRST DRAFTS OF INVITED PAPERS: 1 February 2008
FINAL REVISIONS: 1 July 2008
JOURNAL ISSUE: March 2009
Authors should initially submit an abstract (100-300 words) of their proposed contribution, stating whether this would be a full-length article (maximum 6500 words) or a shorter piece (1500-3000 words). The abstract should include (a) the full title of the paper, (b) a summary of the content, and (c) the names, affiliations, and full contact details of the author(s). Abstracts should be sent as an email attachment to J.Pettit[at]ids.ac.uk with ‘CITIZENS’ MEDIA AND COMMUNICATION’ in the subject line.
Abstracts and articles may be submitted in English, French, Portuguese, or Spanish. Submission of an abstract is taken to indicate that it describes original, unpublished work, and that the author is committed to publishing it in Development in Practice should s/he be invited to submit a paper. Development in Practice is a peer-reviewed journal, so such an invitation does not guarantee acceptance. For general guidelines on preparing manuscripts for Development in Practice please see http://www.developmentinpractice.org
Development in Practice offers practice-based analysis and research concerning the social dimensions of development and humanitarianism, and provides a forum for debate and the exchange of ideas among practitioners, policy makers, academics, and activists worldwide. By challenging current assumptions, the journal seeks to stimulate new thinking and to shape future ways of working. Contributors represent a wide range of cultural and professional backgrounds and experience.
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Deborah Eade, Oxfam GB
Jethro Pettit
Participation, Power and Social Change Group
Institute of Development Studies
University of Sussex, Brighton, BN7 9RE, UK
Direct: +44 (0) 1273 873300
Email: J.Pettit[at]ids.ac.uk
Web: http://www.ids.ac.uk/ids/particip/
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9.
An interesting and useful ARlistserv response I thought some might like to see if you do not subscribe to Bob Dick’s ARlist…
Date: 19 September 2007
Re: [arlist-l] Master’s-level action-research projects?
Hello, Brad,
I am a Ph.D. candidate, almost Ph.[inishe]D. with my dissertation, which utilized participatory action research to explore white racial
privilege among graduate students in my own department. Back when I was in the proposal stage, I learned of an action research course in an allied department. The professor was Dr. Niki Davis ( nedavis[at]iastate.edu) who specializes in curriculum and instructional
technology. She may be willing to share a syllabus with you. The course was taken by masters and doctoral students alike. The text we
used for the course was Holly, M. L., Arhar, J., & Kasten, W. (2005). Action research for teachers:Traveling the yellow brick road (2nd.
ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Therein you will find many resources around the format for AR project proposals.
Since that time, I discovered a very handy little volume: Herr, K., & Anderson, G. L. (2005). The action research dissertation: A guide for
students and faculty. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. That book helped clear up a great many questions and resolve numerous tensions that existed for me around reconciling the highest aims or aspirations of action research with the decidedly undemocratic nature of the thesis
proposal and thesis defense. It does contain some thoughts for faculty supervising student AR projects (politics of AR, IRBs and
action research).
You didn’t mention it explicitly, but I perceived that your department was encouraging students to “consult” with “outside” organizations (i.e., outsider research, as opposed to identifying and resolving “problems” that students identify in their immediate environment). In my experience, outsider research can be difficult for novice students to negotiate, unless they are insiders to an outside organization (this is getting tricky!) Of course, there are complications with insider research, as well. The Herr & Anderson book contains an excellent discussion of this tension.
Best wishes!
Peace,
Jeff Cullen
Jeffrey Cullen <jcullen[at]iastate.edu>
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10.
The North & West Region of the Department of Human Services along with Uni of Melbourne collaborators have just be awarded the Australasian Evaluation Society’s national award for Evaluation Policy & Systems for their Narrative Evaluation Action Research project (NEAR). The DHS N&W region health promotion adviser Karen Goltz also won the national Evaluation Advocacy award for her initiative in developing NEAR. NEAR is a workplace-based peer education and mutual learning process to enrich annual narrative reporting of health promotion programs by women’s and community health agencies practitioners to the department. See open access online Manual –
http://www.health.vic.gov.au/healthpromotion/hp_practice/eval_dissem.htm#near
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Finally, a message about this SPIRAL message…
With the enforcement of Australia’s SPAM Act from 10 April 2004, we
are obliged to always ask whether you would like us to continue to
contact you by email with SPIRAL sendouts and any other related
items.
