Master of Public Policy and Management

This subject engages with the dynamic landscape of public sector management by examining key theoretical frameworks, debates, and macro trends, informing contemporary public management practices. Over the course of the subject, students will develop the analytical tools and frameworks necessary to understand, navigate and address public management dilemmas, including routine challenges faced by public managers and public sector organisations more broadly. They will also discuss the key pillars of design and delivery of public services and consider the roles that public managers, policymakers, non-governmental entities, and the community at large play in these undertakings. Students will apply these theoretical learnings to interrogating complex public service environments and designing strategies to address public management dilemmas with consideration of key actors, bureaucracy, administrative burden, and different governance models. In addition, the subject will provide students with opportunities to reflect on their skills, competencies, and professional identity in the public management sphere.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject in the Master of Public Policy and Management is designed to develop students into adept policy scholars. Through critical engagement with data sources and policy documents, students will retrospectively review policy-making practices in relation to key policy-making stages, actors, and institutions. They will also delve into key theoretical perspectives and literatures central to public policy studies and will apply major theories to explain real-world practices of policy design and implementation. The subject will explore the nuances of how policy issues are identified, framed, and debated and will discuss the pivotal roles that ideas, evidence, and norms play within the theoretical and practical realms of policy design. Building on these theoretical learnings, students will also develop practical research skills, including synthesis and critical engagement with policy documents and academic sources, case study analysis, and formulation of scholarly arguments.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Foundations of Government introduces students to the essentials of governance. The subject delves into the nature of government and its key institutions, such as executives, legislatures, bureaucracies, and parties. Through this exploration, students will be able to evaluate how different governments behave by applying the key concepts of political analysis, such as power, institutions, ideas, interests, legitimacy, and accountability. By delving into various political and bureaucratic systems and exploring the state-society nexus, students will gain the essential context for the rest of the Master of Public Policy and Management program. The subject will also equip students with the essential academic skills and learning methods for their graduate studies.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject involves a supervised thesis of 15,000 words, embodying the results of the student's own research.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Refer to PPMN90049 Public / Social Policy Thesis Part 1 for details.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject is designed to develop research skills for those students who wish to undertake academic, industry or government-based research projects. Students will explore contemporary research strategies, differing methodological approaches to research and practical issues concerned with designing, conducting and commissioning research projects on or for policy. They will investigate the relationship between research and policy (broadly conceived to include public policy, public management and governance), and develop understanding of the research and policy nexus. The subject gives special attention to setting research questions based on gaps in the literature or real-world policy problems, managing research ethics, and communicating research to policymakers and wider audiences. Students will design and perform independent research of their own, including interrogating theory, methods, and analyses. The subject will assist students to develop skills in research project preparation and development, in the context of wider exploration of the research policy nexus.

View detailed information in the Handbook

In this subject students will be placed in an organisation which either has governmental responsibilities or deals with government, where they will work under the supervision and guidance of a senior manager in the organisation. Students will be required to use their own networks to make an initial contact with a potential organisation. Their choice will then need to be ratified by the department. Students will carry out research or analytical exercises of relevance to the organisation that will be involved in high-level and complex policy making. Students will study the structure, culture and policy environment of the organisation and develop advanced analytical, research and report-writing skills as well as negotiating and interpersonal skills. Students completing this course should expect to acquire significant insight into the complexities of policy making and management. During the internship an academic supervisor will advise them.

If primary research is carried out during the internship, ethics approval is the responsibility of the host organisation.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject, a capstone option in the Master of Public Policy and Management, will examine contemporary real-world issues in public policy making, public sector governance and public management in a variety of contexts. Using input from professional practitioners as well as independent research, students will draw on the expertise that they have developed during the MPPM and apply it in real time to a contemporary project. Working both in teams as well as independently, students will identify and formulate key problems, develop a set of alternatives to address them, evaluate the alternatives against a set of criteria and recognise the trade-offs between them. Students will address the political, as well as the empirical aspects of the problems, and will develop advanced analytical, research and report-writing skills.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Performance management and measurement have become cornerstones of how modern public sector organisations account for what they do. Yet as states, societies and economies have grown and developed in ever increasing complexity, since the end of the twentieth century new ways of thinking about the relationship between governments and their citizens have emerged. These developments have in part been a reaction to measurement-based managerial approaches, but also partly reflect a deeper concern regarding the apparent decline in citizens’ attachment to and respect for the practice of politics. This subject aims to provoke a wide ranging discussion about the role of ‘publics’ (citizens, users, clients, stakeholders, communities, etc.) in public policy and public services through critical engagement with an emerging paradigm of citizen-centred governance. Sometimes called Government 2.0, this approach to public policy and public administration is typically described as networked, collaborative and flexible, with service delivery arrangements which are personalised, choice-based and delivered through multiple channels.

This subject will equip public sector leaders with a theoretical understanding and practical toolbox of approaches to managing a major change management exercise in government. A range of case studies will be used to provide a step by step analysis of the challenges in driving major change. Understanding the underlying factors which lead to effective policy, process and program innovation in government is central to the capacity of governments to deliver better policy and better outcomes for the whole community. We will also critically examine the theoretical underpinnings of newer tools in policy making such as behavioural techniques (‘nudge’), randomised controlled trials and big data. This subject will seek to explain what drives public sector innovation and the structures, processes and individuals that promote and obstruct it. There is a focus on the role of government in driving large scale innovation and how to build a national innovation system that promotes technology and high wage economic growth for a nation.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Public sector budget frameworks are premised on efficiency, effectiveness and the ethical use of taxpayer’s money. This subject considers how public managers and ministers work within these frameworks to balance at times competing objectives and political undercurrents, including accountability under legislation, the legislative committee process, and the audit process. The focus is on OECD countries and trends in budget and spending review cycles, the empowerment of finance ministries and audit institutions, the adoption of private sector practices, fiscal rules and principles, and intergenerational equity. In managing public expenditure this subject examines the design of tax and social welfare systems, how budgets are political and the interplay between governments and capital markets.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Events like epidemics, earthquakes, floods, bushfires, or financial collapse pose significant challenges to societies that encounter them. Governments engage in crisis management to prepare for, respond to, and recover from such extreme events. Hence, crisis management is a key part of public policy design and implementation. The bad news is that while individual extreme events are rare, crisis of some kind is likely to occur regularly. The good news is that scholars and practitioners have developed ideas and tools for handling them. This seminar will focus on conceptual approaches to and theories of crisis management. In addition to readings selected from the best in the field, students will engage in class group discussions and scenario-based exercises.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject introduces students to a strategic perspective on the management of change and reform within the contexts of the public, private and non-for-profit sectors in Australia and internationally. In this subject, students will explore strategic management tools and techniques, and how they can be adopted by public managers to enhance the performance and achieve the desired outcomes of their organisations. The subject adopts a multi-dimensional approach to understanding and analysing organisational change and public management reforms, and how strategic planning and thinking could be used as methods to affect change within organizations. Students will first explore the systems that govern public/private and not-for-profit organisations and other macro-level factors that affect their operations. Students will then investigate day-to-day activities of public managers and other micro-level factors shaping the organisational structures and operations, including leadership skills, power dynamics organisational conflict and politics as well as the complexities and factors that affect organisations as they evolve and operate in complex organisational fields. These analytical and practical skills will enable students to design strategic objectives to guide organisational change and reform.

View detailed information in the Handbook

We are living through an era of disruptive technological change, propelled by the rapid development of digital platforms and AI technologies. The rapid spread of digitalisation is reshaping all areas of social life exerting especially profound effects on public policy. These effects include using digital platforms to offer round-the-clock services, automating administrative processes via algorithms, and harnessing AI to inform policy design and delivery.

This subject engages students in an in-depth exploration of the digital turn in public policy. Students will critically examine how digital technologies shape public governance and administration, considering the opportunities they present for efficiency and improved decision-making and associated challenges, such as data privacy, algorithmic bias, and digital exclusion. Through engagement with case studies, students will immerse themselves in the complexities of public policy in an increasingly digital world and analyse the implications of digitalisation reforms for core public values such as equity, legitimacy, and accountability.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The rise of Asia will be a defining feature of the 21st century and holds the potential to generate a paradigm shift in how we understand public policy, administration and management. Australian policy makers are actively turning their attention to the policy, governance and practice changes required to maintain Australia’s economic and political influence in the region, while broadening and strengthening relationships with Asian nations.

This subject will provide students with the necessary foundations for creating, analysing and implementing public policy in the context of the Asian Century. In the first instance, students will consider what is meant by the Asian Century in relation to shifting economic, political and social power and what this means for international relations and governance. Students will explore what it means to be ‘Asia capable’. In particular, the subject will examine how key Asian nations view and action public policy in order to understand key differences and similarities in the way public policy is conceptualised and acted on from a Western perspective. As part of this, students will explore how key Western-style institutions, practices and orientations which comprise ‘public administration’, ‘public management’ and ‘public governance’ might be limited by or changed within the context of increasing Asian influence in the global and regional public policy sphere.

This highly interactive subject will engage important theoretical discussions and translate key concepts into practice through the exploration of case studies from across the Asian region. Students will engage with the ongoing public debate about 'the Asian Century' to explore how it may shape the content (i.e. what does public policy include/exclude), construct (i.e. what are the differences in terms of how public policy is viewed) and conduct (i.e. how public policy is made and realised) of future public policy.

Upon successful completion of this subject, students will be better placed to understand and engage with public policy in the context of the Asian Century.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines how organised interest groups strategically navigate political systems to shape policy-maker’s decisions. Students explore the theory and research behind interest group influence, analysing how different groups participate in public policy, their effectiveness, and why certain groups achieve greater success than others. The course addresses contemporary debates about the role of organised interest groups in democratic contexts while drawing insights from comparative political systems. Students undertake hands-on analysis and development of real-world lobbying strategies, gaining practical understanding of advancing policy change through strategic advocacy. Key activities include venue shopping across institutional arenas, developing policy narratives that resonate with decision-makers, building evidence-based cases for policy change, forming strategic coalitions with diverse stakeholders, and employing targeted media strategies to communicate policy benefits. Upon completion, students possess critical understanding of the role of organised interest across political systems, having applied theoretical knowledge through practical exercises and simulations that bridge academic concepts with real-world policy advocacy skills.

View detailed information in the Handbook

In this subject, students will explore how public policymaking can be enhanced through participatory and deliberative democratic mechanisms, learning from real-life case studies that led to both successes and failures. Students will analyse various theories and techniques for fostering meaningful participation, with a particular emphasis on deliberative democracy, codesign, and the innovative use of digital collaboration tools across different levels of power. The subject provides opportunities to apply theoretical knowledge through practical exercises, including an in-class simulation where students will design, run and participate in a deliberative exercise, showcasing the complexities and rewards of collaborative decision-making.

View detailed information in the Handbook

How do we compare responses to the pandemic across countries? Which countries have the best health outcomes? Or, which are doing the most to address climate change? Responding to these and similar questions requires a comparative perspective. To that end, the subject builds on the students’ foundational understanding of public policy and introduces them to theoretical approaches, frameworks, and methods to compare public policies and programs. Through a series of case studies, students will explore the advantages and limitations of comparisons by engaging with real-world policy programs and policy responses across different national contexts. Building on these in-class activities, students will compare public policy programs and formulate theoretically-informed arguments explaining variations in public policy and interpreting implications of contrasting approaches.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines contemporary issues in governance in Australia and internationally. In the context of complex policy problems confronting society, students will explore how governments grapple with these complexities and experiment with new approaches to regulation and public administration. Through critical engagement in both traditional and emerging governance models and paradigms, students will interrogate strengths and weaknesses of public sector reform efforts in different parts of the world and shifting power dynamics. They will focus on the implications of these changes for the accountability and legitimacy of contemporary democratic governance. The combination of theoretical work regarding the nature of contemporary governance and exploration of current debates around specific governance initiatives will give students the tools to critically analyse governance reforms. Students will do so with a critical focus on how different governance paradigms coexist and the implications that this has for key policy actors, including politicians, public officials, non-government actors and citizens.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject enables students to compare the policy developments involved in politically, legally and constitutionally recognising Indigenous rights and sovereignty in Australia, New Zealand and Canada, with a particular focus on the negotiation of treaties. Starting with a focus on the Victorian experience, students will identify the most pertinent issues that should be considered by the Victorian Government in negotiating a treaty or treaties with Aboriginal peoples. Comparative cases will include the Treaty of Waitangi in Aotearoa/New Zealand and the modern treaty process in Canada, specifically in the province of British Columbia. Students will consider how these treaty processes have hindered and/or facilitated effective policy development and Indigenous governance.

With the assistance of public policy academics and practitioners, participants will construct their own case study of citizen-state relationships focusing on debates around rights, sovereignty, decolonisation, self-determination, access to services and economic development and propose some key recommendations for future reforms.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The respective roles, responsibilities and sources of power characterizing relationships between business and government play a crucial role in shaping public policy and regulation, within and between countries. Because of its productive function, business often enjoys a privileged position with government, while a major goal of policy and regulation at national and international levels is to steer and regulate business activity. Relationships between business and government vary significantly in different countries, economic sectors, and over time, and the conceptual tools for understanding them remain subject to widespread debate. This subject critically reviews contemporary policy debates and scholarly research, and draws on contrasting case examples to explore theoretical, normative and practical implications of business-government relationships. Particular attention is given to debates about government-business relationships associated with processes of public policy formation and implementation, social and environmental regulation, and delivery of public services and infrastructure. On completion of the subject, students should have a strong critical understanding of debates about the character and inter-relationship of business and government, from a comparative and international perspective.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The state’s role in the effective implementation of public policies forms a central element of contemporary political debates around the world, but significant variation exists between states in their capacity to govern such arrangements. In this subject, students will learn about contemporary governance and its implications for state capacity and democracy. By developing their knowledge of theories of the state and governance in relation to the policymaking process, students will apply conceptual tools to assess whether new forms of governance challenge traditional notions of the nation-state, drawing comparisons between different policy fields and country settings. Students will also develop their skills in applied political and policy analysis by learning about contemporary trends facing state systems in the administration of public services in areas such as: collaborative governance and metagovernance; multi-level governance and global policy networks; transnational and private governance; as well as democratic backsliding and populist forms of governance. Students will use these skills to design a governance reform in line with contemporary governance trends and with awareness of their implications.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject focuses on the strategies used by political actors to communicate with a focus on political, public and government communication in comparative perspective. Within the framework of this subject, students will engage with diverse and topical case studies illustrating successes and failures in political communication, ranging from the United States Presidential elections to local and regional campaigns that made headlines. Students will work together to solve communication 'crises' inspired by real-life scenarios and design an effective communication campaign under limited temporal and material resources. These activities will put students in a role of a political strategist and give them a first-hand experience of adapting to ever-changing situations in medium- to high-risk political environments.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject is designed to develop research skills for those students who wish to undertake academic, industry or government-based research projects. Students will explore contemporary research strategies, differing methodological approaches to research and practical issues concerned with designing, conducting and commissioning research projects on or for policy. They will investigate the relationship between research and policy (broadly conceived to include public policy, public management and governance), and develop understanding of the research and policy nexus. The subject gives special attention to setting research questions based on gaps in the literature or real-world policy problems, managing research ethics, and communicating research to policymakers and wider audiences. Students will design and perform independent research of their own, including interrogating theory, methods, and analyses. The subject will assist students to develop skills in research project preparation and development, in the context of wider exploration of the research policy nexus.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject focuses on the advanced language required for successful graduate study in English. In this subject students will develop critical approaches to researching, reading and writing. They will also develop the ability to plan and present confidently on a research topic and to write a literature review fluently and accurately. Particular attention is paid to grammatical and stylistic aspects of written and spoken academic discourse. Students write and present on a research topic that is relevant to their field of study.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The course introduces students to the economic principles and framework used by economists to consider issues of public policy. The importance of rigorous analysis in problem solving is emphasised. The policy areas likely to be covered will be taken from public finance, industry policy, competition policy, micro-economic reform, taxation and income distribution, as well as health, education and infrastructure provision. The emphasis is on current issues and so the actual policies covered may vary in response to current events.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Questions of trust, effective communication, and judging credibility, are integral to the assessment of knowledge claims both within science and in the context of public debate. Questions about trust and legitimate communication consequently arise every day in a range of professional contexts, for example in scientific research and the dissemination of scientific knowledge, in journalism and media, public relations, and in police, accounting and development work, etc. But what makes one trustworthy? How do we pick out who the experts are? This course will interest students in a wide range of careers.

