I get so much pleasure from helping others…develop their thinking. At a time when it can feel that thinking is under threat…the art of building concepts is something that we should cherish and protect as social scientists.
In our first issue for 2026, congratulations to Fellows receiving Australian Day Honours, plus a wealth of opportunities for Fellows to become more involved with the Academy. View the February 2026 newsletter
Academy Fellows recognised with 2026 Order of Australia honours
I try to focus at the intersection between things that need doing and things that I’m good at; most of these are in the cultural dimensions of environmental issues, including climate change.
My career has largely focussed on the use and production of quality information and insights, drawing upon the best available evidence.
I am passionate about exploring the role of Indigenous business in facilitating self-determination.
Professor Rosemary Sheehan Affiliation: Monash UniversityDiscipline: Social workYear elected: 2021 What initially drew you to your field of study? My professional qualification is as a social worker, and I was influenced by growing up in Canberra at a time when there was considerable migration, especially men arriving after working on the Snowy Mountains Hydro Electric…
My research focuses on how to obtain accurate and detailed information from people about events to assist decision-making.
The Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia expresses its deepest condolences following the horrific terrorist attack on the Australian Jewish community attending the Chanukah by the Sea event at Bondi Beach in Sydney. We mourn the lives lost and stand in solidarity with Fellows and all others who have been affected by this senseless…
Professor Adrian Barnett Affiliation: QUT (Queensland University of Technology)Discipline: Econometric and statistical methodsYear elected: 2021 What initially drew you to your field of study? Some bad luck. I wanted to study English, but only got a D in my A-level. My best A-level was a B in mathematics/statistics, so I decided to study statistics at…
I teach and research Indigenous knowledges, decolonisation, racism, anti-racism, cultural safety and related topics.
In this issue, annual events shine in black and gold, congratulations to Fellows on end-of-year achievements, and new Strategic Plan ready for release. Click to read newsletter.
The length of the working day and the challenges of work-life balance are pressing issues for many Australians, as well as lively matters of public controversy. While the winning of the eight-hour day is celebrated as a past industrial achievement, contemporary discussions of working hours often overlook its rich history. Tracing 150 years of campaigns…
Academic, author and activist Professor Marcia Langton AO FASSA FTSE has been awarded the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia’s Rechnitz Memorial Award – a new award created to recognise excellence in research leadership and advancement of knowledge of Indigenous society, culture and language A descendant of the Yiman and Bidjara nations, Marcia has…
This book, extensively revised and updated in its second edition, presents a comprehensive overview of housing policy in Australia over the last quarter century. At a time of widespread concern about declining housing system performance, it investigates the many dimensions of housing affordability and housing wealth inequality, together with government actions affecting these outcomes. The…
Conceived in 1950, the Colombo Plan for Co-operative Development in South and Southeast Asia was a unique experiment in foreign relations. Meeting annually across what we now know as the ‘Indo-Pacific’, talented administrators facilitated foreign aid provision, and promoted development fuelled state-making, internationalism and experimental regionalism across postwar Asia. David Lowe argues that this new…
In this issue congratulations abound for Fellows, both new and established, achieving wonderful things, read policy and international updates, find registration details for our AGM, and introducing the new magazine for Fellows, Socium.
Professor Emeritus David Horner AM FASSA is one of Australia’s greatest military historians and its fifth official historian of war and military operations. Few who undertake research in the field can do so without consulting his prodigious, authoritative and definitive publications. Serving for 25 years in the Australian Army before joining The Australian National University,…
My work is about futures and I’m researching how we will live in 2030 and 2050
30 Academy Fellows are among recipients of ARC Discovery Project funding, announced this week. The Fellows and their projects as follows. The Academy extends its warmest congratulations to these Fellows and to all other researchers awarded funding in this round.
Many social policy texts examine specific social policy debates at a point in time and offer mostly technical interpretations of why existing or amended policies and programs have worked or not worked. In contrast, this text presents a comprehensive historical and political analysis of four policy areas where reform was achieved after many years of…
The ASSA-CASS Joint Action Program awards grants to teams of social scientists from Australia and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS). These grants are suited to early-career Australian researchers to collaborate with a researcher from CASS in areas of shared interest. The Academy would like to thank Fellows for their time and expertise in…
Academy President, Professor Kate Darian-Smith, said, ‘The appointment of all new Fellows to the Academy is a recognition of their remarkable contributions to the social sciences as researchers, policy leaders and public intellectuals. We are incredibly proud to welcome them to the Academy.’ ‘This year’s cohort exemplifies the Academy’s mission to support and amplify…
Professor Matthew HornseyAffiliation: The University of QueenslandDiscipline: PsychologyYear elected: 2018 What initially drew you to your field of study? Existential panic really. Since 2007, humans have emitted over a quarter of all the greenhouse gases ever emitted by our species, and last year global CO2 emissions hit a record high. In that context, overcoming polarisation, conspiracy…