See at end if you wish to discontinue.
The Privacy legislation also requires us to clarify that we collect
personal contact information for the purposes of providing you with
an opportunity for networking and relevant information provision
through the Victorian state-wide Systemic Participatory Inquiry
Research Action Learning network. This information is shared only by
members of the network (or those assisting us do this) for the
purposes of arranging the send outs. The contact details are not
forwarded to any other parties.
Requests to make contact with or send information through the network
are received by the convenors or/and the organising group. As a
service to the SPIRAL network, we forward to you material we think
you might find of interest. We choose only material central enough to
the cluster of interest that connects SPIRAL members.
Our policy to date has been to send this to you ‘as is’ (sometimes we
might shorten it). We have, to date, not changed the content, partly
because we haven’t felt we should, and partly because we haven’t
wanted to assume we had the knowledge to do so. If there is a strong
response to a forwarded notice, we would advise informing the
originator of the message, or/and send it to us to share with the
network in the next sendout. SPIRAL does not at this stage have the
capacity to run a Bulletin Board or listserv but recommends ALARA’s at:
http://www.alarpm.org.au/
or Bob Dick’s ARlist email <bdick[at]scu.edu.au>,
SPIRAL - August Newsletter #9
*Systemic - Participatory - Inquiry - Research - Action - Learning*
SPIRAL — The Victorian Statewide Action Research Network
www.spiral-victoria.net
Dear SPIRAL members,
This newsletter gives details of the last two meetings for 2007 : on 25 October and 15 November.
There is no SPIRAL meeting in September as the Australasian Evaluation Society conference has so much of interest for our kind of perspective.
All details below
best wishes
Yoland & Jose
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This newsletter issue contains:
1. Notice of the next SPIRAL meeting on 25 October 2007
2. A brief mention of a new Action Research resources program/virtual centre for Melbourne 2008
3. A brief report on an AR and AL event at UTS, Sydney - just fyi
4. More about the Australasian Evaluation Conference in Melbourne 3-7 September 2007
5. Notice of the OD conference in Melbourne 18-19 October 2007
6. AR jobs in WorldFish
7. An AL workshop by Bob Dick in Queensland 20-21 September 2007
8. Notice of the Qualitative Research conference in Melbourne in November 2007
9. Early notice of a Participation and Systems conference in Barcelona in 2008
10. Notice of the Annual John Byrne Memorial dinner 13 October 2007
11. Early notice of the last SPIRAL Meeting for the year on 15 November 2007
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1. The next SPIRAL seminar will be:
5.30-7.00pm
Thursday 25 October
in the Library
oases Graduate School & Community Learning and Research Centre
The Augustine Centre
2 Minona Avenue
Hawthorn
Our discussion starter will be Dr Susan Goff, President of ALARA (Action Learning Action Research) visiting from Sydney, will speak about her very interesting PhD and also…
‘Continuing the conversation about postgraduate study using action research’
(Susie and others attending may also be able to give us some feedback about the ALAR conference held in Adelaide in August)
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2. A new Action Research resources program for Melbourne by 2008
After last year’s disappointment when Swinburne University closed
down its Action Research Program after 5 years hard work by so many
to establish it, exciting news was announced (and duly toasted!) at
our last SPIRAL meeting on systems/systemic thinking –
— we have been awarded a small grant of around $8000 by the ANZ
Trustees to complete by mid 2008 an Action Research resources program
in collaboration with the Augustine Centre, the Action Research Issues
Association and the oases Graduate School & Community Learning and
Research Centre. It will be a ‘virtual’ web-based centre for
action research resources, as well as enabling the beginnings of
organising an action research ‘consultancy circle’, a postgraduate
action research course, and a larger ‘home’ for the state-wide SPIRAL
network and our website: www.spiral-victoria.net
More later as things begin to unfold…
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3. Brief report on an Action research (AR) and learning (AL) seminar at UTS, Sydney
A second interactive event was held on 25 July 2007 for cross faculty Uni Technology Sydney (UTS) staff and students. Building on an earlier one, this session was to enable practitioners to learn of 3 new case studies by UTS staff and students. And also to discuss the implications that the Federal Government’s new Research Quality Framework (RQF) have for action research at UTS.