Questions to be covered:

Trust

• What is trust? What makes one trustworthy?
• Is there a decline in trust, in the media, in politicians, or in scientists for example?
• Do we need to trust our sources of information, and do they need to trust us?
• How do we manage conflicts that arise in relationships of trust?

Communication

• What indicators do people rely on when communicating with others?
• How do communication patterns vary from context to context, such as face-to-face, in broader media, and in ethically and politically contested public spaces?
• What makes someone a credible source of information?
• What role does the conveyance of quality information play in contested social debates, and what role should it play?
• Are public debates about communicating information or voicing substantive differences?

Expertise

• What makes someone an expert?
• What role do ‘experts’ play in public debate?
• Should we defer to experts?
• What if even the experts disagree?
• Can lay people contribute expertise?

View detailed information in the Handbook

From genetic modification to climate change, science seems to be embroiled in an ever-growing number of public controversies. Some of these controversies are international in scope. Others have unfolded in the distinctive environment of Australia’s public policy and research apparatus, sometimes with lessons for the international stage. Drawing on case studies, this subject observes and analyses the interactions of science, public discourse, and national and international policy formation. The subject will examine questions such as: What policy positions are taken and by which agencies? What are the dynamics of the interactions between them? What are the roles and limits of science and scientific evidence in such controversies? How may such controversies be resolved? Examples of areas of controversy that may be considered are: Genetics and Food Production (e.g. Mad-Cow Disease); Genetics and Biomedicine (e.g. Racial Profiling, Non-Invasive Prenatal Diagnosis); Alternatives to Western Medicine; Approaches to Greenhouse Gas Reduction; Nano Technologies; Energy Production; Water Policy; Digital Privacy and Surveillance; Freedom of Information and Expression in the Online World; Transhumanism; Geo-Engineering (e.g. Fracking); Climategate.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines various social research design and evaluation approaches to the study of social interaction. Students will critically examine the utility of, and theoretical underpinnings behind advanced methods of collecting, analysing and writing up social research. They will also conduct a small-scale research project, giving them practical skills in designing, conducting and writing up policy research. The subject will prepare students for engaging in real-world policy research and give them a practical understanding of the relationship between policy evaluation and social research in the context of debates around evidence-based policy.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Despite the growth of the evidence-based policy movement over the recent decades, the current political climate presents challenges for incorporating evidence of ‘what works’ in policy development. In the context of these contemporary governance challenges, this subject will equip students with the skills to identify different forms of evidence and understand how each of them shapes policymaking. Students will explore how evidence can be ‘used’ and ‘misused’ in the policy process. Through this exploration, they will develop an appreciation for the competing pressures public officials face around evidence and policy knowledge, and how these pressures shape policy choices. The subject will give students the skills to distil different forms of evidence, including scientific data and big data, and transfer global evidence to local contexts. Building on these skills, students will develop nuanced strategies for improving the uptake of evidence in specific policy-making contexts.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Indonesia’s emergence as a democratic and decentralized power and Southeast Asia’s only member of the G20 is transforming its relations with its ASEAN neighbours as well as the major regional powers. As a functioning democracy and the largest Muslim nation, Indonesia has a particular position in the global Islamic community. Moreover, a distinctive and activist foreign policy faces profound challenges from geopolitical shifts and from the vicissitudes of globalisation. These same geopolitical shifts will also transform Indonesia-Australia relations, albeit in uncertain ways. This subject will address the effects of the interaction of domestic and international factors on Indonesia’s future trajectory as a nation-state, locating Indonesia as an agent within historical and contemporary global dynamics. To augment the regular classroom sessions, Indonesian and Australian experts and practitioners will also provide guest presentations.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines the politics and governance of international trade. It explores the domestic and international dimensions of trade policy-making and the growing complexity of the "trade agenda" in national and international politics. It examines theories of trade and protection and theories of trade policy-making. It examines the evolution of the multilateral trade system since World War Two and the contemporary and future challenges that confront the system. The subject examines some of the perennial problems in the governance of the global trade system, as well as new issues and concerns, such as trade and the environment, trade and development, and agenda-setting and decision-making in the WTO. Finally, the subject explores the emergence of regional trade blocs and "free trade agreements" and their consequences for the multilateral trade system.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Over the past two decades, the role of the Chinese state in the country's economic development has changed considerably. The state planning agencies no longer decide what and how much should the country's enterprises produce. Many of the old and inefficient state-owned enterprises have been transformed into market-driven businesses. Some of these companies (still state-controlled) have become global players in sectors such as oil and gas. The so-called non-state companies also occupy an important place in the country's economy. Ideology is no longer an important factor in decision-making and capitalists are welcome to join the communist party. This course will examine the relationship between the growing power of business and the political process in China. We"ll look at how the emergent class of professional managers and entrepreneurs attempts to convert its economic status into political advantage. A number of theoretical frameworks will be used to explore this relationship, including neo-traditionalism/clientelism, democratisation (civil society) and state corporatism. Students will also be encouraged to compare China's experience with that of other transitional societies.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Governing Money and Finance is an elective subject available to students enrolled in the Master of International Relations and other masters degree students in the Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences. The subject provides an advanced introduction to the comparative and global politics of monetary and financial governance. It will introduce students to international monetary relations over the last century, including central issues of the causes and consequences of cycles of crisis and stabilization; international monetary and financial governance; the regulation of private markets and nonstate actors; and how these relate to power, international cooperation and conflict. Major issues include the use of national and international reserve assets, the domestic and international politics of exchange rate adjustment, the operations and regulation of banks and other institutions in international money and capital markets, market and institutional constraints upon national policy choices, and the politics of monetary and financial crises. The role of international institutions including the IMF, the Basel Committee, the Financial Stability Board, the G7, G20 and regional mechanisms in Europe and Asia will be covered. The subject will employ concepts and theories in political economy and international relations to address these empirical issues. As a political economy subject, the emphasis is upon the evolving political and institutional context in which monetary and financial markets operate and not upon the technical aspects of their operation or upon economic theory. However, some basic concepts and theories in economics will be used to explore the political aspects of monetary and financial governance. Prior knowledge of finance and economics is not required.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject investigates the linkages between social policy and development within lower-middle income countries. The November availability of this subject is taught as a University of Melbourne Overseas (UMOS) Subject in Indonesia, with a special focus on social policy in Indonesia. By learning 'in-country', the subject draws from the experience of Indonesia to understand the roles played by different actors (government, civil society organisations, international organisations, the private sector, and communities) in responding to complex social policy issues related to poverty, welfare and wellbeing. This includes considerations of environmental change; access to livelihoods, employment, health and education opportunities; and the ways that challenges and opportunities may vary for different social and identity groupings. The subject examines examples of multi-stakeholder approaches to responding to complex social policy challenges in large states like Indonesia, often through collaboration and innovation. The subject also explores debates on the relationship between social and economic development and the implications for social policy in multi-level and decentralised governance structures. Students learn from their experience examining these issues in Indonesia during the teaching period and apply this in their first assessment. The broader readings for the subject also examine similar social policy issues in other countries in the Asia Pacific. Students then use both their Indonesia experience and broader learning from the reading and their own research to investigate similar social policy challenges and responses in other country contexts in the Asia-Pacific for their second assessment.

The November availability of this subject is taught as a University of Melbourne Overseas Subject in Indonesia with our partner institution the University of Gadjah Mada. The subject will involve Masters students from both Melbourne and Masters students and staff from our Indonesian partner university. This provides an exciting opportunity for students from each University to learn with and from each other to gain deeper knowledge on tackling inequalities and understanding real-world development challenges and responses through social policy in lower-middle income countries. The subject also uses teaching mediums that connects students with experts in the field in Indonesia. There is a quota for this subject. For further information and to apply: https://arts.unimelb.edu.au/students/overseas-experience#graduate-subjects.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject will examine the impact of international migration on the states, societies, and individuals. Its first segment will address the questions such as why people move and how societies change because of immigration and emigration. The second segment will examine policies concerning multiculturalism and social cohesion. By reviewing various policy examples and case studies, this subject aims to help students understand the realities of international migration and its policy challenges. The third segment will analyze the global governance of international migration, including the roles of international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and international laws. This subject is offered by Asia Institute, and will use many case studies of Asian countries, while covering the experiences of Australia, the US, Canada, and some major immigration countries in Europe as reference points as well.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject is an introduction to contemporary approaches to inclusive social policy through the lens of ageing. Students will specifically explore issues and challenges that have arisen due to population ageing and discuss topics such as paid and unpaid caregiving, retirement and financial inclusion, and social isolation and loneliness. Students will engage with case studies of programs and policies to consider how governments and NGOs have attempted to address these issues. The subject will also draw on students’ own experiences of inclusive policy development and implementation and learn how to defend their practical policy ideas through scholarly arguments and evidence.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject covers the five eras of Indigenous policy and introduces a set of strategies for analysing and evaluating government policy in a range of fields. Applicable in all policy areas, analysis and evaluation skills are often required in government agencies, industry and community organisations in order to identify the impact of policy and provide direction on opportunity for change.

Indigenous affairs is frequently associated with narratives of failure. This subject provides the opportunity to understand the cause of those narratives and work within strengths-based approaches to analyse and evaluate of key policies in Indigenous affairs.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Special Topic: Rethinking Social Welfare

This subject surveys theories of what it means to be ‘at the margins’ and their uses in critically understanding contemporary social welfare regimes. The subject’s focus includes examining how the Australian social security system has shifted from the principles of ‘fair and reasonable’ economic support to increasingly conditional and punitive practices of ‘protecting’ communities. The subject locates this shift as part of broader socio-political processes of both representation and repression: from the role of the media in perpetuating stigma and dehumanisation to the settler-colonial logics that can operate within social support programs. As part of understanding forms of marginality and their interplays with the concrete practices of social welfare, students are invited to interrogate the intersections of age, class, dis/ability, gender, sexuality, and race. In addition to its critical momentums, students will speculate on the (im)possibilities of improving social welfare for marginalised communities through proposals like a universal basic income.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Subtitle: Families and Citizenship Through an Intersectional Lens

Feminist Social Policy takes a comparative and critical approach to understanding and evaluating social policy and policy-making at a national and international level. This subject aims to critically explore normative assumptions about what constitutes the family, parenthood, youth, marriage, disability, child and elder care. Students in this subject will be encouraged to broaden and deepen their understanding of how social policy is organised and impacted by these social, cultural, economic and political normativities by drawing on contemporary theories of intersectionality and citizenship. Taking a feminist perspective, this subject will outline key shifts in women’s employment trends, de/familisation, blended and chosen families, global fertility rates, disability rights, and welfare provision. Students will have the opportunity to explore themes of intersectionality and citizenship throughout their engagement with the subject, as well as articulate a comparative analysis of social policy from across the world.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The human service and welfare systems are meant to support us through life, from early childhood to old age. Yet they may fail to address our real concerns; placing conditions on who can receive social support or managing our needs rather than enabling us to thrive. How have governments attempted to address various social issues and support social groups that have traditionally been marginalised or disadvantaged? This subject tackles these questions by engaging students in a range of case studies related to social inequality. In this context, students will apply their understanding of gender, age, disability, geographic disadvantage, sexuality, and ethnic-migrant status and analyse the approaches and frameworks governments have designed to address inequality through these axes employing a systems approach. Integrating conceptual and programmatic insights, students will develop critical and practical skills necessary to drive systems change in their own policy work.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines the relation between Indigenous peoples, justice and the law, through the lens of sovereignty. It reflects critically on the concept of sovereignty, its powerful propensity to transcend its social origins, and its fortress status in law. Through first examining European law’s relation to Indigenous peoples from 1492, the course explores correlations between Europe’s economic expansion and the development of sovereignty, property, and race as key notions that underpin both individual nation-states and the international order they constitute. In bringing this analysis to bear on contemporary aspirations for structural justice, the course then considers the possibilities and limitations of current legal concepts and mechanisms – in both local and global domains – such as prevailing notions of sovereignty, native title, human rights, crimes against humanity, and transitional justice. Finally, the course presents examples of innovative contemporary interventions in support of structural justice in settler states, promoting new ways to think about their complex pasts and presents, and possible future directions.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This experiential learning subject introduces students to the fundamentals of social entrepreneurship, while equipping students with a practical understanding of social enterprise as a model to tackle social and/or environmental problems through trade. Working in small teams, students are introduced to a range of design thinking and social innovation frameworks. They draw on these frameworks to iteratively conceptualise, ‘pitch’, refine and develop a social enterprise ‘business model’ that appropriately responds to the needs of communities and society. To nurture and support development of ideas, the subject draws on real-world case studies as well as industry guests from the social enterprise ecosystem including social entrepreneurs, people with ‘lived-experience’, social finance and impact investment intermediaries, incubators and accelerators and leading scholars and thinkers in the field. Upon completing this subject, students will develop a critical understanding of the theoretical foundations of social entrepreneurship and how to develop a ‘business model’ for financially sustainable social impact. By doing so, the subject also offers a unique opportunity for students to apply conceptual knowledge and project management and business skills to real-world social and/or environmental challenges.

View detailed information in the Handbook

An increasing global focus on program effectiveness and efficiency has brought renewed attention to the role of evidence in designing and implementing health programs. Students of this subject will engage with the discipline of implementation science, and will investigate a range of current theories and approaches to program design, including: Theory of Change; program logic models; logical frameworks; complexity theory; behaviour change theories; emergent design; participatory/co-design approaches; and approaches to scale-up.

Facilitated by experts with applied field experience in program design and implementation in Australia and other global contexts, students will learn via practical, staged exercises to draft strategic program plans. A range of case studies on current health challenges and interventions will build students’ knowledge and skills in evidence-based health program design and implementation. Cross-cutting issues in program design will also be considered and applied to case studies, particularly the issues of participation and inclusion. Students will be asked to consider evidence requirements and real-world compromises in programmatic research and planning within Australian and other global settings. This subject will equip students with the knowledge and skills to operationalise their program design skills through best practice approaches to program implementation.

