Communities in Control 2012 Conference | Melbourne, May 28-29

Communities in Control is Australia’s biggest and best annual gathering of community sector workers, volunteers and supporters – each year bringing together a stellar list of speakers and hundreds of people who work in or care about community to listen, debate, network, exchange strategies, and recharge. Click here for program details and registration. CPD’s James Whelan will present a keynote on ‘Big Society’.

Public Service research presentations

View summarised presentations of CPD’s public service research here. Big Society and Australia: How the UK Government is dismantling the state and what it means for Australia This report presents a comprehensive analysis of the UK’s ‘Big Society’ policies and programs and examines their potential impact if adopted and implemented in Australia. It seeks to contribute to an informed debate about the merits of ‘small government’ ideologies and policies that often receive less than critical … more

Christopher Stone | Thinking ahead: a budget for more than this year

In his article on ABC’s The Drum, CPD researcher Chris Stone suggests a different way of thinking about the budget, and  makes important predictions about budget night media and political commentary which he claims is driving a serious and repeated problem: “A national economy is a lot more like the Titanic than a speedboat; significant changes in direction take a long time. This means that if we think there’s an economic iceberg 30 years ahead, the … more

 

Ian Dunlop | The Future of Energy: The Most Likely Scenario – Emergency Action

The Future of Energy: The Most Likely Scenario – Emergency Action is a submission by CPD fellow Ian Dunlop as a response to the government’s 2011 Draft Energy White Paper (DEWP). The DEWP confirms perceptions that the Australian Federal Government is, as yet, unwilling or unable to face up to the strategic risks to which this country is now exposed from the integrated climate change and energy dilemma. Some key concerns include: •  Climate Change and Energy are inextricably … more

Taegen Edwards on Post Carbon Pathways | BayFM Spin Cycle

Taegen Edwards speaks to BayFM’s Karin Kolbe on the recently published report Post Carbon Pathways: Reviewing post carbon economy transition strategies. Edwards outlines the key government policies and non-government projects from across the globe that address climate change at the scale and size that is required. In particular, Edwards promotes World in Transition, a report by the German Advisory Council on Global Change as a key solution, as it sets concrete structures for countering the social … more

 

Essential Vision | Should We Fear a Big Society?

CPD’s recently released report, Big Society: How the UK Government is Dismantling the State and What it Means for Australia outlined the ways in which David Cameron’s Big Society policy has crippled certain state funded services in the UK. The policy has become a household term in the UK, and is debated and criticised among many in mainstream media, yet here in Australia the phrase is little heard of. CPD executive director Miriam Lyons warns of the … more

Chris Bonnor & Jane Caro | Chance to put money where it will make a difference

In light of the Gonski Report, Chris Bonnor  and Jane Caro discuss some of the report’s findings and recommendations and the state of the education system in Australia today. “If someone had predicted 30 years ago that education funding and policy decisions made then would lead to an Australia where even Labor politicians felt that they had to pay a lot of money to get a decent education for their children, they would not have … more

Chris Bonnor | Gonski’s In. It’s Time To Act

There’s remarkable consensus that the Gonski recommendations are spot on. The danger? That Labor will stall too long before implementing them, writes Chris Bonnor. I’m reliably informed that whenever you talk to Labor politicians about school funding they start to twitch, and mumble “Mark Latham hit list”. Helped along by numerous commentators they are spooked by the 2004 election and the policy to cut private school funding. Regardless of any serious analysis of that election, … more