SPIRAL 2008 #1 - January Newsletter
*Systemic - Participatory - Inquiry - Research - Action - Learning*
SPIRAL — The Victorian Statewide Action Research Network
www.spiral-victoria.net
Hi all,
New year greetings!
In the coming months we will have our first meeting to canvass key
interests for this year (we have several ideas and offers to convene
meetings from people so far). If you’d like to join the organising
group for this year please email back. We anticipate a less busy
year for SPIRAL this year.
The convening group is currently:
Barbara Bok, Jacques Boulet (Borderlands),
Gillian Fletcher (ALARPM), Bill Genat (ALARPM & Melb Uni),
Linette Hawkins (RMIT & ARIA Inc.), Cate Kyne (ARIA Inc.),
Jose Ramos (Action Foresight, Borderlands & UQ),
Yoland Wadsworth (Melb Uni, & ARIA Inc.),
Ani Wierenga (Youth Research Centre, Melb Uni)
This newsletter is just a ‘newsy’ letter.
No meeting dates for diaries (yet) so continue to relax for the
holiday period a little longer:-)
And welcome and thanks to our new co-convenor Barbara Bok, who has
taken over Jose’s job on the website and sending out of the
newsletter. Thanks to Jose and best wishes as he nurses a PhD to
completion (and new baby Ethan’s commencement 
—————–
Summary of contents of this newsletter:
1. Bob Dick’s online action research course
2. Norman Denzin’s new Qualitative Research Journal Announcement
and Call for Submissions
3. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd — action research facilitator?
4. International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry, May 2008
5. European Evaluation conference, October 2008
6. The first achievement of peace is truth
7. From the Taos Institute who promote appreciative inquiry
More details…
—————————–
1. Online action research course
An email through PAR-Announce (apologies for cross postings) from
Bob Dick (email us if you would like the full long email)
Dear colleagues
I’ve included below some brief details of the free regular on line
action research course “Areol”. There’s also a subscription form
available. There is a course outline on the web at
http://www.scu.edu.au/schools/gcm/ar/areol/areolind.html
I plan to email some orientation material in early to mid February.
The first of the 14 weekly sessions will follow about two weeks later.
You’re welcome to contact me off list if you would like any further
information.
Warm regards – Bob
<bd[at]uq.net.au>,
—————————-
2 New Qualitative Research Journal Announcement and Call for
Submissions
———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Norm Denzin < info[at]icqi.org>
Date: 18 Dec 2007 07:26
Subject: New Journal Announcement and Call for Submissions
To: Norm Denzin < info[at]icqi.org>
International Review of Qualitative Research
Sponsored by International Center for Qualitative Inquiry
Norman K. Denzin, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Quarterly in May, August, November and February
About the Journal
INTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH encourages the use of
critical, experimental and traditional forms of qualitative inquiry
in the interests of social justice. We seek works that are both
academically sound and partisan, works that offer knowledge-based
radical critiques of social settings and institutions while promoting
human dignity, human rights, and just societies around the globe.
Submissions to the journal are judged by the effective use of
critical qualitative research methodologies and practices for
understanding and advocacy in policy arenas, as well as clarity of
writing and willingness to experiment with new and traditional forms
of presentation.
For more information, including submission guidelines, please visit
the link below:
http://www.lcoastpress.com/journal.php?id=8
——————————–
3. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd — action research facilitator?
On the three consecutive days after the election our new
Prime Minister set in train not one, not two, but
THREE ‘participatory research’/'action learning’ efforts.
First he urged his government members/ministers to visit
Indigenous people’s communities.
Second he urged them to visit at least one public school
and one private school in their electorate.
And thirdly he encouraged them to visit a homeless shelter
in their electorate.
The Cabinet/parliament (’action learning set’) members were to
learn from these experiences in order to accomplish responsive
policy implementation in these three critical areas. While we know
action research cannot be used instrumentally to implement policy
per se (i.e. policy that has been developed without the relevant
stakeholders’/people’s participation), the approach can be used to
determine how policy plans can best be implemented in
action/practice (and then supply feedback if the policy was awry
in the first place).
And now only a few weeks later we hear that the promised
‘Community cabinets’ have begun, with Cabinet meetings being held
in city and rural regional centres to stay closely in touch with
the people.
Actually, a 2001 article in ‘The Age’ newspaper revealed that the
then Federal opposition backbencher Nicola Roxon, now Minister for
Health and Ageing, had swapped places for a week with
Christian Zahra MP for west Gippsland seat of McMillan — so each
could be taken out of their comfort zone and learn about the issues
facing the opposite kind of constituency, and how it affected their
own.
We stay tuned for the next exciting Commonwealth cabinet
participatory action learning projects!
——————————–
4. International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry - May 2008
Although the deadline for submitting abstracts online for the
Fourth International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry (QI2008)
closed on 15 January 2008, it still should prove to be an exciting
conference for those who can manage the time, ecological
footprint and cost.
The workshop titles look terrific and Yvonna Lincoln will
be giving one too.
The congress is at at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
from May 14-17, 2008.
The theme, building on previous Congresses, is “Ethics, Evidence, and
Social Justice”.