Health Program Design & Implementation is a block mode intensive subject. It has a combination of online content which can studied in each student’s own time, combined with live seminars and workshops held on six days across the two week period. Selection of study mode (online or on campus) determines the mode of attending these seminars and workshops. Students are expected to commit approximately 40 hours to learning each week.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The subject explores the policy decisions, usually made by governments, that determine present and future country or regional level objectives relating to health services; programs; and the regulatory, organisational, social, cultural, physical and natural environments that contribute to population health and well-being. The subject explores the nature of health policy, types of policy instruments, and policy making processes including agenda setting and policy influencing frameworks and theories. The role of evidence in policy formation including the significance of the balance between effectiveness, efficiency and equity as objectives of health policy will be debated. In doing so, students will be introduced to the importance and process of policy analysis and explore the relevant legal, political, managerial, sociological, ethical, epidemiological and economic perspectives to instrument selection and policy implementation across a range of health policy contexts. Australian and international country contexts will be used throughout the subject.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This course explores the interface of policy and practice in the delivery of aged care services. The responses to policy shifts in aged care over time will be explored. The course will then focus on the present day impact of health care, mental health, income security, housing, and employment, educational and recreational policies on the delivery of services to older citizens collectively and as individuals. Case studies will be used to illustrate both the theoretical and practical aspects of designing and delivering services.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject, which is taught in Indonesia, investigates the fundamental issues around the changing nature of work; what it means for individuals’ working lives, employers, labour market institutions and regulations situating Australia within a comparative context. The subject reviews how digital technologies, automation, offshoring and emerging forms of employment (e.g., gig work, remote work, digital platform jobs) are changing labour market dynamics in Australia, Europe, North America and Asia. The subject also examines the different policy responses that have characterised this trend while highlighting the implications for corporations, organizations and institutions within a comparative perspective. Elements of the subject will be presented in conjunction with Gadjah Mada Universitas in Indonesia.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Cities are increasingly where the majority of the global population lives but also where some of the starkest issues of inequality, environmental degradation, and social conflict occurs. This subject uses tools from social policy to address intractable problems related to urban life. It gives students conceptual tools to grapple with social policy issues that are urban in nature, and it deals with city spaces and municipal governance. It offers an introduction to issues such as social problems connected to housing affordability, conflicts over neighbourhood spaces, addiction and recovery, homelessness, workforce mobility and commuting, and non-profit service providers in high density areas, to name a few. Students will enhance both their analytical comprehension of the intersection between urban planning and social policy as well as their practical skills as practitioners in this space within non-profit institutions and local government.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject introduces and analyses critical concepts and terms central to debates over climate change, including risk and uncertainty, adaptation and mitigation, burden sharing, and problems and issues relating to regimes, strategies and policy instruments for addressing global warming. The subject considers the rise of climate change as a policy problem. It reviews and analyses the history of climate change policy as it has evolved nationally and internationally. It examines the interactions between national and regional climate policy, including in Australia, the United States, the European Union and China. It analyses debates and concerns that have led to the evolution of the Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol, and more recent arrangements. Students will consider a range of policy instruments, including carbon taxes and emissions trading, and technologies that have been proposed or deployed to address this issue. This subject enables students to understand the evolution of a critical global environmental issue. It offers insights into technical, political, ethical and ecological issues that have framed climate change policy, and enables students to think critically about and participate in developing policy in this domain.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject engages with critical concepts and issues related to environmental politics and policy. Special attention is paid to the political dimensions of policy development and implementation, with reference to national and international domains. Students will be introduced to relevant theories, cases, and tools for policy makers and environmental activists. Students will consider a variety of case studies including climate change, ozone depletion, water management, land conflict, forest preservation, waste and 'sustainability planning'. Case studies will be drawn from Australia, Southeast Asia, and other global contexts. The subject is taught through a combination of lectures and seminars. Students will gain a practical understanding of issues confronting policymakers and other political actors in relation to a range of environment problems and solutions.

View detailed information in the Handbook

It is perhaps obvious that human behaviour is having a negative impact on our environment. Behavioural change, thus, is pivotal to ensure a more environmentally sustainable future. However the question of behavioural change is vexed. Some argue that humans are ‘naturally’ greedy and selfish, others suggest that we are ‘puppets’ - the victims of the social structures engendered by capitalism, and yet others trust that good behaviour will follow from the ‘truth’; knowledge about environmental problems. These and other views of behaviour set up particular change strategies. The above examples suggest three strategies for changing behaviour: provide people with incentives that will lead them to ‘choose’ different behaviours, or the transformation of social structures such as capitalism and patriarchy, or the provision of environmental education.

This subject examines the question of behavioural change from a number of disciplinary perspectives (psychology, sociology ecology, marketing and economics). Each discipline ‘sees’ the problem differently and this allows us to map insights and gaps in these knowledges. These purported differences can be understood and reconciled; behaviour is show to be a function of the physical, social and psychological aspects of social practices. This allows for a more holistic understanding of behaviour and the strategies that might create behaviour change.

NB: This subject uses a ‘flipped classroom’ mode of delivery. Most weeks require the watching of a vodcast prior to attending a 2 hour seminar. The success of the seminars and student learning is governed by individuals’ preparation and participation. This subject covers a lot of theory and requires active engagement. The consideration of societal behaviour change will likely engender a consideration of your own behaviour, including as a student.

Topics and themes include:

The effect of disciplines: behaviour and behavioural change from the perspectives of psychology, sociology, behavioural economics, ecology and marketing
How insights afforded by the disciplines can be used to create an more holistic and integrated understanding of behaviour change
Critiquing programs for behaviour change

Weekly topics: (1) Defining behaviour, (2) Perspectives: Behavioural Economics, (3) Perspectives: Marketing, (4) Perspectives: Psychology, (5) Perspectives: Sociology, (6) Perspective Ecology, (7) Integration, (8) Strategies: Social Marketing, (9) Strategies: Nudge, (10) Trans-disciplinary Perspectives 1, (11) Trans-disciplinary Perspectives 2

View detailed information in the Handbook

Formerly FOOD90026

This subject examines the politics of the global food system, and will focus on the policies, structures, power relations and political debates surrounding the production, distribution and consumption of food. The impacts of food production and consumption on food security, health, the environment, animal welfare, and the livelihoods of producers, will be critically explored. Key theoretical frameworks and concepts for understanding the dominant paradigms and dynamics of the food system will be discussed and evaluated. Integrated policies and strategies for creating more sustainable and equitable food systems, and alternative paradigms and practices of production, distribution and consumption, will also be critically examined. This subject will primarily draw on theories and methodologies from the sociology and politics of food and agriculture, food policy, and the political economy and political ecology of food.

The topics and debates covered include:

• Food policy and governance at the global, national and local levels
• Food security, food sovereignty and the Global Food Crisis
• Global trading relations, free trade and fair trade
• Environmental impacts and sustainable forms of food production and consumption
• Animal production, factory farms and animal welfare
• Supermarkets and alternative retailing and distribution networks
• Agricultural paradigms and technologies: chemical-industrial agriculture, genetically modified foods, organic agriculture and agroecology
• Corporate concentration within and across sectors of the food system
• Competition for food and land: animal feed, biofuels and land-grabbing
• Food processing, food marketing, dietary advice and health
• Local and urban food production and planning
• Alternative paradigms and networks of food production, distribution and consumption

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject provides an introduction to the key environmental challenges in contemporary China and to China’s environmental governance. The subject is structured around four topics: water resources, land resources, air pollution, and energy and climate change. For each of these topics lectures and tutorials will analyse impacts, policy and governance arrangements, citizen and NGO involvement, government and media discourse, and international linkages. Students will be introduced to key theoretical debates in China studies, development studies and human geography to help them understand the complexities of China’s environmental challenges. Using the environment as a lens, students will gain an understanding of politics and state-society relations in contemporary China.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject provides a broad-based overview of contemporary China, exploring key features of the country's increasingly complex and dynamic society. Topics covered include the economy, environmental challenges, political processes, cultural change, civil society, and China’s engagement with the global community.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Indonesia’s emergence as a democratic and decentralized power and Southeast Asia’s only member of the G20 is transforming its relations with its ASEAN neighbours as well as the major regional powers. As a functioning democracy and the largest Muslim nation, Indonesia has a particular position in the global Islamic community. Moreover, a distinctive and activist foreign policy faces profound challenges from geopolitical shifts and from the vicissitudes of globalisation. These same geopolitical shifts will also transform Indonesia-Australia relations, albeit in uncertain ways. This subject will address the effects of the interaction of domestic and international factors on Indonesia’s future trajectory as a nation-state, locating Indonesia as an agent within historical and contemporary global dynamics. To augment the regular classroom sessions, Indonesian and Australian experts and practitioners will also provide guest presentations.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Migration is a powerful driver of social change across the contemporary world. This subject explores the key issues and debates at the intersection of migration and development, drawing on conceptual, theoretical, and empirical work in economics, development studies, gender studies, human geography, anthropology, sociology, demography, and political science. Through class debates and practical exercises, students will engage critically with the conceptual models and theoretical frameworks used to analyse migration and its impacts on development. Core concepts - including transnationalism, neoliberalism, forced migration, global care chains, governmentality, and global householding - will be examined and critiqued. The subject also considers the economic, social, and cultural implications of migration for development processes at both micro and macro levels, assessing its relationship to broader debates on globalisation, poverty, gender, and social change.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The use of project management techniques has risen sharply. Examples of projects include research and development studies, reorganisation efforts, implementation of change programs, installation of a new piece of equipment, advertising campaigns, construction, organising special events and other one-off endeavours. The subject will cover the key drivers of project success, training and leadership in project environments. Project selection is the first critical set of decisions. Matching of the projects selected to the organisation’s strategy is taken as the starting point. Practical tools and techniques will then be introduced to manage the project or special event for success. The subject will also involve the use of an appropriate Project Management software package such as MS Project.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Conflict between individual and groups is an inevitable aspect of day to day life. This subject will review the nature of conflict in the workplace and the conflict management strategies of influencing and negotiation. Students will be given the opportunity to apply negotiation techniques to case studies and in simulations.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Leadership is a pivotal part of every formal and informal group, every community and organisation. Leading involves a critical connection between the individual capacity of a leader and the formal authority and responsibility vested in the position they occupy. It is personal and structural; it is something learned and practised every day; it is rooted in deep aspects of personality, gender and culture.

This subject helps students develop leadership skills by examining the attributes of leadership and the roles that leaders play. It does this through a dialogue between contemporary leadership theory and the ‘classic texts’ of authors such as Sophocles, Machiavelli, Shakespeare, Camus and Sun Tzu. The subject examines how these classic texts position the leader in different contexts, noting how they: develop a vision and goals; build support and deal with threats; impose costs and create alliances; and find a moral compass. We use contemporary leadership theories and cases to interpret these 'classic' studies of leadership and to see what works and why.

Seminar discussion and analysis of leadership theory will be complemented by guest speakers, and opportunities for group discussion and critical self-reflection.

This subject is compulsory in the Executive Master of Arts (MC-EMA). It is open to students in other graduate coursework programs with the written permission of course and subject coordinators.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Moral decision-making is a practical skill which we exercise many times a day, confidently and accurately. Sometimes, however, we face situations of moral complexity or novelty, where it is not obvious what we should do. In this subject, we look at the ways in which moral theory can assist us to think about such situations, particularly as they arise in our working and organisational life. We begin by examining the nature of moral reasoning, and then see how it can be applied to a number of ethical issues which we are likely to encounter in our professional lives. These issues may include, autonomy and paternalism, role morality and its relationship with personal morality, whistle-blowing, free speech in the workplace, personal and professional relationships, corruption and bribery, conflicts of interest, and privacy and confidentiality. We focus on the factors that help or hinder ethical action in organizational settings, including both structural elements (such as role clarity, avoidance of perverse incentives, accountability mechanisms) and personal traits (such as cognitive biases and moral (dis)engagement). Case studies will provide a focus for reflective work: students will be encouraged to develop case studies from their own experience, and pursue their own interests.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject engages with the dynamic landscape of public sector management by examining key theoretical frameworks, debates, and macro trends, informing contemporary public management practices. Over the course of the subject, students will develop the analytical tools and frameworks necessary to understand, navigate and address public management dilemmas, including routine challenges faced by public managers and public sector organisations more broadly. They will also discuss the key pillars of design and delivery of public services and consider the roles that public managers, policymakers, non-governmental entities, and the community at large play in these undertakings. Students will apply these theoretical learnings to interrogating complex public service environments and designing strategies to address public management dilemmas with consideration of key actors, bureaucracy, administrative burden, and different governance models. In addition, the subject will provide students with opportunities to reflect on their skills, competencies, and professional identity in the public management sphere.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject in the Master of Public Policy and Management is designed to develop students into adept policy scholars. Through critical engagement with data sources and policy documents, students will retrospectively review policy-making practices in relation to key policy-making stages, actors, and institutions. They will also delve into key theoretical perspectives and literatures central to public policy studies and will apply major theories to explain real-world practices of policy design and implementation. The subject will explore the nuances of how policy issues are identified, framed, and debated and will discuss the pivotal roles that ideas, evidence, and norms play within the theoretical and practical realms of policy design. Building on these theoretical learnings, students will also develop practical research skills, including synthesis and critical engagement with policy documents and academic sources, case study analysis, and formulation of scholarly arguments.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject involves a supervised thesis of 15,000 words, embodying the results of the student's own research.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Refer to PPMN90049 Public / Social Policy Thesis Part 1 for details.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject is designed to develop research skills for those students who wish to undertake academic, industry or government-based research projects. Students will explore contemporary research strategies, differing methodological approaches to research and practical issues concerned with designing, conducting and commissioning research projects on or for policy. They will investigate the relationship between research and policy (broadly conceived to include public policy, public management and governance), and develop understanding of the research and policy nexus. The subject gives special attention to setting research questions based on gaps in the literature or real-world policy problems, managing research ethics, and communicating research to policymakers and wider audiences. Students will design and perform independent research of their own, including interrogating theory, methods, and analyses. The subject will assist students to develop skills in research project preparation and development, in the context of wider exploration of the research policy nexus.

View detailed information in the Handbook

In this subject students will be placed in an organisation which either has governmental responsibilities or deals with government, where they will work under the supervision and guidance of a senior manager in the organisation. Students will be required to use their own networks to make an initial contact with a potential organisation. Their choice will then need to be ratified by the department. Students will carry out research or analytical exercises of relevance to the organisation that will be involved in high-level and complex policy making. Students will study the structure, culture and policy environment of the organisation and develop advanced analytical, research and report-writing skills as well as negotiating and interpersonal skills. Students completing this course should expect to acquire significant insight into the complexities of policy making and management. During the internship an academic supervisor will advise them.

If primary research is carried out during the internship, ethics approval is the responsibility of the host organisation.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject, a capstone option in the Master of Public Policy and Management, will examine contemporary real-world issues in public policy making, public sector governance and public management in a variety of contexts. Using input from professional practitioners as well as independent research, students will draw on the expertise that they have developed during the MPPM and apply it in real time to a contemporary project. Working both in teams as well as independently, students will identify and formulate key problems, develop a set of alternatives to address them, evaluate the alternatives against a set of criteria and recognise the trade-offs between them. Students will address the political, as well as the empirical aspects of the problems, and will develop advanced analytical, research and report-writing skills.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Performance management and measurement have become cornerstones of how modern public sector organisations account for what they do. Yet as states, societies and economies have grown and developed in ever increasing complexity, since the end of the twentieth century new ways of thinking about the relationship between governments and their citizens have emerged. These developments have in part been a reaction to measurement-based managerial approaches, but also partly reflect a deeper concern regarding the apparent decline in citizens’ attachment to and respect for the practice of politics. This subject aims to provoke a wide ranging discussion about the role of ‘publics’ (citizens, users, clients, stakeholders, communities, etc.) in public policy and public services through critical engagement with an emerging paradigm of citizen-centred governance. Sometimes called Government 2.0, this approach to public policy and public administration is typically described as networked, collaborative and flexible, with service delivery arrangements which are personalised, choice-based and delivered through multiple channels.