Case study presentations included:
TANZI SMITH, ISF: “Scales of change - an action research experience in Vietnam”
SHANKAR SANKARAN, CABER: “My association with AR and my experiences of supervising doctoral students”
WENDY BACON, ACIJ: “Reporting mental health reflexive practice”
The RQF discussion involved WENDY BACON reporting on her recent discussions on RQF panel 11; and Shankar Sankaran reporting on his rqf impact statement for setting up caber. Discussion.
ALARPM’S interest in this event was to encourage acknowledgment of the value of AR and AL at UTS for the benefit of democracy, community development and learning/research practice excellence in Australia. www.alarpm.org.au
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4. More about the exciting-looking Australasian Evaluation Conference in Melbourne 3-7 September
The program for the 2007 AES International Conference is now on the web at http://www.aes2007.com.au/program.php
Please note that the AES office is not handling conference registrations — all inquiries regarding registrations should be directed to the conference organisers, The Meeting Planners, phone 1300 799 691 (Australia) or +61 2 9265 0890 (international), fax +61 2 9265 0880
aes2007[at]meetingplanners.com.au
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5. Bob Dick has been sent a flyer for the 3rd Organisational Development (OD)
OD Australia national conference - “Sustaining organisations”
The conference is on 18-19 October 2007
at Kalorama, Victoria.
The flyer includes a registration form.
Let Bob know if you’d like him to email you a copy:
< bdick[at]scu.edu.au>,
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6. Jobs with WorldFish - mission is to reduce poverty and hunger by improving fisheries and aquaculture. We have offices in nine countries and are engaged in collaborative research with partners in more than 50 countries. Our headquarters is in Penang, Malaysia. The Center is a nonprofit organization and a member of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). For further details, please visit our website at www.worldfishcenter.org
Researchers in Environment and Development
The challenge is to find the best ways to reduce poverty by increasing the contributions of small-scale fisheries and aquaculture in developing countries. The reward is improved incomes, food and nutrition for millions. We are looking for another 5-6 researchers to help us in our task. Finding the right people is more important to us than the precise discipline they work in. You might be an Environmental Economist, a Human Geographer, a Political Ecologist or Economist, a Social or Economic Anthropologist. You might be an expert in Development Studies, Rural Sociology or Environmental Management. The detail doesn’t matter, only your enthusiasm, ability and character. Most importantly, you do not need specialist knowledge of fisheries or aquaculture for most positions.
We are especially interested if you have experience in the following fields:
* Economics, specialising in impact assessment of research and development investments, valuation, resource tenure systems, behavioural economics or multi-criteria optimisation, commodity chains, markets and trade policy
* Social Development, specializing in human mobility and migration, capabilities and rights (including labour rights, human rights) and environmental governance. Research experience in gender would be particularly welcome
* Politics and Law, specialising in environmental law and policy, with ability to link local and global scales.
If you are excited by inter-disciplinary research that aims to optimize the role of fisheries and aquaculture in development drop us a line. Because we believe gender balance and cultural diversity makes us more effective we especially welcome expressions of interest from women and developing country nationals. Appointment levels will depend upon experience and qualifications.
You may be stationed at any of our regional offices or at our HQ in Penang, Malaysia but will have opportunity to travel widely. We offer competitive remuneration packages and provide an innovative work environment. If we still have your attention, send us your curriculum vitae along with the names and contact details (telephone and e-mail address) of three referees. Applications should be made by e-mail to worldfish-hr[at]cgiar.org . The initial screening of applicants will close on August 24th, but the positions will remain open until filled.
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7. AL workshop by Bob Dick in Queensland
Dear colleagues,
On Thursday and Friday 20-21 September I’m offering a two day workshop in Brisbane on action learning.
If you have colleagues or clients whom you think it will benefit, I’d be grateful if you’d bring it to their attention.