Participants will explore the relationship between these three terms
and what these relationships mean for qualitative inquiry in this
new century. The Fourth Congress will offer the international
community of qualitative research scholars the opportunity to
engage in debate on ethical, epistemological, methodological and
social justice issues.
Congress website — www.icqi.org
——————-
5. European Evaluation conference - October 2008
A note from Burt Perrin…
Dear colleagues, associates and friends,
A new year offers new opportunities to meet. In this context I would
like to draw your attention to the
EES Conference in Lisbon, Portugal 1-3 October 2008.
‘Building for the future: Evaluation in governance, development
and progress’.
This conference will be the major international evaluation event of
the year 2008 and should not be missed. It offers you and me the
perfect opportunity to meet colleagues in the international field of
Evaluation and exchange ideas. October 2008 will be an ideal time to
visit Lisbon, a modern welcoming city with a mild climate, which
offers all the necessary infrastructures for the success of this
conference. A lively and varied place; it remains in some ways
curiously provincial, rooted as much in the 1920s as in the 2000s.
This conference title is intended to stimulate forward and expansive
thinking about the way in which evaluation can play its part in
governance, development and progress. We see evaluation as one of
the ways to help a society work more effectively and fairly.
Evaluation can help build ’social capital’ by increasing social
cohesion and connectedness. In this understanding social capital is
all about strengthening social networks, improving institutions and
adapting procedures, these are key issues for evaluators today.
We wish to encourage submissions that regard evaluation positively
as a form of social capital for the future and explore the
challenges of doing this well. Low levels of social capital are
seen to lead to an excessively rigid and unresponsive political
system from which citizens feel cut-off and can even lead to high
levels of corruption.
Public institutions - formal and informal - require social capital
in order to function. Evaluations is one means to compensate for
weaknesses in contemporary civil society by examining the way we
make decisions, organize our societies and govern ourselves.
However this implies that evaluation is used.. So, what is the
relationship between evaluation ‘use’ and the development of social
capital?
Would you like to contribute to this conference?
Please check the pdf brochure ‘Call for submissions’ and the
conference website www.eesconference.org for further information.
For specific questions please contact the conference organisers via
info[at]eesconference.org .
I look forward to seeing you in Lisbon!
Burt
EES General Secretary
Burt Perrin
—————
6. The first achievement of peace is truth
More good news from the new federal government for being able to
speak up in general but which may also have implications for NGO’s
research and evaluation and a general atmosphere of being able to
give feedback….
—–Original Message—–
From: Andrew Johnson
Sent: Wednesday, 9 January 2008 8:03 AM
Subject: Federal gagging clauses in NGO contracts to be reviewed
and removed
As reported in the Australian this morning:
“LABOR will rewrite thousands of government contracts with the
not-for-profit sector to rip out clauses that it says the Howard
government used to gag its critics.
Acting Prime Minister Julia Gillard yesterday accused John Howard
of silencing the advocacy efforts of the not-for-profit and
volunteer sectors by reserving the right to censor their public
statements in contracts for delivery of government-funded welfare
services. Labor will scrap the clauses in future contracts and
review all existing agreements with a view to excising the gag
clauses and reinstating freedom of speech.”Effectively, the
Howard government moved to close down debate,” Ms Gillard said.
“We believe robust debate is the best way of making sure the right
things get done, and everybody’s voice is heard.”
This has been an issue that ACOSS and [its] membership has been
working on for sometime and which was covered in several meetings
with Deputy Prime Minister Gillard and in [the] Future of the
Sector Days held in conjunction with the ACOSS Conference.
ACOSS stated that, “ACOSS congratulates the Labor Government’s
attention to this issue early in its tenure, which signals a new era
in recognising the independent voices and the experiences of the
community sector, which will ultimately lead to better policy for
low income and disadvantaged Australians.”"
Many Thanks
Andrew Johnson
Executive Director
Australian Council of Social Service
Tel: 02 9310 6200
Fax: 02 9310 4822
————————
7. From the Taos Institute who promote appreciative inquiry…
DIALOGUES THAT DELIVER: Generative Practices in Collaboration,
Conflict and Community – A Taos Institute Conference
25-28 September, 2008 – In beautiful Sarasota, Florida
Special Feature: Taos Institute Founders Share Reflections on the
Beginnings of the Taos Institute and Its Future.
With Special Guests: Professor Emeritus Suresh Srivastva and
Professor David Cooperrider
Watch this website for registration information and contacts…
http://www.taosinstitute.net/upcoming/conferences.html
And see this newsletter for detailed update on key players and
activities in this significant part of the appreciative inquiry
community…
http://www.taosinstitute.net/resources/Taos%20News-%20Jan%2016%202008.pdf
——————————
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>,
We also welcome any other feedback about the operation of the network
and its meetings, AR-related information or notices for circulation
and of course new members who want to join.
__________________________
Yoland Wadsworth & Barbara Bok
Joint Convenors 2008
actionforesight[at]gmail.com
c/o Our SPIRAL network sponsor is the
Action Research Issues Association (ARIA)
Inc. # A0016248Z Reg. c/o:
2 Minona Ave
Hawthorn, Vic 3122
aria.inc[at]gmail.com
www.spiral-victoria.net