This subject will equip public sector leaders with a theoretical understanding and practical toolbox of approaches to managing a major change management exercise in government. A range of case studies will be used to provide a step by step analysis of the challenges in driving major change. Understanding the underlying factors which lead to effective policy, process and program innovation in government is central to the capacity of governments to deliver better policy and better outcomes for the whole community. We will also critically examine the theoretical underpinnings of newer tools in policy making such as behavioural techniques (‘nudge’), randomised controlled trials and big data. This subject will seek to explain what drives public sector innovation and the structures, processes and individuals that promote and obstruct it. There is a focus on the role of government in driving large scale innovation and how to build a national innovation system that promotes technology and high wage economic growth for a nation.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Public sector budget frameworks are premised on efficiency, effectiveness and the ethical use of taxpayer’s money. This subject considers how public managers and ministers work within these frameworks to balance at times competing objectives and political undercurrents, including accountability under legislation, the legislative committee process, and the audit process. The focus is on OECD countries and trends in budget and spending review cycles, the empowerment of finance ministries and audit institutions, the adoption of private sector practices, fiscal rules and principles, and intergenerational equity. In managing public expenditure this subject examines the design of tax and social welfare systems, how budgets are political and the interplay between governments and capital markets.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Events like epidemics, earthquakes, floods, bushfires, or financial collapse pose significant challenges to societies that encounter them. Governments engage in crisis management to prepare for, respond to, and recover from such extreme events. Hence, crisis management is a key part of public policy design and implementation. The bad news is that while individual extreme events are rare, crisis of some kind is likely to occur regularly. The good news is that scholars and practitioners have developed ideas and tools for handling them. This seminar will focus on conceptual approaches to and theories of crisis management. In addition to readings selected from the best in the field, students will engage in class group discussions and scenario-based exercises.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject introduces students to a strategic perspective on the management of change and reform within the contexts of the public, private and non-for-profit sectors in Australia and internationally. In this subject, students will explore strategic management tools and techniques, and how they can be adopted by public managers to enhance the performance and achieve the desired outcomes of their organisations. The subject adopts a multi-dimensional approach to understanding and analysing organisational change and public management reforms, and how strategic planning and thinking could be used as methods to affect change within organizations. Students will first explore the systems that govern public/private and not-for-profit organisations and other macro-level factors that affect their operations. Students will then investigate day-to-day activities of public managers and other micro-level factors shaping the organisational structures and operations, including leadership skills, power dynamics organisational conflict and politics as well as the complexities and factors that affect organisations as they evolve and operate in complex organisational fields. These analytical and practical skills will enable students to design strategic objectives to guide organisational change and reform.

View detailed information in the Handbook

We are living through an era of disruptive technological change, propelled by the rapid development of digital platforms and AI technologies. The rapid spread of digitalisation is reshaping all areas of social life exerting especially profound effects on public policy. These effects include using digital platforms to offer round-the-clock services, automating administrative processes via algorithms, and harnessing AI to inform policy design and delivery.

This subject engages students in an in-depth exploration of the digital turn in public policy. Students will critically examine how digital technologies shape public governance and administration, considering the opportunities they present for efficiency and improved decision-making and associated challenges, such as data privacy, algorithmic bias, and digital exclusion. Through engagement with case studies, students will immerse themselves in the complexities of public policy in an increasingly digital world and analyse the implications of digitalisation reforms for core public values such as equity, legitimacy, and accountability.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The rise of Asia will be a defining feature of the 21st century and holds the potential to generate a paradigm shift in how we understand public policy, administration and management. Australian policy makers are actively turning their attention to the policy, governance and practice changes required to maintain Australia’s economic and political influence in the region, while broadening and strengthening relationships with Asian nations.

This subject will provide students with the necessary foundations for creating, analysing and implementing public policy in the context of the Asian Century. In the first instance, students will consider what is meant by the Asian Century in relation to shifting economic, political and social power and what this means for international relations and governance. Students will explore what it means to be ‘Asia capable’. In particular, the subject will examine how key Asian nations view and action public policy in order to understand key differences and similarities in the way public policy is conceptualised and acted on from a Western perspective. As part of this, students will explore how key Western-style institutions, practices and orientations which comprise ‘public administration’, ‘public management’ and ‘public governance’ might be limited by or changed within the context of increasing Asian influence in the global and regional public policy sphere.

This highly interactive subject will engage important theoretical discussions and translate key concepts into practice through the exploration of case studies from across the Asian region. Students will engage with the ongoing public debate about 'the Asian Century' to explore how it may shape the content (i.e. what does public policy include/exclude), construct (i.e. what are the differences in terms of how public policy is viewed) and conduct (i.e. how public policy is made and realised) of future public policy.

Upon successful completion of this subject, students will be better placed to understand and engage with public policy in the context of the Asian Century.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines how organised interest groups strategically navigate political systems to shape policy-maker’s decisions. Students explore the theory and research behind interest group influence, analysing how different groups participate in public policy, their effectiveness, and why certain groups achieve greater success than others. The course addresses contemporary debates about the role of organised interest groups in democratic contexts while drawing insights from comparative political systems. Students undertake hands-on analysis and development of real-world lobbying strategies, gaining practical understanding of advancing policy change through strategic advocacy. Key activities include venue shopping across institutional arenas, developing policy narratives that resonate with decision-makers, building evidence-based cases for policy change, forming strategic coalitions with diverse stakeholders, and employing targeted media strategies to communicate policy benefits. Upon completion, students possess critical understanding of the role of organised interest across political systems, having applied theoretical knowledge through practical exercises and simulations that bridge academic concepts with real-world policy advocacy skills.

View detailed information in the Handbook

In this subject, students will explore how public policymaking can be enhanced through participatory and deliberative democratic mechanisms, learning from real-life case studies that led to both successes and failures. Students will analyse various theories and techniques for fostering meaningful participation, with a particular emphasis on deliberative democracy, codesign, and the innovative use of digital collaboration tools across different levels of power. The subject provides opportunities to apply theoretical knowledge through practical exercises, including an in-class simulation where students will design, run and participate in a deliberative exercise, showcasing the complexities and rewards of collaborative decision-making.

View detailed information in the Handbook

How do we compare responses to the pandemic across countries? Which countries have the best health outcomes? Or, which are doing the most to address climate change? Responding to these and similar questions requires a comparative perspective. To that end, the subject builds on the students’ foundational understanding of public policy and introduces them to theoretical approaches, frameworks, and methods to compare public policies and programs. Through a series of case studies, students will explore the advantages and limitations of comparisons by engaging with real-world policy programs and policy responses across different national contexts. Building on these in-class activities, students will compare public policy programs and formulate theoretically-informed arguments explaining variations in public policy and interpreting implications of contrasting approaches.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines contemporary issues in governance in Australia and internationally. In the context of complex policy problems confronting society, students will explore how governments grapple with these complexities and experiment with new approaches to regulation and public administration. Through critical engagement in both traditional and emerging governance models and paradigms, students will interrogate strengths and weaknesses of public sector reform efforts in different parts of the world and shifting power dynamics. They will focus on the implications of these changes for the accountability and legitimacy of contemporary democratic governance. The combination of theoretical work regarding the nature of contemporary governance and exploration of current debates around specific governance initiatives will give students the tools to critically analyse governance reforms. Students will do so with a critical focus on how different governance paradigms coexist and the implications that this has for key policy actors, including politicians, public officials, non-government actors and citizens.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject enables students to compare the policy developments involved in politically, legally and constitutionally recognising Indigenous rights and sovereignty in Australia, New Zealand and Canada, with a particular focus on the negotiation of treaties. Starting with a focus on the Victorian experience, students will identify the most pertinent issues that should be considered by the Victorian Government in negotiating a treaty or treaties with Aboriginal peoples. Comparative cases will include the Treaty of Waitangi in Aotearoa/New Zealand and the modern treaty process in Canada, specifically in the province of British Columbia. Students will consider how these treaty processes have hindered and/or facilitated effective policy development and Indigenous governance.

With the assistance of public policy academics and practitioners, participants will construct their own case study of citizen-state relationships focusing on debates around rights, sovereignty, decolonisation, self-determination, access to services and economic development and propose some key recommendations for future reforms.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The respective roles, responsibilities and sources of power characterizing relationships between business and government play a crucial role in shaping public policy and regulation, within and between countries. Because of its productive function, business often enjoys a privileged position with government, while a major goal of policy and regulation at national and international levels is to steer and regulate business activity. Relationships between business and government vary significantly in different countries, economic sectors, and over time, and the conceptual tools for understanding them remain subject to widespread debate. This subject critically reviews contemporary policy debates and scholarly research, and draws on contrasting case examples to explore theoretical, normative and practical implications of business-government relationships. Particular attention is given to debates about government-business relationships associated with processes of public policy formation and implementation, social and environmental regulation, and delivery of public services and infrastructure. On completion of the subject, students should have a strong critical understanding of debates about the character and inter-relationship of business and government, from a comparative and international perspective.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The state’s role in the effective implementation of public policies forms a central element of contemporary political debates around the world, but significant variation exists between states in their capacity to govern such arrangements. In this subject, students will learn about contemporary governance and its implications for state capacity and democracy. By developing their knowledge of theories of the state and governance in relation to the policymaking process, students will apply conceptual tools to assess whether new forms of governance challenge traditional notions of the nation-state, drawing comparisons between different policy fields and country settings. Students will also develop their skills in applied political and policy analysis by learning about contemporary trends facing state systems in the administration of public services in areas such as: collaborative governance and metagovernance; multi-level governance and global policy networks; transnational and private governance; as well as democratic backsliding and populist forms of governance. Students will use these skills to design a governance reform in line with contemporary governance trends and with awareness of their implications.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject focuses on the advanced language required for successful graduate study in English. In this subject students will develop critical approaches to researching, reading and writing. They will also develop the ability to plan and present confidently on a research topic and to write a literature review fluently and accurately. Particular attention is paid to grammatical and stylistic aspects of written and spoken academic discourse. Students write and present on a research topic that is relevant to their field of study.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject focuses on the strategies used by political actors to communicate with a focus on political, public and government communication in comparative perspective. Within the framework of this subject, students will engage with diverse and topical case studies illustrating successes and failures in political communication, ranging from the United States Presidential elections to local and regional campaigns that made headlines. Students will work together to solve communication 'crises' inspired by real-life scenarios and design an effective communication campaign under limited temporal and material resources. These activities will put students in a role of a political strategist and give them a first-hand experience of adapting to ever-changing situations in medium- to high-risk political environments.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject is designed to develop research skills for those students who wish to undertake academic, industry or government-based research projects. Students will explore contemporary research strategies, differing methodological approaches to research and practical issues concerned with designing, conducting and commissioning research projects on or for policy. They will investigate the relationship between research and policy (broadly conceived to include public policy, public management and governance), and develop understanding of the research and policy nexus. The subject gives special attention to setting research questions based on gaps in the literature or real-world policy problems, managing research ethics, and communicating research to policymakers and wider audiences. Students will design and perform independent research of their own, including interrogating theory, methods, and analyses. The subject will assist students to develop skills in research project preparation and development, in the context of wider exploration of the research policy nexus.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The course introduces students to the economic principles and framework used by economists to consider issues of public policy. The importance of rigorous analysis in problem solving is emphasised. The policy areas likely to be covered will be taken from public finance, industry policy, competition policy, micro-economic reform, taxation and income distribution, as well as health, education and infrastructure provision. The emphasis is on current issues and so the actual policies covered may vary in response to current events.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Questions of trust, effective communication, and judging credibility, are integral to the assessment of knowledge claims both within science and in the context of public debate. Questions about trust and legitimate communication consequently arise every day in a range of professional contexts, for example in scientific research and the dissemination of scientific knowledge, in journalism and media, public relations, and in police, accounting and development work, etc. But what makes one trustworthy? How do we pick out who the experts are? This course will interest students in a wide range of careers.

Questions to be covered:

Trust

• What is trust? What makes one trustworthy?
• Is there a decline in trust, in the media, in politicians, or in scientists for example?
• Do we need to trust our sources of information, and do they need to trust us?
• How do we manage conflicts that arise in relationships of trust?

Communication

• What indicators do people rely on when communicating with others?
• How do communication patterns vary from context to context, such as face-to-face, in broader media, and in ethically and politically contested public spaces?
• What makes someone a credible source of information?
• What role does the conveyance of quality information play in contested social debates, and what role should it play?
• Are public debates about communicating information or voicing substantive differences?

Expertise

• What makes someone an expert?
• What role do ‘experts’ play in public debate?
• Should we defer to experts?
• What if even the experts disagree?
• Can lay people contribute expertise?

View detailed information in the Handbook

From genetic modification to climate change, science seems to be embroiled in an ever-growing number of public controversies. Some of these controversies are international in scope. Others have unfolded in the distinctive environment of Australia’s public policy and research apparatus, sometimes with lessons for the international stage. Drawing on case studies, this subject observes and analyses the interactions of science, public discourse, and national and international policy formation. The subject will examine questions such as: What policy positions are taken and by which agencies? What are the dynamics of the interactions between them? What are the roles and limits of science and scientific evidence in such controversies? How may such controversies be resolved? Examples of areas of controversy that may be considered are: Genetics and Food Production (e.g. Mad-Cow Disease); Genetics and Biomedicine (e.g. Racial Profiling, Non-Invasive Prenatal Diagnosis); Alternatives to Western Medicine; Approaches to Greenhouse Gas Reduction; Nano Technologies; Energy Production; Water Policy; Digital Privacy and Surveillance; Freedom of Information and Expression in the Online World; Transhumanism; Geo-Engineering (e.g. Fracking); Climategate.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines various social research design and evaluation approaches to the study of social interaction. Students will critically examine the utility of, and theoretical underpinnings behind advanced methods of collecting, analysing and writing up social research. They will also conduct a small-scale research project, giving them practical skills in designing, conducting and writing up policy research. The subject will prepare students for engaging in real-world policy research and give them a practical understanding of the relationship between policy evaluation and social research in the context of debates around evidence-based policy.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Despite the growth of the evidence-based policy movement over the recent decades, the current political climate presents challenges for incorporating evidence of ‘what works’ in policy development. In the context of these contemporary governance challenges, this subject will equip students with the skills to identify different forms of evidence and understand how each of them shapes policymaking. Students will explore how evidence can be ‘used’ and ‘misused’ in the policy process. Through this exploration, they will develop an appreciation for the competing pressures public officials face around evidence and policy knowledge, and how these pressures shape policy choices. The subject will give students the skills to distil different forms of evidence, including scientific data and big data, and transfer global evidence to local contexts. Building on these skills, students will develop nuanced strategies for improving the uptake of evidence in specific policy-making contexts.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines the politics and governance of international trade. It explores the domestic and international dimensions of trade policy-making and the growing complexity of the "trade agenda" in national and international politics. It examines theories of trade and protection and theories of trade policy-making. It examines the evolution of the multilateral trade system since World War Two and the contemporary and future challenges that confront the system. The subject examines some of the perennial problems in the governance of the global trade system, as well as new issues and concerns, such as trade and the environment, trade and development, and agenda-setting and decision-making in the WTO. Finally, the subject explores the emergence of regional trade blocs and "free trade agreements" and their consequences for the multilateral trade system.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Over the past two decades, the role of the Chinese state in the country's economic development has changed considerably. The state planning agencies no longer decide what and how much should the country's enterprises produce. Many of the old and inefficient state-owned enterprises have been transformed into market-driven businesses. Some of these companies (still state-controlled) have become global players in sectors such as oil and gas. The so-called non-state companies also occupy an important place in the country's economy. Ideology is no longer an important factor in decision-making and capitalists are welcome to join the communist party. This course will examine the relationship between the growing power of business and the political process in China. We"ll look at how the emergent class of professional managers and entrepreneurs attempts to convert its economic status into political advantage. A number of theoretical frameworks will be used to explore this relationship, including neo-traditionalism/clientelism, democratisation (civil society) and state corporatism. Students will also be encouraged to compare China's experience with that of other transitional societies.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Governing Money and Finance is an elective subject available to students enrolled in the Master of International Relations and other masters degree students in the Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences. The subject provides an advanced introduction to the comparative and global politics of monetary and financial governance. It will introduce students to international monetary relations over the last century, including central issues of the causes and consequences of cycles of crisis and stabilization; international monetary and financial governance; the regulation of private markets and nonstate actors; and how these relate to power, international cooperation and conflict. Major issues include the use of national and international reserve assets, the domestic and international politics of exchange rate adjustment, the operations and regulation of banks and other institutions in international money and capital markets, market and institutional constraints upon national policy choices, and the politics of monetary and financial crises. The role of international institutions including the IMF, the Basel Committee, the Financial Stability Board, the G7, G20 and regional mechanisms in Europe and Asia will be covered. The subject will employ concepts and theories in political economy and international relations to address these empirical issues. As a political economy subject, the emphasis is upon the evolving political and institutional context in which monetary and financial markets operate and not upon the technical aspects of their operation or upon economic theory. However, some basic concepts and theories in economics will be used to explore the political aspects of monetary and financial governance. Prior knowledge of finance and economics is not required.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Indonesia’s emergence as a democratic and decentralized power and Southeast Asia’s only member of the G20 is transforming its relations with its ASEAN neighbours as well as the major regional powers. As a functioning democracy and the largest Muslim nation, Indonesia has a particular position in the global Islamic community. Moreover, a distinctive and activist foreign policy faces profound challenges from geopolitical shifts and from the vicissitudes of globalisation. These same geopolitical shifts will also transform Indonesia-Australia relations, albeit in uncertain ways. This subject will address the effects of the interaction of domestic and international factors on Indonesia’s future trajectory as a nation-state, locating Indonesia as an agent within historical and contemporary global dynamics. To augment the regular classroom sessions, Indonesian and Australian experts and practitioners will also provide guest presentations.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject will examine the impact of international migration on the states, societies, and individuals. Its first segment will address the questions such as why people move and how societies change because of immigration and emigration. The second segment will examine policies concerning multiculturalism and social cohesion. By reviewing various policy examples and case studies, this subject aims to help students understand the realities of international migration and its policy challenges. The third segment will analyze the global governance of international migration, including the roles of international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and international laws. This subject is offered by Asia Institute, and will use many case studies of Asian countries, while covering the experiences of Australia, the US, Canada, and some major immigration countries in Europe as reference points as well.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject is an introduction to contemporary approaches to inclusive social policy through the lens of ageing. Students will specifically explore issues and challenges that have arisen due to population ageing and discuss topics such as paid and unpaid caregiving, retirement and financial inclusion, and social isolation and loneliness. Students will engage with case studies of programs and policies to consider how governments and NGOs have attempted to address these issues. The subject will also draw on students’ own experiences of inclusive policy development and implementation and learn how to defend their practical policy ideas through scholarly arguments and evidence.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject covers the five eras of Indigenous policy and introduces a set of strategies for analysing and evaluating government policy in a range of fields. Applicable in all policy areas, analysis and evaluation skills are often required in government agencies, industry and community organisations in order to identify the impact of policy and provide direction on opportunity for change.