It’s priced at $594, and for deserving cases we also offer a small number of half price bursaries.
I’m offering this workshop because a number of people have asked if I plan to do so.
There seems to be a growing interest in action learning because it is experiential and collaborative.
Some organisations like the way it helps people do effective project work while also improving their leadership, problem solving and decision making.
The workshop will equip participants with the understanding and skills to design an action learning program and facilitate the action learning group(s). It is likely to be relevant for consultants and facilitators, for human resource or training and development people in organisations, and also for managers and team leaders looking for ways of involving team members more directly in project work, problem solving and decision making. I plan to negotiate the content with participants. However, I expect the workshop will address:
–the purpose of action learning and the situations in which it is likely to provide effective and relevant learning
–setting up an action learning program
–the choice of participants and projects
–and the induction of participants into the program
–using sponsors and mentors to increase impact
–facilitating action learning groups.
I’ll be using action research principles and processes to fine tune the workshop as it progresses. Knowing something of my style you can probably guess that it will be experiential and participative, with theory and practice well integrated.
You will find further details on the Interchange web site at http://bobdick.com.au .
You are also welcome to email me at bd[at]uqconnect.net
Warm regards – Bob
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8. AQR Conference 2007 - Qualitative Research and the Professions
Tuesday 13th – Wednesday 14th November
Workshops Sunday 11th – Monday 12th November
Doctoral Seminar Sunday 11th November
All located at Monash University, Caulfield
See AQR website: http://www.latrobe.edu.au/aqr
The conference focuses on the broader community of qualitative researchers and aims to bring together academic qualitative researchers and those who work in other professional roles. The intention is to explore what each of these research communities can learn from one another, share knowledge, reflect & discuss important questions. Today, qualitative research is used in a wide range of professions, including many where it was virtually unknown ten years ago. Its adoption away from academia has brought changes to the methods used, some quite controversial. At the same time, qualitative research within academia has undergone some significant shifts and reflects new and emerging theoretical positions that can be of value to the practitioner. So what are the implications of these recent trends?
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9. Invitation: The International Sociological Association - Research Committee FORUM IN BARCELONA, 5-8 September, 2008
Message from Dr. Janet McIntyre:
I have just returned from the International Systems Sciences Conference in Japan and am busy convening/organising the cross organisational panel session for the International Sociological Association in Barcelona in July 2008 - Research Committee 10 on Participation and RC 51 on socio cybernetics.
The name of the session is: The twin challenges of representation and accountability for sociological praxis Joint Session RC10-RC51 (Sociocybernetics). It seeks to explore the issues of democracy, governance and sustainable futures. The papers will focus on the importance of ensuring that those at the receiving end of decisions are part of the decision making process. The papers will explore issues of representation, accountability, identity, and social justice and engage with the current research on discursive democracy. Papers that embrace multidisciplinary perspectives are encouraged, including such fields as, but not limited to, informatics and engineering, public health and cultural studies…
The following academics could act as reviewers of papers:
Prof Susan Weil <Susan.Weil[at]uwe.ac.uk>
Prof Norma Romm <nrar8657[at]yahoo.co.uk>
Please let me know if you are interested in participating in the conference.
Regards and good wishes,
Dr Janet McIntyre
Flinders Institute of Public Policy and Management
Senior Lecturer, Flinders University
GPO Box 2100, Adelaide, 5001, Australia
Ph 61 882012075
Fax 61 882012273
email janet.mcintyre[at]flinders.edu.au
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10. Notice of the Annual John Byrne Memorial dinner 13 October 2007
Proceeds to Memorial trust for disadvantaged young refugees and asylum seekers
7.00-12.00pm
Saturday 13 October 2007
501 Barkly Street Receptions, Footscray
$50 per person, semi formal, 8 course Oriental banquet
Contact: Annette Phillips info[at]johnbyrnememorial.com.au
or phone: (03) 9740 8438
www.johnbyrnememorial.com.au
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11. The last SPIRAL Meeting for 2007 will be
5.30-7.00
Thursday 15 November
with a celebratory get-together dinner afterwards
More details in due course