Yellow wattle (Acacia) - Three versions - English, Spanish, Indonesian

Ian Campbell’s trilingual poem series explores the Acacia genus, Australia’s national floral emblem, across English, Spanish, and Indonesian. Inspired by Campbell’s family history and A.J. Campbell’s 1921 Golden Wattle – Our National Floral Emblem, the series examines the cultural and ecological significance of Acacia in Australia, Latin America, and Indonesia. Each version reflects linguistic and regional nuances, showcasing how the essence of a shared theme transforms across languages

Ukrainian Labour Migration to Europe During the War: A Review of Current Realities

International migration plays an important role in shaping the global economy, serving as both a source of financial resources for countries and a means of balancing demographic and labour disparities across nations. Labour migration, in particular, is integral to the redistribution of labour and capital, influenced by varying levels of economic development, natural resource availability, and technological progress. While globalisation has facilitated the movement of people and strengthened international cooperation, migration patterns are significantly affected by military conflicts. The ongoing war in Ukraine has intensified these dynamics, prompting a significant outflow of Ukrainian labour to Europe. This review explores the economic, social, and demographic impacts of this migration, analysing its effects on host countries and the complex challenges it poses for Ukraine, particularly regarding demographic stability and post-war reconstruction

El Estallido Social and ICS Chile 2019

This reflection recounts the extraordinary experiences of the 2019 In-Country Study (ICS) Chile cohort during Chile’s Estallido Social, a period of intense social and political unrest. Despite facing immense challenges, including civil unrest and disruptions to their studies, the students demonstrated resilience, adaptability, and a deep commitment to their host communities. Through their collective efforts and independent explorations of Chilean society, they exemplified the global citizenship and intercultural skills nurtured in the International Studies program

Looking Ahead with the New International Studies

As I write this, the world seems to be in a more precarious position than it was 30 years ago, when the Bachelor of Arts in International Studies (BAIS) at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) was established. In 1994, the Cold War appeared to have come to an end. That year an Accord was signed between Israel and Palestine, and Yasir Arafat, Shimon Peres and Yitzhak Rabin won the Nobel Peace Prize. The discourse around global climate crisis had not yet emerged. The sharpened international geopolitical situation since 1994 cannot be sheeted home to our program, of course. But in 2024 the need for graduates with the skills, insights and cultural intelligence that language and culture learning and an immersive overseas experience gives—that our international studies students possess in spades—has clearly not diminished, hence the evolution of the BAIS into the Bachelor of International Studies and its exciting new options for international education

A Transcultural Experiment: U.S. Latino Studies at UTS

In 2001, shortly after I joined as a newly minted academic the Institute for International Studies at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), the then founder and Director of the program, Professor David Goodman, approached me to canvas the possibility of a Latino USA Major in the Bachelor of Arts in International Studies (BAIS) degree. These are my reflections on this transcultural experiment in international studies at UTS

The Heritage Major within the Bachelor of Arts in International Studies at UTS 1996–2007

The Heritage Major was introduced in 1994 specifically for those students who had a language facility and ethnic identification with a country that was not offered in the broad suite of sites available to Bachelor of Arts in International Studies (BAIS) students enrolled in country-specific Majors at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). These are my reflections as the coordinator of the program between 1999 and 2007

Experimenting with twilight learnings and twilight writings for community engagement

This contribution explores community engagement through the collaborative practice ‘Twilight Learnings – Seasonal experiments in the Tiny House on Wheels (THoW)’. In this article, we show that a reflective community can start to emerge through sharing experiences and knowledges in a confined space that is simultaneously connected to society in a fractal scaling (O’Brien et al. 2023) way. Some of the participants grew so fond of reflecting together on hope, allies, uncertainties, pain and frustrations, that they continued to build the community by articulating themselves through follow-up interviews and through writing together in different ways. We document hidden and ‘marginal’ stages of a research process allowing longer timeframes so that practitioners and scholars can write together in a slow science (Stengers 2018) approach. This article mainly explores three aspects of community engagement: 1) reporting on community-based research and practice and reflective experiences in a workshop in the THoW; 2) reflecting on collective writing processes through performative writing 3) meta-reflecting on scaling and performativity. In other words, this article contributes to how knowledge production and world-making can go together through community engagement that extends into writing

Tsunamis in the Japan Major: Shifting Tides and Resilience

This reflective piece on the Japan Major at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) marks three decades of the Bachelor of Arts in International Studies (BAIS), now the Bachelor of International Studies (BIS) since 2022. The past 15 years have been especially transformative for the Japan Major, shaped by two significant events: the devastating tsunami on 11 March 2011 and the declaration of a global pandemic on 11 March 2020. Remarkably connected by a single date, these events frame a reflection on resilience, adaptability, and the evolving practices of global education, with student experiences at the forefront. Using the word ‘tsunami’ both literally and metaphorically, this essay explores how such shifts challenge and inspire pedagogical approaches

Writing research differently

This themed volume explores writing research differently: both the social practices that might foster experimentation and participation and the semiotic innovations needed to articulate knowledge plurality in our published scholarly texts. This collection of community-based research articles explores the many ways in which the standard genre conventions of the research article – order, structure, headings, images and quotes – can be creatively called upon to make visible on the page other worlds, other futures, other ways of knowing and being. Together, they demonstrate that coherence and cohesion – clarity – come in more shapes and forms than generally admitted, and can be welcoming frameworks for the rarely admitted: hope, sustenance, complexity, conflict and change

Malaysia’s Warm Weather as a Metaphor

Conveying one’s sense of belonging to a country can be challenging. Often, it is expressed in a rather cliché, impersonalised manner. However, the clever use of imagery could evoke relatable, authentic and lasting impressions. Borrowing from a local Chinese folk song genre, Tan & Teoh (2006)’s “Yong Malaixiya de Tianqi Shuo Ai Ni (Let Me Use Malaysia’s Warm Weather To Say, I Love You)” carries immense love for their native land using an apt metaphor of the “warm” Malaysian weather. Located on the Equator, Malaysia experiences high temperatures all year round. Malaysian hospitality is likened to its weather, and this admirable quality is apparent in the way of life of Malaysians, the country’s culture and traditions. Unable to exploit the vibrant or changing seasonal colours of temperate countries, Malaysian songwriters use this endearing weather metaphor to call attention to its warmth, serenading readers with a unique romance and catchy refrain