Indigenous affairs is frequently associated with narratives of failure. This subject provides the opportunity to understand the cause of those narratives and work within strengths-based approaches to analyse and evaluate of key policies in Indigenous affairs.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Special Topic: Rethinking Social Welfare

This subject surveys theories of what it means to be ‘at the margins’ and their uses in critically understanding contemporary social welfare regimes. The subject’s focus includes examining how the Australian social security system has shifted from the principles of ‘fair and reasonable’ economic support to increasingly conditional and punitive practices of ‘protecting’ communities. The subject locates this shift as part of broader socio-political processes of both representation and repression: from the role of the media in perpetuating stigma and dehumanisation to the settler-colonial logics that can operate within social support programs. As part of understanding forms of marginality and their interplays with the concrete practices of social welfare, students are invited to interrogate the intersections of age, class, dis/ability, gender, sexuality, and race. In addition to its critical momentums, students will speculate on the (im)possibilities of improving social welfare for marginalised communities through proposals like a universal basic income.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Subtitle: Families and Citizenship Through an Intersectional Lens

Feminist Social Policy takes a comparative and critical approach to understanding and evaluating social policy and policy-making at a national and international level. This subject aims to critically explore normative assumptions about what constitutes the family, parenthood, youth, marriage, disability, child and elder care. Students in this subject will be encouraged to broaden and deepen their understanding of how social policy is organised and impacted by these social, cultural, economic and political normativities by drawing on contemporary theories of intersectionality and citizenship. Taking a feminist perspective, this subject will outline key shifts in women’s employment trends, de/familisation, blended and chosen families, global fertility rates, disability rights, and welfare provision. Students will have the opportunity to explore themes of intersectionality and citizenship throughout their engagement with the subject, as well as articulate a comparative analysis of social policy from across the world.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The human service and welfare systems are meant to support us through life, from early childhood to old age. Yet they may fail to address our real concerns; placing conditions on who can receive social support or managing our needs rather than enabling us to thrive. How have governments attempted to address various social issues and support social groups that have traditionally been marginalised or disadvantaged? This subject tackles these questions by engaging students in a range of case studies related to social inequality. In this context, students will apply their understanding of gender, age, disability, geographic disadvantage, sexuality, and ethnic-migrant status and analyse the approaches and frameworks governments have designed to address inequality through these axes employing a systems approach. Integrating conceptual and programmatic insights, students will develop critical and practical skills necessary to drive systems change in their own policy work.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject investigates the linkages between social policy and development within lower-middle income countries. The November availability of this subject is taught as a University of Melbourne Overseas (UMOS) Subject in Indonesia, with a special focus on social policy in Indonesia. By learning 'in-country', the subject draws from the experience of Indonesia to understand the roles played by different actors (government, civil society organisations, international organisations, the private sector, and communities) in responding to complex social policy issues related to poverty, welfare and wellbeing. This includes considerations of environmental change; access to livelihoods, employment, health and education opportunities; and the ways that challenges and opportunities may vary for different social and identity groupings. The subject examines examples of multi-stakeholder approaches to responding to complex social policy challenges in large states like Indonesia, often through collaboration and innovation. The subject also explores debates on the relationship between social and economic development and the implications for social policy in multi-level and decentralised governance structures. Students learn from their experience examining these issues in Indonesia during the teaching period and apply this in their first assessment. The broader readings for the subject also examine similar social policy issues in other countries in the Asia Pacific. Students then use both their Indonesia experience and broader learning from the reading and their own research to investigate similar social policy challenges and responses in other country contexts in the Asia-Pacific for their second assessment.

The November availability of this subject is taught as a University of Melbourne Overseas Subject in Indonesia with our partner institution the University of Gadjah Mada. The subject will involve Masters students from both Melbourne and Masters students and staff from our Indonesian partner university. This provides an exciting opportunity for students from each University to learn with and from each other to gain deeper knowledge on tackling inequalities and understanding real-world development challenges and responses through social policy in lower-middle income countries. The subject also uses teaching mediums that connects students with experts in the field in Indonesia. There is a quota for this subject. For further information and to apply: https://arts.unimelb.edu.au/students/overseas-experience#graduate-subjects.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines the relation between Indigenous peoples, justice and the law, through the lens of sovereignty. It reflects critically on the concept of sovereignty, its powerful propensity to transcend its social origins, and its fortress status in law. Through first examining European law’s relation to Indigenous peoples from 1492, the course explores correlations between Europe’s economic expansion and the development of sovereignty, property, and race as key notions that underpin both individual nation-states and the international order they constitute. In bringing this analysis to bear on contemporary aspirations for structural justice, the course then considers the possibilities and limitations of current legal concepts and mechanisms – in both local and global domains – such as prevailing notions of sovereignty, native title, human rights, crimes against humanity, and transitional justice. Finally, the course presents examples of innovative contemporary interventions in support of structural justice in settler states, promoting new ways to think about their complex pasts and presents, and possible future directions.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This experiential learning subject introduces students to the fundamentals of social entrepreneurship, while equipping students with a practical understanding of social enterprise as a model to tackle social and/or environmental problems through trade. Working in small teams, students are introduced to a range of design thinking and social innovation frameworks. They draw on these frameworks to iteratively conceptualise, ‘pitch’, refine and develop a social enterprise ‘business model’ that appropriately responds to the needs of communities and society. To nurture and support development of ideas, the subject draws on real-world case studies as well as industry guests from the social enterprise ecosystem including social entrepreneurs, people with ‘lived-experience’, social finance and impact investment intermediaries, incubators and accelerators and leading scholars and thinkers in the field. Upon completing this subject, students will develop a critical understanding of the theoretical foundations of social entrepreneurship and how to develop a ‘business model’ for financially sustainable social impact. By doing so, the subject also offers a unique opportunity for students to apply conceptual knowledge and project management and business skills to real-world social and/or environmental challenges.

View detailed information in the Handbook

An increasing global focus on program effectiveness and efficiency has brought renewed attention to the role of evidence in designing and implementing health programs. Students of this subject will engage with the discipline of implementation science, and will investigate a range of current theories and approaches to program design, including: Theory of Change; program logic models; logical frameworks; complexity theory; behaviour change theories; emergent design; participatory/co-design approaches; and approaches to scale-up.

Facilitated by experts with applied field experience in program design and implementation in Australia and other global contexts, students will learn via practical, staged exercises to draft strategic program plans. A range of case studies on current health challenges and interventions will build students’ knowledge and skills in evidence-based health program design and implementation. Cross-cutting issues in program design will also be considered and applied to case studies, particularly the issues of participation and inclusion. Students will be asked to consider evidence requirements and real-world compromises in programmatic research and planning within Australian and other global settings. This subject will equip students with the knowledge and skills to operationalise their program design skills through best practice approaches to program implementation.

Health Program Design & Implementation is a block mode intensive subject. It has a combination of online content which can studied in each student’s own time, combined with live seminars and workshops held on six days across the two week period. Selection of study mode (online or on campus) determines the mode of attending these seminars and workshops. Students are expected to commit approximately 40 hours to learning each week.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The subject explores the policy decisions, usually made by governments, that determine present and future country or regional level objectives relating to health services; programs; and the regulatory, organisational, social, cultural, physical and natural environments that contribute to population health and well-being. The subject explores the nature of health policy, types of policy instruments, and policy making processes including agenda setting and policy influencing frameworks and theories. The role of evidence in policy formation including the significance of the balance between effectiveness, efficiency and equity as objectives of health policy will be debated. In doing so, students will be introduced to the importance and process of policy analysis and explore the relevant legal, political, managerial, sociological, ethical, epidemiological and economic perspectives to instrument selection and policy implementation across a range of health policy contexts. Australian and international country contexts will be used throughout the subject.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This course explores the interface of policy and practice in the delivery of aged care services. The responses to policy shifts in aged care over time will be explored. The course will then focus on the present day impact of health care, mental health, income security, housing, and employment, educational and recreational policies on the delivery of services to older citizens collectively and as individuals. Case studies will be used to illustrate both the theoretical and practical aspects of designing and delivering services.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject, which is taught in Indonesia, investigates the fundamental issues around the changing nature of work; what it means for individuals’ working lives, employers, labour market institutions and regulations situating Australia within a comparative context. The subject reviews how digital technologies, automation, offshoring and emerging forms of employment (e.g., gig work, remote work, digital platform jobs) are changing labour market dynamics in Australia, Europe, North America and Asia. The subject also examines the different policy responses that have characterised this trend while highlighting the implications for corporations, organizations and institutions within a comparative perspective. Elements of the subject will be presented in conjunction with Gadjah Mada Universitas in Indonesia.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Cities are increasingly where the majority of the global population lives but also where some of the starkest issues of inequality, environmental degradation, and social conflict occurs. This subject uses tools from social policy to address intractable problems related to urban life. It gives students conceptual tools to grapple with social policy issues that are urban in nature, and it deals with city spaces and municipal governance. It offers an introduction to issues such as social problems connected to housing affordability, conflicts over neighbourhood spaces, addiction and recovery, homelessness, workforce mobility and commuting, and non-profit service providers in high density areas, to name a few. Students will enhance both their analytical comprehension of the intersection between urban planning and social policy as well as their practical skills as practitioners in this space within non-profit institutions and local government.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject introduces and analyses critical concepts and terms central to debates over climate change, including risk and uncertainty, adaptation and mitigation, burden sharing, and problems and issues relating to regimes, strategies and policy instruments for addressing global warming. The subject considers the rise of climate change as a policy problem. It reviews and analyses the history of climate change policy as it has evolved nationally and internationally. It examines the interactions between national and regional climate policy, including in Australia, the United States, the European Union and China. It analyses debates and concerns that have led to the evolution of the Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol, and more recent arrangements. Students will consider a range of policy instruments, including carbon taxes and emissions trading, and technologies that have been proposed or deployed to address this issue. This subject enables students to understand the evolution of a critical global environmental issue. It offers insights into technical, political, ethical and ecological issues that have framed climate change policy, and enables students to think critically about and participate in developing policy in this domain.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject engages with critical concepts and issues related to environmental politics and policy. Special attention is paid to the political dimensions of policy development and implementation, with reference to national and international domains. Students will be introduced to relevant theories, cases, and tools for policy makers and environmental activists. Students will consider a variety of case studies including climate change, ozone depletion, water management, land conflict, forest preservation, waste and 'sustainability planning'. Case studies will be drawn from Australia, Southeast Asia, and other global contexts. The subject is taught through a combination of lectures and seminars. Students will gain a practical understanding of issues confronting policymakers and other political actors in relation to a range of environment problems and solutions.

View detailed information in the Handbook

It is perhaps obvious that human behaviour is having a negative impact on our environment. Behavioural change, thus, is pivotal to ensure a more environmentally sustainable future. However the question of behavioural change is vexed. Some argue that humans are ‘naturally’ greedy and selfish, others suggest that we are ‘puppets’ - the victims of the social structures engendered by capitalism, and yet others trust that good behaviour will follow from the ‘truth’; knowledge about environmental problems. These and other views of behaviour set up particular change strategies. The above examples suggest three strategies for changing behaviour: provide people with incentives that will lead them to ‘choose’ different behaviours, or the transformation of social structures such as capitalism and patriarchy, or the provision of environmental education.

This subject examines the question of behavioural change from a number of disciplinary perspectives (psychology, sociology ecology, marketing and economics). Each discipline ‘sees’ the problem differently and this allows us to map insights and gaps in these knowledges. These purported differences can be understood and reconciled; behaviour is show to be a function of the physical, social and psychological aspects of social practices. This allows for a more holistic understanding of behaviour and the strategies that might create behaviour change.

NB: This subject uses a ‘flipped classroom’ mode of delivery. Most weeks require the watching of a vodcast prior to attending a 2 hour seminar. The success of the seminars and student learning is governed by individuals’ preparation and participation. This subject covers a lot of theory and requires active engagement. The consideration of societal behaviour change will likely engender a consideration of your own behaviour, including as a student.

Topics and themes include:

The effect of disciplines: behaviour and behavioural change from the perspectives of psychology, sociology, behavioural economics, ecology and marketing
How insights afforded by the disciplines can be used to create an more holistic and integrated understanding of behaviour change
Critiquing programs for behaviour change

Weekly topics: (1) Defining behaviour, (2) Perspectives: Behavioural Economics, (3) Perspectives: Marketing, (4) Perspectives: Psychology, (5) Perspectives: Sociology, (6) Perspective Ecology, (7) Integration, (8) Strategies: Social Marketing, (9) Strategies: Nudge, (10) Trans-disciplinary Perspectives 1, (11) Trans-disciplinary Perspectives 2

View detailed information in the Handbook

Formerly FOOD90026

This subject examines the politics of the global food system, and will focus on the policies, structures, power relations and political debates surrounding the production, distribution and consumption of food. The impacts of food production and consumption on food security, health, the environment, animal welfare, and the livelihoods of producers, will be critically explored. Key theoretical frameworks and concepts for understanding the dominant paradigms and dynamics of the food system will be discussed and evaluated. Integrated policies and strategies for creating more sustainable and equitable food systems, and alternative paradigms and practices of production, distribution and consumption, will also be critically examined. This subject will primarily draw on theories and methodologies from the sociology and politics of food and agriculture, food policy, and the political economy and political ecology of food.

The topics and debates covered include:

• Food policy and governance at the global, national and local levels
• Food security, food sovereignty and the Global Food Crisis
• Global trading relations, free trade and fair trade
• Environmental impacts and sustainable forms of food production and consumption
• Animal production, factory farms and animal welfare
• Supermarkets and alternative retailing and distribution networks
• Agricultural paradigms and technologies: chemical-industrial agriculture, genetically modified foods, organic agriculture and agroecology
• Corporate concentration within and across sectors of the food system
• Competition for food and land: animal feed, biofuels and land-grabbing
• Food processing, food marketing, dietary advice and health
• Local and urban food production and planning
• Alternative paradigms and networks of food production, distribution and consumption

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject provides an introduction to the key environmental challenges in contemporary China and to China’s environmental governance. The subject is structured around four topics: water resources, land resources, air pollution, and energy and climate change. For each of these topics lectures and tutorials will analyse impacts, policy and governance arrangements, citizen and NGO involvement, government and media discourse, and international linkages. Students will be introduced to key theoretical debates in China studies, development studies and human geography to help them understand the complexities of China’s environmental challenges. Using the environment as a lens, students will gain an understanding of politics and state-society relations in contemporary China.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject provides a broad-based overview of contemporary China, exploring key features of the country's increasingly complex and dynamic society. Topics covered include the economy, environmental challenges, political processes, cultural change, civil society, and China’s engagement with the global community.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Indonesia’s emergence as a democratic and decentralized power and Southeast Asia’s only member of the G20 is transforming its relations with its ASEAN neighbours as well as the major regional powers. As a functioning democracy and the largest Muslim nation, Indonesia has a particular position in the global Islamic community. Moreover, a distinctive and activist foreign policy faces profound challenges from geopolitical shifts and from the vicissitudes of globalisation. These same geopolitical shifts will also transform Indonesia-Australia relations, albeit in uncertain ways. This subject will address the effects of the interaction of domestic and international factors on Indonesia’s future trajectory as a nation-state, locating Indonesia as an agent within historical and contemporary global dynamics. To augment the regular classroom sessions, Indonesian and Australian experts and practitioners will also provide guest presentations.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Migration is a powerful driver of social change across the contemporary world. This subject explores the key issues and debates at the intersection of migration and development, drawing on conceptual, theoretical, and empirical work in economics, development studies, gender studies, human geography, anthropology, sociology, demography, and political science. Through class debates and practical exercises, students will engage critically with the conceptual models and theoretical frameworks used to analyse migration and its impacts on development. Core concepts - including transnationalism, neoliberalism, forced migration, global care chains, governmentality, and global householding - will be examined and critiqued. The subject also considers the economic, social, and cultural implications of migration for development processes at both micro and macro levels, assessing its relationship to broader debates on globalisation, poverty, gender, and social change.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The use of project management techniques has risen sharply. Examples of projects include research and development studies, reorganisation efforts, implementation of change programs, installation of a new piece of equipment, advertising campaigns, construction, organising special events and other one-off endeavours. The subject will cover the key drivers of project success, training and leadership in project environments. Project selection is the first critical set of decisions. Matching of the projects selected to the organisation’s strategy is taken as the starting point. Practical tools and techniques will then be introduced to manage the project or special event for success. The subject will also involve the use of an appropriate Project Management software package such as MS Project.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Conflict between individual and groups is an inevitable aspect of day to day life. This subject will review the nature of conflict in the workplace and the conflict management strategies of influencing and negotiation. Students will be given the opportunity to apply negotiation techniques to case studies and in simulations.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Leadership is a pivotal part of every formal and informal group, every community and organisation. Leading involves a critical connection between the individual capacity of a leader and the formal authority and responsibility vested in the position they occupy. It is personal and structural; it is something learned and practised every day; it is rooted in deep aspects of personality, gender and culture.

This subject helps students develop leadership skills by examining the attributes of leadership and the roles that leaders play. It does this through a dialogue between contemporary leadership theory and the ‘classic texts’ of authors such as Sophocles, Machiavelli, Shakespeare, Camus and Sun Tzu. The subject examines how these classic texts position the leader in different contexts, noting how they: develop a vision and goals; build support and deal with threats; impose costs and create alliances; and find a moral compass. We use contemporary leadership theories and cases to interpret these 'classic' studies of leadership and to see what works and why.

Seminar discussion and analysis of leadership theory will be complemented by guest speakers, and opportunities for group discussion and critical self-reflection.

This subject is compulsory in the Executive Master of Arts (MC-EMA). It is open to students in other graduate coursework programs with the written permission of course and subject coordinators.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Moral decision-making is a practical skill which we exercise many times a day, confidently and accurately. Sometimes, however, we face situations of moral complexity or novelty, where it is not obvious what we should do. In this subject, we look at the ways in which moral theory can assist us to think about such situations, particularly as they arise in our working and organisational life. We begin by examining the nature of moral reasoning, and then see how it can be applied to a number of ethical issues which we are likely to encounter in our professional lives. These issues may include, autonomy and paternalism, role morality and its relationship with personal morality, whistle-blowing, free speech in the workplace, personal and professional relationships, corruption and bribery, conflicts of interest, and privacy and confidentiality. We focus on the factors that help or hinder ethical action in organizational settings, including both structural elements (such as role clarity, avoidance of perverse incentives, accountability mechanisms) and personal traits (such as cognitive biases and moral (dis)engagement). Case studies will provide a focus for reflective work: students will be encouraged to develop case studies from their own experience, and pursue their own interests.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject engages with the dynamic landscape of public sector management by examining key theoretical frameworks, debates, and macro trends, informing contemporary public management practices. Over the course of the subject, students will develop the analytical tools and frameworks necessary to understand, navigate and address public management dilemmas, including routine challenges faced by public managers and public sector organisations more broadly. They will also discuss the key pillars of design and delivery of public services and consider the roles that public managers, policymakers, non-governmental entities, and the community at large play in these undertakings. Students will apply these theoretical learnings to interrogating complex public service environments and designing strategies to address public management dilemmas with consideration of key actors, bureaucracy, administrative burden, and different governance models. In addition, the subject will provide students with opportunities to reflect on their skills, competencies, and professional identity in the public management sphere.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject in the Master of Public Policy and Management is designed to develop students into adept policy scholars. Through critical engagement with data sources and policy documents, students will retrospectively review policy-making practices in relation to key policy-making stages, actors, and institutions. They will also delve into key theoretical perspectives and literatures central to public policy studies and will apply major theories to explain real-world practices of policy design and implementation. The subject will explore the nuances of how policy issues are identified, framed, and debated and will discuss the pivotal roles that ideas, evidence, and norms play within the theoretical and practical realms of policy design. Building on these theoretical learnings, students will also develop practical research skills, including synthesis and critical engagement with policy documents and academic sources, case study analysis, and formulation of scholarly arguments.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject involves a supervised thesis of 15,000 words, embodying the results of the student's own research.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Refer to PPMN90049 Public / Social Policy Thesis Part 1 for details.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject is designed to develop research skills for those students who wish to undertake academic, industry or government-based research projects. Students will explore contemporary research strategies, differing methodological approaches to research and practical issues concerned with designing, conducting and commissioning research projects on or for policy. They will investigate the relationship between research and policy (broadly conceived to include public policy, public management and governance), and develop understanding of the research and policy nexus. The subject gives special attention to setting research questions based on gaps in the literature or real-world policy problems, managing research ethics, and communicating research to policymakers and wider audiences. Students will design and perform independent research of their own, including interrogating theory, methods, and analyses. The subject will assist students to develop skills in research project preparation and development, in the context of wider exploration of the research policy nexus.

View detailed information in the Handbook

In this subject students will be placed in an organisation which either has governmental responsibilities or deals with government, where they will work under the supervision and guidance of a senior manager in the organisation. Students will be required to use their own networks to make an initial contact with a potential organisation. Their choice will then need to be ratified by the department. Students will carry out research or analytical exercises of relevance to the organisation that will be involved in high-level and complex policy making. Students will study the structure, culture and policy environment of the organisation and develop advanced analytical, research and report-writing skills as well as negotiating and interpersonal skills. Students completing this course should expect to acquire significant insight into the complexities of policy making and management. During the internship an academic supervisor will advise them.

If primary research is carried out during the internship, ethics approval is the responsibility of the host organisation.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject, a capstone option in the Master of Public Policy and Management, will examine contemporary real-world issues in public policy making, public sector governance and public management in a variety of contexts. Using input from professional practitioners as well as independent research, students will draw on the expertise that they have developed during the MPPM and apply it in real time to a contemporary project. Working both in teams as well as independently, students will identify and formulate key problems, develop a set of alternatives to address them, evaluate the alternatives against a set of criteria and recognise the trade-offs between them. Students will address the political, as well as the empirical aspects of the problems, and will develop advanced analytical, research and report-writing skills.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Performance management and measurement have become cornerstones of how modern public sector organisations account for what they do. Yet as states, societies and economies have grown and developed in ever increasing complexity, since the end of the twentieth century new ways of thinking about the relationship between governments and their citizens have emerged. These developments have in part been a reaction to measurement-based managerial approaches, but also partly reflect a deeper concern regarding the apparent decline in citizens’ attachment to and respect for the practice of politics. This subject aims to provoke a wide ranging discussion about the role of ‘publics’ (citizens, users, clients, stakeholders, communities, etc.) in public policy and public services through critical engagement with an emerging paradigm of citizen-centred governance. Sometimes called Government 2.0, this approach to public policy and public administration is typically described as networked, collaborative and flexible, with service delivery arrangements which are personalised, choice-based and delivered through multiple channels.

This subject will equip public sector leaders with a theoretical understanding and practical toolbox of approaches to managing a major change management exercise in government. A range of case studies will be used to provide a step by step analysis of the challenges in driving major change. Understanding the underlying factors which lead to effective policy, process and program innovation in government is central to the capacity of governments to deliver better policy and better outcomes for the whole community. We will also critically examine the theoretical underpinnings of newer tools in policy making such as behavioural techniques (‘nudge’), randomised controlled trials and big data. This subject will seek to explain what drives public sector innovation and the structures, processes and individuals that promote and obstruct it. There is a focus on the role of government in driving large scale innovation and how to build a national innovation system that promotes technology and high wage economic growth for a nation.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Public sector budget frameworks are premised on efficiency, effectiveness and the ethical use of taxpayer’s money. This subject considers how public managers and ministers work within these frameworks to balance at times competing objectives and political undercurrents, including accountability under legislation, the legislative committee process, and the audit process. The focus is on OECD countries and trends in budget and spending review cycles, the empowerment of finance ministries and audit institutions, the adoption of private sector practices, fiscal rules and principles, and intergenerational equity. In managing public expenditure this subject examines the design of tax and social welfare systems, how budgets are political and the interplay between governments and capital markets.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Events like epidemics, earthquakes, floods, bushfires, or financial collapse pose significant challenges to societies that encounter them. Governments engage in crisis management to prepare for, respond to, and recover from such extreme events. Hence, crisis management is a key part of public policy design and implementation. The bad news is that while individual extreme events are rare, crisis of some kind is likely to occur regularly. The good news is that scholars and practitioners have developed ideas and tools for handling them. This seminar will focus on conceptual approaches to and theories of crisis management. In addition to readings selected from the best in the field, students will engage in class group discussions and scenario-based exercises.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject introduces students to a strategic perspective on the management of change and reform within the contexts of the public, private and non-for-profit sectors in Australia and internationally. In this subject, students will explore strategic management tools and techniques, and how they can be adopted by public managers to enhance the performance and achieve the desired outcomes of their organisations. The subject adopts a multi-dimensional approach to understanding and analysing organisational change and public management reforms, and how strategic planning and thinking could be used as methods to affect change within organizations. Students will first explore the systems that govern public/private and not-for-profit organisations and other macro-level factors that affect their operations. Students will then investigate day-to-day activities of public managers and other micro-level factors shaping the organisational structures and operations, including leadership skills, power dynamics organisational conflict and politics as well as the complexities and factors that affect organisations as they evolve and operate in complex organisational fields. These analytical and practical skills will enable students to design strategic objectives to guide organisational change and reform.

View detailed information in the Handbook

We are living through an era of disruptive technological change, propelled by the rapid development of digital platforms and AI technologies. The rapid spread of digitalisation is reshaping all areas of social life exerting especially profound effects on public policy. These effects include using digital platforms to offer round-the-clock services, automating administrative processes via algorithms, and harnessing AI to inform policy design and delivery.

This subject engages students in an in-depth exploration of the digital turn in public policy. Students will critically examine how digital technologies shape public governance and administration, considering the opportunities they present for efficiency and improved decision-making and associated challenges, such as data privacy, algorithmic bias, and digital exclusion. Through engagement with case studies, students will immerse themselves in the complexities of public policy in an increasingly digital world and analyse the implications of digitalisation reforms for core public values such as equity, legitimacy, and accountability.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The rise of Asia will be a defining feature of the 21st century and holds the potential to generate a paradigm shift in how we understand public policy, administration and management. Australian policy makers are actively turning their attention to the policy, governance and practice changes required to maintain Australia’s economic and political influence in the region, while broadening and strengthening relationships with Asian nations.

This subject will provide students with the necessary foundations for creating, analysing and implementing public policy in the context of the Asian Century. In the first instance, students will consider what is meant by the Asian Century in relation to shifting economic, political and social power and what this means for international relations and governance. Students will explore what it means to be ‘Asia capable’. In particular, the subject will examine how key Asian nations view and action public policy in order to understand key differences and similarities in the way public policy is conceptualised and acted on from a Western perspective. As part of this, students will explore how key Western-style institutions, practices and orientations which comprise ‘public administration’, ‘public management’ and ‘public governance’ might be limited by or changed within the context of increasing Asian influence in the global and regional public policy sphere.

This highly interactive subject will engage important theoretical discussions and translate key concepts into practice through the exploration of case studies from across the Asian region. Students will engage with the ongoing public debate about 'the Asian Century' to explore how it may shape the content (i.e. what does public policy include/exclude), construct (i.e. what are the differences in terms of how public policy is viewed) and conduct (i.e. how public policy is made and realised) of future public policy.

Upon successful completion of this subject, students will be better placed to understand and engage with public policy in the context of the Asian Century.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines how organised interest groups strategically navigate political systems to shape policy-maker’s decisions. Students explore the theory and research behind interest group influence, analysing how different groups participate in public policy, their effectiveness, and why certain groups achieve greater success than others. The course addresses contemporary debates about the role of organised interest groups in democratic contexts while drawing insights from comparative political systems. Students undertake hands-on analysis and development of real-world lobbying strategies, gaining practical understanding of advancing policy change through strategic advocacy. Key activities include venue shopping across institutional arenas, developing policy narratives that resonate with decision-makers, building evidence-based cases for policy change, forming strategic coalitions with diverse stakeholders, and employing targeted media strategies to communicate policy benefits. Upon completion, students possess critical understanding of the role of organised interest across political systems, having applied theoretical knowledge through practical exercises and simulations that bridge academic concepts with real-world policy advocacy skills.

View detailed information in the Handbook

In this subject, students will explore how public policymaking can be enhanced through participatory and deliberative democratic mechanisms, learning from real-life case studies that led to both successes and failures. Students will analyse various theories and techniques for fostering meaningful participation, with a particular emphasis on deliberative democracy, codesign, and the innovative use of digital collaboration tools across different levels of power. The subject provides opportunities to apply theoretical knowledge through practical exercises, including an in-class simulation where students will design, run and participate in a deliberative exercise, showcasing the complexities and rewards of collaborative decision-making.

View detailed information in the Handbook

How do we compare responses to the pandemic across countries? Which countries have the best health outcomes? Or, which are doing the most to address climate change? Responding to these and similar questions requires a comparative perspective. To that end, the subject builds on the students’ foundational understanding of public policy and introduces them to theoretical approaches, frameworks, and methods to compare public policies and programs. Through a series of case studies, students will explore the advantages and limitations of comparisons by engaging with real-world policy programs and policy responses across different national contexts. Building on these in-class activities, students will compare public policy programs and formulate theoretically-informed arguments explaining variations in public policy and interpreting implications of contrasting approaches.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines contemporary issues in governance in Australia and internationally. In the context of complex policy problems confronting society, students will explore how governments grapple with these complexities and experiment with new approaches to regulation and public administration. Through critical engagement in both traditional and emerging governance models and paradigms, students will interrogate strengths and weaknesses of public sector reform efforts in different parts of the world and shifting power dynamics. They will focus on the implications of these changes for the accountability and legitimacy of contemporary democratic governance. The combination of theoretical work regarding the nature of contemporary governance and exploration of current debates around specific governance initiatives will give students the tools to critically analyse governance reforms. Students will do so with a critical focus on how different governance paradigms coexist and the implications that this has for key policy actors, including politicians, public officials, non-government actors and citizens.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject enables students to compare the policy developments involved in politically, legally and constitutionally recognising Indigenous rights and sovereignty in Australia, New Zealand and Canada, with a particular focus on the negotiation of treaties. Starting with a focus on the Victorian experience, students will identify the most pertinent issues that should be considered by the Victorian Government in negotiating a treaty or treaties with Aboriginal peoples. Comparative cases will include the Treaty of Waitangi in Aotearoa/New Zealand and the modern treaty process in Canada, specifically in the province of British Columbia. Students will consider how these treaty processes have hindered and/or facilitated effective policy development and Indigenous governance.

With the assistance of public policy academics and practitioners, participants will construct their own case study of citizen-state relationships focusing on debates around rights, sovereignty, decolonisation, self-determination, access to services and economic development and propose some key recommendations for future reforms.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The respective roles, responsibilities and sources of power characterizing relationships between business and government play a crucial role in shaping public policy and regulation, within and between countries. Because of its productive function, business often enjoys a privileged position with government, while a major goal of policy and regulation at national and international levels is to steer and regulate business activity. Relationships between business and government vary significantly in different countries, economic sectors, and over time, and the conceptual tools for understanding them remain subject to widespread debate. This subject critically reviews contemporary policy debates and scholarly research, and draws on contrasting case examples to explore theoretical, normative and practical implications of business-government relationships. Particular attention is given to debates about government-business relationships associated with processes of public policy formation and implementation, social and environmental regulation, and delivery of public services and infrastructure. On completion of the subject, students should have a strong critical understanding of debates about the character and inter-relationship of business and government, from a comparative and international perspective.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The state’s role in the effective implementation of public policies forms a central element of contemporary political debates around the world, but significant variation exists between states in their capacity to govern such arrangements. In this subject, students will learn about contemporary governance and its implications for state capacity and democracy. By developing their knowledge of theories of the state and governance in relation to the policymaking process, students will apply conceptual tools to assess whether new forms of governance challenge traditional notions of the nation-state, drawing comparisons between different policy fields and country settings. Students will also develop their skills in applied political and policy analysis by learning about contemporary trends facing state systems in the administration of public services in areas such as: collaborative governance and metagovernance; multi-level governance and global policy networks; transnational and private governance; as well as democratic backsliding and populist forms of governance. Students will use these skills to design a governance reform in line with contemporary governance trends and with awareness of their implications.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject focuses on the strategies used by political actors to communicate with a focus on political, public and government communication in comparative perspective. Within the framework of this subject, students will engage with diverse and topical case studies illustrating successes and failures in political communication, ranging from the United States Presidential elections to local and regional campaigns that made headlines. Students will work together to solve communication 'crises' inspired by real-life scenarios and design an effective communication campaign under limited temporal and material resources. These activities will put students in a role of a political strategist and give them a first-hand experience of adapting to ever-changing situations in medium- to high-risk political environments.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject is designed to develop research skills for those students who wish to undertake academic, industry or government-based research projects. Students will explore contemporary research strategies, differing methodological approaches to research and practical issues concerned with designing, conducting and commissioning research projects on or for policy. They will investigate the relationship between research and policy (broadly conceived to include public policy, public management and governance), and develop understanding of the research and policy nexus. The subject gives special attention to setting research questions based on gaps in the literature or real-world policy problems, managing research ethics, and communicating research to policymakers and wider audiences. Students will design and perform independent research of their own, including interrogating theory, methods, and analyses. The subject will assist students to develop skills in research project preparation and development, in the context of wider exploration of the research policy nexus.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The course introduces students to the economic principles and framework used by economists to consider issues of public policy. The importance of rigorous analysis in problem solving is emphasised. The policy areas likely to be covered will be taken from public finance, industry policy, competition policy, micro-economic reform, taxation and income distribution, as well as health, education and infrastructure provision. The emphasis is on current issues and so the actual policies covered may vary in response to current events.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Questions of trust, effective communication, and judging credibility, are integral to the assessment of knowledge claims both within science and in the context of public debate. Questions about trust and legitimate communication consequently arise every day in a range of professional contexts, for example in scientific research and the dissemination of scientific knowledge, in journalism and media, public relations, and in police, accounting and development work, etc. But what makes one trustworthy? How do we pick out who the experts are? This course will interest students in a wide range of careers.

Questions to be covered:

Trust

• What is trust? What makes one trustworthy?
• Is there a decline in trust, in the media, in politicians, or in scientists for example?
• Do we need to trust our sources of information, and do they need to trust us?
• How do we manage conflicts that arise in relationships of trust?

Communication

• What indicators do people rely on when communicating with others?
• How do communication patterns vary from context to context, such as face-to-face, in broader media, and in ethically and politically contested public spaces?
• What makes someone a credible source of information?
• What role does the conveyance of quality information play in contested social debates, and what role should it play?
• Are public debates about communicating information or voicing substantive differences?

Expertise

• What makes someone an expert?
• What role do ‘experts’ play in public debate?
• Should we defer to experts?
• What if even the experts disagree?
• Can lay people contribute expertise?

View detailed information in the Handbook

From genetic modification to climate change, science seems to be embroiled in an ever-growing number of public controversies. Some of these controversies are international in scope. Others have unfolded in the distinctive environment of Australia’s public policy and research apparatus, sometimes with lessons for the international stage. Drawing on case studies, this subject observes and analyses the interactions of science, public discourse, and national and international policy formation. The subject will examine questions such as: What policy positions are taken and by which agencies? What are the dynamics of the interactions between them? What are the roles and limits of science and scientific evidence in such controversies? How may such controversies be resolved? Examples of areas of controversy that may be considered are: Genetics and Food Production (e.g. Mad-Cow Disease); Genetics and Biomedicine (e.g. Racial Profiling, Non-Invasive Prenatal Diagnosis); Alternatives to Western Medicine; Approaches to Greenhouse Gas Reduction; Nano Technologies; Energy Production; Water Policy; Digital Privacy and Surveillance; Freedom of Information and Expression in the Online World; Transhumanism; Geo-Engineering (e.g. Fracking); Climategate.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines various social research design and evaluation approaches to the study of social interaction. Students will critically examine the utility of, and theoretical underpinnings behind advanced methods of collecting, analysing and writing up social research. They will also conduct a small-scale research project, giving them practical skills in designing, conducting and writing up policy research. The subject will prepare students for engaging in real-world policy research and give them a practical understanding of the relationship between policy evaluation and social research in the context of debates around evidence-based policy.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Despite the growth of the evidence-based policy movement over the recent decades, the current political climate presents challenges for incorporating evidence of ‘what works’ in policy development. In the context of these contemporary governance challenges, this subject will equip students with the skills to identify different forms of evidence and understand how each of them shapes policymaking. Students will explore how evidence can be ‘used’ and ‘misused’ in the policy process. Through this exploration, they will develop an appreciation for the competing pressures public officials face around evidence and policy knowledge, and how these pressures shape policy choices. The subject will give students the skills to distil different forms of evidence, including scientific data and big data, and transfer global evidence to local contexts. Building on these skills, students will develop nuanced strategies for improving the uptake of evidence in specific policy-making contexts.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines the politics and governance of international trade. It explores the domestic and international dimensions of trade policy-making and the growing complexity of the "trade agenda" in national and international politics. It examines theories of trade and protection and theories of trade policy-making. It examines the evolution of the multilateral trade system since World War Two and the contemporary and future challenges that confront the system. The subject examines some of the perennial problems in the governance of the global trade system, as well as new issues and concerns, such as trade and the environment, trade and development, and agenda-setting and decision-making in the WTO. Finally, the subject explores the emergence of regional trade blocs and "free trade agreements" and their consequences for the multilateral trade system.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Over the past two decades, the role of the Chinese state in the country's economic development has changed considerably. The state planning agencies no longer decide what and how much should the country's enterprises produce. Many of the old and inefficient state-owned enterprises have been transformed into market-driven businesses. Some of these companies (still state-controlled) have become global players in sectors such as oil and gas. The so-called non-state companies also occupy an important place in the country's economy. Ideology is no longer an important factor in decision-making and capitalists are welcome to join the communist party. This course will examine the relationship between the growing power of business and the political process in China. We"ll look at how the emergent class of professional managers and entrepreneurs attempts to convert its economic status into political advantage. A number of theoretical frameworks will be used to explore this relationship, including neo-traditionalism/clientelism, democratisation (civil society) and state corporatism. Students will also be encouraged to compare China's experience with that of other transitional societies.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Governing Money and Finance is an elective subject available to students enrolled in the Master of International Relations and other masters degree students in the Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences. The subject provides an advanced introduction to the comparative and global politics of monetary and financial governance. It will introduce students to international monetary relations over the last century, including central issues of the causes and consequences of cycles of crisis and stabilization; international monetary and financial governance; the regulation of private markets and nonstate actors; and how these relate to power, international cooperation and conflict. Major issues include the use of national and international reserve assets, the domestic and international politics of exchange rate adjustment, the operations and regulation of banks and other institutions in international money and capital markets, market and institutional constraints upon national policy choices, and the politics of monetary and financial crises. The role of international institutions including the IMF, the Basel Committee, the Financial Stability Board, the G7, G20 and regional mechanisms in Europe and Asia will be covered. The subject will employ concepts and theories in political economy and international relations to address these empirical issues. As a political economy subject, the emphasis is upon the evolving political and institutional context in which monetary and financial markets operate and not upon the technical aspects of their operation or upon economic theory. However, some basic concepts and theories in economics will be used to explore the political aspects of monetary and financial governance. Prior knowledge of finance and economics is not required.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Indonesia’s emergence as a democratic and decentralized power and Southeast Asia’s only member of the G20 is transforming its relations with its ASEAN neighbours as well as the major regional powers. As a functioning democracy and the largest Muslim nation, Indonesia has a particular position in the global Islamic community. Moreover, a distinctive and activist foreign policy faces profound challenges from geopolitical shifts and from the vicissitudes of globalisation. These same geopolitical shifts will also transform Indonesia-Australia relations, albeit in uncertain ways. This subject will address the effects of the interaction of domestic and international factors on Indonesia’s future trajectory as a nation-state, locating Indonesia as an agent within historical and contemporary global dynamics. To augment the regular classroom sessions, Indonesian and Australian experts and practitioners will also provide guest presentations.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject will examine the impact of international migration on the states, societies, and individuals. Its first segment will address the questions such as why people move and how societies change because of immigration and emigration. The second segment will examine policies concerning multiculturalism and social cohesion. By reviewing various policy examples and case studies, this subject aims to help students understand the realities of international migration and its policy challenges. The third segment will analyze the global governance of international migration, including the roles of international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and international laws. This subject is offered by Asia Institute, and will use many case studies of Asian countries, while covering the experiences of Australia, the US, Canada, and some major immigration countries in Europe as reference points as well.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject is an introduction to contemporary approaches to inclusive social policy through the lens of ageing. Students will specifically explore issues and challenges that have arisen due to population ageing and discuss topics such as paid and unpaid caregiving, retirement and financial inclusion, and social isolation and loneliness. Students will engage with case studies of programs and policies to consider how governments and NGOs have attempted to address these issues. The subject will also draw on students’ own experiences of inclusive policy development and implementation and learn how to defend their practical policy ideas through scholarly arguments and evidence.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject covers the five eras of Indigenous policy and introduces a set of strategies for analysing and evaluating government policy in a range of fields. Applicable in all policy areas, analysis and evaluation skills are often required in government agencies, industry and community organisations in order to identify the impact of policy and provide direction on opportunity for change.

Indigenous affairs is frequently associated with narratives of failure. This subject provides the opportunity to understand the cause of those narratives and work within strengths-based approaches to analyse and evaluate of key policies in Indigenous affairs.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Special Topic: Rethinking Social Welfare

This subject surveys theories of what it means to be ‘at the margins’ and their uses in critically understanding contemporary social welfare regimes. The subject’s focus includes examining how the Australian social security system has shifted from the principles of ‘fair and reasonable’ economic support to increasingly conditional and punitive practices of ‘protecting’ communities. The subject locates this shift as part of broader socio-political processes of both representation and repression: from the role of the media in perpetuating stigma and dehumanisation to the settler-colonial logics that can operate within social support programs. As part of understanding forms of marginality and their interplays with the concrete practices of social welfare, students are invited to interrogate the intersections of age, class, dis/ability, gender, sexuality, and race. In addition to its critical momentums, students will speculate on the (im)possibilities of improving social welfare for marginalised communities through proposals like a universal basic income.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Subtitle: Families and Citizenship Through an Intersectional Lens

Feminist Social Policy takes a comparative and critical approach to understanding and evaluating social policy and policy-making at a national and international level. This subject aims to critically explore normative assumptions about what constitutes the family, parenthood, youth, marriage, disability, child and elder care. Students in this subject will be encouraged to broaden and deepen their understanding of how social policy is organised and impacted by these social, cultural, economic and political normativities by drawing on contemporary theories of intersectionality and citizenship. Taking a feminist perspective, this subject will outline key shifts in women’s employment trends, de/familisation, blended and chosen families, global fertility rates, disability rights, and welfare provision. Students will have the opportunity to explore themes of intersectionality and citizenship throughout their engagement with the subject, as well as articulate a comparative analysis of social policy from across the world.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The human service and welfare systems are meant to support us through life, from early childhood to old age. Yet they may fail to address our real concerns; placing conditions on who can receive social support or managing our needs rather than enabling us to thrive. How have governments attempted to address various social issues and support social groups that have traditionally been marginalised or disadvantaged? This subject tackles these questions by engaging students in a range of case studies related to social inequality. In this context, students will apply their understanding of gender, age, disability, geographic disadvantage, sexuality, and ethnic-migrant status and analyse the approaches and frameworks governments have designed to address inequality through these axes employing a systems approach. Integrating conceptual and programmatic insights, students will develop critical and practical skills necessary to drive systems change in their own policy work.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject investigates the linkages between social policy and development within lower-middle income countries. The November availability of this subject is taught as a University of Melbourne Overseas (UMOS) Subject in Indonesia, with a special focus on social policy in Indonesia. By learning 'in-country', the subject draws from the experience of Indonesia to understand the roles played by different actors (government, civil society organisations, international organisations, the private sector, and communities) in responding to complex social policy issues related to poverty, welfare and wellbeing. This includes considerations of environmental change; access to livelihoods, employment, health and education opportunities; and the ways that challenges and opportunities may vary for different social and identity groupings. The subject examines examples of multi-stakeholder approaches to responding to complex social policy challenges in large states like Indonesia, often through collaboration and innovation. The subject also explores debates on the relationship between social and economic development and the implications for social policy in multi-level and decentralised governance structures. Students learn from their experience examining these issues in Indonesia during the teaching period and apply this in their first assessment. The broader readings for the subject also examine similar social policy issues in other countries in the Asia Pacific. Students then use both their Indonesia experience and broader learning from the reading and their own research to investigate similar social policy challenges and responses in other country contexts in the Asia-Pacific for their second assessment.

The November availability of this subject is taught as a University of Melbourne Overseas Subject in Indonesia with our partner institution the University of Gadjah Mada. The subject will involve Masters students from both Melbourne and Masters students and staff from our Indonesian partner university. This provides an exciting opportunity for students from each University to learn with and from each other to gain deeper knowledge on tackling inequalities and understanding real-world development challenges and responses through social policy in lower-middle income countries. The subject also uses teaching mediums that connects students with experts in the field in Indonesia. There is a quota for this subject. For further information and to apply: https://arts.unimelb.edu.au/students/overseas-experience#graduate-subjects.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject examines the relation between Indigenous peoples, justice and the law, through the lens of sovereignty. It reflects critically on the concept of sovereignty, its powerful propensity to transcend its social origins, and its fortress status in law. Through first examining European law’s relation to Indigenous peoples from 1492, the course explores correlations between Europe’s economic expansion and the development of sovereignty, property, and race as key notions that underpin both individual nation-states and the international order they constitute. In bringing this analysis to bear on contemporary aspirations for structural justice, the course then considers the possibilities and limitations of current legal concepts and mechanisms – in both local and global domains – such as prevailing notions of sovereignty, native title, human rights, crimes against humanity, and transitional justice. Finally, the course presents examples of innovative contemporary interventions in support of structural justice in settler states, promoting new ways to think about their complex pasts and presents, and possible future directions.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This experiential learning subject introduces students to the fundamentals of social entrepreneurship, while equipping students with a practical understanding of social enterprise as a model to tackle social and/or environmental problems through trade. Working in small teams, students are introduced to a range of design thinking and social innovation frameworks. They draw on these frameworks to iteratively conceptualise, ‘pitch’, refine and develop a social enterprise ‘business model’ that appropriately responds to the needs of communities and society. To nurture and support development of ideas, the subject draws on real-world case studies as well as industry guests from the social enterprise ecosystem including social entrepreneurs, people with ‘lived-experience’, social finance and impact investment intermediaries, incubators and accelerators and leading scholars and thinkers in the field. Upon completing this subject, students will develop a critical understanding of the theoretical foundations of social entrepreneurship and how to develop a ‘business model’ for financially sustainable social impact. By doing so, the subject also offers a unique opportunity for students to apply conceptual knowledge and project management and business skills to real-world social and/or environmental challenges.

View detailed information in the Handbook

An increasing global focus on program effectiveness and efficiency has brought renewed attention to the role of evidence in designing and implementing health programs. Students of this subject will engage with the discipline of implementation science, and will investigate a range of current theories and approaches to program design, including: Theory of Change; program logic models; logical frameworks; complexity theory; behaviour change theories; emergent design; participatory/co-design approaches; and approaches to scale-up.

Facilitated by experts with applied field experience in program design and implementation in Australia and other global contexts, students will learn via practical, staged exercises to draft strategic program plans. A range of case studies on current health challenges and interventions will build students’ knowledge and skills in evidence-based health program design and implementation. Cross-cutting issues in program design will also be considered and applied to case studies, particularly the issues of participation and inclusion. Students will be asked to consider evidence requirements and real-world compromises in programmatic research and planning within Australian and other global settings. This subject will equip students with the knowledge and skills to operationalise their program design skills through best practice approaches to program implementation.

Health Program Design & Implementation is a block mode intensive subject. It has a combination of online content which can studied in each student’s own time, combined with live seminars and workshops held on six days across the two week period. Selection of study mode (online or on campus) determines the mode of attending these seminars and workshops. Students are expected to commit approximately 40 hours to learning each week.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The subject explores the policy decisions, usually made by governments, that determine present and future country or regional level objectives relating to health services; programs; and the regulatory, organisational, social, cultural, physical and natural environments that contribute to population health and well-being. The subject explores the nature of health policy, types of policy instruments, and policy making processes including agenda setting and policy influencing frameworks and theories. The role of evidence in policy formation including the significance of the balance between effectiveness, efficiency and equity as objectives of health policy will be debated. In doing so, students will be introduced to the importance and process of policy analysis and explore the relevant legal, political, managerial, sociological, ethical, epidemiological and economic perspectives to instrument selection and policy implementation across a range of health policy contexts. Australian and international country contexts will be used throughout the subject.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This course explores the interface of policy and practice in the delivery of aged care services. The responses to policy shifts in aged care over time will be explored. The course will then focus on the present day impact of health care, mental health, income security, housing, and employment, educational and recreational policies on the delivery of services to older citizens collectively and as individuals. Case studies will be used to illustrate both the theoretical and practical aspects of designing and delivering services.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject, which is taught in Indonesia, investigates the fundamental issues around the changing nature of work; what it means for individuals’ working lives, employers, labour market institutions and regulations situating Australia within a comparative context. The subject reviews how digital technologies, automation, offshoring and emerging forms of employment (e.g., gig work, remote work, digital platform jobs) are changing labour market dynamics in Australia, Europe, North America and Asia. The subject also examines the different policy responses that have characterised this trend while highlighting the implications for corporations, organizations and institutions within a comparative perspective. Elements of the subject will be presented in conjunction with Gadjah Mada Universitas in Indonesia.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Cities are increasingly where the majority of the global population lives but also where some of the starkest issues of inequality, environmental degradation, and social conflict occurs. This subject uses tools from social policy to address intractable problems related to urban life. It gives students conceptual tools to grapple with social policy issues that are urban in nature, and it deals with city spaces and municipal governance. It offers an introduction to issues such as social problems connected to housing affordability, conflicts over neighbourhood spaces, addiction and recovery, homelessness, workforce mobility and commuting, and non-profit service providers in high density areas, to name a few. Students will enhance both their analytical comprehension of the intersection between urban planning and social policy as well as their practical skills as practitioners in this space within non-profit institutions and local government.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject introduces and analyses critical concepts and terms central to debates over climate change, including risk and uncertainty, adaptation and mitigation, burden sharing, and problems and issues relating to regimes, strategies and policy instruments for addressing global warming. The subject considers the rise of climate change as a policy problem. It reviews and analyses the history of climate change policy as it has evolved nationally and internationally. It examines the interactions between national and regional climate policy, including in Australia, the United States, the European Union and China. It analyses debates and concerns that have led to the evolution of the Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol, and more recent arrangements. Students will consider a range of policy instruments, including carbon taxes and emissions trading, and technologies that have been proposed or deployed to address this issue. This subject enables students to understand the evolution of a critical global environmental issue. It offers insights into technical, political, ethical and ecological issues that have framed climate change policy, and enables students to think critically about and participate in developing policy in this domain.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject engages with critical concepts and issues related to environmental politics and policy. Special attention is paid to the political dimensions of policy development and implementation, with reference to national and international domains. Students will be introduced to relevant theories, cases, and tools for policy makers and environmental activists. Students will consider a variety of case studies including climate change, ozone depletion, water management, land conflict, forest preservation, waste and 'sustainability planning'. Case studies will be drawn from Australia, Southeast Asia, and other global contexts. The subject is taught through a combination of lectures and seminars. Students will gain a practical understanding of issues confronting policymakers and other political actors in relation to a range of environment problems and solutions.

View detailed information in the Handbook

It is perhaps obvious that human behaviour is having a negative impact on our environment. Behavioural change, thus, is pivotal to ensure a more environmentally sustainable future. However the question of behavioural change is vexed. Some argue that humans are ‘naturally’ greedy and selfish, others suggest that we are ‘puppets’ - the victims of the social structures engendered by capitalism, and yet others trust that good behaviour will follow from the ‘truth’; knowledge about environmental problems. These and other views of behaviour set up particular change strategies. The above examples suggest three strategies for changing behaviour: provide people with incentives that will lead them to ‘choose’ different behaviours, or the transformation of social structures such as capitalism and patriarchy, or the provision of environmental education.

This subject examines the question of behavioural change from a number of disciplinary perspectives (psychology, sociology ecology, marketing and economics). Each discipline ‘sees’ the problem differently and this allows us to map insights and gaps in these knowledges. These purported differences can be understood and reconciled; behaviour is show to be a function of the physical, social and psychological aspects of social practices. This allows for a more holistic understanding of behaviour and the strategies that might create behaviour change.

NB: This subject uses a ‘flipped classroom’ mode of delivery. Most weeks require the watching of a vodcast prior to attending a 2 hour seminar. The success of the seminars and student learning is governed by individuals’ preparation and participation. This subject covers a lot of theory and requires active engagement. The consideration of societal behaviour change will likely engender a consideration of your own behaviour, including as a student.

Topics and themes include:

The effect of disciplines: behaviour and behavioural change from the perspectives of psychology, sociology, behavioural economics, ecology and marketing
How insights afforded by the disciplines can be used to create an more holistic and integrated understanding of behaviour change
Critiquing programs for behaviour change

Weekly topics: (1) Defining behaviour, (2) Perspectives: Behavioural Economics, (3) Perspectives: Marketing, (4) Perspectives: Psychology, (5) Perspectives: Sociology, (6) Perspective Ecology, (7) Integration, (8) Strategies: Social Marketing, (9) Strategies: Nudge, (10) Trans-disciplinary Perspectives 1, (11) Trans-disciplinary Perspectives 2

View detailed information in the Handbook

Formerly FOOD90026

This subject examines the politics of the global food system, and will focus on the policies, structures, power relations and political debates surrounding the production, distribution and consumption of food. The impacts of food production and consumption on food security, health, the environment, animal welfare, and the livelihoods of producers, will be critically explored. Key theoretical frameworks and concepts for understanding the dominant paradigms and dynamics of the food system will be discussed and evaluated. Integrated policies and strategies for creating more sustainable and equitable food systems, and alternative paradigms and practices of production, distribution and consumption, will also be critically examined. This subject will primarily draw on theories and methodologies from the sociology and politics of food and agriculture, food policy, and the political economy and political ecology of food.

The topics and debates covered include:

• Food policy and governance at the global, national and local levels
• Food security, food sovereignty and the Global Food Crisis
• Global trading relations, free trade and fair trade
• Environmental impacts and sustainable forms of food production and consumption
• Animal production, factory farms and animal welfare
• Supermarkets and alternative retailing and distribution networks
• Agricultural paradigms and technologies: chemical-industrial agriculture, genetically modified foods, organic agriculture and agroecology
• Corporate concentration within and across sectors of the food system
• Competition for food and land: animal feed, biofuels and land-grabbing
• Food processing, food marketing, dietary advice and health
• Local and urban food production and planning
• Alternative paradigms and networks of food production, distribution and consumption

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject provides an introduction to the key environmental challenges in contemporary China and to China’s environmental governance. The subject is structured around four topics: water resources, land resources, air pollution, and energy and climate change. For each of these topics lectures and tutorials will analyse impacts, policy and governance arrangements, citizen and NGO involvement, government and media discourse, and international linkages. Students will be introduced to key theoretical debates in China studies, development studies and human geography to help them understand the complexities of China’s environmental challenges. Using the environment as a lens, students will gain an understanding of politics and state-society relations in contemporary China.

View detailed information in the Handbook

This subject provides a broad-based overview of contemporary China, exploring key features of the country's increasingly complex and dynamic society. Topics covered include the economy, environmental challenges, political processes, cultural change, civil society, and China’s engagement with the global community.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Indonesia’s emergence as a democratic and decentralized power and Southeast Asia’s only member of the G20 is transforming its relations with its ASEAN neighbours as well as the major regional powers. As a functioning democracy and the largest Muslim nation, Indonesia has a particular position in the global Islamic community. Moreover, a distinctive and activist foreign policy faces profound challenges from geopolitical shifts and from the vicissitudes of globalisation. These same geopolitical shifts will also transform Indonesia-Australia relations, albeit in uncertain ways. This subject will address the effects of the interaction of domestic and international factors on Indonesia’s future trajectory as a nation-state, locating Indonesia as an agent within historical and contemporary global dynamics. To augment the regular classroom sessions, Indonesian and Australian experts and practitioners will also provide guest presentations.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Migration is a powerful driver of social change across the contemporary world. This subject explores the key issues and debates at the intersection of migration and development, drawing on conceptual, theoretical, and empirical work in economics, development studies, gender studies, human geography, anthropology, sociology, demography, and political science. Through class debates and practical exercises, students will engage critically with the conceptual models and theoretical frameworks used to analyse migration and its impacts on development. Core concepts - including transnationalism, neoliberalism, forced migration, global care chains, governmentality, and global householding - will be examined and critiqued. The subject also considers the economic, social, and cultural implications of migration for development processes at both micro and macro levels, assessing its relationship to broader debates on globalisation, poverty, gender, and social change.

View detailed information in the Handbook

The use of project management techniques has risen sharply. Examples of projects include research and development studies, reorganisation efforts, implementation of change programs, installation of a new piece of equipment, advertising campaigns, construction, organising special events and other one-off endeavours. The subject will cover the key drivers of project success, training and leadership in project environments. Project selection is the first critical set of decisions. Matching of the projects selected to the organisation’s strategy is taken as the starting point. Practical tools and techniques will then be introduced to manage the project or special event for success. The subject will also involve the use of an appropriate Project Management software package such as MS Project.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Conflict between individual and groups is an inevitable aspect of day to day life. This subject will review the nature of conflict in the workplace and the conflict management strategies of influencing and negotiation. Students will be given the opportunity to apply negotiation techniques to case studies and in simulations.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Leadership is a pivotal part of every formal and informal group, every community and organisation. Leading involves a critical connection between the individual capacity of a leader and the formal authority and responsibility vested in the position they occupy. It is personal and structural; it is something learned and practised every day; it is rooted in deep aspects of personality, gender and culture.

This subject helps students develop leadership skills by examining the attributes of leadership and the roles that leaders play. It does this through a dialogue between contemporary leadership theory and the ‘classic texts’ of authors such as Sophocles, Machiavelli, Shakespeare, Camus and Sun Tzu. The subject examines how these classic texts position the leader in different contexts, noting how they: develop a vision and goals; build support and deal with threats; impose costs and create alliances; and find a moral compass. We use contemporary leadership theories and cases to interpret these 'classic' studies of leadership and to see what works and why.

Seminar discussion and analysis of leadership theory will be complemented by guest speakers, and opportunities for group discussion and critical self-reflection.

This subject is compulsory in the Executive Master of Arts (MC-EMA). It is open to students in other graduate coursework programs with the written permission of course and subject coordinators.

View detailed information in the Handbook

Moral decision-making is a practical skill which we exercise many times a day, confidently and accurately. Sometimes, however, we face situations of moral complexity or novelty, where it is not obvious what we should do. In this subject, we look at the ways in which moral theory can assist us to think about such situations, particularly as they arise in our working and organisational life. We begin by examining the nature of moral reasoning, and then see how it can be applied to a number of ethical issues which we are likely to encounter in our professional lives. These issues may include, autonomy and paternalism, role morality and its relationship with personal morality, whistle-blowing, free speech in the workplace, personal and professional relationships, corruption and bribery, conflicts of interest, and privacy and confidentiality. We focus on the factors that help or hinder ethical action in organizational settings, including both structural elements (such as role clarity, avoidance of perverse incentives, accountability mechanisms) and personal traits (such as cognitive biases and moral (dis)engagement). Case studies will provide a focus for reflective work: students will be encouraged to develop case studies from their own experience, and pursue their own interests.

View detailed information in the Handbook